Guruvani: 'We need to keep children focused'

What is the biggest professional challenge that you face in your role as a principal?The single biggest challenge is how to keep children focused on right learning, given so many distractions that come in the shape of too much data, knowledge and technology. We cannot keep students oblivious to the new, so we must channelise them to correct data.Once a teacher, always a teacher. Do you agree?When one chooses to be a teacher, it is a passion to learn and to teach that drives him/her towards this profession. Learning is a lifelong passion for them which never stops. And neither does the desire to disseminate knowledge. So, teaching and learning become a lifelong quest. On the other side as well, people associate teachers with someone they learn from and even when they move on beyond academics. To them a teacher still remains someone who can teach and who can be emulated. Success has become an obsession with people of all ages nowadays? Comment.Success has become an obsession with people of all ages. Everyone wants to be successful, and there is no harm in that. Positive obsession or passion towards a goal is one of the key factors that make a person successful. However, it depends on one's ability or inability to dissociate oneself from the outcome of his/her efforts. And this decides whether one's obsession with success leads to a healthy or a toxic success or a failure. A balanced approach towards success is more advisable. What in your view is GenNext's biggest strength? Which are the key areas of improvement?Today's generation is smart, curious, energetic and technologically advanced. They are open to experiment, innovate and move away from traditional careers. Their ability to grasp new ideas and information is exemplary and that's what their strength is. With the kind of information they have readily available, there are no limitations to what they can achieve. They are the future and I personally believe that if given right guidance, they can bring laurels to their country and the world.Given the diverse needs of today's youngsters, what emphasis do you put on teacher training?More and more children these days are learning beyond classrooms. Online courses, YouTube videos, various online programmes or simple static information lying around on the internet and books are opening up new avenues to the children. The problem comes in identifying the correct from factually incorrect and good from not so good. That is the foremost challenge today's teachers must be geared for. Teacher training should be emphasised to highlight teachers as enablers of right learning. And that means they need to be trained. As per the changing needs of today's generation, they need to be groomed with TDP's (teacher development programmes), which are also provided by HT.How can the elderly contribute to students' all-round growth and development?Elders play an important role in imparting morality and providing emotional stability. They should spend more time with the children to enhance their understanding of the world outside and to help them cope up with everyday situations. With life experience, emotional intelligence and balanced focus the elderly can contribute to students' development.What according to you is the role of media in education?Media reflects the values of society. With an ability to bring knowledge, innovations and technology to everyone's reach, media has a great role to play in education.Tell us about your leisure activities and how you spend time with family and friends?Beyond work, I love to spend time with my family, going on vacations for quality time together. I volunteer for social responsibility projects. And in “me-time” I love to listen to light instrumental music.