Taylor-Henninger Wedding Geneva, NY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swQ6h03-0_0
Type this YouTube link into your brouser to see the stroll down the aisle video- it was too big to load onto the blog.

Andy and Stephanie had a beautiful fall wedding on Lake Seneca. The weather was spectacular with blue skies and water the color of the bridesmaid's dresses. The football theme matched the season and their fanatical following of their favorite teams- Penn State and Syracuse. The vows were exchanged in the afternoon under a tent on the lakeside. The strings played softly as the bridesmaids and young flower girls and ring bearers processed down the aisle.

The bridal party had a special cocktail hour on a beautiful houseboat out on Lake Seneca before the wedding reception began at the hotel on the lakefront.



The cocktail hour for the quests was out on the decks looking over the water and the wedding feast was inside the hotel. The food was very good with lobster, steak and tuna as the main course. Steve, father of the bride, gave a sincere speech and played a special song for Andy-"Take Good Care of My Baby." Joe, father of the groom, said some beautiful words and the best men and maids of honor also had words of advice for the happy couple. Stephanie put together a sweet video of their lives growing up which we all enjoyed. The DJ was really good and we danced and had a GREAT time celebrating together. Andy gave a short performance as a Blues Brother which was STELLER!




It was so good to see the Chando siblings together enjoying a family celebration. I know Mom Mary Chando was smiling and nodding her approval from heaven over this moment of family unity. She would have been so very proud and happy on this special day. It was so sweet of Stephanie to design a unique bead with Bo and Mary's picture in miniature form on MaryAnne's nosegay. As Mom would have said, "Beautiful!"

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MAH00004.MP4 Carl at the Seattle Fish Market July 29, 2011

Sleeping and Sightseeing in Seattle July 2011

We are part of the earth and the earth is part of us. Chief Seattle

Downtown Seattle is full of steep inclines and great views of the water and harbor. The area and flora is so beautiful- no wonder Chief Seattle loved this part of the Earth and mourned losing it to the white man.

The Renaissance Hotel was a great home base for the weekend. Carl was able to eat fish as much as he wanted on the trip- halibut, salmon, Dungeness crab, Pacific crab cakes, mussels and shrimp.



View from the Renaissance Hotel 28th Floor Lounge of the harbor and downtown with local beer and Washington State white wine One of the highlights of the sights for us was the 1962 World's Fair Space Needle where we ate dinner the first night. I kept expecting George Jetson to make an appearance any minute. (cue the theme music) The weather was perfect with great visibility so we could see Mt. Rainer with a low cloud ringing the base of the mountain. This mountain doesn't look real in the distance, but more like a photo shop image. We enjoyed walking around the Pioneer Square area and briefly stopped at the Klondike Gold Rush Museum before our Underground Seattle Tour. Seattle has an interesting history and some great architectural examples. Our next stop was the Pike Market and the Seattle Piers. There is so much going on down close to the water. There were extra visitors in the area because the city had a huge parade scheduled for later in the day on 4th street downtown. We saw a float of wild Clowns rolling around the waterfront and a green bus full of Pirates who hassled people on the streets. The most interesting parade we saw was by the "Gray Panthers" with a Dixieland Band and placards on saving Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, etc.
We ate lunch at Beecher Cheese Shop which is famous for their handcrafted cheese and macaroni and cheese dish. We watched the cheese makers work on the cheeses through a glass window while we ate some great cheese sandwichs. The flower, fish and vegetable vendors were lively and so colorful. We stopped at a second story umbrella Bolivian Restaurant called Copacabana for some sangria and a little local beer so we could watch the street action from up high. That is when the Pirates made their entrance into the market place. ARGGGGGGGGGG!
The evening cruise on the Argosy Line out to Blake Island allowed us to see Seattle from the water- such a different perspective! The night was clear and beautiful for the 45 minute ride out to Tillicum Village on Blake Island. This concession specializes in fresh salmon bake dinners with a native American floor show. The meal starts out on the lawn of the longhouse with clams in broth and then moves indoors. The food was simple and very good. The dancers in their masks carved from wood were the perfect touch. The cruise back to Seattle was so pleasant and the Space Needle at night was spectacular! the charcoal fires they cook the salmon on at Tillicum Village Space Needle view from the boat back to Seattle from Blake Island Mt. Rainer makes an appearance to say goodbye as we fly out of Seattle

4th of July in Alabama "Down on the Farm"

Rejoice with your family in the beautiful land of life! ~Albert Einstein

Forest Church
Enjoying some farm-fresh food down on the Farm

All of the extended Chandos and Mark's Melissa traveled a little over 3 hours south to spend some quality time down on the farm together. This old farm house on Robin Road in Ethelsville, Alabama belonged to my great-grandmother and grandfather Johnson from the late 1800s and is part of my earliest memories. I remember when it was a working farm and there were chickens in the yard and horses and cows in the barn. In more recent years my parents spend the summer here and plant a big garden to eat and share with family and friends. Forest United Methodist Church is where my parents married and most of my relatives are buried in this church yard. It was little Preston Field's first trip to the farm and we all wanted to show him off in church!

One of the fringe benefits of a trip to the "Farm" is the fresh vegetables we bring back home with us. Carl and I put up green beans and made homemade salsa with the tomatoes and hot peppers we brought back.

MAH00017.MP4 Molly and Natalie in Dublin Irish dance class

MAH00015.MP4 Amy Cluck- Irish dance teacher's pet!

Dancing in Dublin June 2011

Book of Kells
"bog" man 400BC
U-2 Studio
St. Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin



“One hundred thousand welcomes” spoken to us in Gaelic.

“There are no strangers here- only friends you’ve yet to meet.”

So true! We arrived in Dublin and went to our hotel- the Best Western Academy- another very good location and a very nice hotel. Dinner in the hotel that night was superb! Trout or chicken as the main entree. After dinner we went straight away to the Irish dance lesson at the Music community center on a beautiful square in a suburb of Dublin. The ride there was along the Irish Sea. This was beautiful at sunset with sailboats on the water and homes facing the sea. There was an unusual tree I asked about and the bus driver called it a Monkeypuzzle tree. He told us we would have some good craic (good fun) tonight in the Monkstown area on the southside of Dublin. We drove past the 60s era architecture of the American Embassy and saw the Four Seasons Hotel where Bon Jovi was staying before his concert the next night.

The dance master at the musical community center was excellent and used Amy as his assistant and dance partner to demonstrate- I took video of this and be sure you watch it!

The students learned the Irish jig and the following dances:

Walls of Limerick and the Siege of Innis

These are couples dances with floor patterns as well as steps
In the bar area there were local Irish musicians playing together some traditional music- we had a great time at our dance lessons!


The Dublin City Guided TourThe first stop was The Children of Lior- a swan story and the gardens have a sculpture of the swan changelings in the Garden of Remembrance. Across the street is the writer’s museum of Dublin. The Parnell Square district and the Gate Theatre are near our hotel. Charles Stuart Parnell is known as the uncrowned King of Ireland. We drove by the Spire Monument and the General Post Office- GPO- A site of rebellion here in Dublin.

In the 18th century Dublin was a wealthy town, but earlier it was a wooden Viking city of the 9th century. So much of the old sites are destroyed here in Dublin.

In 1591 Elizabeth I, the Protestant Queen, started a Protestant university- Trinity College. Many famous writers attended this college ex. Jonathan Swift.
There are 15,000 students on a 40 acre campus.

We drove by the Molly Malone Statue- the Tart with the Cart-look her up!

We saw Marion Square of the 1750s with Georgian style architecture and then went to a garden memorial for Oscar Wilde with a statue from 1997 made of jade, porcelain and tulite- he wrote A Picture of Dorian Grey and has many famous quotes.
On Fitzwilliam Square there is a doorway that is frequently photographed for postcards :#46 a double doorway decorated for the King’s visit which has 5” high steps so ladies did not show too much ankle when they approached the door. The social season then went from January to March. The 1798 Rebellion resulted in the British closing the Irish Parliament and property values in Dublin fell in the 1800s because there was no social season anymore.

UNESCO Named Dublin a world site for literature because it has produced so many fine writers throughout history. James Joyce wrote “Ulysses” 1904 and the 16th of June is called Bloomsday to remember this work.


It is said that there are 700 churches and 1000 pubs in Dublin!

Christ Church 1172 is restored and has a Dublinia exhibit that is really good. Here is the crypt and the old city gates of 1240 with part of the original walls. We drove by there on our way to St. Patrick’s Cathedral. This is early English Gothic Style- Jonathan Swift was a Dean of the Church and he wrote Gulliver’s Travels. St. Patrick’s gardens were lovely.We saw magpie’s here—there is a superstition saying here about magpies and pregnancy:
One for sorrow
Two for joy
Three for a girl
Four for a boy!

On our city tour we drove by the 1800s red brick buildings of Guinness factory- St. James Gate Brewery is the entrance to the factory.The Brazen Head of 1198 is the oldest pub in Dublin.

The River Liffey separates Dublin into North and South sides.

Phoenix Park in Dublin is 4 times larger than Central Park in NY and contains the zoo which is one of the oldest in Europe. It was once a royal park in the mid 1500s and totally private until the 18th century. In this park is the Papal Cross where Pope John Paul II held outdoor mass in 1979 with 1 million people in attendance. Here is also the Ambassador’s Residence for the US which is much prettier than the embassy and the President of Ireland's House- this is also a deer park.

Windmill Lane- U2’s Recording Studio- photo stop- they now have a new one nearby. The graffiti on the walls here are works of art- amazing!
Saw the wooden ship Jenny Johnson which is a replica of the type that sailed to the US after the potato famine

Our visit to Trinity College and the Book of Kells 800AD manuscripts of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John in Latin on vellum of calf skins. It took 180 calves skins for 1 book. There are two pages open and on display at a time. A page from Matthew was on display with very intricate artwork. Peacocks were a symbol of the incorruptibility of Christ, peacocks were said to not putrefy after death and their feathers regenerate too. Snakes were a symbol of renewal and rebirth because they shed their skins. There are lots of these symbols on ancient texts.

Trinity College Library is most impressive! When you walk in you think, 'Now THIS is a library!" -A long narrow room with a very tall ceiling/barrel with busts of Homer, Aristotle, Socrates, Boyle, etc. The very oldest books in the library are in the room and also the oldest harp in Ireland made of maple and willow.There was an exhibit on medical practice and the history of the medical college at Trinity College- very interesting documents and pictures.

Free time after the college tour-so we went to Grafton Street for lunch. We ate at Davy Byrnes- Panini sandwiches, soup, and roast beef sandwiches. All very good and there we lots of locals dining in this restaurant.

We walked to the National Museum of Archeology and History- beautiful displays of gold artifacts, jewelry, hairpieces, coins. Many of these objects were found in hoards and discovered on farms or during turf cutting. Outstanding “bog” men- total of 41- we took pictures of many of these men and their information from the year 400 BC.


St. Stephen’s Green Park was perfect for a rest so we sat by the pond to watch ducks and swans + a lot of pigeons (males trying to impress the females-hubba hubba) sea gulls landed and stole the pigeon bread and broke up the party. Lots of young people in this park enjoying the pretty weather. We met the group at Trinity College and walked back to our hotel- about a 20 minute walk- watch the dodgy traffic lights ya’ll- very short and fake you out on the beeps. People are KILLED here while crossing the street.


For dinner we walked to The Shack Restaurant in a trendy restaurant area near Fleet Street. We heard a Scottish bagpipe band perform near the restaurant in a square. The food was traditional Irish and there was an 18th century crack in the wall which was labeled- deco was neat with books and plates on shelves.

Some Irish/Gaelic vernacular we learned on this trip:
Craic= having a good time
Pog Mo Thoin= kiss my --- in Gaelic
One-two-tree, one-two-tree! That is waltz or jig time for your information!

MAH00008.MP4 Molly on Victoria Street Edinburgh

MAH00011.MP4 Natalie at The Beehive Inn on Grassmarket in Edinburgh

MAH00012.MP4 '"ROCKY " scene on the steps in Edinburgh- go Amy and Natalie!

Edinburgh, Scotland June 2011

Auld Reekie Tours Ad
spit here for luck
Castle at the top of the Royal Mile
















We rolled across the border into Scotland and did a photo stop. Once in Edinburgh we checked into King James Thistle Hotel **** at Princes Street & Leith Street-a perfect location to walk a couple of blocks to the Royal Mile.

A city tour of Edinburgh really helped to orient us to this city. Edinburgh is at 56* North Latitude which is the same Alaska. The weather was brisk this morning.
We drove around the corner from the hotel and there was a Catholic church with a relic of St. Andrew inside. Most of the churches here in Scotland are Presbyterian.
We went by the Bank of Scotland- they have their own currency recognized by the Bank of England. Finance is a big deal in Edinburgh with 25% of the population dealing with financial matters.

A lot of the architecture in Edinburgh is Neoclassical from 1776 and the time of George III. On the tour we saw Robert Louis Stevenson's home: wrote Treasure Island and Child’s Garden of Verses-a row house with a blue door.There are cobblestone streets here in this district.#51 Albyn Place is the former home of Sir James Young Simpson-the inventor of chloroform.

The Edinburgh Medical School is premier in the world—there are 4 universities here with a total of 45,000 students. The New Town District and Charlottes Square are famous because Alexander Graham Bell was born here in 1847. There is a high tourism rate in Edinburgh.

The Balmoral Hotel is almost across the street from our hotel and is very famous- near the rail lines too. There is a statue of the Duke of Wellington on the corner next to our hotel. There are 5 million people living in Scotland. High Street is known as the Royal Mile in Edinburgh and is the connector between Holyrood Castle and EdinbUrgh Castle up on the top of the hill. It is the main shopping street of Edinburgh.Down at the Queens Gallery of Holyrood Palace at the foot of the Royal Mile there are wooden doors with unicorns and lions and flora like the thistle for Scotland and the rose for England. There is an old 12th century Augustinian Abby ruin which had no roof from the time of Henry VIII and a hunting park legend about a threatening stag that was stopped by a cross appearing so the monks marked this space as holy.


When the Queen comes to Edinburgh there is a ceremony of keys to admit her- the Queen gets keys to the city of Edinburgh. A state visit is very busy for her- embassy personnel are invited to a garden party at Holyrood.
Queen Victoria’s Drive was built during reign of Albert and Victoria- they built Balmoral Castle too. The plants I photographed are foxglove (digitalis) growing wild.The tall mountains are actually 3 extinct volcanoes in Edinburgh. Hutton wrote The Treaties of Geology which was very controversial because of the Church view of creation.

From Edinburgh it is only 45 miles to the Atlantic Ocean and there is a view of the North Sea with a 70 mile visibility. The Firth of Forth is the body of water seen from Edinburgh Castle.6000 years ago tribes were terrace farming this area.

JK Rowling of Harry Potter fame had a favorite coffee shop (Elephant House) she credits with inspiration for Harry’s birth. She lives in the area. There is also a street that provided inspiration to her as she wrote the series.

Edinburgh is called Auld Reekie due to the smoke from Victorian coal fires- gas is mandatory now.Edinburgh is a festival city and August is the main month- the population triples in August and the stands are put up at the castle for the Military Tattoo.

The Edinburgh Castle Tour We saw the Scottish Crown and Scepter and sword- the Stone of Destiny on display (The Honours of Scotland) St. Margaret’s Chapel is small and the oldest surviving building on castle hill. The Great Hall is from the 16th century and has a hammer and beam roof- inside this structure is where Mary Queen of Scots gave birth to James I (aka James IV). Up on the castle hill there is a one o’clock gun that fires to set the clocks and also to save money. There is a dog cemetery for soldier’s guard dogs. Mons Meg is the largest cannon up there.We toured the Prisoner of War exhibit and saw the hammocks and inscriptions from some American sailors in the 1700s and then exited the castle proper.

The girls went shopping on the Royal Mile and Amy and I went to the Edinburgh City Museum farther down the Royal Mile. There were displays on very early history of the city with pottery, silver, glass, wooden water pipes, the story of Grey Friar’s Bobbie, Haggis, food like neeps (turnips) and tatties (potatoes). We played with the seal press of Edinburgh on silver paper.
Outside the museum they were filming in period attire in the rain.
We walked the entire Royal Mile more than once today!!!

Auld Reekie Tour of Edinburgh Underground: The Ghost and Torture Tour
This is one of the most haunted places on EARTH! We started above ground with the area behind St. Giles in the parking lot which was once a cemetery and moved a few steps over to a heart-shaped square which was a place of public execution near the gaol. There is a heart called the Midlothian Heart and it is good luck to spit on it as you pass. The guide told us about the prosecution of witches and the test to reveal if you were a witch. The rain started coming down so we quickly transferred to the torture room of Auld Reekie Tours to discuss the implements of torture on display(I wouldn't want to melt!?). There was a headpiece designed for nagging wives with a tongue press attached, there was a child’s thumb screw, a male castrator tool and a chastity belt- we did not go too deeply into much of this because there were a couple of younger students age 10 on the tour. From this room we entered the underground vaults of South Bridge passing down stairs and a corridor. The area we entered was very dark, damp and musty with rain trickling down the walls from the streets above. Our guide told us the first haunting instance was a boy named Jack who was looking for his mother. A person would feel his hand in their hand down there. The Wiccan circle of stone room was viewed from the street/hall and we had to stay out of this circle or we would have bad luck. Another story concerned the Edinburgh Oven Room- the fire of Edinburgh raged above this area and women and children were down here and cooked to death because they could not escape. There is a poltergeist in this room due to the large number of deaths. The most haunted place is the back left corner of the room and has the most recorded activity- Look on YouTube under “Haunted Edinburgh Vaults” for the 4 part series (p.s. One girl and her mother left the tour on the first hall- too scary). After the tour we walked back to the hotel in the dark of night with our imagination working overtime.

MAH00002.MP4 Molly has a Harry Potter moment in Oxford, England

Exciting England

Hadrian's Wall and the Roman Ruins

York
Warwick Castle
Stratford-upon-Avon
Oxford Dining Hall
Oxford University and the gardens

Trafalgar Square in London



"London society is full of women of the very highest birth who have, of their own free choice, remained thirty-five for years." -----Oscar Wilde

I tried my best to be part of London society and act younger than thirty-five on this June trip to London! The young company of Molly and Natalie and my younger co-worker Amy made it very easy to feel young and free in London. Highlights of our visit June 21-23 included the tour of the Tower of London with the crown jewels and Beefeaters, Trafalgar Square with fountains, street performers, statues, plus the Olympic countdown clock, the National Gallery of Art to see Van Gogh, Degas, Michelangelo, Botticelli, da Vinci and El Greco masterpieces, the British Museum with the Elgin Marbles, Rosetta Stone and Egyptian mummy exhibits, and an evening in the West End Theatre District to see The Phantom of the Opera in Her Majesty’s Theatre. We mastered the London Tube system, ate Shepherd’s Pie and Fish and Chips at the Sherlock Holmes Restaurant and were up close for the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace. Westminster Cathedral still had some Will and Kate souvenirs to purchase too. I know I felt like mini-royalty on this whirlwind visit.

June 24th we traveled to Oxford to visit the university campus. The gardens, chapel and the dining hall were spectacular. The dining hall was used in two Harry Potter films and is so full of history and portraits of great men. Our next stop was Stratford-upon-Avon to honor the Bard: William Shakespeare. We visited his childhood home and the Hathaway Cottage; so many beautiful English gardens in both places. We ate at a Baguette Barge on the River Avon and then Amy and I walked to Holy Trinity Church (1465AD) to visit the grave of Shakespeare. This visit was one more check on my to-do-list in life.

June 25th was spent at Warwick Castle (1356 AD) roaming Caesar’s Tower at 147 feet and Guy’s Tower at 128 feet tall plus the dungeons (that’s over 500 steps to climb). Madame Toussaud’s wax figures made the castle years of 1471 and 1898 come alive for us. The Terrible History Torture Tour was a great learning experience on the plague, torture, court system and early medical practice of medieval times and provided some comic relief: “No refunds for sniveling wimps!” One special event we experienced was the Ghost Tour of Warwick Castle- all the tales of the ghosts of the place and why they haunt the castle.

The tour of the north of England included York with The Shambles and a Cornish pasty of meat and cheese along with Clifford’s Tower and a tumble on the stones for me- ouch-the ankle is a black and blue mess! The time in historic Yorkminster Cathedral inspired awe especially when one realized the spot is associated with the Roman Emperor Constantine. The next stop was magnificent wind-swept Hadrian’s Wall and the moors and heather stretching into the distance. The Roman fortification ruins along the Wall were covered with frolicking sheep too!

Global Perspective on Teacher Exchange with India

Tea planatation workers
Student art depicting Mother Theresa




Bust of Gandhi in Assam State Museum

“This blog is not an official U.S. Department of State website. The views and information presented are the grantee’s own and do not represent the Teaching Excellence and Achievement Program, the International Leaders in Education Program or the U.S Department of State.” (required disclaimer)

The TEA and IREX Programs under the sponsorship of the United States Department of State have allowed me the opportunity to grow professionally and learn in a very unique environment. I must confess that I am a “culture junkie.” As a child growing up in a small town in Alabama I read of far off places and dreamed of travel and experiences. I traveled to India and other exotic locations in my dreams and through literature only. On my business card I have this quote from St. Francis of Assisi: “Start by doing what’s necessary; then do what’s possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible.” As a teaching professional I have been so fortunate to have the opportunity to live the seemingly impossible dream.

In my opinion exchange programs between educators are essential in the modern world. Isolation and ignorance must be overcome if we are to work together for peace and the mutual benefit of the students of the world. In my travels I have learned that we share so much more in common than we realize most of the time. Parents everywhere want their children to succeed in life and know that education is the path to improve their lives and circumstances. People want truth, justice and fairness in their daily lives and worry about the environment and the future of their countries. Foreign students have preconceived ideas of American life that are based on television coverage. I did my best to answer student and teacher questions and let them know that the media and reality TV programming does not represent the vast majority of American citizens. The streets of America are not paved in gold and we must all work to earn a living no matter where we happen to reside.

I use my travel experiences almost daily in the classroom. Students immediately pay closer attention when a personal story or anecdote is given in class. We all love a good story and to hear of personal experiences from people around us. This adds interest and complexity to the presentation of world literature and stimulates students to read more and travel themselves.

This is my closing IREX post, but I want to ask you to take the time to read the other six or seven entries under the IREX label. Because I am a “culture junkie” my best writing and reflections are on the culture of India: the food, the street life, fashion, religion and the Rhinos of Kaziranga National Park. I had such a rich experience and met so many wonderful people on this trip. I can honestly and sincerely report that the hospitality of the Assamese people of India is unparalleled in the WORLD!

Thank you to all the teachers, students and administration of Maharishi Vidya Mandir School for their hospitality and sharing of the Assamese and Indian culture. Thank you IREX for selecting me for this prestigious program and also special thanks to the U.S. Department of State for their foresight in sponsoring this teaching exchange.
Please read on………..

Educational System Observations on Indian Schools: Guwahati, State of Assam, India

Student work at Maharishi Vidya Mandir School

Staff at the Autism, CP and Mental Retardation School I visited

Tell me and I will forget, Show me and I will learn, Involve me and I will understand-------Teton Lakota (American Indian saying)

The teachers of Maharishi Vidya Mandir School in Guwahati and other regional schools I visited the past two weeks are doing a wonderful job of engaging and involving students in learning. Our educational systems are very different in many respects, but as I told the Indian students in question and answer sessions, there is little difference in teaching styles- a teacher is a teacher wherever you go no matter what the circumstances.

I have witnessed some very fine teaching and learning taking place in the schools in India. In an English class I observed a student skit on a story they had just completed: The Nightingale and the Frog. The students had created simple head pieces and body attachments for costumes and each assumed a character in the piece. The speech was clear and the actions were staged well for the space allowed in the crowded classroom. The skit was well designed and the actors had equal parts that they performed with relish. They opened the floor for questions after the skit finished. The students conducted the class under the supervision of their teacher. The next class was a 9th grade section and they were conducting a review in English in the form of a team competition. A student recorder kept score on the board and each team posed student generated questions to the other team on Mutiny on the Bounty and the poems and life of Wordsworth. The students really tried to stump each other and asked difficult and detailed questions. The feeling in the room was intensely competitive! Another excellent class I observed was a 6th grade science lab for 39 students on mixtures. The teacher placed key words on the board and page references and students stood in front of the class and demonstrated portions of the lesson using different easily obtainable everyday items like lentils, pebbles, flour, rice and soil to demonstrate components of mixtures, pure substances and separation techniques. When the students completed their presentations, the teacher followed up with a recap of the lesson and a homework assignment.

My urban host school set up visits to other educational institutions so I could have a better picture of schools in the northeastern states of India. I visited the Modern English School in a more suburban part of Guwahati. This school is expanding and has built a new multistoried building with some smart boards in the classrooms and a computer lab. The class numbers are still high, but this school has focused on improving technology. The school has 1800 students on a secure and gated campus. The campus has some beautiful plantings and a very tropical feel. As in the other schools I visited, classrooms are not air-conditioned. There are numerous ceiling fans to help move the air in very hot classrooms- everyone seems acclimated and no one complains. Here in Memphis, Tennessee we have air-conditioned all the schools in the belief that extreme heat compromises learning. This does not seem to be the case in India because learning is on-going even in extreme heat and humidity!

Special education students are not educated in the general population in India. This is one major difference in our educational systems. I visited a very special non-profit private school that serves students with Autism, Cerebral Palsy and Mental Retardation. The school has a section for out-patient services and evaluation with physical therapists and a special education teacher to evaluate children. The physical therapist on duty showed us a special room he has put together to test young patients’ sensory development. The PT room was in use with an evaluation of a baby who has not started speaking or walking yet. The staff of two physical therapists was working with the child as the mother sat and watched. The room colors were bright and inviting throughout this school with wall murals and ceiling paints to stimulate students to look up and strengthen neck muscles. The manager and business director of this school who is wheelchair bound himself is especially proud of the newly renovated computer lab which is nearing completion. There will be ten specially adapted computers with head controls instead of hand operated mouse controls, special chairs with neck rests and special software to support speech and other needed skills for the school students enrolled in this unique day school facility. The ratio of staff to student is 1:3. We toured at lunchtime so students were self-feeding if they could or receiving assistance from the staff. Some inclusion does occur with community outreach events like talent shows, environmental walks, etc. In the more advanced age group we met a couple of students and visited with them. Victor has CP but normal intelligence and will graduate from school in a couple of weeks. The two talented young men in this classroom sang us a Christian hymn so beautifully tears ran down my face. This song was totally unexpected and the sweetest moment! This school is truly an educational oasis for the students it serves.

On this trip I learned about the class structure of the school systems in India. After completion of 10th grade, students test in various subject areas to begin to specialize and move on to pre-college and university courses. The math and science areas are the most competitive. The class structure is called 10+1 and 10+2 not 11th grade or 12th grade. The students begin to prepare for the SAT so they can enter a university. We stress education for the masses in the United States while the Indian system is much more selective due to the population of India.

I did not visit a public school on this trip. I do know that every parent that can afford to pay tuition enrolls their child in a private school. There are thousands of schools to consider with different focuses for a grammar school/high school experience and even more special colleges and universities. I have NEVER seen so many educational institutions in such a compressed geographic area. Education is of the utmost importance to Indian parents. They work very hard to provide the best education money can buy for their children.