Dawa's Visit to The Alice Project School

Dawa is the full-time teacher hired by Lhomon Education to teach the monks at CGI and to develop integrated curricula based on the LME Framework. A large part of this initiative will be providing training opportunities for Dawa. His first training was at the Alice Project School in Sartnath India. Here is his detailed and very interesting report.

At the invitation of founders Valentino Giacomin and Luigina Di Biasi, I visited The Alice Project School in Sarnath, India for one week in March, 2013 in order to observe their teaching methods and receive training that can be transferred to our classroom here at Chokyi Gyatso Institute in Dewathang. The Alice Project is near the beautiful Buddhist ruin where Buddha first taught. Graced with an environment of green trees and plants, the school provides not only a home for many animals and birds, also a place for young children to discover their inner true self. The following is a brief reflection of my visit. 

"Ciao Aunty!" children in a corridor call out to Luigina. Ciao is Italian, for good morning/evening. Ciao! she replies immediately. She is like a mother, gently holding the hands of students, tugging their uniforms, hugging and kissing. She spends a couple of minutes talking with each student despite her busy schedule. She has an inspiring quality as a teacher, while she interacts with the children. Personally I feel, that teachers should have these values as a part and parcel of their intimacy. Her love and kindness to all the children with no discrimination has gained the children's love equally in turn and they have in fact strong familial relationships rather than mere teacher/students relationships. During own my schooling, teachers were teachers and students were students. There was a big gap between us, which created fear, confusion, hostility and lot more. Teachers were viewed as fearsome. I vividly remember jumping off a wall to escape their view. I learned some very important skills from Luigina about how to establish good relationships with children. Yet, I admit there is always a room to grow and learn more.

The Alice Project is a non-governmental organization that was formally authorized by the Indian government in 1994. Its purpose is to develop an integrated education through experiences and research. Luigina and Valention founded these schools one in Sarnath and another in Bodhgaya. Today these schools offer education to more the one thousand students. Recently another school had been opened for Chakma children in Arunachal Pradesh.

The Alice Project methodology is based on the concept of unity. There are no divisions by different nationalities, traditions, religions in an ideal multicultural and pluralistic society. Lack of unity is not only a social concern but it is also a personal concern in relation to ourselves. It's here that research for psychological unity starts, a unity that goes beyond division created by confusing mind.  

They schools are following the Indian state government syllabus for the traditional disciplines, which are taught according to western methodologies, plus an additional curriculum of their special educational programme- Yoga, concentration, art, mythology, comparative religion, moral science and ecology.

"Like Alice who embarked on a great adventure and did not lose herself in Wonderland (in the book by Lewis Carroll) but found an inner guide in the form of the White Rabbit. In a same way we should guide our students to discover their true self," says Luigina. "Our students need to be able to find their way in the world around them through understanding their internal world" she added. "Understanding the internal world needs experiences and we are providing those to our children," she added.

When asked about the inner world Luigina said, ''What is going on in yourself? What can we see? what are our thoughts? our feelings? Our emotions? What is our reality? We call all this our internal world, which cannot be separated from external reality.''

Today's education system is built on separation and on classification. In school we tell the children to look at a tree. The tree is divided into three parts - roots, trunks, leaves. Is it really that the trees are divided into three parts or they were long ago, some botanist took a pen and wrote down that the trees are divided into three parts-and the idea came to an existence. Now we tell students, this is a truth, go memorise it, if you don't, you will fail in your exam.

According to Luigina, this kind of knowledge is poison. It is not truth that the trees are divided into three parts. What is true is that we project what is in our mind. Everything we perceive outside comes from our filter, our thoughts, believes, cultures, religion, principles and an environment we are raised.

The first clang of a bell calls students' attention to take their seats on the carpet. They take out their shoes and slippers around the edge and sit in their respective lines. At once, hundreds of students begin their morning  prayes. They are dressed in sky blue shirts, dark purple pants or skirts, dangling purple ties from the middle of their chests for junior grades.  The girls wear long blue knee length skirts. The morning breeze through the green tall trees, plants and flowers fills the gathering. A pigeon on a 'Y' shaped branch listens to the melodies prayer and often in between a sparrow adds to the chorus with their chirps but it is dominated by a tune of hundreds below. 

After the prayer the students sit on the carpets cross legged. A teacher stands on the floor in front of the gathering with a small bell in his right hand. He shakes it vigorously so that the sound is audible at the rear. He speaks in Hindi through a microphone held in his left hand. ''Students, sit straight, close your eyes, think about an enemy whom you have hurt. Ask yourself why did you hurt him or her. Dissolve their harsh words and pay attention to your breath. Know that you are inhaling when you inhale and exhaling when you exhale. Visualise 'OM' in your mind.'' Then in an ascending tone they chant OM...OM...OM... three times. Thus, a day begins with looking into the Internal world of self.

Being a Buddhist myself, born and raised in a society where Gross National Happiness concept was created, exploring the nature of mind and discovering its inner most quality has become a basic reliable foundation. Meditation can be a universal path of internalizing into one's own unexplored working of a mind. I realized that simple daily contemplative practices in school are very important from an early age. The education we give to our children must bring benefit throughout the individual's life and even in their next life, which I think is possible through training our mind-meditation or whatever we call it. If taken into consideration meditation would provide a unique platform for our young and unspoiled minds to discover the mind system at earliest possible. At times meditation becomes investigational lab for our children to become mind scientists. The production of hundreds and hundreds of mind scientists could begin from schools and one example could be Alice Project.

At the school, there is always some time reserved during the assembly hour to sing together in unison. Most of the songs are praises to god, value embedded and peace related. One of the songs was sung in many different languages (Hindi, English, Italian, African, Bhutanese et al). ''We will be in peace...'' followed by rhythmic claps. ''Bless the lord my Soul...''. I learned that singing songs together gives an opportunity for students to join as one, respect each other, learn and visualize the value images, work with tunes and compose their own songs.

I learned, that to cultivate the seed of a pure and good mind one should have an inspiring  environment as a fertile land and that must be constantly encouraged in our children's daily practices. At Alice Project there was a Tara temple which was dedicated to an universal peace; the long life of H.H. the Dalai Lama; Lama Zopa Rinpoche and Lama Yeshey, the gurus who inspired the Alice Project. There, the students from the Alice Project recite the prayer to Tara taking turns. The cosmic female energy is generated constantly by 24 hours uninterrupted recitation of her prayer. Many lamas have blessed the temple.

Yoga is a science of a body and a mind. I learned that there is an important relationship between yoga and meditation. Both the practices basically help in the development of children's concentration, calming the mind, and right growth of the body. To provide an opportunities for students to practice and learn yoga, the school has a separate yoga room and makes schedule for all the classes.

I observed several yoga classes and every time they begin with motivational prayer and meditation for few minutes. They dedicate their learning and again mediate for few minutes to end the session.

I am very impressed with the wonderful learning environment- training in tolerance and respect for all the religions, stress on interdependence, all so peaceful, friendly and happy. I feel very strongly that meditation would help our students to become better person in their life. As a part of pilgrimage I also went to see Alice school in Bodhgaya it was an inspiring school. I met with Valentino and he shared about the concern of western education system. He said  Bhutan has rich indigenous culture and tradition and it must be preserved and catered through education. If our education system goes wrong the story would be same as the crisis of ladhak and Nepal. So be careful with your education system he warns.

With this I would like to thank Valentino and Luigina for warm reception and great learning experiences you provided for me. Thank you so much for everything and my warm regards goes to you, your teachers, and to the students.  

  

Hello Everyone! We have been quiet for several months but only because of our internet issues. So much has been happening and we will start updating again regularly now that the wonderful Lopon Sonam Tenzin helped us get a much sought after broadband connection. The implications for our classroom are endless.

We are looking forward to sharing information about the mindfulness retreat, our experiments in the shedra classroom, the completion of our first unit, our vegetable garden, Lopon Dawa's visit to The Alice Project in Varanasi, and much more.

Mindfulness Camp for Bhutanese Teachers

The 2013 Lhomon Education Mindfulness Camp for Bhutanese Educators took place at Jigme Namgyal Polytechnic, January 5-12, 2013, in Dewathang, southeastern Bhutan. Forty people from across Bhutan participated in the retreat, which was lead by Paravi Wongchirachai of Thailand and Jamyang Choden of Berlin and Bartsham.

 

Lhomon Education is dedicated to providing opportunities for Bhutanese teachers to become more well-rounded, self-aware, creative, inspired "influencers" (to use our founder Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche's word) in the classroom. As Krishnamurti said, "The true teacher is not he who has built up an impressive educational organization, nor he who is an instrument of the politicians, nor he who is bound to an ideal, a belief or a country. The true teacher is inwardly rich…"

In a video launching Lhomon Education, Khyentse Rinpoche encouraged teachers to "be brave" and think with a "birds eye view" about their work as influencers. Bhutan was built on a foundation of guru disciple relationships where the qualities of the teacher are passed on in a very personal exchange by people who embody the truths they have studied. The camp was designed to help each person deepen their own practice of mindfulness and explore the inner workings of their minds so that they may benefit their students through such example. "Our goal was simply to give everyone a chance to experiment with integrating mindfulness in daily life," said Paravi.

The path LME presented was straightforward. It involved practice, practice, and more practice. Mindful sitting and walking began at 7:30 every morning and continued throughout the day with breaks for talks, recorded teachings, guided contemplations, stretching, informative and relevant group discussions, and journaling. Discourse ranged from the most practical discussion of cushion preference to deep philosophical explorations of belief. A selection of videos helped the teachers connect mindfulness to the classroom by showing how it has been used successfully in inner city schools and prisons.

Day one was difficult—knees ached, minds unused to the attention became even more unruly, people checked their watches and dreamed of tea time. "My late meditation teacher, Khunmae Siri, called it the 'roll-up my mat' stage of insight. Because all you can see are your aches and pains, and you just want to roll up your mat and go home," said Paravi. But by the end of the seven days, even when the bell rang after a 30 minute sit, participants sat immovable, ready to continue.

"I could keep going!" said Jambay, a teacher from Paro said of an extended guided meditation. "When they told us we'd been sitting for so long, I couldn't believe it." 

The intense sitting sessions were augmented by exercises designed to encourage the incorporation of mindfulness into every day life. Paravi had participants imagine moving through their morning rituals, from waking up to saying prayers, but with a new attention on their minds "undeceived" by distraction. Many said this was the first time they felt a genuine connection to their prayers and rituals. One day the entire group took a field trip to nearby Chokyi Gyatso Institute, Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche's shedra, to visit the lhakang and discuss the links between mindfulness and Buddhism.

"It's been a tightening of the screw for me," said Lhundup Dukpa of the Royal Education Council who brought five teachers from Paro. "Sometimes we need community to build or repair a few things."

It is customary for Bhutanese to receive DSA stipend payments to attend workshops but LME did not offer DSAs, not because of lack of funds but because we only wanted to invite those who were genuinely interested in deepening their mindfulness practice. So it was a dedicated and highly motivated group that turned up. "I gave up my holiday to be here and I am so happy that I did that," said one teacher from Paro and many echoed this sentiment. 

Dr. Andu Dukpa, Director of JNP took time out of his busy schedule to attend the entire workshop, not missing a single day. "This programme has benefited me professionally as well as personally and if possible, we should have a similar programme in future. This would benefit people from all walks of life. Thank you for choosing JNP to host the LME camp." 

We could not have done this retreat without Dr. Andu's kindness and generosity. He was consistently engaged and enthusiastic about the program from initial planning stages and in addition to being a great collaborator, he generously provided all the facilities. Thanks also to his wonderful staff and faculty, many of whom even voluntarily participated. As a token of our thanks, LME has committed to providing meditation cushions for JNPs new meditation club.

Mindfulness is an anchor that we can come back to at any time of the day. It gives people a basis for more sane and harmonious behaviour. On a relative level, there are immediate and tangible benefits. This is what Khyentse Rinpoche called "common shamatha." Many participants said that the mindfulness presented at the camp could and should be adopted by people from all walks of life and at all times of the day. "I am thinking about adding mindfulness to all of our meetings moving forward, so that it will become part of the culture of REC" said Mr. Lhundup. And he added, "I think this will spread very fast." 

By the end of the retreat, the group was more than just a random collection of workshop participants. "I feel like we are all now dharma brothers and sisters," said Pema from the Royal University of Bhutan. The camp ended with a screening of the entertaining German film Enlightenment Guaranteed and a simple dinner. 

We are deeply grateful to Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche, our teacher and founder, who suggested we invite Paravi and who guided us on the framework through which to make the camp a success. An enormous thanks to Paravi for taking so much time out of his busy schedule to be here and guide us so skillfully. Not only did he refuse payment for his hard work, he insisted on covering his own travel expenses and even made a financial contribution to LME. Many thanks to Yin-wah Ma and Leo Katsaitis for being our primary sponsors of the camp, and to Pema Nadik and Ana Rinzi and the monks of Chokyi Gyatso Institute for their contribution. Khyentse Foundation's annual grant covers all of our administrative costs, the backbone of our work. And to all the participants, the best thanks you can offer is to continue your practice.

“It is my hope that we can help children develop a broader understanding of the world around them as well as their internal world and how the two are so closely related. I feel certain that this new model of school education will be of great benefit not just for the children and families involved but can have a far-reaching effect on the world at large.”

Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche

Pilot Project Begins!

After two years of research and development, the Lhomon Education pilot project has begun in eastern Bhutan. The goal is to develop new methods and materials for the Bhutanese classroom. LME is fortunate to have hired a wonderful young teacher, Dawa, from Dagana central Bhutan.

Dawa voluntarily participated in the 2012 LME Curriculum Design Workshop and we were so impressed by his enthusiasm and understanding, as well as the easy manner in which he collaborated with our monastic participants, that we offered him the job on the spot. He has already moved to the shedra in Dewathang to begin teaching the 20 monks who were selected for the program. Every day these lucky boys will receive 3 hours of integrated, place based, project based holistic instruction.

We are taking extensive notes on the strategies we are using and all outcomes so that we can share the findings with others institutions.

The internet is very slow here so it will be difficult to write regular reports, much as we would love to. Every day offers exciting new discoveries and it's so gratifying to finally be able to put into practice all the methodologies we have been promoting for the past few years.

For example, on the first day, after a mindfulness exercise and introductory class building activities, we launched right into a project that required the boys to think critically while developing their English and math skills. We had 9 meters of fabric and 18 cushion that needed to be covered. What do we know and what do we need to know to design a cover? How much fabric do we need for each cushion? We taught them the old proverb "measure twice cut once" and they set about measuring and troubleshooting.

There are many different levels of education represented in our one class so we have been employing some differentiated instruction and co-learning strategies, partnering the more advanced students with those who have had little formal education. They are such a lovely group of boys, there is no sign of rivalry or cliques. They are eager to help each other out, eager to learn, happy to sweep the room after class.

So far we have no furniture, no computers, no textbooks (I'm hoping to order a set of 20 Wordly Wise books which served me so well at Santa Fe Prep decades ago, feel free to fulfill our wish list!) and yet we are able to conduct class. Eventually we will equip the room as needed. The Bhutan Foundation has offered us a projector and we will be purchasing a computer for Dawa to do his lesson plans and action research data collecting.

We will be inviting a select group of master teachers to join Dawa from time to time over the next two years to co-teach for periods of 2-6 weeks and in turn Dawa will be visiting alternative schools in the region and abroad to experience the best practices available. We hope that eventually Dawa will be able   benefit a greater number of Bhutanese students through this experience and professional development. We think he will be an amazing asset for the country.

Winter Mindfulness Camp For Bhutanese Educators

INTEGRATING MINDFULNESS IN DAILY LIFE

Lhomon Educaton

Winter Mindfulness Camp For Bhutanese Educators

How do we integrate mindfulness into our daily lives? To help Bhutanese educators express mindfulness in their everyday roles as teachers and community leaders, Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche has encouraged Lhomon Education to initiate a Winter Mindfulness Training Camp in Dewathang from the 5th to 12th January, 2013.

The week-long mindfulness program will be practice-oriented, with sitting and walking sessions, interspersed with short talks and discussions about strategies for Bhutan's spiritual education.

WHEN:                  January 5-12, 2013

WHERE:               Jigme Namgyal Polytechnic in Dewathang, Samdrup Jongkhar

WHAT:                  A practice-oriented workshop to help Bhutanese teachers

PROGRAM FACILITATORS

Paravi Wongchirachai is a lay student of Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche's. Growing up in Thailand, he was first introduced to the practice of mindfulness in the Theravada tradition, particularly from the vipassana lineage of the Burmese master, Mahasi Sayadaw. He has continued this practice informally in his daily life, as well as through his interest in the awareness traditions of the Vajrayana. Paravi has worked in the public sector through most of his life, in areas of public knowledge, design and heritage. A member of the subcommittee on cultural heritage of the Thailand Senate, he also sits on the boards of Thailand Creative & Design Center and Siam Society Under Royal Patronage.  Family and work pressures, as well as a personal struggle with depression over the years, led him to seek Khyentse Rinpoche's guidance on how to bring the Buddhist commitment of mindfulness into everyday life. His experience is based on both paths of awareness and devotion.

As requested by Khyentse Rinpoche, Paravi will be acting as a facilitator, along with Jamyang Choden, a disciple of Khyentse Rinpoche originally from Bartsham now living in Germany, and Noa Jones, who coordinates the Lhomon Education initiatives.

All meals and dorm rooms will be provided. Participants will be asked to bring their own bedding. DSA is not provided by Lhomon Society.

To RSVP please contact Noa Jones at 1734-8878 or noa@lhomon.bt by December 5, 2012.

Lhomon Education (LME) is dedicated to bringing education alternatives to Bhutan through teacher development and support initiatives and holistic curriculum design. LME is a project of the Lhomon Society, a registered CSO  founded by Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche in 2010. www.lhomon.bt/education.

PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS

During the program, participants are expected to make positive efforts in cultivating their own practice at all times of the day, in all postures, and through meal and break times. Some sessions will be silent.

To customize the training exercises, participants will be requested to answer a pre-event questionnaire.

Most of the group practice will be focused on dynamic exercises based upon the classical four foundations of mindfulness, alternating with short talks and group discussions. Practice will extend to mealtimes, during which participants are encouraged to maintain mindfulness throughout the process. A dharma film will be screened each evening after dinner. In the last two days, the group will explore how to adapt mindfulness to meet the pressures of modern Bhutanese life, as well as how mindfulness can refresh traditional practices of devotion and transformation in Bhutanese Buddhism.

DETAILED TIMETABLE TO COME

"The essence of compassion is to copy how you relate with your child (in your relationships with others). The problem is how much you want to be the head of the family or the ringleader of your friends. You know, if that ambition is not there, but you have a genuine willingness to share, that is precisely the concept of sangha, or the Buddhist community, in traditional terms. You are willing to be friends with everybody, but at the same time you are not particularly taking credit. You don’t make people depend on you. Everybody can stand on his or her own feet. The ideal of helping is to make others independent of you. You help them to become more independent rather than making them addicted to you."

-- The Venerable Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche

CDW Part 4: Tarayana Foundation

Karma Wangchuk, a programme officer at the Tarayana Foundation, attended the Curriculum Design Workshop as the lone representative of his organization. Since much of the workshop was based on group activities, he had his work cut out for him. But Karma showed dedication and enthusiasm for the work and carried on to present a very convincing final presentation that illustrated his grasp of the material. 

When we met up a week later to discuss the next steps that Tarayana could take, Karma was still very enthusiastic about the experience and said one of the most lasting impressions was Dr. Tho Havinh's use of the Four Noble Truths as a lesson planning tool. Dr. Tho is setting up a new GNH Center in Bumthang, by the way, a project to be watched!

It was a pleasure to have Karma at the workshop, he was an active participant, fully engaged, insightful and willing to go the extra mile. He developed an entire KUD on his own. Below is how he used the Four Noble Truths to address the issue of rural to urban migration. I think he raised some excellent Essential Questions, particularly the last one. We mustn't underestimate the capability of rural villages to understand the concept of systems that control them, and by understanding those systems they will be better equipped to find their own strength and resiliency. 

SUFFERING: Rural to Urban Migration

CAUSES OF SUFFERING: Often rural villages are not aware of their role and worth, there is growing lack of respect for the traditional way of living, mis-representation of town and city life in media, they don’t know the difference between need and want, lack of proper facilities (market, cooperatives, banks, hospitals, schools), new roads, media/television.

CESSATION OF SUFFERING/GOALS/OBJECTIVE: To support villages and rural communities in such a way that the youth don’t feel the need to migrate. Drawing attention to the fact that village life can be fulfilling and interesting.  Provision of facilities.

PATH: Providing relevant education and facilities not simply transplanting urban education and facilities, instead creating unique models of education, cooperatives, self help groups and promoting ecotourism.

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS:
Why money is not equal to wealth?

What will happen if all the rural communities migrate to urban areas?

What will happen if all farmers give up farming?

How will electricity change our lives?

How do roads change the community?

Does sending your children to government school affect the family and community? Is it always a positive?

What systems control our lives (environmental, family, government, corporate)?

Good Job Karma!

CDW Part 3: Royal Education Council

Thimphu group's final presentation.

The Royal Education Council sent the largest group of all the partner organizations: 12 teachers from its seed schools in Thimphu and Paro for the entire workshop, plus four Master Teachers for the first week.

This was a challenging group because 1) they are the most bound by existing structures imposed by the ministry of labor and therefore the least flexible when it comes to making institutional wide changes and 2) they are the most "workshopped" bunch of them all. After working long hours for long weeks for long months, their only vacation time is spent...at workshops. At these workshops they are given mountains of good ideas but then they must move those mountains into their little classrooms. So they had our sympathies.

Thimphu group hard at work.

All that said, they also worked very hard on imagining a different way of teaching. Pawan Gupta explained to them that textbooks are a means not an end and encouraged them to extract only what is relevant and meaningful from textbooks but then to use the local and natural environment as the text. "Be Brave!" was our motto throughout the workshop and of all the groups, the REC gents and madams had to be the most brave.

The Thimphu group did a great job presenting their "take aways" including many of the active learning strategies we had modeled and some of the methods we illustrated including: Multiple Intelligence, Brain Based Learning, Listening Skills, Theater in the Classroom, Subject Integration, Project Based Learning, The Four Noble Truths for Lesson Planning, and, importantly, the KUD (Know Understand Do) method of unit planning, or block planning as they call it. They said that they were committed to using these in their classrooms as well as continuing with their meditation instruction with their new deeper understanding after Nima, Jackie, and Lama Shenphen's meditation sessions.

Madam Kuenzang and
Madam Tshewang
helping out on day one. 

Specifically they want to incorporate Community Based Culture into their existing curriculum and they developed a set of essential questions around that theme with an outline of a field trip that could help answer those questions. They ended their presentation with a song that they wrote...it was lovely!

The Paro Group created a special unit based on vegetables so students can make informed decisions about what to buy and what not to buy or what is best for an individual or community. They created two lesson plans around their KUDs and essential questions.


The group of master teachers lead by Madam Tshewang and Am Dechen Tshomo, Gep Tshering and Kuenzang Dema were super fantastic, sharing all kinds of brain boosters, active learning strategies, and class building activities that kept the workshop feeling very alive. Our favorite was Madam Tshewang's Charo Charo brain booster, lifted from Mrs. Das's workshop but "Bhutanized". In the original game, we would sing My Bonny Lies Over the Ocean and every time there was a B word we had to stand if we were sitting or sit if we were standing. In this version we sang Charo Charo (Friend Friend) and used the C words to sit or stand. Here's a rough clip:

One great outcome, and something several REC teachers mentioned in their assessments was that they got to interact with teachers and instructors from many different kinds of institutions and they seemed to really appreciate sharing experiences. Here's a picture of Phuntsho Rabgay horsing around with Dawa and a few of the NFE instructors.



Thanks to all the REC teachers for spending their break with us and to Mr. Lhundup Dukpa from REC for arranging everything. It was a real pleasure working with all of you!

Still to come: Bhutan Nuns Foundation, and Tarayana Foundation.