E Book Sindhudurg

The District Institute of Education and Training, Sindhududurg gratefully acknowledges the support and opportunity given by School Education and sports Department of Maharashtra, Regional Academic Authority (EE) Aurangabad, British Council of India and Tata Trust to support the teachers to develop their English Teaching - Learning process through Tejas Project, CHESS Project and all other prominent interventions. We hereby heartily express our sincere gratitude. Special Inspiration Hon. Prof. Varsha Gaikwad Minister of School Education Department, Government of Maharashtra Inspiration Hon. Dr. Vandana Krushna (IAS) Add’l Chief Secretary, School Education and Sports Department Govt. of Tribute Maharashtra Hon. Shri. Vishal Solanki (IAS) Guidance Commissioner (Education) Government of Maharashtra Hon. M. D. Singh (IAS) Special Thanks Director MSCERT, Pune Support Late Hon. Dr. Subhash Kamble Concept & Editor Former Director, Regional Academic Authority (EE), Aurangabad Co-editors Late Hon. Dr. Prakash Jadhav Publisher Former Principal, DIET, Sindhudurg Date of Publication Hon. Dr. Kalimoddin Shaikh Technical Support & Director, Regional Academic Authority (EE), Aurangabad Hon. Ms. Anupama Tawshikar Design by Principal, DIET, Sindhudurg Hon. Dr. Mushtak Shaikh E.O., Z.P. Sindhudurg Hon. Dr. Vishal Tayde Head of English Department, Regional Academic Authority (EE), Aurangabad Hon. Dr. Pramod Kumavat State Head of Tejas Project, Regional Academic Authority (EE), Aurangabad Hon. Mr. Arun Patil, Ex. Principal, D.I.E.T.Sindhudurg Hon. Mr. Eknath Ambokar, Ex. E.O. Z.P. Sindhudurg All Lecturers, District Coordinators (IE) & all Official Staff, D.I.E.T. Sindhudurg Hon. Ms. Sushama Konduskar Lecturer and Head of English Department, D.I.E.T., Sindhudurg Mr. Sachin Yadav SARP, D.I.E.T. Ratnagiri & Sindhudurg Mr. Vijay Dhamapurkar Asst. teacher, ZPPS Nivaje No.1 & Former ESA D.I.E.T.Sindhudurg District Institute of Education and Training (DIET), Sindhudurg Wednesday the 24th November 2021 Ms. Manisha Gurav Asst. teacher ZPPS Charate No.1 & Former IT Subject Assistant, D.I.E.T.Sindhudurg 2

S. TOPIC NAME OF THE DESIGNATION PAG N AUTHORITY E Ms. Anupama Principal, D.I.E.T. NO 1 Complimentary Message Tawshikar Sindhudurg 6 2 Complimentary Message Dr. Mushtak Shaikh E.O. (Pri. & Sec.) Z.P. 8 Sindhudurg 9 3 Complimentary Message Dr. Kalimoddin Shaikh Director, RAA 10 4 Complimentary Message Aurangabad Dr. Vishal Tayde 11 HoD of English Department, RAA 12 Aurangabad 15 5 Complimentary Message Dr. Pramod Kumavat TEJAS State Coordinator, RAA Aurangabad 18 6 Complimentary Message Mr. Sachin Yadav SARP for , D.I.E.T., 22 Ratnagiri & Sindhudurg 7 Preface Ms. Sushama 27 Konduskar HoD of English 30 8 The Journey of Execution of the Department, D.I.E.T. 31 English Programmes Ms. Sushama Sindhudurg 33 Konduskar 35 HoD of English 37 Department, D.I.E.T. 40 Sindhudurg 42 45 9 Initiatives for the Enhancement of Mr. Vijay Asst. teacher & Former 47 English language Dhamapurkar ESA 49 50 10 The Glory of English in Mr. Mukund Shingare, BEO, Vaibhavwadi Vaibhavwadi 11 TAG Meetings: An Interactive Ms. Sunita Bhakre, BEO, Kudal Platform 12 Tejas Ms. Latika Satardekar, BRP, Sawantwadi 13 English programmes: A golden Ms. Pranali Sawant BRP, Kankavli opportunity 14 Various English Programmes Ms. Arti Kambli, BRP, Malvan 15 Impact of TAG meeting and CAP Mr. Jaysing Khanolkar TAG Teacher 16 A success story……. Mr. Dinkar Shirwalkar TAG Coordinator, Malvan 17 TAG: A Meeting of Englishians Mr. Santosh Gosavi Cluster Head Mr. Narayan Chavan BRP, Devgad 18 The most Impressive Online TAG Meetings 19 Enthusiastic chain of TEJAS project Ms. Smita Jadhav BRP, Kudal 20 TEJAS is the new way to develop Mr. Vilas Kapate TAG teacher leadership Mr. Vilas Bonde TAG coordinator 21 TEJAS: The Turning Point 3

22 TEJAS a helpful project to make Mr. Yogesh Sakpal TAG coordinator 52 English easier Ms. Vandana Rane TAG coordinator 54 23 My Journey as TAG Coordinator Mr. Haribhau TAG coordinator 56 24 Encouraging TAG Meeting Gayakwad TAG coordinator 58 Mr. Pramila Chavan TAG coordinator 60 25 Feedback of TAG Meeting Ms. Sharayu Kadam TAG coordinator 62 26 Empowerment through the TEJAS Mr. Dattaram Sawant TAG coordinator 63 27 My Experience as a TAG Mr. Digvijay Phadke TAG coordinator 67 Coordinator Mr. Giriraj TAG coordinator 69 28 Enrichment of Language Skills Tammewar through the TAG Meetings TAG coordinator 72 Mr. Amit Patil 29 The Impact of TAG Meeting TAG coordinator 75 Ms. Bhagyashree TAG Teacher 77 30 Milestone in the English Training: Wadkar TAG Teacher 79 TEJAS TAG coordinator 80 Ms. Pratima Pokle TAG Teacher 82 31 We are developing through TEJAS TAG coordinator 85 Ms. Rutuja Jangale TAG Teacher 87 32 TEJAS: A Wonderful Experience Ms. Kunda Kubal TAG Teacher 89 Mr. Pravin Kharat TAG coordinator 91 33 TEJAS: A platform for Teachers Ms. Mayuri Rane TAG coordinator 93 Ms. Sanika Shingade TAG coordinator 95 34 Thanks TEJAS Mr. Shalik Patil Ms. Shireen Sayyed TAG Teacher 99 35 TAG: An Inspiration Ms. Smita Matey TAG Teacher 100 Ms. Pallavi Sail TAG Teacher 103 36 THe success of My TAG Ms. Sumedha TAG coordinator 104 Vardekar TAG Teacher 108 37 Let's Learn with Fun Mr. Sushilkumar TAG Teacher 110 Thakur TAG coordinator 111 38 My Experience as Master Trainer Ms. Pranali Hadikar Ms. Aparna Mainkar TAG coordinator 115 39 Learning Has Different shades Mr. Prashant Chipkar Mr. Ramchandra TAG coordinator 119 40 TEJAS- A Booster Path for Me Kubal Ms. Dipmala Jadhav 41 My Journey of TAG Mr. Chetan Bodekar 42 TAG Meeting : A Source of Joyful Mr. Nitin Patil Learning Mr. Mahesh Sawant 43 Benefits of TAG 44 TEJAS: A New Beginning 45 TAG: A Problem Solving Platform 46 English Literacy Program 47 Success Story of the TAG meetings 48 TEJAS Support to My Creativity 49 Look at the MOOC 50 MOOC : Innovative Platform for CPD 51 MOOC: A Distinct Spoken English Programme 4

52 CHESS: The Gem for English Mr. Imran Nawab CHESS ETF Moderator 121 Teachers 123 125 53 CHESS: A Step Towards Success Mr .Gundu Birje CHESS ETF Teacher 127 128 54 CHESS: A Milestone in CPD of Mr. Ajit Surungle CHESS ETF Teacher 130 English Teachers 132 134 55 Chess: A Chase of CPD Ms. Vidya Lohar CHESS ETF Teacher Ms. Anuradha Kadam BRP, Devgad 136 56 Useful ELCRLM Ms. Tabassum Mulla TAG Teacher 138 Mr. Ishwar Thadke TAG Teacher 141 57 The ELCRLM Mr. Sushilkumar 143 Thakur TAG Teacher 58 Speedy Study Buddies 145 59 English Language Kit: My Genie 147 60 ELCRLM: Bringing Students on a Mr. Pandurang Kokare TAG coordinator 149 Single Platform 151 61 The Magic of English Language Kit Ms. Sarika Pawar TAG Teacher 153 62 ELCRLM: The Best Motivator Mr. Rama Gawas TAG coordinator 155 63 ELCRLMA: The Resourceful Ms. Anuradha Sawant TAG Teacher Initiative 157 158 64 ELCRLM: Lighthouse for An Mr. Shital Devarkar TAG Teacher 159 English Teacher 160 161 65 The English Language Kit: The Best Mr. Manoj Pilankar TAG Teacher 167 Friend of Teachers 169 170 66 ELCRLM Success Story Ms. Samruddhi TAG Teacher 171 Mhadgut 67 Skills Enhancement Through the Ms. Hemlata Jadhav TAG Teacher ELCRLM Kit 68 About Read To Me……. Ms. Manisha Gurav Assist. Teacher, Former S.A. ( IT) 69 CAP: A Real Guide to the Learner Mr. Prafulla Jadhav TAG coordinator and Assessor 70 CAP: An Useful Assessment Tool Mr.Raghoba Gad TAG Teacher 71 Appendix 1: Full Forms of Abbreviations 72 Appendix 2: Letter of Appreciation by RAA, Aurangabad 73 Appendix 3: List of CHESS Moderators 74 Appendix 4: MOOC & Tag coordinators 75 Appendix 5: English Kit Block Level Resource Team 76 Appendix 6: Read To Me 77 Appendix 7: English Programmes Posters 78 Appendix 8: Glimpses of E-book Inauguration 5

Ms. Anupama Tawshikar Principal, D.I.E.T. Sindhudurg The English language is a gateway to employment, thus useful language in the 21st century. The mastery over English language skills is the immediate need of an individual. Effective communication in English is the key to success. Our learners should develop the habit of thinking in English. They should get rich inputs to enable them to communicate effectively.Hence, some of the initiatives are being implemented through the Education Department such as TEJAS, ELCRLM, Read to Me, CHESS, CAP etc. Due to these projects, teachers and learners are communicating confidently and more efficiently. TEJAS is the most important project for developing teachers' learning networks through the Teacher Activity Groups (TAG) at primary level. TEJAS represents a transition from the traditional cascade model of teacher training to a more sustainable and internally supported collaborative approach to teacher professional development. In Sindhudurg district 122 TAG Co-ordinators were selected through a rigorous process. 14 TAG Cs trained by the British Council are facilitating TAGs of 35 clusters. It means 2 to 3 clusters are allotted to each TAG C trained by the British Council. 27 TAG Cs trained by RAA Aurangabad are facilitating TAGs of 28 clusters. 81 TAG Cs are trained at district level. They are working for their own one cluster. All 144 TAGs for 144 clusters; means 100% TAGs have been established under this program. And in this year we achieved a ratio of one cluster one TA. The TAG teachers are achieving linguistic and pedagogical development through TAG meetings by using TAG resource books. There are 1351 TAG teachers . 373 face- to- face TAG meetings have been conducted in the year 2018/19. 525 face- to face- 6

TAG meetings have been conducted in the year 2019/20 189 online TAG meetings have been conducted in the year 2020/21.In this year 2021/22 we are using online as well as offline mode of meetings. Such a large and demanding project is being handled by the Department of English with diligence and sincerity. One more such an important programme is CHESS for English teachers at secondary level. We have 8 trained and supported English Teachers Forums in all eight blocks. We completed this project moderators ct and all forum members were awarded the certificates also in online mode in the last year. DIET, Sindhudurg through the English Department is supporting the stakeholders to build up the English friendly learning atmosphere holistically. Hence the Read to Me software installation, BCPT videos installation was also done in mission mode with the help of Block Resource Persons of English. The impact of the pandemic situation of COVID 19 is observed in all the fields, so the Education. Thus from March 2020 the face to face meetings were stopped. But slowly these meetings were moved to the online platform. The transition was challenging but enthusiastic TAG Cs took it positively and slowly the change began. Now maximum meetings are conducted on an online platform, and remaining are conducted in offline mode with due care and as per the safety guidelines of the Government. DIET, Sindhudurg through the Department of English has successfully implemented not only TEJAS but the programmes like Read to Me, CHESS, BCPT videos installation, English Kit, MOOC etc. I congratulate the team English for not delimiting themselves for execution but for reaching out for documentation in the form of E Book. I appreciate to Ms. Sushama Konduskar (Lecturer and HoD English) for her enthusiastic execution, Dhamaurkar sir (former ESA), Sachin Yadav (SARP), all BRPs, all TAG Cs, CHESS moderators and facilitators of different trainings for reaching to the stakeholders at most. 7

Dr. Mushtak Shaikh E.O. (Pri. & Sec.) Z.P. Sindhudurg English is a global language and it is a window to see the world. Actually it is not difficult to speak in English, but teachers have a fear in their mind due to lack of confidence and proper exposure to the English language and so the students. Hence the various need based programmes are initiated by Government of Maharashtra and they are implemented through DIETs. I appreciate the endeavour of the Department of English, DIET Sindhudurg to prepare the E–Book, ‘English Programmes: Glimpses of Execution in Sindhudurg’. It’s my pleasure to congratulate DIET Principal and her team for the publication of the E book. It’s indeed a proud moment for me to be a part of this book’s inauguration ceremony. Many programmes like – TEJAS, MOOC, CHESS, Read to Me, ELCRLM (English Kit), Spoken English, CAP are mentioned in the e-book. The experience of Block Education Officers (BEOs), Block Resource Persons (BRPs), Cluster Heads and Teachers (both primary and secondary) about implementation are put together through this E–Book. These are the reflections and success stories of our teachers who have been implementing the programmes. I congratulate all the stakeholders and especially my teachers whose writing is published here for carrying these interventions with a positive attitude up to the learners; the real stakeholders of the all programmes. Once again, I congratulate all the contributors. It is a milestone and an inspiration to others. With regards. 8

Dr. Kalimoddin Shaikh Director, RAA Aurangabad English Expertise, Aurangabad. Alone we can do little, together we can do so much. The Regional Academic Authority, Aurangabad has dedicated its efforts towards developing the English environment across the state. Its earnest efforts include recent projects like Tejas, Spoken English and Spoken English Advanced, MOOC, CHESS, ELCRLM and the latest ReadToME. These projects need rigorous monitoring, follow-up and feedback. The RAA is always lucky to have a profound team of district level administrators from all DIETs. And DIET Sindhudurg is always among the top five districts who implemented these projects successfully to the ground levels. It is a great idea of DIET Sindhudurg to acknowledge the efforts of all the stakeholders and showcase their best efforts in the form of this e-book. Team Sindhudurg have worked hard to help RAA achieve its goal in Sindhudurg district. I must congratulate DIET officials for directing all individual efforts and channelizing and motivating their pursuits by creating an environment of trust, respect and collaboration. Under the guidance of principal, DIET Ms. Anupama Tawashikar and Education Officer Dr. Mushtak Shaikh, Ms. Sushma Konduskar, HOD, Department of English, Mr. Sachin Yadav, SARP and their team are contributing substantially to the development of English language ecosystem in the district. This resulted in rolling out 100% TAGs, completion of MOOC successfully. The RAA is sure that team Sindhudurg would leave no stone unturned to make Read to Me successful at Sindhudurg. My best wishes are always with them. 9

Dr. Vishal Tayde HoD of English Department, RAA Aurangabad Regional Academic Authority, Aurangabad has initiated various programmes for the improvement of English in our schools in the last four years. Sindhudurg is one of those districts in the state which has been running all the programmes successfully and effectively. This ebook is the reflection of all such efforts. All the articles published in this e-book are profoundly written. Here, all stakeholders have written their experiences in detail which help to know the work culture in the district. And importantly, they belong to every nook and corner of Sindhudurg. It is noteworthy that, in the pandemic also, all of you have been implementing these programmes ceaselessly. 100% TAGs are already rolled out in Sindhudurg district. This is a big achievement! Now, we have to focus on the Read to Me programme. 'Read To Me student edition app' is very useful for every student. I hope you will insist every teacher and parent to download this app on their mobile and make it available to each student. Under the guidance of DIET principal, Ms. Anupama Tawashikar and Education Officer Dr. Mushtak Shaikh, Ms. Sushama Konduskar, HOD, Department of English, Mr. Sachin Yadav, SARP and their team are contributing substantially to the development of English language ecosystem in the district. I wish you all the best for your future endeavours. 10

Dr. Pramod Kumavat TEJAS State Coordinator, RAA Aurangabad It really gladdens me that an e-book showcasing TEJAS 'impact is published. TEJAS being the first training model of its kind, advocating local community practice has been playing predominant roles across the state .This model not only uplifting the teaching learning of English but also creating an environment in which teachers clearly understand where they are and where they should be. Teachers have started using reflecting practices and CPD on their own to develop their professional capabilities. TEJAS invariably adds into the sharing practices and these set forth examples that are the solutions to the problems of so many teachers. TEJAS project has been deeply studied by some other countries and a few states of India. Their study fascinated them towards Tejas and five different countries along with four states of India accepted this project that denotes the strength of Tejas project. On Maharashtra soil Tejas has got status of saviour because it is offering great help to both teachers and learners to grab the language with reasonable pace and in the pro- learning environment .Tejas project sowing the seeds of self confidence, fluency and accuracy among learners and teachers that lead them English Language users . Tejas has given birth to a number of success stories and has the ability to encourage , motivate , guide , assist and support the English Teachers fraternity . TEJAS has been making teachers more resourceful and helping them to make the most of their local environments to promote English Language of employability. This move, I know for sure, is more constructive and will be a milestone. So I wish all the best to all Tejas project stakeholders and teachers. My Special wishes to DIET, Sindhudurg principal Ms. Anupama Tawshikar, English Department HoD Ms. Sushama Konduskar, SARP Mr. Sachin Yadav and ESA Mr. Vijay Dhamapurkar for this initiative. 11

Mr. Sachin Jalandar Yadav SARP/ESA, DIET,Ratnagiri Maharashtra state English language stakeholders can’t forget the day when Maharashtra Education Department’s productive initiative ‘My English Programmes’ (MEP) was inaugurated by hon. Nandkumar Saheb, the former Chief Secretary of Education. Regional Academic Authority (RAA), Aurangabad introduced eight different English language enhancement programmes for both primary and secondary education. The TEJAS project for primary schools and the CHESS project for secondary schools are the basic programmes supported by the parallel programmes like Spoken English, MOOC, Read To Me, English E-Teach, ELCRLM and CAP. All these programmes play a vital role in enhancing English language through primary and secondary schools in Maharashtra. Under the great influence of the educational vision by Regional Academic Authority (RAA), Aurangabad, the state apex body for English language initiatives, all districts implemented/have been implementing ‘My English Programmes’. Sindhudurg district is one of the great implementers who have proved themselves with better and fruitful results of the programms. All programmes have been successfully conducted by district stakeholders. Being a State Academic Resource Person (SARP), I have been initially allocated Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg districts for not only to observe but also to guide & support the district stakeholders. I am a witness of the fame and glory that these districts have achieved through better efforts and unique strategies. We can sense why these districts always make their place among the top rankers in national/state level educational surveys. My visits to Sindhudurg district always gave me immense pleasure. I could sense the directive vision of the Department of English – DIET, Sindhudurg. Under the 12

useful guidance of DIET faculties, the trainers, teachers and students have given their best to enhance their English language level. This e-book is nothing but the reflection of their success stories regarding different English language initiatives. These ‘My English Programmes’ have been launched with great efforts and inputs by late hon. Dr. Subhash Kamble Saheb, the former director, RAA, Aurangabad. At Sindhudurg district, these programmes have been strategically implemented under the great guidance of late hon. Dr. Prakash Jadhav Saheb, the former principal, DIET, Sindhudurg. At present, hon. Dr. K. A. Shaikh, director, RAA, Aurangabad and hon. Ms. A. A. Tavashikar, Principal, DIET, Sindhudurg are putting their great efforts to sustain the quality of these programmes. The TEJAS project is a joint initiative delivered through a partnership between the Government of Maharashtra, Tata Trusts and the British Council. It aims to improve the quality of English language teaching and learning in primary schools across the state. Under this initiative, the main focus is to provide appropriate English language exposure. In Sindhudurg district, every cluster has its running TAG with a separate TAG Coordinator. This is the only district who have scheduled Year 1-Block 2 offline training for newly elected TAG Cs. Sindhudurg was at rank 2 in the state considering the successful implementation of MOOC project. I could realise their success during MOOC ‘Focus Group Discussions’. The CHESS project was an initiative which had been launched by RAA, Aurangabad on their own. The CHESS project was successfully run in Sindhudurg with the help of eight dedicated ETF Moderators. They could motivate teachers to create an ‘English eco-system’ in secondary schools. The programmes like Spoken English, English E-Teach, Read To Me, ELCRLM, CAP have been successfully conducted in the district to support TEJAS and CHESS projects. Initially, under the guidance of ex. Principal hon. Mr. Arun Patil Sir, the ex. English language HoD respected Mr. Shashikant Shinde Sir and English Subject Assistant (ESA) resp. Mr. Vijay Dhamapurkar had initiated the programmes. At present respected Ms. Sushama Konduskar, the versatile personality is English language HoD. She 13

has been working honestly to get sustainable outputs from ‘My English Programmes’. Under the directive guidance by hon. Principal and English language HoD ‘TEJAS Scale up’ project is being successful in the district. I am sure that district Sindhudurg is also going to be successful in better implementation of ‘Read To Me – Student Edition’ initiative. I feel myself as a lucky teacher educator for being a Sindhudurg district stakeholder. Sindhudurg’s academic future is even better as it has strong stakeholders like ETF Moderators,TAG/MOOC Coordinators, Read To Me/ELCRLM/CAP trainers. They will definitely prove themselves as better mentors. Heartily wishes for a better and brighter academic future ! Thanks ..! 14

Ms. Sushama Konduskar Lecturer & HoD of English Department, D.I.E.T. Sindhudurg The E Book is a reflective sharing and learning platform through own experiences while implementing the programmes in the own field. It comprises articles on the English programmes like TEJAS (Technology enabled Education through Joint Action and Strategic initiatives), MOOC (Massive Open Online Course), ELCRLM (English Language Conceptual Resource Learning Material), CAP (Competencies Assessment Programme), Read to Me, CHESS (Continuous Help to Teachers of English from Secondary Schools) ETF’s (English Teachers Forum) etc. Thus this E book is a kaleidoscope of experiences of implementation. There are 29 write ups exclusively about the TEJAS project. In the general all embracing articles also, TEJAS is mentioned. This number itself is the mark of success of the project. These articles give us insight of how the project and its learnings are deeply rooted at the grass root level. These articles on TAGs (Teachers Activity Group) talk about how their confidence and fluency in speaking English got improved. How they could get pedagogical insight which made classroom teaching learning joyful. How their CPD awareness was enhanced which helped to develop the vision. Teachers mention that their habit of translating while speaking got eliminated and they started thinking in English. At some places assemblies are started in English. This is the success of a project. 15

The four articles put forth the experience of CHESS. They elaborate how teaching learning became more interactive, joyful and linguistically rich because of the CHESS. The next big number of write ups is of the ELCRLM which means English kit. Its usefulness in vocabulary build up, making learning activity based and joyful through language games is described there. One teacher calls it a colleague in the multigrade classroom while the other as a speedy buddy for learning. The gist of all the write ups direct towards the betterment of students learning, meaningful learning engagement and skill inculcation in both teachers and students. Making an E Book is a journey in itself. I am quite delighted to see the write ups in the form of an E Book. Initially we had to make rounds of reading, checking, reworking, correcting, and recollecting the work. In the first round very few articles were up to the mark. The ESA and I checked them. We found that in many write ups the writing is related to the description of a project and not about self experience and reflection of implementation. Corrections and remarks were conveyed through the BRPs who took efforts of the follow up for resubmission. Again we did a second round of scrutiny and then compiled it in the form of an e book. Very politely I mention here that we need to work on sentence construction and grammar for our fraternity. Considering the number of write-ups, we involved the SARP at this stage as a co-editor and Manisha Gurav (former Subject Assistant IT) for the technical support. Manisha madam gave it an elegant look the way it is now. Ms. Nurjahan Naik and Mr. Digambar Sarang (CHESS Moderators) did final proofreading. We are so happy that we could put forth the comprehensive E Book exhibiting the glimpses of execution of English programmes. As an editor I congratulate all the 16

contributors of the book and thank the dignitaries for their complimentary messages. I am thankful to RAA, Aurangabad for giving us an opportunity to publish an execution in the form of an E Book. I hope the book will be useful to maintain the ‘English Friendly’ atmosphere throughout the district. 17

Ms. Sushama Konduskar Lecturer & HoD of English Department, D.I.E.T. Sindhudurg It gives me immense joy to unfold the glimpses of English programmes in Sindhudurg district for the education fraternity. It is the journey of empowerment of all stakeholders through the execution of English trainings, programmes and projects. In 2019 Hon. Late Principal Dr. Prakash Jadhav allotted the English Department to me as the head and motivated me for excellence in execution. I realised I need to learn a lot. Before that I had witnessed the CHESS symposium; which showcased the difference between training and project execution. Regarding work in the English Department I noticed that the project approach is more prominent than the training and there are many need and research-based field interventions being implemented under the flagship and guidance of Regional Academic Authority (RAA), Aurangabad. I started studying the programmes. I analysed and compared their objectives and I realised that all the programmes are interwoven around the common core that English should be taught and learned as a language and not as a subject. The teacher is a change agent for empowering the learners with English communication competency. To enrich the language of learners we need a conducive language rich environment. Technology is a tool to overcome the hurdles and eradicate the barriers. Especially the hurdles of time, place, pace and resources. And most important is the human resource. Identification of the competent resource and channelising it for the betterment is the key to achieve the goals. Let's have a look at the execution of some of the English programmes. 18

TEJAS: This is the collaborative learning approach based project which was being implemented in the selective clusters. The competent and rigorously trained chosen TAG Cs are the backbone of this new CPD intervention. The 41 TAG Cs trained by the British Council (BC) and RAA, Aurangabad, were facilitating 63 Teachers Activity Groups (TAGs) excellently. Execution of TEJAS was going smoothly but the scale up of this to reach out for 100% clusters was challenging. By the end of the partnership of BC in TEJAS; RAA handed over the autonomy of this project to DIETs. We considered the voice of the stakeholders at this point. The consistent demand for one cluster - one coordinator was put forth from existing TAG Cs and the cluster heads. This demand raised its voice after the end of the BC and RAA partnership. The DIET, Sindhudurg took ‘One Cluster - One TAG Coordinator’ on its agenda. Through district level nomination drive and training we could achieve this target wherein 81 TAG Cs were trained at the district level. (We didn't do any interference in the British Councils clusters at first. But later on the TAG Cs of BC too demanded for coordination of the single cluster and we realised the value of equality!) In December the training of all TAG Cs will be completed and ‘One Cluster - One TAG Coordinator’ will be there in the Sindhudurg district. RAA, Aurangabad too, appreciated the team Sindhudurg for this endeavour. (Refer to the letter in the appendix No. 2) Online TAG Meetings (OTMs): Meanwhile in the pandemic situation face-to-face meetings were stopped. As a situational response we planned for the online TAG meetings. In the last week of November 2020 we gave an online demo of the OTM to all the TAG Cs and to all cluster heads. I am very much thankful to Hon. Dr. Ujjwal Karwande Ex. HoD English of RAA, Aurangabad has constructively supported us for moving TAGs on an online platform. After the demo we visited many OTMs in a very few days. That was a great success. But we also noticed that few TAG Cs are doing great on online platform but the majority wants to be offline; real face to face meetings. After the decline of pandemic DIET, Sindhudurg permitted the conduct of offline meetings; with the condition to abide by the security norms regarding COVID 19

19. MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) is a self-paced and technology-based learning opportunity. The grand opening of this blended course was taken for three blocks which resulted in the highest rate of completion of this course. Phase-wise analysis of MOOC completion of all 8 blocks was done. Action plan was prepared for 100% completion of the course. Letters to the BRCs for the next action line were given. Whats app support group was formed for zero performance clusters. Follow up for completion was taken and continuous support was given. Plan was implemented with continuous follow up. It gave us marvelous results. Sindhudurg stood second in the state for completion of this course. (April 2020). Bridge course development work: Team Sindhudurg participated in the bridge course development of standard fifth under the leadership of Regional DIET, Kolhapur. The English team also did the scrutiny of bridge course material for one more standard collaboratively with the team Ratnagiri. All the members of a committee enjoyed the work as a learning opportunity and this is the success of the Department of English. DIET, Sindhudurg also conducted workshops for headmasters and teachers for implementation of the bridge course. The former Principal Hon. Mr. Arun Patil and Primary Education Officer Hon. Mr. Eknath Ambokar supported the department to work smoothly throughout the hard timelines. CHESS: It is the only direct intervention for secondary learners through the teachers' empowerment. The eight chosen moderators for the blockwise English Teachers Forums (ETFs) made the facilitation a great success. I could get the glimpses of this in the CHESS symposium wherein I witnessed enthusiastic expression of English teachers through posters and presentations. Our monitoring and evaluation member (MER) Ms. Nurjahan Naik collaboratively with Mr. Digambar Sarang and all six moderators (Appendix No. 3 ) did a fantastic job in the execution of CHESS. Competencies Assessment Programme (CAP): This programme changed our approach towards the implementation of English programmes. Till the date every programme was implemented, considering the block as a unit. I noticed that some blocks are very small, comprising ten clusters while some are as large as 24 clusters. For the implementation of CAP we considered bit as a unit. 20

Through this programme 66 master trainers (two trainers per bit) were trained at the district level. It led to decentralised and balanced allocation of human resources for the training at the block and gave better results. Same approach was used with ELCRLM. Though there is still a lot to learn yet, this journey of implementation of different programmes has enriched me a lot. It trained me to look from the top as well as from grass root level. It's a journey of learning which helped me to understand the government system. As the Head of the English Department, I am grateful to the Hon. Principal Anupama Tawshikar for her valuable guidance full of wisdom and Hon. Dr. Mushtak Shaikh, present Education Officer. Former ESA (English Subject Assistant) Mr. Vijay Dhamapurkar was a co-thinker in the preparation of a vision for the department. His capacity to be connected with every stakeholder developed the network of people which played a key role in smooth execution of programmes. Mr. Sachin Yadav as a SARP (State Academic Resource Person) has helped the Department in many ways with his involvement in initiatives like TEJAS scale up, CAP training, scrutiny of bridge course, E Book as a collaborator. It has provided great support to the department. Hence, I am grateful to him. I also thank the Principal of DIET, Ratnagiri and HoD, English Ms. Snehal Pednekar madam too for making this helping hand available to us! I am thankful to Hon. Dr. Kalimoddin Shaikh Director, Hon. Dr. Vishal Tayde, Head of English Department, Hon. Dr. Pramod Kumawat, State Head of Tejas Project, of RAA, Aurangabad for giving us an opportunity to publish an execution in the form of an E Book and their support for all the work. We could not reach out to all the stakeholders without the support of all the staff of DIET, Sindhudurg, BEOs, EDI, Cluster Heads, especially the BRPs of English and resource persons (RPs) of all the projects for the successful implementation and creating an ‘English Friendly’ atmosphere throughout the district. 21

Mr. Vijay Baban Dhamapurkar, English Subject Assistant DIET, Sindhudurg. The department of English language undertakes various activities and implements the programmes with the help of RAA, Aurangabad to empower the teachers of English and enable them to help children to develop basic skills. The department focuses on catering the needs of students and teachers. Teachers are becoming competent in speaking skills and are learning techniques to enable learners to speak confidently in English through the Spoken English Programme by RAA, Aurangabad. Objectives Of The Department 1. To provide sustainable professional development opportunities to all English language teachers. 2. Providing engaging activities that make all students happy and enable them to master English language skills. 3. Enable all students and teachers to use English in day- to- day life. TEJAS is the most important project for developing teachers' learning networks through (TAGs) Teachers Activity Groups. Teachers from the cluster come together to learn new teaching ideas, techniques and activities through TAG meetings and implement them in the classroom to help their learners to learn English. Teachers also use social media for sharing best practices and challenges that they have faced. The team of the English department and SARP are supporting and mentoring TAG Cs (Co ordinators) And TAG teachers to run the TEJAS activities smoothly and successfully. As I am working as an English subject assistant, I got lots of inputs on joyful activities, innovative ideas and techniques through offline and online trainings conducted by RAA, Aurangabad and the British Council. I think the continuous follow up of 22

programmes by RAA, Aurangabad is the secret of success. The style and the friendly way of expression of the British Council mentor / facilitator is highly effective and the most remarkable thing as per my opinion. Hon. Pornima Avasthi madam (Mumbai) British Council mentor visited and observed the class and TAG meeting of Poyre cluster, Block- Devgad. She conducted some five and ten days training for my class as One Woman Army at RAA, Aurangabad. What an energetic and knowledgeable woman she is! Hon. Chopra madam (Delhi))also conducted five days training systematically and in a friendly manner. Other all facilitators of the British Council conducted offline and online sessions very effectively. When Hon. Meena Shridharan ma’am, the British Council mentor, visited a class and a TAG meeting of Malgaon cluster, Block- Sawantwadi, that time I learnt the nuts and bolts of observations e.g. how to observe a TAG meeting, how to give sandwich feedback etc. If a TAG Coordinator / TAG Teacher is making any mistake while conducting the class, as an observer we should avoid on the spot stopping or disturbing. After the class, we should/can ask what you think about the success of the topic. What strategy should you apply for getting more success? We should congratulate him/ her for positive/ good things first and give some inputs positively for better improvement. In this way the facilitator will make some changes as per the topic and will get success. As per my opinion, TEJAS programmes have got great success due to an innovative TAG structure. In TAG meetings, teachers get continuous healthy support not only by TAG C, but also by other TAG teachers. In the beginning of the TEJAS programme, I had visited some TAG meetings. I observed that some teachers were hesitating to speak, to come forward and take part in conversations and activities due to lack of confidence and unavailability of such a supportive TAG platform. After 2/3 TAG meetings, teachers started becoming confident and competent in speaking. Now I would like to share my opinion and feel proud that more than 80 percent of teachers are competent in communicating in English and all teachers are implementing activities, ideas, and techniques in their schools. The students are taking active participation in various types of dialogues /conversations and activities without fear. We could arrange TEJAS training for 81 TAG coordinators at district level. 144 TAGs have been established in Sindhudurg. In the COVID- 19 pandemic situation, we planned and conducted an online TAG demo for TAG Cs. TAG meetings have been conducted using online platforms like Zoom app, Google meet by applying online 23

tools like Mentimeter, Zoom breakout room, Padlet etc. I would like to congratulate all TAG coordinators for generating such a wonderful atmosphere of English speaking throughout the district and giving healthy support to all teachers continuously. The MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) is one of the initiatives for teachers' CPD which is developed and executed by RAA, Aurangabad. Some TAG coordinators were selected for this programme. TAG co-ordinators from those clusters played a vital role as a MOOC coordinator very efficiently. The teachers could access the course as per their convenient time and place. They developed themselves through rich inputs and were satisfied by getting silver, bronze and gold medals as per their performance level. They have got certificates too. Read to Me is an offline computer based software platform which focuses on development of loud reading skills. Along with the reading facility, the software also facilitates through dictionary, pictorial support, audio recording facility, grammar and additional passage support to improve reading skill. We arranged block wise training for the installation process. Almost 670 schools have been provided the software in two phases. Now Read to Me software is available as a student edition which can be run on mobile. CHESS is a project for the Continuing Professional Development of Secondary School Teachers of English language. Under this project English Teacher Forums (ETFs) are established in all eight blocks. The ETFs are platforms where teachers of English from secondary schools meet together once in a month at block level. The MER and ETF moderators have successfully conducted all ETF meetings in offline and online mode for the last three years. The main aims of this programme are 1. To enable teachers to make their learners relate their learning of English to day to day life. 2. To boost the confidence of the teachers to use English language effectively in the classrooms as well as in the school environment to provide maximum exposure. 3. To enable teachers to integrate technology in the teaching learning process. 4. To make teachers and learners the active users of English. 24

All 135 ETF teachers have successfully completed the course and played the vital role of creating and generating an ‘English Speaking Ecosystem’ in their schools and off course throughout the district. We conducted ELCRLM (English Kit) training at district level for key persons. Then they conducted the same at bit level. Through this training teachers could understand how to use the material systematically included in the kit. Teachers implemented a 40 days reading program for the improvement of the learners. We have completed the installation process of BCPT videos under the ‘English E-Teach’ programme for grades 1 to 4 of all schools. These videos are topic wise animated and are activity based. We, the department of English, have successfully implemented all initiatives under the guidance of RAA, Aurangabad. We have got healthy support from the Late Principal Hon. Dr. Prakash Jadhav saheb, current Principal Hon. Arun Patil saheb and Hon. Eknath Ambokar saheb, Education Officer Z.P. Sindhudurg. I got inputs for micro planning and execution by Hon. Sushama Konduskar madam, Lecturer and HOD of English. We got support from Hon. BEOs, EDIs cluster heads for successful implementation. As an ESA, I got the opportunity to attend the training for secondary teachers in Bhopal (RIE NCERT). I have successfully conducted orientation for secondary teachers in two phases and for teachers of higher secondary/ junior college. I have got rich inputs through the training sessions by RAA, Aurangabad and British Council. I have conducted training sessions at district level and block wise. I have visited and guided in shikshan parishad, TAG meetings and schools also. All stakeholders have supported me in a friendly manner. Thanks to late Hon. Dr. Subhash Kamble saheb, director of RAA, Aurangabad, Hon. Dr. Ujjwal Karwande HoD. of English RAA, Aurangabad, Hon. Pramod Kumawat, Lecturer and Head of TEJAS Project for the effective planning of all initiatives and well execution. Thanks to Hon. Mr. Ranjit Deshmukh, state project co-ordinator, CHESS, RAA, Aurangabad. Thanks to Hon. Mr. Sachin Yadav, state academic resource person for giving valuable contributions for our district. Thanks team English Subject Assistants (ESA) Maharashtra. Thanks to all. I would like to suggest some useful apps. These apps are available on play store for free. 1. Spoken English PVP Aurangabad [22 mb size] - 200 conversation dialogues are included which are useful in daily life. 25

2. Bolo APP [93.10 mb size]- Useful for Listening, Reading, speaking and conversation. 3. Hello English [33 mb size] - Useful for grammar 4. Kundge.me [5.8 mb size] – Useful for vocabulary, phrases and questionnaire 5. Learn English podcast [39.2 mb size]- Useful for checking Listening,Reading and comprehension ❖ Video reference - Click here i 26

Mr. Mukund Pandurang Shingare Block Education Officer, Panchyat Samiti, Vaibhavwadi Vaibhavwadi block is situated in the embrace of the Sahyadri. It is sanctified by the holy touch of the great Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. Vaibhavwadi is known for its excellence and glory. In the education field, innovative experiments are being performed to enhance the quality of students', teachers' and parents' learning. As a result of this, students of Vaibhavwadi are shining world-wide. The study by various esteemed educational surveys, N.G.O.s, have appreciated the quality of education in Vaibhavwadi. Considering the importance of English all over the world, the Government is framing massive and rigorous programmes for the improvement of quality of English learning. Along with these programmes, block Vaibhavwadi as a team, designs independent English enrichment programmes according to the needs of students, teachers and the whole society. ❖ Spoken English Programme This programme is a revolutionary beginning of the movement of English after ‘SMART P.T.’. The government of Maharashtra took initiative for the enrichment of English teachers in primary schools. This programme broke the traditional boundaries of English in the schools and welcomed new, natural learning methods. The programme started a new era in the education field. ❖ IPEC (Improvement Programme for English Communication) IPEC was such an independent programme that had been designed by the teachers under the guidance of cluster head from Lore Helewadi, Vaibhavwadi (2017-18). This 27

programme prioritised going beyond teaching the specific words and singing rhymes. It focussed more on various activities, conversations, dialogue makings and enabling the students to speak in English confidently. The speciality of this programme is that it had close attachment with the syllabus. The programme was time-bound and well scheduled. Because of this different approach to learning, students could use proper phrases, words, idioms, dialogues in their day to day communication. Students began to present the English activities, skits, stories, riddles, games even in cultural programmes, jatras, shikshan parishads and workshops. ❖ TEJAS TEJAS is such an effective programme that brought a significant change in the teaching learning process. Whenever I visited the schools in my block, I found the confidence of teachers and students comparatively better than my previous experience. This programme increased interest of students in English as learning is entirely activity based. Students are not only learning but also enjoying English in the schools. Teachers also link the activities and games with textbooks and make students participate enthusiastically. Students participate in different games such as slap the board, hot seat, point to the…..., chain-drill, ladder race, role play, riddles, mystery bag etc. Teachers apply new techniques in teaching. Because of this programme teachers' attitude towards their teaching has become more positive. ❖ MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) As MOOC was the first experiment in training for primary teachers, we too were very eager to know the programme. When I attended the orientation meeting, it cleared the doubts from my mind. Teachers too were buoyant as they were able to complete the training online and in their leisure time. The programme was well structured so we could reach the target in stipulated time with the help of MOOC co-ordinator and teachers. I feel proud here to share with you that all the teachers tried their best to execute new ideas and new features in the classroom and shot videos fearlessly. In this MOOC programme, teachers concentrated passionately to achieve the gold band which resulted in making the entire atmosphere in the schools very pleasant and satisfactory. ❖ ELCRLM (English Language Conceptual Resource Learning Material 28

ELCRLM is a constructive programme and it prompts the learners to think and learn in the natural way. The material in the English kit along with the booklet helps teachers to engage students in the tasks. The considerable benefit of it is that students get attracted to the kit and use it on their own even in the recess. Teachers are availing this kit for teaching and evaluation too. This kit has made classroom interaction convenient and more effective. ❖ CAP (Competencies Assessment Programme) As CAP stands for Competencies Assessment Programme, it flashes the basic skills, that are listening, speaking, reading and writing. Without mastering these language skills, no one can master the language. Actually this programme is designed to assist teachers to know where their students are and what action plan they should follow. Because of this programme we could get to know the actual status of students’ learning stages. Then with the help of the supervising authorities, we motivated the teachers to follow the learning indicators and to make an action plan accordingly. Thus remedial teaching began and we were able to reach our goal. I humbly appreciate the efforts of all teachers, cluster heads, extension officers, BRC members and students too! To conclude, I would like to say the above mentioned and other programmes in block Vaibhavwadi have contributed to take us on the top. I indeed deem myself fortunate for being the part and chief of Team Vaibhavwadi and convey my gratitude to all the stakeholders. ❖ Video Reference View on TEJAS By Kartik Pandurang Kokare, Vidyamandir Arule No 1, Vaibhavwadi. https://youtu.be/toWplWtcB5Q 29

Ms. Sunita B. Bhakare Education Extension Officer, Panchayat Samiti, Kudal All types of innovative projects of English are useful for teachers to enhance their English. Kudal Block implemented all the projects of English. The BRC team, specially (English department) is working hard for all the projects. When I visited the TAG meetings at cluster level; I noticed that all the TAG teachers participated in it without any hesitation. TEJAS project, CAP project Read to Me software installation, MOOC orientation programme, CHESS project are developing the capacity and competencies of teachers. TEJAS project has inspired teachers to speak English with confidence and it has built up their capacity of speaking in English. TAG co-ordinators conduct the TAG meeting at cluster level very effectively. The TAG makes it easy for teachers to speak English confidently. When the TAG meeting is organised at a cluster level it gives opportunities to teachers to have interaction with each other. The enriched academic interactions between teachers and students make the learning process fruitful. I observed in my block that language games and activities make language learning easy. I think that is the main aim of the TAG Meeting to make learning a language easy and joyful. It has provided a very useful platform for learning to teachers. Thank you English department, BRC Kudal; DIET, Sindhudurg and RAA, Aurangabad for successful implementation of different language programmes. 30

Ms. Latika Lawoo Satardekar Block Resource Person, Block: Sawantwadi TEJAS is a three year partnership project between the government of Maharashtra, Tata Trusts and the British Council to improve the quality of students' learning English in primary schools. An important part of TEJAS is the Teacher Activity Group (TAG). TAGs are monthly teachers' meetings which are conducted in a semi-formal manner. TEJAS is a healthy project which binds teachers together. TAGs are groups of 20-25 primary teachers from a cluster level who meet on a monthly basis. These are semi formal localized teacher meetings that are initially supported by a trained TAG co-ordinator. As it is a cluster level programme, its popularity is much. Teachers are more expressive now-a days. Tag is a good platform for teachers which has helped to diminish the fear of the English language and the English subject. Teachers try to share their views in English. Really this is a positive change. The classroom videos which are shown in the meetings work well. Teachers adapt the same videos in their classes. Even students are now confident about the language. They talk freely and fearlessly in groups and pairs. TAG is a fundamental and firm platform for the English language interaction. As a subject expert I want to share my experience of a TAG meeting. In one of the clusters of my block I attended the TAG meet but the TAG co-ordinator was not ready to conduct the meet because of the fear of English language. He was afraid that he could not run the meet properly. But I personally built up his confidence and asked him to say whatever he knew, maybe in broken English. I, myself, conducted an activity at that meet. After some time he said, “Ma’am, now I am ready to conduct further meetings. I will develop my speaking skill.” Really that 31

experience of mine was memorable. We build his confidence and train him to be fluent English speaker. ❖ MOOC MOOC is a collection of free online English lessons provided by renowned universities and colleges. RAA, Aurangabad applied this course not only for the teachers but for the students up to 8th standard also. By joining these courses we can improve on a variety of subjects. This online programme was organized for all TAG teachers of selected clusters from Sawantwadi block. Mr. Mahesh Sawant, an efficient TAG Coordinator worked as a MOOC Co-ordinator too. He motivated and inspired teachers to get it completed within the stipulated time. It was a noteworthy opportunity for teachers to follow their CPD. Teachers from Talawde, Kolgaon and Majgaon clusters enthusiastically completed the course. The experience for teachers was memorable. ❖ ELCRLM English Language Conceptual Resource Learning Material training was delivered to every single teacher from each Z. P. school for three days. As a part of this training programme, the English kit which was distributed to Z P schools was elaborately shown by the resource persons. Many more views and aspects of the learning material were unfolded before the teachers. In a regular classroom too, this kit proved to be very useful to the students. The teaching learning process became joyful and child friendly. The kit played a major supplementary role in English language development. 32

Ms. Pranali Prashant Sawant Block Resource Person Block: Kankavli. Our government has launched several innovative programmes for the English language. i.e. TEJAS, MOOC, CHESS, Spoken English, English Language Conceptual Resource Learning Material (ELCRLM) etc. Learning English is essential for every teacher as well as every student because English is the language of international communication, the media and the internet. With the help of all these programmes, our teachers have developed their confidence in English speaking. During TAG meetings, Spoken English training improved teachers' confidence to speak. After that they used to speak English fluently and confidently in the classroom. By imitating them, students also started trying to speak in English confidently and without hesitation. Two clusters were selected from our block for MOOC program i.e. Phondaghat and Ghonsari. All the teachers enjoyed it. There was a race for completion. This is the best course for teachers' CPD. Another benefit of this course is teachers can complete this course in their own time. In the schedule of TAG meetings, there are so many individual activities, group activities, language games etc. Most of the TAG teachers' confidence level has been boosted up. They participated and enjoyed these activities. After the lockdown because of Covid -19, TAG teachers and TAG Co-ordinators were eager to attend the TAG meeting. After the mandate from the higher authorities, online TAG meetings were started. All the TAG teachers responded to it also actively. 'Read to Me' is a very useful software for teaching and learning English. Teachers can use it as a teaching aid. Some schools are selected for using this software. This software provides so many menus i. e. text dictionary, picture dictionary, pronunciation, 33

translation etc. Students can record their voice also. It's very engaging and useful for the students. Our block is in a rural area. So many schools are out of network. Many teachers installed it by carrying their computers in the network area. I am very happy to tell you that so many teachers who were not selected for this software, were also eager to install it. BCPT has provided a 64 GB pendrive to each block which contains lesson wise videos and pictorial study material. It is quite pleasant and interesting for the students of 1st to 4th standards. English language Conceptual Resource learning material is also very effective and decent for the students for self study. They have got new ideas while using this material. They are handling the English Language Kit excellently. I attended some offline as well as online TAG meetings, ELCRLM trainings, TAG district level training. At that time I experienced that most of the teachers were happy with these programmes. During TAG meetings, teachers were trying to speak, participate in so many activities, and express their thoughts in English. Before that very few teachers were ready to speak but now most of the teachers have started participating willingly. I visited some schools also. Students were able to speak English fluently and confidently. The English subject was not a favourite one for students but now a days when we ask the students which is your favourite subject and most of them reply as ‘English’. I think students have developed love for the English language because of all these English programmes. All these programmes for the development of English language are golden opportunities for teachers, students and us also. We have got an opportunity to improve our English too. 34

Ms. Arati Ulhas Kambli Block Resource Person Block: Malvan The year 2018-19 was packed with the implementation of so many English programmes such as TEJAS, MOOC, CHESS, BCPT videos, Read to Me, ELCRLM. All these programmes were implemented very effectively in the schools. As a result of this, not only the teachers have started communicating in English but the students are also enjoying English. The fear of English has been reduced from the minds of students along with the teachers. By reaching out to schools in remote areas, these various English programmes have been proven to be beneficial for the students in the future; because of these various English programmes, English is taught as a language and not as a subject. Therefore, the government's aims seem to have been achieved. It was seen during the school visits that the implementation of these English programmes was done very well at the cluster level and at the school level. Under the TEJAS initiative, monthly TAG meetings of teachers are conducted at the cluster level. Since 2018-19, these meetings have still been held at the centre level in an exuberant manner. The hard work of the cluster heads and TAG co-ordinators for the effective meetings is truly commendable. Everyone has taken good efforts to give proper justice to these meetings. I have seen that despite any financial provisions, the TAG Co-ordinators have successfully run the TAG meetings by providing the stationary and other materials at their own expense. The reactions of the teachers present at the TAG meetings are positive. Until then we were understanding English but there was no opportunity to express it. \"I was not 35

confident to speak in English, but even if it goes wrong, these meetings have boosted my confidence to speak\". One tag teacher responded. More such positive responses are coming from the teachers cadre. How teachers are benefited from these TAGs is seen from the activities conducted at the school level. Teachers are enthusiastically implementing these activities in their schools. Once I visited a school in a remote area. Students from that area of standard 3rd and 4th easily told what they learnt from those activities, without any help from their teachers. They did many activities by using the educational materials and most of the activities were conducted at the TAG meetings. It shows how effectively the TEJAS programme is being implemented all over the district. The British Council has provided an online course; an excellent opportunity in the form of MOOC for the continuous professional development of TAG teachers. Teachers were able to learn and expand their knowledge through various videos in this course. This further boosted the confidence of the teachers. The Read to Me Programme has also been useful for developing English reading for students. Along with other programmes, this one is also effectively implemented at the school level. ELCRLM materials were found to be the most commonly used English TLM at the school level. Because in most schools, English corners were prepared and these English materials were kept there. Since there is English material in front of the students constantly, various activities are done by using it. As a result, it helped to increase the English vocabulary of students. So all students are being benefited from it. Such various English programmes are very useful for the CPD of the teachers, as well as beneficial in improving the English listening, reading, writing and speaking skills of the students. 36

Mr.Jaysing Baliram Khanolkar, School: Dodamarg No.1, Block: Dodamarg. The Government of Maharashtra introduced English from the 1st standard in all Marathi medium schools from 2001. It has been proved to be a revolutionary decision taken by the government. From that year till today; so many programmes have been designed and successfully implemented in Marathi medium schools for the betterment of the English. As a result of that, today the progress of students in such schools is really amazing. English has been taught from standard first for the last twenty years. Within this period there are so many projects and trainings organized for the English subject. Four years ago, the British Council designed and conducted teachers' training for the English language. That training was very good and a novice kind of experience for all the teachers. All activities and ideas were very engaging. But as days passed it was observed that because of the lack of continuity, teachers started forgetting the activities and ideas. So our Education Department and the British Council jointly chalked out an intervention of regular monthly meetings at cluster level. In these monthly meetings the participants are provided limited activities to utilise in the classroom. The participants communicate to each other and share their experience with other teachers and mostly communicate in English. In the Tag Meetings, we started to speak in English with each other. Having used foreign language gave us confidence in our speech. In this training we learnt new words and phrases for everyday situations. From the discussions we learnt to think about similar activities. 37

When I was selected as a TAG participant I was very happy. When I joined cluster level meetings in Dodamarg, and when the meeting started , our TAG Co-ordinator introduced the programme in fluent English. He motivated the participants to speak in English and to participate in the activities in the meetings. Now TAG members can speak and communicate with each other in English. It happened only because of TEJAS. All TAG members are very much satisfied with this project, because this project has enriched them with a lot of activities and ideas; which they can use in their own classes. All the TAG members enjoy all the games, communication activities and all types of other activities during monthly meetings. When we discussed previous TAG meetings; our TAG members shared their own experiences and corrected their mistakes which they have made in these activities. That was a great moment of every meeting. This project built the confidence of the teachers and this is useful for the teaching- learning process. Compared to the first TAG meeting, in last month's TAG meeting we noticed so many positive changes in the TAG members. Now they all are full of confidence as they try to speak as much as they can in English. I think the TEJAS project is a milestone for developing English speaking abilities in primary schools. As a teacher I am also thankful to the TEJAS project because it has helped me to speak continuously in English. And when I prepare myself to participate in the TAG meetings; I try to get more information about every concept. Thus I conduct all the activities and funny games in my school for my students before I use it in my TAG meetings. The benefit of this work is that my students can enjoy English as a game and they participate in all activities. If there is any difficulty in any activity or idea I can solve the problem with the help of my TAG members. So I think the TEJAS project is very useful for teachers, students and the daily teaching learning process. COMPETENCIES ASSESSMENT PROGRAMME (CAP) The Government of Maharashtra designed a programme to test the abilities of students to see what they have gained during this journey and that programme is CAP. This programme is designed by Regional Academic Authority (RAA), English Expertise, Aurangabad. Competencies Assessment programme was designed to assess stage wise and skill wise basic competencies of learners from grade I to VIII and also to develop need based common programmes for learners across the state. With the help of this 38

programme, teachers can test the basic competencies, linguistic competencies in language skills. The tests were conducted individually and in a friendly environment. The students too solved the tests as per the instructions of the assessor without any pressure. Speaking and reading skills were included in this programme. General guidelines were given about conducting the test. Overall when the test was conducted of all the students, the response was really very nice. The activities included in the tests were entertaining and a result of that students enjoyed the CAP test. The tests were conducted in a flexible manner where the assessor was able to give instructions in the mother tongue as well as as per the needs of the learners. Being a primary teacher I would like to thank RAA, Aurangabad for designing such a nice programme for my students. 39

Mr. Dinkar Shirwalkar TAG coordinator, Block: Malvan. Teachers are major catalysts who are central to any education system. A skilled and reflective teacher can harness a child’s potential of creativity, ambition and achievement. These sentences are from a resource book which made me feel proud for being a teacher. Yes, teachers play a vital role in any education system. That’s why the Government of Maharashtra has designed a programme for all teachers with the help of TATA trust and the British Council. RAA, Aurangabad bears the administrative role to implement this program at ground level. I like the way this program is designed and executed. As a TAG co-ordinator I feel so lucky to be selected for this programme. I strongly believe that language cannot be learnt by mere studying it, but it can be learnt by using it. And that is exactly what this program did to us. We got more and more confidence after each and every TAG meeting. Gradually we were able to speak English confidently. We learnt a lot in four sections of the TAG resource book. The TAG resource book is well arranged and well organized. We got so many activities like slap the board, celebrity interview, running dictation etc. We learnt lots of new techniques which made English speaking and teaching so easy for us. We gained more confidence to communicate effectively in English. In every TAG meeting we shared our ideas and experiences with other teachers and learnt a lot from other teachers too. This programme has provided us with many CPD platforms to upgrade ourselves. 40

Actually I was selected for the MOOC program too! This was an absolutely well planned online CPD programme. I really enjoyed it and all 39 TAG teachers have completed the MOOC program successfully. We have got certificates too. At Sukalwad cluster one of my TAG teachers approached me and asked if she could be a coordinator to complete the further course . This experience influenced me and my other TAG teachers. She was very keen to work as a TAG coordinator. This was quite a remarkable experience for me. Actually, as a TAG coordinator, I have been really enjoying this program for the last two years. I have conducted more than 25 TAG meetings at three different clusters. All TAG teachers also have enjoyed this program. I enjoyed each and every training day at RAA, Aurangabad. Ms. Sushama Konduskar, Head of English Department, DIET, Sindhudurg; Mr. Vijay Dhamapurkar ESA, DIET, Sindhudurg; Mr. Sachin Yadav (SARP) DIET, Ratnagiri; Ms. Arati Kambli (BRC) have provided us with great support. I would like to thank them for their timely motivation and help. This programme has influenced all teachers. I would rather say ‘Mujh ko kaabil bana diya!’ Thank you! 41

Mr. Santosh Daji Gosavi Cluster Head, Kumbavade, Block: Vaibhavwadi The English language is the oxygen for today’s society. We can’t ignore the growing importance of the English language among all the fields like business, entertainment etc. The TEJAS project is jointly brought in the field by the government of Maharashtra, Tata Trust and the British council. TAG is an integral component of TEJAS which means Teacher’s Activity Group. I am very lucky to witness these innovative activities in TAG meetings. We arrange monthly meetings which consist of a coordinator and a teacher from each school from the cluster. These activities provide all of us the opportunity to develop our English language skills. Here I would like to describe the steps of a TAG meeting. First of all the coordinator welcomes all the teachers and communicates with them in a friendly manner to create a tension-free and playful environment. After that the meeting goes through the following steps – 1) Warm up: Warm up is important for making one’s mind ready to be involved in further activities. Here we start with any funny language game and encourage every teacher to participate and enjoy the game. 2) Discussion on action plan: At this stage we discuss the action plan provided to the teachers in the last meeting. All the teachers discuss the strengths and the areas of improvement of each other followed by appreciation and giving suggestions. At the end of this stage the coordinator guides the TAG teachers for further improvement. 3) Language development : 42

Here we focus on a particular theme and every teacher prepares a presentation according to that particular theme. For example if the theme is – ‘can I help you?’ – All the teachers will discuss how to create different situations for learners to develop language skills according to that theme. 4) Learning by reading : Here we encourage teachers to learn the language by reading various articles and newspapers in the English language to have a better grip of the language. 5) Learning by watching: Just like reading, watching English stories and movies also helps to improve communication skills. At this stage we emphasize on learning the language by watching meaningful pieces of entertainment. 6) Reflection : At this stage the co-ordinator revises all the concepts discussed in the meeting. He also clears up the doubts asked by the teachers related to the topic. 7) Action plan : This is the last stage of the TAG meeting. At this stage the coordinator gives an action plan on which every teacher works in their classroom and prepares a presentation for the next meeting. Motivation is very important for any successful act. We can’t only train the teachers and expect them to act as per the training modules, but at the same time we have to motivate them for further participation in the activities. I always visit my teachers to observe their classroom activities regarding this project. I insist teachers to conduct the activities with their students just like the way we conduct in the TAG meetings. Grammatical mistakes should never be rectified in language development. It is expected at the final stage of language learning. I instruct them to ignore grammatical mistakes at the primary stage. The primary aim of the language is to express, to understand one’s feelings. I always motivate my teachers to participate actively in every activity with their students freely and frankly without any hesitation. ❖ My own experience of TAG meeting conduction The newly initiated ‘TEJAS’ project aims to assist in a revolutionary way. TAG meeting is an important activity in this project. My experience of conducting these meetings is really very creative and talkative. Warm up, discussion on action plan, 43

language development, learning by reading-watching, reflection and action plan are the stages of the TAG meeting. We always feel happy, playful and tension-free in the meeting. The co-ordinator communicates with every teacher in a friendly manner. So every teacher takes part in every activity without any fear of mistakes. Mistakes are always regarded as the next level of learning. As per my experience of conducting TAG meetings, it is really very impressive and memorable. In brief, the TAG meeting is a very impressive and cheerful experience for all of us. These activities are really very helpful and supportive for developing language skills of students and teachers too. Thank you! View on TAG by Ishant Chandrakant Nar, Vidyamandir Nadhawade Brahmandev Navladeviwadi. Block: Vaibhavawadi, Dist- Sindhudrg. Video Reference - https://youtu.be/r4uLiDEOAG 44

Mr. Narayan Vasant Chavan Block Resource Person, Block: Devgad Due to covid-19 the entire world came to a standstill, education was not an exception to this. But it is said that a crisis comes along with an opportunity. We got an opportunity to use online platforms to teach the students. Thus students got connected to each other. Teachers started to use Zoom app, Google meet, Whatsapp etc. to contact their students and thus the process of online education geared up. TEJAS (Technology Enabled Education Through Joint Action and Strategic Initiatives) was one of the ambitious projects of the RAA, Aurangabad. In this project TAG co-ordinators used to hold the meeting at the cluster level but because of covid-19 there was a break. Then our authorities realised that these meetings can also be conducted using an online platform and zoom app or Google meet is the best option for that. District level authorities of (DIET) Sindhudurg called a meeting about conducting online TAG meetings in the district. In this meeting a demonstration of a tag meeting using the Zoom app was shown which helped us to understand how to conduct TAG meetings using the Zoom app. All the TAG coordinators from the district were present at this meeting. In the Devgad block I also prepared a time table with the help of cluster heads and TAG co-ordinators. Finally online meetings started. Now it was easy for me to attend the meetings of clusters sitting in my office since meetings were online. 45

Here, I would like to especially mention the TAG meeting of the Salashi cluster. I was impressed with the meeting. I did not feel that it was an online meeting. Though all the teachers were online, they were all together by heart. They were all following carefully the instructions of the TAG C named Shankar Namdev Bhujbal, one of the most enthusiastic teachers in Salashi cluster. All the teachers were present. I noticed some teachers faced terrible network issues at their places, but they traveled 3 to 4 kms in search of a network to be able to attend the meeting. Every teacher in the Salashi cluster worked diligently to make the meeting successful. One more thing I noticed in the teachers of Salashi cluster was their bonding. There is a really strong bonding among the teachers. Throughout the meeting they all supported one another when TAG C had any doubt, more experienced teachers in the cluster helped him. All the teachers were present in the meeting with the hand book. The teachers participated whole heartedly in all the activities. One more thing I would like to mention here about the meeting that; Ms. Angane, the teacher from the Z.P. School Chafed, Bhoglewadi, showed curiosity about the TAG meeting even though she was not a TAG member. She requested Mr.Shankar Bhujbal, the TAG C to allow her to attend the meeting. She participated in the discussions also. At the end of the meeting she expressed satisfaction and said, “It would have been great, if I had been a member of this meeting”. 46

Ms. Smita Nilesh Jadhav Block Resource Person, BRC: Kudal TEJAS project is a three year partnership project among the Government of Maharashtra, Tata Trust and British council. The main aim of the project is to improve the quality of English learning. First of all, the TAG Co-ordinators and I planned a CPD workshop at cluster level to encourage the teachers to fill up the TAG co-ordinators selection link. I highlighted all CPD points. RAA, Aurangabad and Department of English, DIET, Sindhudurg gave me an opportunity to be the art of a particular project and cleared all doubts about my role as a BRP, co-ordinator at the block level. British Council and RAA, Aurangabad selected teachers by telephonic interview and finalised the list of TAG coordinators for the TEJAS project. They were eagerly waiting to conduct a TAG Meeting at the cluster level. Cluster Head planned the venue and managed other necessary infrastructure for TAG teachers. TAG coordinators are the cream of the TEJAS project. Cream is always tasty and sweet. I am happy to say that our TAG co-ordinators' achievement as the stakeholders of this project is appreciable. They played a vital role to increase all teachers' attention and simultaneously motivated teachers to speak English without hesitation. TAG co-ordinators supported all TAG teachers and shared their own experiences and created a friendly environment in the TAG Meetings. What is the effect of TAG Meetings? 1) TAG teachers eagerly awaited the TAG Meeting schedule. 2) TAG teachers are able to use English while communicating with each other. In TAG meetings, they learn many activities, and they implement the same in their classrooms. 47

3) They also share their own ideas, language games, teaching techniques, and activities in the groups. 4) TAG teachers have become more expressive during visits of guests in clusters. 5) They made TAG PLEDGE and sent it on Whats app to be set as profile photos and also made profiles of their learners in English. 6) The resource book provided different types of activities, guessing games and techniques for learners. 7) TAG teachers completed simple messages, requests, guessing activities, and action plans in their own space. 8) TAG teachers are using resources very effectively. The resource book is designed and planned very well and action oriented. I observed teachers' needs for CPD. TAG Meetings are always motivating and help all the TAG teachers to reflect on their action plan to reach their CPD. When I visited the cluster level; I noticed some teachers have constructed TAG pledges in beautiful words like..... ‘When I changed myself beyond thoughts Thoughts become strong; they say you are not wrong.’ TAG meetings are achieving great success with the support of BEO, Extension Officers, Cluster Heads, Co-ordinators, Facilitators and all the TAG teachers. The team of BRC is also quite supportive. I feel excited and confident about managing the TEJAS project at block level with my team. 48

Ms. Vikas Balaji Kapate ZPPS Warad Bhandarwada Block: Malvan I am Vikas Balaji Kalate and I'm currently working at Z.P. primary school Warad Bhandarwada, Malvan block . When I first enrolled myself for the TEJAS project, I had little knowledge about any such type of projects. I was selected for this by the British Council through an interview. I strongly remember the first day of my training in Kolhapur. There were many teachers from various districts who had come there for the training. The doubts which I had in my mind about this program were cleared by the trainers as the training progressed. The training conducted by RAA through the British Council was very good and it enriched us academically. When the time came to implement the TEJAS project on the field, I got disturbed a little bit. \"Is it possible for me to speak in English for up to 3 hours?\" This question troubled me a lot. But I was able to manage it satisfactorily. The first TAG meeting of cluster Hiwale was held on 26 sep 2018. At first, the teachers were not responding properly because the meeting was totally in English. After that I changed my approach and motivated the teachers to speak without hesitation. When I compare the first TAG meeting of cluster Hiwale with the last TAG meeting of the previous month, I get surprised that the teachers who were hesitating to speak, are now speaking fluently and confidently. Sometimes they helped me to take TAG meetings. They also shared the changes seen in their students because of this TEJAS project and they also posted some videos of activities implemented in their schools. Because of all these outcomes, I strongly believe that TEJAS is the new way to develop academic leadership of teachers to lead the learners. Tag-co-ordinators, teachers and students have started communicating in English with each other confidently. 49

Mr. Vilas Ramesh Bonde ZPPS Adavali no. Block: Malvan Language is the mirror of thoughts and feelings. It is an expression of life. English language is considered as a global language, used widely in the world. It’s become an important language in the world. That’s why the Government of Maharashtra in collaboration with the Tata Trust and the British Council has taken this initiative to develop the English language of teachers and students with the help of TEJAS project. This project aims towards developing the teachers by providing the right path for their CPD, to develop their skills related to the English language. I am Vilas Bonde, a primary teacher from Z.P. School Adavali no. 1, block Malavn, Dist. Sindhudurg. I feel very proud to be a part of the TEJAS project. I was selected by telephonic interview as a TAG Coordinator. I was trained by the experts from the British Council in an effective manner. Most of the teachers were from Marathi medium and teaching English as a third language. Thus, there was a lot of hesitation and lack of confidence initially. Before joining TEJAS; I was not aware of CPD and its significance. Today after three years of joining TEJAS, I have made positive changes in my attitude towards CPD. It is said that ‘Ability is what you’re capable of doing’. ‘Motivation determines what you do’; ' Attitude determines how well you do it.’ I am aware that as educators, we inspire, enthuse, motivate, engage, entertain and we care deeply. We view the ‘whole child’ so the most important CPD must empower and rejuvenate the ‘whole teacher’. Being aware of this I took responsibility for professional development of mine and others too. CPD through TEJAS enabled me to reinforce and enhance my current skills. 50