While children in India are mostly confined to theory-based learning, students in the ‘Land of the Rising Sun’ are trained in life skills and ethical learning. My joy knew no bounds when I got a mail from the Rotary governor’s secretariat informing me that I was chosen for a study trip to Japan some two decades ago. I was in my first year, pursuing B Sc Botany, at Lady Doak College in Madurai.
Since it happened to be my maiden air travel, I was very nervous. However, my principal and HoD allayed my fears and made sure I felt comfortable while embarking on the flight. In Osaka, three of us in the 12-member group were accommodated at an apartment owned by a Rotary member while the others were sheltered in nearby dwellings.
The apartment in which I was staying was situated near a school. From Monday to Friday, I could see scores of tiny tots clad in uniform pass by my apartment. They were enjoying the taste of sugarcane, after removing the outer layers of it deftly with their tiny teeth, en route to school. Words cannot express the amount of happiness the kids derived in eating sugarcane.
I was awestruck to see the kids collect the husks from the sugarcane in a small bag, similar to an apron, tied to their neck. I thought they were cautious about keeping the environment clean and would later dump the waste in a garbage bin. While I was complimenting their civic sense, I was shocked to see that they showed no inkling to go near the dustbin. They just jostled their way to school. I was curious to know what these kids were up to.
I was anxiously waiting for them in the evening. I was taken aback when I saw the children return home with tiny baskets and flower vases made from sugarcane husks.
I got out of my apartment to follow them and to my astonishment saw that they were selling their creations to a wayside hawker. Finally, I learnt that the kids earned their pocket money by selling the baskets. Not only did those Japanese kids learn certain skills, they were made to understand the dignity of labour and value of money too.
This haunted me after I came back to my home in Cumbum in Theni. The Japanese kids’ way of earning while learning impacted me so much that I implemented the concept after I joined as a Montessori teacher at a school in Kuttikanam in the district of Idukki. The management was overwhelmed by my novel way of tapping the talents of kids even while imparting teaching.
Shefa Rafi
Email: jshefa@gmail.com