Celebrate Teacher's Day by indulging in these movies, books and podcasts

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READ

The Art of Being a Brilliant Teacher: THIS book acknowledges teaching as an art. It explores methods that could be adopted by teachers (at any stage of their career) to improve their craft in the classrooms. Authors Gary Toward, Chris Henley, and Andy Cope keep it exciting and fresh, which makes the experience of reading the book a joyride. The authors discuss crucial techniques like positive psychology, terms of engagement with students, signs of "classroom entropy", and strategies that help grapple with discipline. The book is a self-help gift for all teachers, offering plenty of examples and case studies.

In Custody by Anita Desai: In her classic, Anita Desai paints a poignant portrait of an underpaid Hindi professor, Deven, who teaches at Mirpore's Lala Ram Lal College. One day, an old college friend from New Delhi pays him a visit. He is the "spoilt rich" and manipulative Murad, who runs an Urdu magazine. Murad tempts Deven with an offer to interview the latter's idol, the Urdu poet Nur, "in his old age". Deven finds it difficult to refuse the opportunity. However, while at the job, he is constantly bullied by Murad, and begins experiencing many personal shifts in his life, including his relationship with his family and friends back home.
Available Bookstores, and e-stores

LISTEN

The Teaching Space: Martine Ellis, an educator from Guernsey with a mindset-first approach, focuses on the well-being of teachers in her podcast, inspiring them to follow healthy practices. She offers various tips that have been tested by educators from around the world. For instance, in one of the episodes, professor Matt O'Leary explains why he believes in an observation-based approach, especially in how it helps understand the relationship between learning and teaching. Ellis also advises on navigating online spaces like managing Google classrooms, maintaining teacher blogs, or turning video conferences with students into engaging experiences. All episodes in the podcast are 15-30 minutes long, and easy for teachers, parents, trainers, and coaches to listen to during their work breaks.
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WATCH

A still from the documentary. PICS COURTESY/YOUTUBE

Class of her own (2024): This documentary follows the life of Gloria Jean Merriex, a teacher at a public school in Florida that consisted of children from disadvantaged communities. Merriex revised her teaching methods and transformed her classroom into fun spaces of learning and creative excellence through innovative strategies. She brought dance and music to her class. With the help of rap, she taught concepts of mathematics, and through arts, made reading delightful. She took care of her students beyond their academic needs, studied and understood them closely.
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Moments from The Teacher Who Promised the Sea

The Teacher Who Promised the Sea (2023): Ariadne is looking for her grandfather and comes across the story of Antoni Benaiges, a Catalan teacher, who taught her grandfather during the Spanish Civil War of the 1930s. Benaiges was assigned to teach at a small village in the city of Burgos, Spain, about 75 years ago. He introduced modern methods of teaching to encourage the students to think and question. While he faced resistance from several parents, he was loved by his students. He showed them how to type and create their own booklets with their words and add their sketches to them. Based on a true story, the film is a testament to the everlasting impact of a good teacher.
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