India study visit for teachers

Easter holiday 29th March 8th April 2016

A unique professional development opportunity for teachers, TAs and teaching
students.
I would recommend this visit to all schools wishing to develop their understanding of a different culture.
What a life-changing experience it was! We all came back inspired and with a much greater
understanding of the issues which affect the lives of the people in the rural and urban communities in
southern India. The staff were extremely knowledgeable and were able to answer any questions put to
them. The whole experience can be used in so many ways within the school curriculum.
Headteacher, Wells Cathedral Junior School.
It was the best trip of my life. I know we all feel privileged to have experienced Indian life and culture
with such depth and in so short a space of time. The hospitality was second to none.
Teacher of RE, St Dunstans Secondary School, Glastonbury.
We have all come away re-energised and determined to change our priorities. The opportunity has
been the most useful professional development in my 30 years of teaching.
Head teacher, Buckland St Mary Primary School.
As well as extending our own knowledge, we have so much to offer the children back at school. The
visit was a tremendous resource, which will bring to life the topics we cover.
Year 6 Teacher, Croscombe primary school, Somerset

What is the purpose of the visit?

To increase authentic experience of a different country and culture by spending
ten days in a rural home stay and study centre alongside a village community.
To explore Indian culture and life through visits to markets, temples, sacred
mountains, and to hear about their context in Karnataka and through history.
To develop ideas about how to teach about India and development issues
through enquiry and the use of comparative rural and urban case studies.
To gather resources, artefacts and information to enhance and enrich the
delivery of many curriculum subjects.
To learn about Indian creative traditional rituals and cultural art forms.
To reflect on creative and participatory teaching practice through activities,
school visits and discussion.
To strengthen Global Citizenship, intercultural learning and Internationalism in
your school/organisation.
The visit is open to anyone in education who shares the objectives above, teachers,
TAs and teaching students.
What are the dates of the visit?
This visit will take place from 29th March- 8th April. This spans the Easter Holiday
2016.

What will we do?

Below is a draft programme of what we hope to include in this study visit. The
programme includes a series of outings/ excursions (eg. to Bangalore, rural villages
and local farms, to Mysore and the river Cauvery in order to explore markets,
temples, mountains, and a bird sanctuary.) Alongside these excursions will be a
series of activities at Sangam to reflect on what has been experienced, to set what
has been seen in context, and to share ideas about teaching and learning. There will
be two days focussed specifically on understanding art and craft traditions with
hands on practical activities and workshops. Many of the activities and excursions
are planned in order to be curriculum linked, developing ideas for teaching
Geography, History/Knowledge and Understanding of the World; Art/Creativity;
RE/PSED and cross curricular topics relating to India. You will be provided with a rich
resource bank of ideas for teaching and learning about India, including urban and
rural settlement case studies for developing contrasting locality studies.
Who is the visit being organised by?
The visit is organised by a study centre in India called Sangam who have 10 years of
professional experience facilitating such visits. The visit is being planned and
coordinated by Cathy Bushill, assistant head teacher and Caroline Savage, reception
class teacher at St Vigor and St John School in Chilcompton, Somerset. Cathy first
visited Sangam as a participant on a study visit programme, has established a
thriving partnership with a school in the Bangalore area, and now returns for the
second time as a group leader. Caroline returns for the second time to help
coordinate. Their contact details are to be found at the end of this document.
What is Sangam?
Sangam is a study centre in the village of Silvepura 20 miles north of Bangalore. The
centre runs many different education projects with students and teachers from India
and the UK. They work closely with local schools, runs study visits for visiting
teachers, and facilitate study journeys around South India.Sangam means meeting
point or confluence, ie between people of different cultures. Imogen and Kiran
Sahi run Sangam. Imo is teacher from the UK. Alongside her work at Sangam she
works as a consultant education advisor and master trainer on Internationalism and
Global Citizenship for the British Council. Kiran is a designer from India, trained at the
National Institute of Design and teaches art and design. Kiran is skilled at interpreting
and explaining Indian culture and the ways in which it is changing and developing, so
that visitors to Sangam both experience India, and are enabled to understand what they
are seeing. Together Imo and Kiran have developed Sangam into a place for enabling
learning. They facilitate the process of the visit, the activities, accommodation,
transport, and helping to interpret what we encounter.
Where will the group stay?
The group will stay at The Land, Imo and Kirans home stay accommodation where
Sangam is based, which has space for up to 20 people. The Land is a spacious leafy
garden on the edge of the rural village of Silvepura. The facilities are simple but well
developed as a comfortable place for visiting groups from the UK to make
themselves at home. During the weekend excursion you will stay at a comfortable
spa resort in Mysore. Information about Sangams accommodation can be found at
www.sangamprojects.com.
What will the weather be like?
March and April in India are the hot and dry summer months. Sometimes in April there will be some summer
showers called the Mango showers. Temperatures tend to be in the early 30s.
What should we bring? You will be invited to a meeting before you travel when you will meet with Cathy, hear
more about Sangam and the programme, and be given a comprehensive preparation pack containing advice about
kit lists, advice for travelling to India and how to get a visa. The meeting will also be a chance for you to ask
questions and meet the rest of the group.

What is the cost?

The study visit fee will be between 750 and 850 depending on the final programme. This fee covers all
accommodation for the 10 days in India, food, all in-country transport in air-conditioned cars with a driver, study
resources, workshops in India and excursions, all briefing, preparation and admin costs,. It does not cover the flight
to India, which is about 600 depending on which carrier you choose. You will also need to budget for costs of
vaccinations, travel insurance, a visa for entry to India, and your choice of two lunches and two dinners for the
weekend excursion. We will discuss all these aspects during the preparation sessions.
A draft programme: This draft may change depending on your interest, but we will work with this as a plan:
Dates
28th March
29st March
30th March

31st March

1rst April
2nd and 3rd
April

4th April

5th April
6th April
7th April

8th April

Activities and focus areas

Fly from Heathrow directly to Bangalore.
Orientation activities and introductions. Time for reflecting on aims and objectives of the visit. Walks and
cycle rides to explore the area.
A day for exploring the rural locality, learning about development and land use change in the area. The day
will begin with a visit to Sita school, in Silvepura village. We will then undertake a rural settlement study
along with a rural case study. We will go on a cycle ride/ walk to observe and understand the issues relating
to water, agricultural change and development.
A day for visiting a school. You will work with the children there for the morning, on the topic of festivalsrelating Easter to fire and spring festivals in Karnataka. We will then journey to a nearby mountain area and
visit one of the hill temples at sunset.
A day for undertaking an informal urban transect into Bangalore, based around the geographical enquiry
process, and we will be provided with a case study. You will visit markets and have time to buy artefacts.
A weekend in Mysore: You will journey (in air conditioned cars which will stay with you for the whole
weekend) towards Mysore, where you can visit ancient stone carved temples along the banks of the river
Cauvery, climb Chamundi Hill, explore the Mysore palace, visit the rich and colourful Devaraja market in
the centre of Mysore and visit Ranganthittu Bird Sanctuary. You will spend two nights in a spa resort in
Mysore.
Art and Craft day 1: A morning free for writing journals, then time for hearing about and looking at
traditional and Indian motifs and patterns and finally an option of creating an art work which is inspired by
these motifs, and by the art and traditional patterns seen on the visit so far.
Art and Craft day 2: Morning excursion to a block printing workshop, An evening activity in a nearby home
for girls (Baale Mane) will be a chance for us to share art and craft activities and work with the girls.
Bangalore: A day for gathering artefacts and resources. We will visit an urban market area and explore the
commercial district. Possibly focussing around the gathering of a Rajis bag school bag resource.
Debrief: Time for thinking through how to teach about India, and for sharing ideas. Focussing on how we
can enhance, develop, and enable effective delivery of topics relating to Indian culture, change and
development. How can we use enquiry during this process. What ideas and resources can we share that
have been developed.
Fly back to Heathrow from Bangalore.

How to apply:
Please mail Cathy and Caroline using the email address below and they will send you through an application form.
Or, go to the Sangam website, www.sangamprojects.com, click next teacher study visits where you can download
an application form. The completed application form needs to be emailed to the address below.
Please can you register your interest and send your application form through before the end of January 2016.
How to find out more:
If there are queries which have not been covered above, or if you would like to talk over details of the visit prior to
booking, please contact:

Group leaders:
Cathy Bushill, and Caroline Savage,
Address: Sunningdale, Fosse Rd, Stratton on the Fosse,
Radstock, Bath, Somerset, BA3 4RF.
Email address: bushill@tiscali.co.uk
School Phone: 01761 233847.
H- 01761 232486 M-07855327037