What i feel before, after and while writing my ACT exam...

 What I feel before, after and while writing my ACT exam …

It’s almost time; it’s almost time...

The trickling of my sweat from my forehead; my big green watery eyes, the chapped lips and the dry throat. Almost feeling like I had gulped down pickled juice and wanted to throw up.  Typical signs of nervousness before entering the ACT/SAT exam room. I felt suffocated being with so many students out there in that room. I kept on clamping my sweaty palms, my stomach rumbled with hunger and for some reason my feet were shaking. I had never felt like this before, I am not like this! I am quite chilled out about exams and tests however the pressure of achieving a high score in ACT/SAT was overpowering my calm and cool attitude. The same thing repeated in my forehead- ‘NEED TO GET GOOD GRADES OTHERWISE NO COLLEGE!’ I tried to calm myself down however all I could think was about the paper.

All my five senses were highly alert and I could fell, hear everything detail in the spacious room. I could fell my heart pumping, I sense my anxiety increasing I could hear the chit- chat of the people in the other corner.  I was a mess however I had to fight that feeling! I entered the room and removed all my stationary out that I required; I rechecked my calculator twice just to make sure that it was working properly. I saw that all my pencils were sharp and I filled the form carefully avoiding making a single mistake. Typical signs of being nervous!  The invigilator came and handed out the papers. Oh and that wait for the paper! That wait was terrible to start the paper. I could feel the smooth white paper, which would change my life forever! The paper was about to start at 9 and as the clock ticked to 8:59 everyone glared at the watch. That moment was frozen…everyone was nervous and that one-minute almost felt like an hour. As soon as it turned 9 we all rushed and started solving the paper. It felt like a mini marathon happening within my brain. I was overloaded with information and apparently this paper was a way to prove my intelligence! The paper went on for 3 long hours each second counted. I could fell the competition and the heat in the room, everyone wanted the highest marks and wanted to beat the other person.

After the paper was over I felt relieved. I felt overjoyed and I really didn’t care about what I will get because I gave my 100% and I am pretty sure that my hard work will pay off.  It felt like a burden was lifted off my shoulders. The anxiety had settled down. I thought everyone must have felt the same way in the room however as I stepped out of the room all I saw was people discussing their papers and crying over mistakes they made! This made me reflect upon the human behavior. Is our life only based on grades?  Universities will see your marks but marks wont define your intelligence and it surely isn’t a way of judging your personality or potential. There is more to life than grades.  Hard work beats talent, when talent doesn’t to work hard. People worry too much however life is too short to worry. Competition is good but for me I am my biggest competitor and I work hard to make myself better than yesterday. I compete to be better than what I was yesterday and that’s my Mantra !

Art is not what you see but what you make others see

ideal sunday

An Ideal Sunday for Mumbai Girls

Ramya Chaturvedi

‘Live life King Size’ has always been my motto and though one cannot actively practice that everyday, Sunday is the day when this proverbial thought to take shape.  For a teenage girl like me who loves to laugh with their best(budd)ies, Sunday is our day. Sunday mantras differ from one gal to another but here is what I do with my gal-pals on my ideal Sunday.

It is true that a girl and her bed on Sunday is an endless love affair, so sleep as much as you want to. Start your morning with an energetic watermelon virgin mojito. Stretch a little bit and get ready for a spa day. If you are a sporty person and want to start your day with a workout, try out Zumba classes or go for a swim at Mumbai’s oldest swimming pool called ‘Mafatlal’. You could also go to your favourite salon and get a pedicure and manicure done. My personal favourite is Déssange or JCB. Get the intense cuticle manicure done. Try to run local for sometime. Explore the Colaba Causeway and Kala Ghoda. Go and buy those cool Indianised print pattern pants that are so much in fashion these days.  Explore the Indian couture culture by visiting places such as Fab India, West Side or Cottons. One can find several shoe shops on the street at Colaba Causeway, with shoes starting INR 100 only. Don’t forget to buy scarfs and local bags out there. There are several small shops where you can find anything like even a metal purse!  Top up your clothes shopping with antique jewellery with the filter coffee off the local streets. If you get tired and hungry there are always Theobroma brownies ready for you. Don’t miss your evening snacks at the Kala Ghoda Café or the Colaba social. After this busy afternoon go to a spa and get a nice aromatherapy massage done. In the evening go out with your friends for dinner and catch up with a rom-com movie. One can even go clubbing with friends at places like Tryst, Tote on the Turf and Royalty.

Girls and fun in Mumbai truly complement each other like no other city in the world! Mumbai is safe and the oddest of people are gallants towards the youth for the times have changed for good. This is my world and my idea of an ideal Sunday for a girl like me…what is yours?

Great books summer program - STANFORD

How a summer at Stanford taught me to think differently …

By Ramya Chaturvedi

I never teach my pupils, I only provide the conditions in which they can learn.

 – Albert Einstein

As students, we are taught day-in and day-out about subjects such as languages, mathematics, science, social sciences and the arts. A large part of our schooling lives are filled with attending classes, listening to the teacher, taking down notes and solving tests (chasing marks!). This ‘oh so same’ mundane routine was broken for me when I attended the Great Books Summer Program at Stanford University this summer past.

I distinctly remember that day when I walked into my Stanford classroom, the atmosphere was so positive and lively. It was full of students from all over America and the world and I just loved being there. Professor’s Illan Stevens, Rob Reich and Noah Rosenblum helped break the ice by introducing themselves and giving each of us a chance to talk about who we were and where we came from. They were so friendly and made us feel comfortable and at ease before embarking on the ‘teaching’. Their teaching style was one that I rarely came across back in India. Everything was taught using what I later learnt to be called an ‘inquiry based mothodology’ and ‘The Socratic Method’. The Professor’s encouraged us to read a book every evening and in class the following morning we held discussions about the meaning of the written words in an energetic and open minded environment. Every point raised by a students or a teacher led to a buzzy discussion. Somehow magically, I felt completely in my zone and as if I was the part of every discussion - this style of learning really caught my attention.

As other students presented their honest thoughts and perspectives, I began appreciating how people think about different things, even when looking at the same thing. This experience dawned on me how their personalities, backgrounds and attitudes led them to say different things, even when we were talking about the same sentence. I also felt that having such open-minded discussions bought all of us together, as we lost our inhibitions and spoke our minds. It taught me that a good conversation is integral to having a good relationship. Interestingly, even though we were encouraged to talk all the time, I think the three weeks made me a better listener, than a better speaker!

GBSP has helped me evolve into a more confident person, someone who is more vocal about my ideas and is comfortable putting my thoughts ‘out there’ for others to discuss. I feel more chirpy, bubbly, smart, charismatic and energetic at school too! During my three weeks on the lovely Stanford campus, I felt that I graduated from the old-school spoon-fed student to someone who was happily applying their learning. The three weeks of discussion-oriented exercises completely changed my perspective towards schooling and perhaps even college life.

A piece of advice for Indians parents – ‘discuss more, teach less’