SURREY - The Sikh Research Institute (SikhRI) of San Antonio, Texas recently conducted several educational programs and radio broadcasts for Sikh communities on the west coast, from Fremont, USA to Surrey, Canada. SikhRI has connected these communities by spreading the message of becoming Guru-oriented through the education of language and heritage. SikhRI focuses on Training and Development, Global Awareness, and developing Strategic Solutions through a gurmat based perspective. Gurmat is often used to describe the Guru’s way, literally the wisdom of the Guru. In essence it is the coming together of bani, tavarikh and rahit, i.e., scriptural directives, history, and lifestyle. The bani celebrates Guru Granth Sahib as the heart of Sikh heritage that embraces only those parts of the universal cultures that have the potentialities to be generous, awe-inspiring and sovereign. The tavarikh comprises those traditions that cherish the genius of the Guru. The rahit encompasses the wholeness of life and borrows insights from the lives of the Sikhs raised by the Guru. With this vision, SikhRI embarked on several events on the West Coast.
A Sojhi teacher training was held in Fremont, CA and Surrey, BC for eight schools. Khalsa School of Gurdwara Fremont held their training for 18 teachers on 16 August 2008 and seven Gurmat and Panjabi Schools participated in training at Kwantlen University in Surrey. Deep Singh, a veteran high school teacher of 30 years and a current Panjabi school teacher at Sukh Sagar Gurdwara says “this program must reach all Sikh students if we want them to understand Gurmat. The curriculum has been developed in a very detailed manner and the best part of this is that wherever the students may go, if this curriculum is being used, they will get a consistent message.” Baljinder Kaur Narang, SikhRI’s British Columbia coordinator and member of the Board of Advisors commented on the pleasure of knowing that 7 different schools in the BC area came together to train over 30 teachers. “Since there is a large Sikh community in the BC area, it only makes sense that the schools develop a network of teachers to be more effective for our future generations and to do this through an organized training in content understanding and teaching techniques is a wonderful way.”
Sojhi– Gurmat and Education Resource, was developed to increase the effectiveness of Sikh education by developing high standards of learning with comprehensive teaching materials. The Sojhi elementary school curriculum introduces children to Gurmat-based vocabulary and contemporary Panjabi, as well as Sikh heritage with a focus on the Sikh theological framework from 1469 to present. After attending the teacher training in BC, Canada, Rapinder Kaur, an elementary school teacher reflected, “I was impressed with the professionalism of the presenters. The presentations on Sikh values, ideology and principles were insightful and engaging.” To-date, over 250 teachers have been trained and 40 schools across US, Canada, and UK are using the Sojhi curriculum.
“When provided with effective tools for the classroom, teachers can make a significant impact on their students in terms of thought and application and we are providing these tools for the teachers via this curriculum” says Jasmine Kaur, Director of Education of SikhRI and Sojhi project lead. Gurmat and Panjabi School teams realize a need to implement an effective Sikh core curriculum focusing on Boli (language arts) and Virsa (Sikh Heritage). As a result, they invite members of the Sojhi team to train their teachers on the effective implementation of the Sojhi school curriculum. Balwinder Kaur, a teacher from Khalsa School, Surrey remarked, “I learned so much, like how to make my teaching interesting as a Panjabi teacher. Now I can teach them Gurmukhi and teach them so many things about Sikhs and Sikhi.”
In Fremont, Harinder Singh, SikhRI’s Co-founder and Executive Director, shared how the Partition of 1947 was not of India, but of Panjab and Bengal. And it is the Panjabis (primarily Sikhs since 1966) who have been the target of discriminatory policies of Indian state. In Surrey, Canada he was invited to speak at Gurdwara Dukh Nivaran Sahib on the 300 Year Commemorations of Guru Granth Sahib. His two lectures focused on Gurbani: Structure and Format and Gurbani: Message and Nation. “Through our Global Awareness programs we help the community to connect with its roots, its heritage. As a result, we explore the possibilities of interpreting Sikh culture together, in a thoughtful and purposeful manner”. Harinder Singh, also spoke on Kuldip Singh’s talk show Dilan Di Sanjh on Sher-E- Punjab Radio discussing the relationship between the self and the Guru. Singh was also interviewed on topics of language and the importance of imparting language skills to future generations. He covered these topics at the teacher trainings as well. “The thing I liked the most about the program is teaching language in regards to Gurbani. Teaching the right spelling, Sikh values, emphasizing on imaginative thinking.” says Preet Kaur of Union City, CA.
Typically, a training session consists of interactive workshops in which teachers are introduced to key teaching techniques including effective questioning, developing lesson-related graphics, and realizing the importance of detailed planning and preparation to teach in the classroom. Foundational understanding of Sikhi is provided through workshops with titles such as: Sikh Culture and Traditions, Sikh Celebrations, Language: Spelling, Parlance and Vocabulary and The Ten Nanaks: One Jot. Sojhi also provides second level customized trainings for schools adopting the curriculum. The instructional training workshops are highly customized to the needs of the specific school staff members, whether in content or teaching techniques. Developmental milestones and abilities have been taken into account while developing the curriculum. Of note, the Sojhi curriculum also focuses on developing leadership skills at a young age.
In 2008, SikhRI has served over 500 individuals at 17 training and development events and over 60,000 via Global Awareness events. SikhRI continues to develop new programs to serve the Sikh community at large. The latest in its offering is Liv Sikhi webinars commencing on 13 Sep 2008.
