Shorthand, A Boon In Typewriting Days But Now, Both Are Nearly 'No More'!

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ON THE WANE:N. Ramachandran, who set up a short-hand and typewriting institute in 1963, says that the demand for professionals has come down drastically, especially in Chennai.

I read this article in 'The Hindu' just now, about the usage of 'shorthand' which is slowly dying now. The article took me down my memory lane, to the early 70's, when I was a student of Shorthand and Typewriting!

Learning typewriting and shorthand was the 'in-thing' in those days.  I had finished my school just then and in the summer holidays, my mother joined me to a typewriting class where shorthand also was taught.  It was the norm in those days.  Most of my classmates had joined.  Every area had these typewriting institutes where shorthand also was taught.  You won't believe, the fee was Rs.10 per month for typewriting and another Rs.10 for shorthand, which were 1hour classes each! The class looked like the one in the above picture! The owner cum typewriting teacher of the class lived upstairs.  He was in his 40's I think.  He was monitoring from 5 am to 9 am (god, I still remember!) and then from 6 to 10 pm.  Students or working people came to the early morning or late evening/night classes.  It was strictly only 1 hour class at these periods.  In day time we can sit there and practice as much as we wanted if the typewriters were free. We had to take the plain papers with us and type on both sides.  We had to show him whatever we had typed while leaving the class.  Typewriter ribbon cost was not charged separately...it was covered in the Rs.10 fee! God, our fingers and shoulders used to ache in the early days hitting the keys...

asdf fdsa on left hand fingers
jkl; ;lkj  on right hand fingers

We were asked to type this sentence many times.  'The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog'  which uses every letter in the English language.

Got this 'fingering' picture from this link 

I remembered the name of the typewriter also, which I used, Remington! Thanks to google

I got 'Higher' exam certificate for typewriting.  The typewriting classes and the examination centres (Govt. Schools) used to be very crowded.  The Hindu article says how it is now, very deserted. 40 words per minute for 'Lower' exam and 100 words per minute (wpm) for 'Higher' exam, I think. My sons and husband use the computer keyboard in their own type/style of fingering now! I got the Pitman book and fingering book for my elder son...I must ask him if he is using the old fingering method for typing in his computer! He didn't learn shorthand though!

An old gentleman was taking shorthand classes (Pitman method) in the intstitute.  I still remember him...he used to chew paan! But his English Accent and booming voice were superb.  Words were very clear...he used to read texts (books were there especially for this purpose with marks/lines after every 40 words (40 wpm) for lower speed and 100 for higher exam speed).  The tone should change when the next sentence starts. Concentration is very very important while dictating or while taking notes. We took notes in shorthand in a ruled note book, which looked like it is shown below.  Lines have more gaps in between for writing 'on top of the line, on line and across the line' strokes with PENCILS!

Shorthand note books (link)

Students/people who went to colleges and offices, used to take shorthand notes in the morning, transcribe it in daytime, come back in the evening or the next morning and get corrected.  After I wrote Lower shorthand exam, I started assisting our teacher in the evenings with dictations.  Clarity in words is important for shorthand.  The strokes are written according to the phonetic sound.  Our grammar should be good because when we write strokes we skip the strokes for some words/grammar etc.  My language improved because of my shorthand learning, at least to some extent!  Now, to some strokes:

The two pictures show the shorthand strokes clearly (link)

You can notice that the strokes are written above the line, on the line and some reach below the line.  The strokes will be thick or thin and the meaning changes accordingly.  After a lot of practice, we can start using our own shortest strokes.  I used to dream about new strokes in my dreams in those days! I was really obsessed with shorthand!

I wrote the higher exam also in shorthand and I was the only person who passed from the exam centre, I remember (the centre was some Govt. school in Kodambakkam, Chennai).  I don't remember the marks or class! The certificate is somewhere with my old papers now!

Our Institute teacher gave me a thick ink pen as a prize! I had it for many years!

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P.S.: Thank you google for the above link!

Foto Friday!

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Sunrise at Elliots beach (Chennai)! Click on the picture for a better view pl.

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Cycles, The Most Convenient Transport!

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We had been to the United States, last October.  I am writing about our visits to different places over there in different posts.  Still many are to come!

Until I saw these cycle stands in many places,  students and even elderly people using cycles in the States, I thought that cycle was prominent only in China than other countries.  Many students ride on the platform too! It was a happy sight. 

We noticed cycle stands like these in many places.  This photo is from an SFO roadside. Cycles are available for rent too, it seems!

We stayed at Berkeley and visited San Francisco often via BART Railways.  The inside of the compartment had separate place for parking cycles!

Another cycle stand at Berkeley

Cars also had attachments like this to carry cycles.  They come to the trekking areas etc.  by car and use their cycles to roam to other places inside the woods, hills etc.  We saw cars like these in the parking areas of Muir woods. We saw extra attachments for taking cycles in the local buses too...on the front side of the buses! Many people use cycles here, which made me very happy...no pollution plus exercise!

My son who studied at the Berkeley University and now my niece also is studying...say that nearly all students have cycles, some students use geared cycles too.  I saw many students and teachers too using cycles inside the college campus.  Good exercise to stay fit!

While writing this post, my son called from there.  He laughingly said that he lost two cycles at Berkeley.  Cycle theft is famous there than other thefts.  

I wonder why our children are not using them now! My sons were going to school by cycles.  Now, children mostly use school bus.  But for that, they have to start early to school.  The bus has to cover many areas to pick up students.  They come back from school also very late in the evening. When my sons were admitted in school in Chennai, the Principal said that he would admit them in his school if we find a house within 5 Kms. radius from the school.  We did that!

Hope things will change one day and everybody realize the importance of cycles! I know that parents are worried about our erratic traffic.  Well...keep this point in mind! Let the children use cycles to go to nearby places at least!

Be happy and stay fit!

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Perambalur Collector, Darez Ahmed, Another Sathyarthi In The Making?

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I read this news in The Hindu today:

Perambalur Collector receives PM’s award! 

'Perambalur Collector Darez Ahmed has received the ‘Prime Minister’s Award for Excellence in public administration.’ Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave away the award, which carries a purse of Rs. 1 lakh, in appreciation of his service in protecting girl children. 

Mr. Darez Ahmed had evolved various programmes to check foeticide and female infanticide. . Focus on ante-natal care included a special surveillance to check foeticide.'

  

I suddenly remembered reading about him just a couple of days back in a Tamil weekly magazine, 'Ananda Vikatan'.

Perambalur is a municipality town near Cuddalore and Salem (Tamilnadu).  Wikipedia gives more interesting details about this town!

This post is about the present Collector of Perambalur, Darez Ahmed, who is making a difference here, particularly for the upliftment of girl children and women.  Let me write in detail about his amazing work. Now, to the Vikatan article:

Normally, school children and teachers get tensed up when they come to know that their area Collector will be visiting them soon.  It is the opposite here...all of them are happy to receive him.

Darez Ahmed, took the post of the Collector of Perambalur 4 years back.  He was not acting like a man with a prestigious post but was mingling with people and children like an ordinary person.  He roams all over the villages and talks to people like a family member.  Everybody loves him.  You can notice it from the pictures below.

Hearing about the award for their Collector, the whole Perambalur is happy and celebrating.

His office has stopped more than 450 child marriages of all religions.  He stopped a marriage of a particular religion and faced the wrath of their people from the whole of Tamilnadu.  Still, he was firm on his stand and said that every child should be married only after they reach the marriageable age. 
After stopping the child marriages, he made the girl children to study further and some are doing their engineering/medical courses now.  He arranged for their stay in the schools and colleges from the Govt. fund.

The Collector participated in the recently held Perambalur marathon titled, 'Run to protect girls'

He is one among them.

He has started a programme now, called 'Super 30', through which children who are good in their studies in Govt. schools, are selected and makes the teachers to coach them to compete in the entrance exams to join medical and engineering colleges.  At present, more than 300 children are being coached here.  He has warned the errant teachers to work sincerely and so, the admission in govt. schools is increasing around 26% every year. He has started grading the schools according to their performance and sometimes visits them and takes classes to check the standard of teaching in the particular school.  This programme is called 'sigaram' means 'peak'.  He insists the villagers to send their children to aanganwaadis so that they have good, healthy food.

He has made arrangements to offer loans (education loan) for the children doing their higher studies from his district.  More than 10,000 students have availed this facility until now.

He has helped the cotton growing farmers to get good rates for their produce.  He gives priority to the problems of the local farmers.

People seem to be very comfortable with him and he, with them.

He has helped many children who have got serious problems with his own money for special treatments.  He is a down to earth person.  Travels in buses, auto rickshaws etc. to mingle with the locals.

He has arranged for the annual book fare in his district which is praised by the locals.   

He had been receiving accolades for the past 3 years, like 'Best Collector' award, award for helping 'special children'  from our earlier Chief Minister. 

Now, he has received the Prime Minister's award for 'Excellence in Public Administration'.  But he says that 'his officers followed his orders sincerely and so the acknowledgement goes to them too'.

Let us congratulate him and look forward to many more acknowledgements for his sincere work.

I felt so happy while writing this positive post. We need more people like him in the future. Hope many people read this post and know about him. Our whole country needs a good leader like him. I am a dreamer, you know!


P.S.: Sathyarthi is an Indian children's advocate and an activist against child labour.  He was awarded 2014's Nobel peace prize.

I had written about one more sincere Collector here. Have a look please.



Edited to add on 24.4.2015: I came across this news about the Collector now, thanks to the 'Frontline' magazine. He is a Medical graduate. The article says explains how his department stopped child marriages and later helped the girls to do higher studies.  Interesting article.  It also says:

Recalling the fight against child marriage in Perambalur, Dr Ahmed told Frontline that it all began after he read the magazine’s Cover Story essay by the Nobel laureate Amartya Sen titled “Many faces of gender inequality” (Frontline, November 9, 2001). The seven types of anti-female bias mentioned in the essay, which talked about 100 million missing women, triggered the Collector’s initiative.

Down Memory Lane...School Excursions!

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I was looking at the picasa album now for writing captions for the photographs we had taken during our tours recently.  Saw many photos of school children and remembered discussing about them with my son.  I remember going to Mahabalipuram once, to Children's park in Adyar once and then to Egmore museum once.  I don't remember going anywhere else with our teachers.  I remember it was fun.

My sons had gone to more places than me...like Mysore, Kodaikkanal and other exotic places.

My relative is a teacher in a private school here, in Chennai.  Their school takes the children every year to Maya jaal, Golden beach etc. where children are asked to play video games, make them watch a movie, give them some food and bring them back. I haven't heard them visiting the Vandalur Zoo or museum or Vedanthangal Bird sanctuary, which are educative to the children.  They collect money from the children, use their school bus, get concessions at the resorts and make money.  Nothing is there for the children to learn about anything.  I have visited Vedanthangal bird sanctuary thrice and saw only govt. school children visiting there, all the time.  They were so excited to watch the huge birds there and were taking down notes from the placards written on the platforms.  The teachers also were explaining about the birds.  It was nice to watch them.  Private schools never take this much effort.  Well, I forgot, they take the older children to Singpore, Malaysia, every year.  Do they take them to Acquarium or bird sanctuaries over there? Or shopping malls and game stations? We have got so many treasures here, in India but they prefer going abroad!

Do you remember your school days' excursions? Please write about them in the comment section!

School children at Vedanthangal Bird Sanctuary, near Chennai

School children at Vedanthangal bird sanctuary, near Chennai

School children at Gol Gumbaz, Bijapur

School children at Badami cave temples! These children asked us to take pictures! Posing seriously!

School children at Gol Gumbaz, Bijapur

School children at Pattada Kallu Temples, Bagalkot dist., Karnataka

Small school children at Alamatti dam, Bijapur

Our 'guide' at Aihole!

A girl 'guide' at Aihole! Our guide had finished explaining about the temples at Aihole and we paid him.  This girl, her brother and some other children were watching intently what was going on.  Then, first the boy came near us and told us that he would like to explain the history of 'Aihole' to us.  We laughingly said, 'OK'.  The boy recited his lesson, without stopping, in one breath! It was fun watching his face.  I should have taken a video! Then, his sister stepped in and started reciting the same thing! Look at her expression.  We gave them chocolate bars.  Before other children started acting 'guides' we ran away! We heard 'saar, saar, naanoo heltheeni'! We didn't look back!

EDITED TO ADD ON 20.4.15:     Times of India link:

Educational consultant K R Maalathi said this trend was worrying. "Schools don't want to take any risk these days. Tours give children an opportunity to understand the world better. If they are not given such exposure they will continue to remain tied to their mother's apron strings," she said. "There is no need to stop trips. One only needs to take precautions."

P Vishnucharan, correspondent of Shree Niketan Patasala School, said it was unfortunate that while the board encourages schools to go beyond the textbook it is now clamping down on field trips. "There is no doubt that safety is of utmost importance. But we should not have to restrict tours based on their relevance to the curriculum," he said.

 I CAME TO KNOW YESTERDAY FROM A TEACHER THAT CBSC BOARD has asked the schools to stop taking children on excursions, unless needed.  Checked and came across the TMI link.