Tag: Learning

Learning is the process of acquiring new understanding, knowledge, behaviors, skills, values, attitudes, and preferences. The ability to learn is possessed by humans, animals, and some machines; there is also evidence for some kind of learning in certain plants.

Why An Internship is Important to All Students

 Our economy is changing daily, and with it, the talents, skills, and experience needed to be a part of that growth cycle are too. The job market is a competitive one, and often that is a tough learning curve for recent graduates. This is a big reason behind the growth of applied learning and internship opportunities becoming a key part of the college experience for all students.

According to dictionary.com, an internship is defined as “any official or formal program to provide practical experience for beginners in an occupation or profession.” The most important element of internships is that they integrate classroom knowledge and theory with practical application and skills developed in professional or community settings. They also bring a wealth of benefits to students, both while completing a degree and when seeking a career path post-graduation.

Why should you intern?

  1. Application of education and career exploration. Internships are a great way to apply the knowledge from the classroom to real-world experience. Learning is one thing, but taking those skills into the workforce and applying them is a great way to explore different career paths and specializations that suit individual interests.
  2. Gain experience and increase marketability. Having an internship gives you experience in the career field you want to pursue. Not only does this give individuals an edge over other candidates when applying for jobs, it also prepares them for what to expect in their field and increases confidence in their work.
  3. Networking. Having an internship benefits you in the working environment, and it also builds your professional network. There is a 1 in 16 chance of securing a job by connecting with people, so networking is critical. Internships provide a great environment to meet professionals in the career field you want to pursue, as well as other interns who have similar interests.
  4. National Data. According to a 2016 National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) survey, more than 56 percent of graduating seniors reported taking part in at least one internship. Of those respondents, 56 percent were paid, while 44 percent were unpaid. Seventy-two percent of those unpaid internships were credit-bearing.
  5. Professionalism. Internships can provide students with the soft skills needed in the workplace and in leadership positions. In a LinkedIn Skills Report (2018), 57% of people rated soft skills as being more important than technical skills. Skills, such as communication, leadership, problem-solving, and teamwork can all be learned through an internship and utilized beyond that experience.
  6. Learn how a professional workplace operates. Depending on your major, you may read about how organizations thrive and function in textbooks, hear from guest speakers who talk about organizational structures, or dive into case studies about workplace culture, but nothing compares to living the actual experience. Internships help students learn all about workplace culture, employee relations, and leadership structure, which should help them onboard in their first professional job with more ease than if they haven’t had professional experience.
  7. Build your resume. Most organizations and jobs that you apply to following graduation want employees to have some sort of professional experience, even for entry-level jobs. In the event that you are a finalist for a position and haven’t had an internship experience but the other finalist has, you may lose out on a job opportunity, so make sure you at least have one internship on your resume before leaving college to give you a leg up on the competition.
  8. Gain professional feedback. Not only will you be helping out the organization you intern with, but they’ll help you out too. While professors and teachers will prepare you for the theoretical side of your field and hands-on projects, internships provide opportunities for receiving feedback from someone who works in your desired field on a daily basis.
  9. Learn from others. It might seem common sense – you’re interning to learn skills, after all – but don’t forget to purposefully observe others in their job role to learn the ins and outs of different positions. Consider asking your supervisor if you can shadow them for a day, along with other people in your department. Ask to sit in on departmentwide meetings as well. Act like a sponge and soak up all the information you can during your internship – it will benefit you in the long run.
  10. Figure out what you like and don’t like. While everyone probably wants to walk away from an internship feeling excited and passionate about the experience, there’s a silver-lining to be found if you didn’t enjoy the job: you’ll know what you don’t like. According to an article from monster.com, “figuring out what type of job you don’t want while you’re interning can help prevent you from accepting an ill-fitting job when you graduate.”

Is coding an absolute necessity for kids starting from 1st grade?

The world is moving at a fast pace. And adults try their best to match the pace, but often they cannot because such is the development consuming the world. While 25 year olds are still trying to earn a place in this highly competitive salary race, what about 5 year olds? You would have seen many advertisements endorsed by popular celebrities saying that kids should start coding right from age 5. The tender age where they should be chasing a butterfly, they are to sit before computers. And not just learn coding, but also aim to be the stalwart that companies should be hounding after.

The biggest scam

Coding is an integral part of the digital world and of course, everything is done with the help of it. But that alone is not enough to incentivize parents into signing up their 5 and 6 year olds to coding classes. These ‘education’ platforms supposedly charge a hefty amount from parents just by some flashy marketing and advertising. You would’ve come across ads where a company allegedly claims that a 2nd grader bagged a 1.2-150 crore job from Google. It is definitely hard to believe(it has been proved that the claims are bogus) and at the same time, saddening that kids are now forced to enter the salary race.

Why coding isn’t the only thing in picture

child in front of laptop

The deeper unsettling fact is that parents are put up in such a situation where they feel bad for not signing up their kids. Think about what any parent would do if they hear that any child has the capability to design an app and can bag a place in top firms. They will readily sign up their kids, thinking they are going to secure their child’s life. But, what they don’t know is that, there is time. 1st grade or even 8th grade is not the age for children to learn the fundamentals of a for loop construct. It is the age where they are to learn the world, the surroundings, and their presence.

It is when languages should be given importance to. No, not programming languages, but the languages which lets them express their opinion to the world and which lets them explore the richness of their culture. It is when social and democratic sciences should be learnt, letting them know about their ancestral world.

It is also when values and ethics should be imparted into them, not by texts, but by making them experience it in a situation where it is put into test. While there is so much to learn about, forcing them to create a video game application not only burdens them with unnecessary information, but it also limits their creativity by directing it into one field only.

A note to parents

One thing parents must hardwire into their mind is that, coding alone cannot land you a job in Google or Microsoft. It is just another tool to put an idea into implementation. By introducing kids to coding at an early age, the ‘idea’ part gets subdued. There is no particular age to start coding. It is a gradual process.

We may not be aware, but every individual is already coding, no matter their knowledge in computer science. The literal meaning of coding is: to use a particular system for identifying things. As kids, as adults we already incorporate it in daily life when a kid arranges his play blocks in a certain manner or when adults have a particular system of doing their chores.

creativity
Let children explore their creativity. Source: Deposit Photos

Hence everyone can code if they have the interest to do so. The reason kids shouldn’t be obliged to learn coding at an early age is to allow them to have the time to identify their interests. So as parents, the least you can do is by providing them that right. The right to choose things that delight them. The right to choose it for themselves instead of pushing it down their throats at an age where they don’t even recognize it. Do not let falsified ads ruin childhood. Let them decide for themselves who they want to be. Until then, enjoy their transition. Because they are going to be kids only once.

You have a lifetime to work. But children are only young once.

China Issues Total Ban On Synthetic Cannabinoids

China will proudly become the world’s first nation to ban all synthetic cannabinoid substances, the country’s National Narcotics Control Commission declared. This endeavour is liable to come into effect on July 1. It echoes China’s continued efforts to crack down on new psychoactive substances. Xi Jinping, existing President of China, aims to advance China to its glory through his grand strategy of “National Rejuvenation”. 

 According to Chinese councils, more than eight thousand variations of synthetic cannabinoids are manufactured worldwide. While some are being produced domestically, others are being smuggled from abroad. As it is becoming one of the most abused new psychoactive substances it spawns severe health risks. It is also highly cloaked and camouflaged. Some are detected in e-cigarette oil and some in cut tobacco formulated from leaves, flower petals etc. The former U.S. President Trump irritatedly criticised China for shipping synthetic opioids into the U.S. Cannabinoid substances stance a severe threat to society and its use and abuse increased alarmingly in the last few years. Hence, it is arising as a public health problem. Many of these drugs create enormous threats for abuse, addiction or overdose than the remaining drugs of abuse that they replace. One of the primary concerns about the widespread usage of these dopes is that their properties are unpredictable, hence the degree of threat they pose is unlikely. 

Synthetic cannabinoids represent the largest group of drugs detected and reported worldwide to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. Sprayed on natural herb mixtures, it is often sold as “herbal smoking blends” or “herbal scent” under several brand names. Synthetic cannabinoids have been linked with deaths and acute intoxications in Europe and many other areas. In addition to being more powerful than natural cannabis, it may also have long half-lives, dangerously leading to a prolonged psychoactive effect. These are human-made chemicals and it alters your mind too. These chemicals are labelled cannabinoids because of their similarity to marijuana plant chemicals. Because of this resemblance, synthetic cannabinoids are often misleadingly titled synthetic marijuana or fake weed. Hence they are traded as safe and legal. In fact, they are not at all safe and may harm the brain much more intensely than marijuana and in some cases, it may even be life-threatening.


Health effects of synthetic cannabinoids

• Violent behaviour 

• Heightened moods

• Severe anxiety

• Confusion

• Paranoia

• Hallucinations

• Rapid heart rates

• Vomiting

• Gloomy thoughts

How do people take synthetic cannabinoids
The most common way of using this synthetic cannabinoid is by smoking the dried plant material. Users also buy synthetic cannabinoid products as liquids to try them in e-cigarettes.
Its overdose may result in kidney damage and seizures.


Thus, China added synthetic cannabinoids to its list of banned drugs. It is the second time that the Chinese government imposed a class-wide ban on a substance after it controlled all fentanyl-related drugs in 2019. The changes may take effect on July 1. It is a new situation and a new challenge for China. China knows and they stood up for themselves, creating a new world, new life for its people. They are saving their people from the nightmares of chemical slavery. Let us all hope for the best.


The Inspiring Story of Vice President Kamala Harris

Kamala Harris, the 49th vice president of the United States, poured inspiration into our hearts. She is known for so many firsts. Firsly and most greatly, she made history as the first woman and first African-American to hold the post. And also, she is the first Indian American to ever come in that front line which is indeed a proud thing for Indians. She had also served in the U.S. Senate and as Attorney General of California. Harris became the first Indian American in the Senate and the second black woman. She broke all the barriers which curbed her from becoming stimulus. 
Ms. Harris was a daughter of an Indian mother and Jamaican father. Her father, Donald Harris, taught at Stanford University, and her mother, Shyamala Gopalan, was a cancer researcher and civil rights activist from Chennai. After her parents divorced, Harris and her sister were primarily raised and inspired by their Hindu mother. Her mother took in black culture and immersed her two daughters – Kamala and her sister in it. Even though Harris lived an African-American life, Indian culture embraced her. She usually visited India beside her mother. While she was Vice president, she committed to support India during the tragic situation of coronavirus. 
Growing up, Harris was surrounded by a diverse and challenging community. “My mother understood very well that she was raising two black daughters” she wrote in her autobiography The Truths We Hold. Her adopted homeland saw Harris and her sister Maya as black girls but their mother made sure that they grew up into confident, proud black women. 
She spent four years at Howard University, which was one of the most formative experiences of her life. After Howard, she earned her law degree at the University of California, Hastings and she started her career in the Almeda County District Attorney’s Office. In 2010 Vice President Harris was elected as California’s Attorney General and administered the largest state justice department in the United States. She was the first woman and first black person to serve California’s Attorney General. In 2017, Harris was pledged into the United States Senate. In her first speech, she spoke on behalf of the immigrants and refugees who were under attack at that time. She fought for their better protection. She also served in the Judiciary Committee of Senate. As a Senator, Harris supported providing rent relief, improve maternal health care, fight over hunger, reform cash bail and addressed this crisis as a member of the Senate Committee on Environmental and Public works. Ms. Harris has been married to a lawyer, Douglas Emhoff. She is the stepmother of two children, Ella and Cole who is currently her source of endless joy and love. 
Vice President Harris is often considered close to Barak Obama, the first black American President, who supported her in her various elections. President-elect Joe Biden had told that he would be honoured to serve with Ms. Harris, who will make history as first woman, first Black woman, first Indian American women, and first daughter of immigrants ever elected to national office in this country. In her victory speech, Ms. Harris said that while she may be the first woman to occupy the vice president’s office, she would not be the last. Her victory reflects that no door is closed to Indian Americans in public. She knows the sovereignty of the American dream. Let us all be proud of her and follow her unique routes and habits to pursue our goals.

How to learn effectively and efficiently

 Imagine studying so hard for a test and ending up getting lesser marks than expected, that’s quite disappointing right? Each and every time we learn something new, it is important to learn it in an effective way. Focusing on the right points and methods can make us all memorize things very easily. It will also become easier for us to score more marks too.

Methods of studying can vary from student to student but the most common and reliable methods are mentioned below.

  • Learn at your own pace

Learning capacity for every single person is different from each other. Some people have the ability to memorize much more than others can possibly do. But don’t be afraid of that. Always take your time in learning but make sure to not waste your time too. Learn as much as your brain can take and do not stress over it because if you do there are higher chances that you might not recall what you have learned.  Learning Is a process that requires a lot of brain power, so never exhaust yourself in the process.

  • Make a time table

Always make a time table for your course of study so that you will be regular at it, it can be exhausting to follow a time table but if you really try, you would fall into pace very easily in a week or two’s time. When a time table is made, your brain functions accordingly, the body also knows that it is your time study. Studying then will become a habit and much easier too.

  • Getting proper sleep

A very important aspect of learning is getting proper sleep, students must make sure to sleep at least 7-8 hours a day to lead a healthy life. Proper sleep and food makes your body function properly, this way it will become easier for you to learn too.

  • Making notes

When attending a lecture, always make notes of what is taught in the class. When you listen to the teacher and write notes, it gets registered in your brain so that it will become easier to recall when you are revising.

  • Short notes

When reading a book or a study material, make short notes, use highlighters, little pop ups so as to learn easily. Making eye catching notes will make it easier for the brain to learn. Also in the process of making it we all also be revising. Carry this short note always with you, so that you can read through it whenever you are free.

  • Taking breaks

Taking breaks between studying makes studying more effective. It will make our brain function properly. It helps the brain cells arrange the important information and filter out what’s needed to be studied and not.

  • Always drink water and eat healthy food

During the times of exam or when your studying make sure to drink water regularly. Eating healthy food should be made a habit. When during exams avoid eating food from outside, so as to avoid any kind of food poisoning of any sorts.

  • Practice

Just like the quote ‘ practice makes a man perfect’, it is to be made a habit of practicing and writing down what is learnt every day. When you are regular at it, memorizing will be an easier.

  • Learning by experience.

Learning something by experience makes sure that we do not forget it, it is always better than simply memorizing it in our minds. When you experience something there are higher chances you might not forget it.

Social media: a bane or boon

Vaishali Singh

Social media is creating a sense of competence in people’s mind, and this competition is making people ungrounded, it’s becoming the major reason of mental crisis these days, amidst this pandemic COVID- 19 outbreak people are not engaged in more productive tasks and in order to utilize their energy and satisfy the curiosity of exploring life they prefer to log in to the social media applications and wasting all their time scrolling their mobile phone’s screens endlessly, but have you thought of the consequences of using of these useless mobile applications which are distracting you from doing the necessary tasks and making you lazy and feel unproductive. The way social media is affecting your mindset is horrible, the moment you wake up, you take up your cell phone, and keep checking the notifications you’ve received overnight, which is highly unhealthy for your mental health, social media is making you more like a robot and your cell phones are becoming your masters, you just keep following the notifications you receive whole the day, the over usage of social media affects your sub conscious mind and your sub conscious plays the major role in shaping up your thoughts and mindset, which is directly proportional to the actions you take to acheive your dreams, but it’s over usage tires your brain and reduces your chances of executing the important work tasks. So, this is how your cell phones are becoming the reason behind your failure, but you’ve probably heard that every coin has two faces similarly it’s up to you that how you use something whether it’s your cell phone, the internet access you have or your social media account, if you use it to fulfil your purpose, to acknowledge yourself, to educate yourself, to fulfill your dreams then it can play the role of BOON in your life but if you use that same cell phone, that same social media just for passing the time, reading the memes, reacting on the posts endlessly, watching the comedy videos, in simple words, (seeking the temporary pleasure) instead of utilising your time in executing the important tasks, then it can become the BANE of your life. You won’t realise it today, you will notice the outcomes of your actions overtime and only then when you’ll notice your actions keenly. Now, while reading this blog post a question would definitely arise in your mind and that is, what can you do to prevent your life from getting controlled by the social media, the answer is very simple it’s impossible to change your life overnight, but the continuous efforts you put overtime can help you to change your life for better, now you have to make a proper schedule and would have to set a goal for yourself that will keep you motivated, just uninstall the unnecessary applications and data from your mobile phone, and start working on the path of your dreams right away.

https://www.pexels.com/photo/iphone-technology-iphone-6-plus-apple-17663/

Online teaching

As humans we always tend find a way  to solve any problem and this pandemic where everything is put on a halt, learning not stopping. As 77% of people in India owns a smartphone  and  as internet has gotten cheaper and  is available to more and more people. Keeping  these demographics in mind educational institutions all over India have started taking classes online . These classes are taken so that the schools can cover the portion of the syllabus to some extent so that they don’t have to face the problem of completing it altogether when the  things come back to normal. It is a very good step as students can attend the classes in the comfort of their home and yes very important thing they are safe. The big question here is should this, be made compulsory for all the students?

What about the remaining 23% others who does not own a smartphone, Education itself is something they are getting after facing  so  many hardships. Especially in private schools where there is a provision to give a reservation of 25%  seats for the children coming from the weaker section of the society. Many a times they don’t even get the information that the classes have started online, these children suffer a loss due to this. At times institutions also overlook these issues as they have to safeguard the interests of other students whose parents are elite.

In Kerala a 14 year old girl committed suicide as she was  depressed of not being able attend the online lectures, as she didn’t have a mobile. Some students go through  an agony no one would understand, as its their growing years there are many insecurities they feel that cannot be explained. In  situation like these making the online classes compulsory is not a good idea. This surely will impact the importance of the online class as some students will not attend the class despite having all the facilities. Rather some concession should be given to those students who don’t have these facilities. Also an assurance should be given to these students that as the schools reopen they would arrange some special classes to teach them these lessons so that they do not feel left out. This extra effort should be taken by the educational institutions.

Such instances should not mean that the online education should be reverted ,rather it should be revised. Digital teaching is a good way to get quality education, to have a productive day while in quarantine. As digitalization is slowly becoming a part of everyday’s life and there is no doubt that it should be utilized by the public effectively. For this the amenities should be provided to the people in an affordable price so that this campaign of digitalization can have greater success . This will also increase the students participating in digital education and nor the institution have to do extra work and they can do the job of educating students smoothly. It is really important that we understand the importance of educating students as its every child ‘s right to get Education and no one should be denied of their right.