Children say Vote for us; through Vote for Kids Campaign

We the kids dream of a better nation and are striving towards a change. We dream of a better society with a lovely school for all of us which imparts quality education. We want to get such education which is interesting and enjoyable and that which produces educated people who are good and honest. We want to have creativity classes in which we get vocational training. We dream of an education system which is value based and interactive. We want good and quality education for all. We want the eradication of money and marks oriented ness from the system.
We want quality education for all. We are looking forward to bring a change.
Are you all ready? If yes, then you can help us in many ways- But the first help you can lend us is: Vote for us, we want to make this world a better place to live in.
Our existing system is dilapidated to the core of it. The present system has various loopholes and drawbacks. Why has all this happened? It is because of certain reasons. We have not ensured quality education for all. More than half of the children are deprived of schools and those who have access to schools pass out as mere literates. We are getting literate people with big heads but small hearts. In other words, our system is not value based and practical. The emphasis is given only to bookish knowledge which is prosaic and seems uninteresting to students. There are no creativity classes that provide vocational training. The present system is money and marks oriented. Are you still satisfied with this system? If yes, then you may vote for it.
Oxygen … a movement View

Indian Youths are Not ‘USE’less, They are ‘USED’less

Good for nothing! Lazy! Useless! Do we need to say more? This is how Indians rate their own youth, the young generation of India, though it has shown its capability to the whole world, has been underestimated by the people. Yes, of course, it is justified to an extent. But, can we blame the youths for this.

The reply of the children was a big ‘No’. They clearly pointed the fact out that Indian youth are not useless, they are used less. Their opinion was that the youth here fare well given a chance, they also reacted that the ones who are being counted as useless, they are used less, we have not given a chance to prove themselves. The solution to this is that we must give them a proper platform to let them prove themselves. The students felt that it is high time now that we start giving every one an opportunity, rather keep on labeling them as useless.

Can we not have a system where children are given an opportunity to prove themselves in any field they are good at? Can we not let all flourish rather overburden some children showing other children’s performance in studies? So, were the questions raised during the discussion, we had. The answers were loud and clear, we need to give everyone a chance in any field that the individual is good at. Let us move towards a society in which everyone is given a chance because they are useless, they are usedless.
Oxygen … a movement View

Is Something Dead In Us?

Its rightly said "illiteracy is the most common problem of the most unintelligent literate!!!"
Today, we are merely surviving on what is called the high tech era, a time so much violent and so much filled of outburst, anger, criticism and annoyance that we hardly ponder and look over what Mahatma Gandhi stood for us.
He was a true educationist in strictest sense. Someone who left his career, his future, his family and stood for everything that today seems so much frivolous.
Our question is, whether this attitude can be changed? Can we start on with loving everyone we meet, obliterating our personal grudges, our feuds? Has the education of then and now so much changed that now we don't even trust ourselves.
Society is surely moving from bad to worse.
The suicides in Vidarbha and Nandigram, have become a common phenomenon.
We may even see the Chief Minister making fun of issues as much. Is this the morality and ethics left in us? Does being good lead us to the grave? Can there be any change?
What will happen when we have huge impactful names, all solid and sagacious ones making everyone really worship ourselves? There lies no answer to these.
When you just think of donating a one rupee coin to a beggar, when you just close your window on the small child selling you old magazines, when you rebuke your little maid, you are not a human anymore. Something is dead in you. Maybe the you in you. The answer is in a pause. Will time change? The very moment you call them "them" and you "we"you are widening the gap in between. There so much to change in the society but the question is whether you can change something in you?
Oxygen … a movement View

Turn children’s minds from storehouses to powerhouses

Education aims at overall development of an individual. But, today, unfortunately our present education system fails to help us in our overall development. As a result, we see the flaws in the society. A thing which we badly need at this moment is an innovative mind. But, unfortunately, today we lack these innovative minds. And why not? The system is in tatters and this is for sure. Today children are not trained to invent or they are not made innovative rather they are made to mug up facts.
What a sorrow! These children thus keep on burdening themselves with loads of books and stuffs aimlessly. Yes, indeed today we have changed children’s minds from powerhouses to storehouses. The present generation totally needs powerhouses everready with them rather storehouses. We may see that in other countries the children are made innovative and thus those children’s minds are converted into powerhouses. In those countries even children invent various things. Further more, they are not bound to various course books given in the curriculum rather they transcend those boundaries.
Let us step forward towards an education system that transforms children’s minds into powerhouses that may generate new ideas, bring forth new inventions and furthermore help in making this world a better place to live in than a mere storehouse that keeps on converting children in parrots even better than wizards in tales do.
First of all, we need to encourage students to take up innovative ideas and move a bit aside from books too. Because the present tendency of the system is to prepare more and more bookworms. Lets move towards powerhouses than storehouses.
Oxygen … a movement View

Is The Tough Competition Of Today, Changing our Tomorrow?

Today, we are breathing in the world, where if you aspire to be someone, you need to compete for it; you need to fight for it. There are so many other mortals focussing on the same laurel, but who is the Arjun over here...
its so much to struggle for...to get into IITs ...medicals..
so many students and above all the reservation scheme...shatter peace n stressing more on mugging up.
My question today is whether this type of climate, proves to be beneficial to us?
We all are a bit too tender of it, aren't we?
Moreover, is only mugging up, being a doctor and engineer the whole aim of our lives?
Are doctors and engineers the only leaders of our India, or for that matter, our world today?
Can't a simply person like you and me, live a satisfied life being a farmer, a teacher, a postman...or that cause?
Why parents want their offsprings to attain reputation and secured life? why the automatic names of doctors, engineers or IAS come in the picture?
my question is why this kind of feeling inculcated and how can it be just erased?
the answers will never in ways of "this should, they could."
but should be ."I will."
The power of these words brings a difference!!!
Oxygen … a movement View

Have We Not Started Blindly Aping The West?

To excel in the race of so called modernization, we have undoubtedly undergone westernization. The people of the nation feel proud in sporting foreign goods, eating western food and the west is where they wish to live as they see it as a medium to accomplish all their dreams. But, to satisfy our mere dreams, can we fall down to such an extent that we forget our own nation. It is always advisable to draw positives and beneficial points from everything. But, perhaps, in this case we have failed to do so. We to achieve personal ends have started blindly aping the west. On one hand, where people of the western countries want to bring the Indian culture to their land, on the other there are Indians leaping helter-skelter to realize the western dream. Our culture of family and our worship to parents and elders life long is wanted and draws praises in those countries.
There is nothing wrong in going there to pursue quality education but it is always shameful to forget the nation after that. Besides that, we should always try to bring good qualities and their keys to the rampant rate of development here in our country.
A series of questions and you will be bound to rethink…. Are our principles the same as they were during the time of our forefathers? Do we, today, pay the same respect and gratitude to our teachers, elders and parents? Do we want to study and add to the progress of country today? The answers of these straight away questions really force us to admit the point that we are dilapidating our very own culture just to satisfy our western dream.
Its high time now that we stop blindly aping the west because even after aping you remain an ape. So, it is rightly advised to remain a human and for that we need to raise our concern over this issue. First of all, we need to change our mentality and then that of others. Only, then can we have an India of our dreams.
Oxygen … a movement View

Teachers Will Take us To New Heights

When God created teachers,
He gave us special friends
To help us understand His world
And truly comprehend
The beauty and the wonder
Of everything we see,
And become a better person
With each discovery.
Why God created teachers,
In His wisdom and His grace,
Was to help us learn to make our world
A better, wiser place.
-By Kevin William Huff
This poems clearly describes the importance of teachers and why they are. Teachers have always played an important role in the society. Though the future of a nation depends on the children of that particular nation, the responsibility of shaping those children’s lives rests upon the teachers. We need to pay adequate respect and gratitude towards or teachers so as to have a better world. We need to re-establish a healthy student-teacher relationship.
Our teachers are as role models and so the students too generally idolize their teachers. Thus, we expect from them that they will set up good examples for the students to follow and better paths for the students to walk on. This teachers’ day, we all must look forward to pledge that we all, students, teachers and other society members will stand up together against the evil things prevailing in the society and root them all out through the panacea of all diseases, Education. Furthermore, we must cooperate with the teachers and look forward to make education interesting rather boring. For this we need to have such an education that imbibes in us all the qualities through different activities.
Oxygen … a movement View

Spiritual Lifestyle for Corruption Free Society

Three days after, we celebrated our 60th Independence Day, three days after we entered our 60th year, students here at Oxygen ... a movement discussion hall raised the point that even today we have failed in eradicating corruption from our country. Its quite true that we even today try to buy things or in other words, we have given money the top most priority in every walk of our life. This money has in turn, turned about to be a curse to the humanity.
The lust for money, has promoted corruption in such a way that it reigns supreme in every sphere of our life. We need to remove this corruption from our society and then only can we dream of being a developed nation. But “How to remove this corruption?” remains as the million dollar question.
We all know that education is the sole need or key to every problem. Education, itself, has a solution to this. But we face the grimmest of all situations today and it is that education it self has cropped up as a problem. In a race of so called modernization, we have turned just into bookworms losing all other qualities and values of ours. In order to fight this corruption, we yet again need to bring about a change in the Education system. We need to inculcate spiritual values in students through the system. Our education system must make students spiritually strong and thus this must encourage a belief in them that living a spiritual life helps. Thus, this spiritual lifestyle will surely help us in making this world a better place to live in and making it a corruption free society. Only then, we will be able to realize all our dreams.
Oxygen … a movement View

India@60: Must be Powered by Education to revive its glorious history

India will soon be celebrating its 60th independence day. We had broken the shackles of slavery 60 years ago at the stroke of midnight. There surely have been a lot of changes that have taken place between these 60 years. Way back in 1947, we never had adequate food grains to feed the entire population, we had a mere literacy rate of 5%, we were an underdeveloped nation and totally backward in the field of science and technology, etc.
But today, we are categorized as a developing nation. We have been successful in attaining a literacy rate of 68%. By the virtue of green revolution, white revolution etc., we are slowly but steadily improving our capacity to feed the entire population. We have been able to make a mark in the field of science and technology along with many milestones in other fields. The world has surely realized our potential and we are now almost totally geared up to accomplish our sweet dream cum mission of being a developed nation and then a super-power.
But we must not feel discouraged given our country is only 60 years young and that we had 2 centuries of dreadful bondage. The time before is a saga of prosperity and rich heritage and so the righteous appellation “the golden bird of the world”.Such was the awe at the bountiful treasure which India possessed that every other nation coveted to own it. Gradually our country was drained of our richness and ultimately our freedom too. 60 years hence we have made every attempt to undo the wrongs and have been incredibly successful. But, still remain areas which have hardly shown significant evolution.
And that is the education system inherited we have held on to so dearly despite the well known fact that it had been established to produce only servile clerks. Its already too late and we must revamp this education system. We need that education system which develops our mind for rational thinking and not rote learning. Learning which transforms us into an informed citizen capable enough to contribute to the nation’s productivity in both growth and development terms, and not manufacture money-making machine. Let us pledge to help each other be a part of the evolution process of our education system.
Oxygen … a movement View

Train Children’s Hands to hold the National Flag High

Coming at hand is Independence Day. Yet again there will be promises, pledges, speeches and so-called feeling of patriotism will rise in millions of hearts, yes, millions but unfortunately that remains only for one or two days. The most important thing is that rather trying just to be patriotic we should try to keep or try to keep our national flag high. Undoubtedly, it is the national flag that we are always proud of. But, the utmost need, responsibility or duty that has to be executed by we the people of the Republic of India is that we strive to make India such a country where every citizen is self-sufficient to keep the flag high.
But how to do this? Just saying something for the sake of it is, of course, quite easy but when it comes to change into action, the almost the whole country sees to it as if it is a Herculean task. For India to be a developed nation we need to educate every individual and that is for sure. But, it always strikes our mind that, “Have we not been educating so many people till now (though it is only about 68 %)?” The clear cut answer is no and a big NO. The thing which we try to call education is mere literacy mission. We can never hope of the tricolor being held high if we just have a billion people good-for-nothing and knowing just how to write their names.
The situation is quite demanding now that we provide quality education to every one. Yes, quality education, but this must include quality studies, mental training along with quality physical training. If every child is made to do manual work too, then he will surely understand the dignity of labour and if, unfortunately, in his later life, he fails to get jobs he may eke out his living through hand made things. This will surely prevent him from occupying unfair means i.e. sticking to the antisocial lines for his bread and butter. So, every child's hand must be trained along with his mind as then only he may hold the Indian Flag High.
Oxygen … a movement View

Change the three Rs into better 3Rs

Undoubtedly, today the three Rs (Reading, Writing and Arithmetic) make up the most important part of the school curriculum. The moment a child goes to school, he immediately starts enchanting the alphabets, writing them all, and solving mathematical sums. The process keeps on getting complex annually and at the end the child passes out from his enters his college education and at the very end gets some degree and starts his professional life. {Caution: We were talking only about school going children.}On one hand where some students undergo things mentioned above, on the other hand there are many who never get a chance to study or to go to a good school. The thing that needs our attention is, "Why does the second lot of children still prevail?" If our three R's would have been strong enough then there may not have been so many illiterates today. The reason is that the children who have already entered their professional lives don't even worry about those illiterates and poor after they get high positions.
The question that arises now is, "How can we alter the present chain?" A clear way out is that we should inculcate the present three Rs (Reading, Writing and Arithmetic) in such a way that they result in better three Rs of life that is Respect, Responsibility and Responsiveness. If an individual inculcates these three Rs in his life then he will surely succeed and help others too. The moment an individual imbibes in him respect for hard earned money, labour and his fellow beings, he too will gain respect from this society because he will always work for the welfare of people. He will not grow an aversion to hard work and will surely not take bribes. The second R responsibility is your ability to respond. It means that you move beyond blaming and recognize that you may bring about a change; therefore it is you who must respond. Unfortunately today our high-ups fail to respond to the call, there are many who don't even pay heed to it. The third R is RESPONSIVENESS. Responsiveness is about being in the with other people. It means that our fellow beings who are in trouble, below poverty line and all others are real people with real needs and concerns. Today, our IAS, IPS officers, ministers etc. get so focused on their own task they forget about the people. People are treated as objects. A complaining person becomes an inconvenience. An unhappy citizen becomes a problem. The result in these cases is the inconvenience and the unhappiness.
So, the situation is quite demanding now that we impart such an education which has the better three Rs (Respect, Responsibility, Responsiveness) as the result of the present three Rs -- reading, ’riting, and ’rithmetic.
Oxygen … a movement View

Corporate Social Responsibility for permanent change not cosmetic

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a Business Process wherein the Institution and the Individuals within, are sensitive and Careful, about the direct and indirect effect of their work on Internal and External Communities, Nature and the Outside World. A Close look at this definition of CSR will indicate that this definition does not limit CSR to just Corporates. It is applicable, in equal measure, to the Governments, the Media, the Research Laboratories and the weapons machineries, the Non Governmental Organisations, the Education Institutions...and just to any and every Institution.
Socially responsible companies consider the full scope of their impact on communities and the environment when making decisions, balancing the needs of stakeholders with their need to make a profit. Corporate Citizenship which is based on the concept of the corporation as a citizen, is also frequently used while referring to CSR, and is sometimes interchangeably used.
A widely quoted definition by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development states that "Corporate social responsibility is the continuing commitment by business to behave ethically and contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of the workforce and their families as well as of the local community and society at large.
But, we need to make it very clear that the changes that are brought about are permanent and not cosmetic. The corporates should do these with a bigger aim of nation’s profit and not just one of their own.
Oxygen … a movement View

India’s Crisis is Mainly Moral- Not Economic

It is not possible to refute the statement “India’s Crisis is Mainly Moral- Not Economic” as it says the bitter truth. Our country broke the shackles of foreign domination about sixty years ago but are really free even today and the life is far from happy. While a few roll in wealth and spend lavishly and live luxuriously, millions and millions of our countrymen hardly get two squire meals a day. We may well ask ourselves how this has come about, and we shall find that our national character has degenerated. The problem of unemployment is causing a nation wide agitation, and waste a major part of the hard earned money in simply aping the west. This money would have surely helped avert the situation, if invested and utilized in the field of education, positive development etc. Corruption in all walks of life has become an important issue, so much that there are people running a virtually parallel economy through corrupt means. But what can be done about it? Today corruption reigns supreme in every sphere of life. From all this it appears that we do not in earnest think of a socialist or Gandhian society.
The reason behind et al is quite simple. Today, we fail to implement our thoughts into practice. We talk in high tones about the eradication of illiteracy, poverty, untouchability etc. But do we really follow it? Above all we find our representatives indulged in vile deeds. India which once had a glorious past should have been a beacon for the world of today. On the contrary, we find that India herself has degenerated in her mad pursuits after modernization. It not only proves the hollowness of our character but it also show that we are being morally bankrupt day. By day, giving rise to a national Crisis, that is more moral than economic.
Oxygen … a movement View

Childhood in distress: whom to blame?

A child is overburdened right from the moment he starts his education, but whom to blame for this? The society, system or the student himself? A child is pressurised always as the parents see an image in him that he has to fulfil the dreams they could not the society too wants something like this from him. The students too at times have expectations which can not be fulfilled always.
Expectations have no boundaries they are often made just to transcend every boundary, but when the whole surrounding goes against a child, then the worse gets worst, The people want marks and only marks their dreams start with marks and end with marks, hereby ending a child's life. The biggest question that arises is a money only the ultimate goal? a school too wants only IAS officers, engineers and doctors from their schools hence they grade the students only according to their academics.
When a child is overburdened with so many expectations, will he be not suicide if he failed to archive them all. Yes, suicide is a grievous crime but have we made the system compatible enough to moral and ethical values so that it may bring a child morally upright.
Thus, it's the our need to let a child stand on his own and not just to be a mere doctor or engineer but a true citizen and then something else. We should try to mould students in such a way that they achieve more marks in more fields to serve more people.
Oxygen … a movement View

Empowerment is needed not support

A child needs books, copies, education but in no way does he need charity and support. India at present finds it amongst a complex situation. Today, perhaps the whole country is willing and is eager to update rather upgrade, give charity rather a system, support rather empower. This is one of the sole reasons which are instrumental in not allowing us to utilize our human resources. It makes the population of a billion a liability rather than an asset. If every child of India, not only rich or only poor, is given a system in which he may earn on his own to pay at least for his education, then would not it be nice.
Even, it's said that it's always better to teach an individual how to fish rather than to give him a fish. So, this system will surely empower students. One can surely hope of a better tomorrow of a nation where children are empowered rather than supported. Till date there have been may people and organizations who have worked for charity and support to children but the situation still is bleak Thus, its high time now that people start empowering students rather than supporting them. Yes, support to an extent is all right but making a man habituated of crutches is never ever justified. We may support an individual initially but later we must empower him as only an empowered individual can survive in the long run. So, now we need to empower students rather than merely support them.
Oxygen … a movement View

Ownership Qualities need to be inculcated

The situation is quite demanding now, that people care not only for things which belong to them, but also for those which they belong to. This can surely do a lot of good to this ever saddening situation. Now, in this present era, people are so self-centric that they don't even care for their parents. We may substitute it with the fact that the growth in the number of old age homes is on a rampant. Children belong to their parents and their parents belong to them. But, our system fails to imbibe in them a quality of ownership, which is to have a never-dying spirit that, "This belongs to me or I belong to it and thus I must care for it." And due to this when their parents grow old; they are sent toold age homes by their children.
The sad plight of roads, dilapidated government buildings, school campus etc. is not an exception to this. It's the children who think that this road doesn't belong to them nor does these buildings and campuses and thus they don't care about them. But, we need to inculcate these qualities in students. We need to tell them that this whole nation belongs to them and they belong to this nation. When such a fine quality is imbibed in a student, he will surely say, "It’s my nation, I care." Can we even think of a crime then? No, not at all as when a child's mind has not been broken up into narrow fragments of 'mine' and 'his', he will surely love every thing and care for those things too. But that in no way means that a child is to be ill-treated all-day long and at the end of the day, he is to be reminded of his duty. We need to provide adequate facilities, needs and proper care to that kid also.
This system, surely, has to inculcate this ownership quality in all the students and then unquestionably we will have a better tomorrow.
Oxygen … a movement View

Social Security: Education

Education is quite important for every individual to progress and prosper in this world. A country can never ever boast of its population as an asset unless, it has attained a 100% literacy rate. Education undoubtedly is the sole aspect required for development. It's quite doleful that we are still striving and longing to reach the magic figure of 100% literacy rate. Even today a vast majority of our population has never been to a school, what talk of being a drop out? On the other hand most of those who have the proud privilege to go to schools are not lucky enough to continue after Std. 8 th due to high fees. And now, left are the few who study for about 25 years and become professionally wonderful but socially they are terrible. They become corrupt and that's why we may experience today the whooping rate of corruption in every sphere of life. Luckily, the few who go against all odds make us and our nation proud. But won't it be nice if every individual has an easy access to quality education. Instead of preparing kids to go against all odds, shan't we try and prepare a system where everything runs smooth and there is no implementation bottleneck. Of course, we shall. We ought to have education security, the most vital part of social security.
As a part of this social security, we'll need to impart free and quality education to every student. But how antonymous the situation is, that instead of providing free education, today several educational bodies are being run as a business establishment just for a sole purpose 'Money'. The situation is quite demanding now that we provide quality education to one and all so that each one has a feeling for the society that 'Yes, the society cared for me and thus I too have a responsibility to give back all it owes to me.' For social security of education, we need to uplift the level of government schools so that many more students go there to pursue education. And we all should make it very clear that if education is provided to one and all then a full-fledged social security will be ensured whether that is of food, or health or maybe education itself. Thus, it should be implemented in the society that a child does not belong merely to his parents but to his whole society.
Oxygen … a movement View

Social Security: Health

“Health is wealth”, but today there are millions of Indians who are being exploited, robbed of this special wealth. Yes we are in a situation where endemic epidemics, mass unawareness and barbaric exploitation have gripped our nation. It certainly questions our position of being the golden bird of the world. Have not our golden wings been snatched away? There are billions of people who are fed by those farmers who work to the best of their ability and produce crops for us, and thus, it's obviously our responsibility to care for those farmers also. We in turn, can at least give them social security. But, how selfish we are that besides, not providing them social security, we also exploit them in such a way that they suicide, farmers are just a single example in this seemingly endless list.
We live in a society of interdependence and thus it's the sole responsibility of this population of billions to take care of every individual of the society. At least proper health care food and quality education should be provided to every Indian so that he or she may proudly say, "Yes, I am an Indian".
Although we have various government hospitals and many projects and programs for the poor but they are not implemented. The hospitals look as a hell of despair and thereby not a single individual wants to get treated there. We need to have proper maintenance of the hospitals and to root out corruption which has crept into every sphere of life. There should be an easy access to free medicines and the required quality should be necessarily maintained. Further more, the approach should be more oriented to wards a healthier society rather toward treatment of different disease. Yes, if in the worst case, somebody is affected by some kind of disease, proper healthcare facilities should always be there.
Last but not the least, every individual should make it clear in their minds that, for any epidemic as a problem, there is a panacea and that is quality education. Thus, we should always rely on the last, "Educate all and you'll see a change".
Oxygen … a movement View

Social Security: Food

YEAR is 2007…. THOUGHT is "Yeah! We are cruising through the path of development." But the harsh REALITY is that we lack Food Security. Yes, we lack the security of that food which is one of the basic requirements of life.
India at present finds itself in the midst of a paradoxical situation: endemic mass-hunger coexisting with the mounting food grain stocks. The food grain stocks available with the Food Corporation of India (FCI) stand at an all time high of 62 million tonnes against an annual requirement of around 20 million tonnes for ensuring food security. Still, an estimated 200 million people are underfed and 50 million on the brink of starvation, resulting in starvation deaths. The paradox lies in the inherent flaws in the existing policy and implementation bottlenecks.
The problem of chronic food insecurity is primarily associated with poverty. Some 200 million people in India are still denied access to sufficient quantities of food. Hunger is not a result of shortage of food, but lack of economic access. The immediate strategy to overcome this problem should be to raise the purchasing power of the poor by generating employment opportunities while the long-term strategy should be to improve food availability and raise incomes.
Food security describes a situation in which people do not live in hunger or fear of starvation. And for this we need to provide employment to people. Every individual has the power to earn on his own. There are so many willing people today who are pleading for jobs, they want to utilize the power of their hands and earn. The situation is now quite demanding and it is solely required of the government that they provide employment opportunities to the people so that they may earn and feed themselves. We can be secure only when food security is there in the nation. Otherwise food insecurity will surely lead to our insecurity as "Hunger can lead a human to any inhuman extent." And if they do something wrong then it will surely be directed against us and not against any inhabitant of some other planet.
Oxygen … a movement View

Be sporty while studying

It's quite true that sports teach us how to lead a better life, not only a life of our own comfort but also one in which we live with proper cooperation and coordination. Playing games is important for students, as they are the ones who have to move ahead and lead the present society to a brighter future, a brighter scenario and furthermore they have to accomplish the dream cum mission of being a developed nation and that of India shining. Besides keeping our body fit and mind fresh Sports inculcate and imbibe in us the qualities of team spirit, patience, tolerance, concentration and many more virtues of life in this seemingly endless list.
In a game usually the team with best skill set and the one which puts in a lot of efforts to hone in the required skills wins the game. This teaches us that to succeed in activity or career; one has to persistently put in a lot of efforts. We need to work hard to attain our goals in life. Similarly, when we go through ups and downs in our daily life, when our life shows the darkened side, we should not be disturbed nor should we feel overjoyed in success, but should stay focused on our duties and responsibilities. We need to be a disciplined follower of rules in order to win a game the same way in our life, we need to follow the legal, social and ethical rules and any distraction or deviation from them may cost us dear. Thus, sports make us a better disciplined personality in our life and even Swami Vivekananda once said "Play Football to understand Gita.”
Recently, India's youth icon Irfan Pathan, endorsed our Oxygen greeting cards with a great statement and that was "Dear Student, You need to be sporty while studying". This too emphasizes the fact that the utmost need of today is that sports and studies go hand in hand.As a country of young people, India has great potential in the world of sports and games. We are yet to fully harness the talent of our youth in this vast field. Especially in the areas of games that figure at the Olympics. We should seriously think of making sports and games a compulsory part of the educational syllabus in our schools and colleges. Countries that stand out in the world of sports and even dominate in the field of education are the ones that have in fact made them an integral part of their educational curricula.So, its high time now that we include sports in our curriculum so as to make students sporty, sporty enough to build a healthier society of tomorrow and thereby live to the true meaning of Vivekananda’s lines.
Oxygen … a movement View

Be a torch bearer

We have a mighty task at hand. We have to make education the biggest issue and change the face of our nation. It's not something a few individuals alone can accomplish. It is something which requires utmost dedication from people of all backgrounds and in various professions. We needn't be a democrat to bring reforms, we can change a lot by being in our own shoes. We can lead the way for others and inspire them to join hands with us. We can simply be loyal to our profession and a whole lot of issues in the society will sort out themselves. We can be a person who represents the ideal product of our education system and hence be the catalyst to this change. If we keep on waiting for the most opportune moment to do something worthwhile in our lives, chances are we'd never find it. Usually as students our foremost aim is to study and get good marks. That's not wrong but that doesn't mean we cannot think of doing anything for the society while we're still students. Most often, this thought never occurs to us. The thing to remember is that there is no special time for doing anything good. We have to keep persevering throughout our lives if we have something in our minds to fulfill. Apart from studying, we as students, can take up various tasks such as spreading awareness, being associated with a community service group or simply creating ideas for a better world, without having to compromise on academics.
Oxygen … a movement View

Balance of nature- Dignity of labour

There are millions of people who are making the world go round and they are not all doctors or engineers. There are so many people doing so many things that usually get unnoticed. These people work behind the scenes and do things none of the 'educated lot' would ever want to yet their presence is extremely significant for everyone's existence.
We are talking about our farmers, labourers, sweepers, workers etc. It is impossible to have a world without these people but the disregard they get from the elite society is alarming. It is strange to find that if a farmer's son receives good education and becomes an officer, he starts to look down upon his ancestral occupation. He wouldn't want to become a farmer in any case then. Now if all farmers' children leave farming like that, who will produce the required food grains?
The thing in question is whether education is completely ignoring dignity of labour. Why do educated people refrain from manual work and why is there no respect regarding it? Our education should encourage us to value every person and the work they do. It shouldn't distance us from the world we live in. We should understand the importance of every kind of profession. We should break the cocoon of comfort and self reverence we form around ourselves once having earned an esteemed degree.
Oxygen … a movement View

How good is academic competition?

Another academic year has ended and a fresh batch of students has already geared up for their competitive examinations this summer. Thousands of youngsters are going to subject themselves to rounds of selection, or rather elimination, to make it to their dream destination. They had been working hard for it for the past couple of years or so and deserve a good position. Helping them were those several coaching institutions and teachers, some of whom have developed a certain cult following in the recent past.
Nothing has been spared in this age of cut throat competition. Competition has crept in our education system in a way that we find children as young as three or four years old vying for more and more marks. Can such education be considered close to enlightenment that stems from such intense competition? Is there any harmony between the two aspects of education? We support moral building and personality development when we talk of good education but we also look for that fierce competitive spirit in children that would establish their supremacy over others. We like to see our kids overtaking all other kids in every competitive exam they take. We teach them to step over others in order to be called successful. Should the light of knowledge lead us on a path where we step over each other to be ahead? It is also true that we can’t do away with this academic competition. In a country like ours where there are more people than there are opportunities for them, only the very best deserve a position in the institution of their choice. But let’s also not forget the real significance of education amidst all this chaos.
Oxygen … a movement View

We need specialized teachers for sports, music and art

Everyone agrees to the fact that education is all about the overall development of an individual। Students, parents and most importantly educational institutions usually suggest that a truly educated person must possess some special skills and talents in fields such as sports, art, music or dramatics। But when we look closely at the teaching staff of some of the most prestigious schools, we hardly find any specialized teachers for sports, art and .

Schools have specialized teachers for one of these fields but lack the rest whereas some schools don't have any of these teachers at all and yet have no qualms claiming to be the best school of their locality. Isn't it the responsibility of schools to provide their students with good teachers to develop their hidden talents? Should the principals, who emphasize that overall development of children is imperative, not provide such facilities to students under one roof?

In the scarcity of such facilities at school, students have to resort to taking extra classes outside to hone their skills of interest। This cuts their time on academics as well as other activities of interest and recreation at home. When the temples of learning fail to provide all necessary aids for learning, students go out in search of other sacred places to learn and in the process waste a significant amount of resources, time and money.

Oxygen... a movement view