Bringing authenticity into your life and it's consequences.

As we look at the world around us, we see that no two things are identical. No two snowflakes are ever the same – nor are they intended to be. Rather, each form is a distinct expression, and this applies to us as well. The universe does not intend our life to be a copy of someone else’s life. We are each magnificently unique, and the inner impulse to express this is what drives us to be authentic. - 

A move into greater authenticity is always a move into greater levels of empowerment, creative self-expression, and overall wellbeing

This is because we are moving towards our truer and greater self. Our interactions with the world and with others become more fulfilling and more alive. Our joy and fulfillment rise to higher levels -

 See more at: http://www.chopra.com/ccl/authenticity-a-closer-look?utm_source=October%20Newsletter%20&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=October_2013_Newsletter#sthash.x5oIWswU.dpuf 

Moving towards higher consciousness..

The possibility of achieving the highest level of actualization exists only if we are surrounded on a regular basis with others moving towards higher consciousness.

In the face of overwhelming challenges all around us, the only thing we can do is make our little corner of the world more safe, welcoming, friendly, kind, caring and loving.

Read full article at:
http://blogs.psychcentral.com/relationship-skills/2013/09/breaking-the-cycle-of-loneliness/

Misleading Myth about education!

One of the most dangerous and misleading myths that still endures in the field of education is the idea that tests used to measure and compare students to one another are scientifically objective. They are not, in my opinion, absolutely not. 

Young people are not inert rocks or chemicals in a test tube, and they are not machines. They are curious, creative and continuously changing living beings. As such, the use of high-stakes testing to sort and compare children with one another can be very misleading and potentially destructive. 

That doesn't mean that assessments play no role in education, they most definitely do. What experienced teachers understand is that whenever you provide a child with an assessment on their abilities you must be very careful about it. 

Well designed assessments are given to help students become aware of their weaknesses, so that they can improve in those areas. 

This is how the best teachers and coaches motivate and inspire their students. They are constantly giving the learner feedback on little details of their progress, with the shared goal of helping them improve their skills and abilities, to master what they are learning. 

Assessment of learning is key, but the subjective component is always in the forefront of the teacher's mind. Feedback given in this way promotes growth, motivation and greater learning. It is a key component of the student/teacher relationship, grounded in trust, respect and an awareness of the learner's potential.

The care, flexibility and personal support the teacher demonstrates is a crucial component of the process. This is why teaching is more an art form then a science, as is also true of learning. 

Every child is different, with different strengths, weaknesses, motivations, learning styles and interests. If you use standardized test results to compare them to one another the effect is to decrease motivation for those who fall into the bottom of your assessment basket. 

The result is that schooling becomes "miseducative" for far too many children, as John Dewey described it.

~Christopher
The Art of Learning

Education is different from indoctrination.

A good education is one that liberates, empowers, and enhances individuals, not one that imposes and instills what external agencies believe individuals should learn. Education is different from indoctrination.

When you Spoke the truth, they hated you!

It was always like this. When you spoke the truth,

they hated you. The more you talked about love, the

more they hated you.

(Forty Rules of Love by Elif Shafak)

Ya Nabi (S.A.W).. a beautiful naat

kamli walay mein qurban teri shan per,

sub ki bigri banana tera kaam hai,

thokrain kha ke girna mera kaam hai,

her qadam pe uthana tera kaam hai

Faiz jari tera ta qayamat rahay

teri nabiyon pe qaayam imamat rahay,

teri naatain sunana mera kaam hai,

mere gham ko mitana tera kaam hai ..

Saaqiya jaan qurban tere jaam per,

ho nigaah-e-karam apne khudaam per,

chor di hum ne kashti tere naam per,

ab kinaray lagana tera kaam hai.

tu ne qatray ko dekha gohar ker diya,

tu ne zarray ko dekha to zar ker diya,

tu ne habshi to rashk-e-Qamar ker diya

ulta sooraj phirana tera kaam hai. 

How to succeed

“Don't aim at success. The more you aim at it and make it a target, the more you are going to miss it. For success, like happiness, cannot be pursued; it must ensue, and it only does so as the unintended side effect of one's personal dedication to a cause greater than oneself or as the by-product of one's surrender to a person [or persons] other than oneself. Happiness must happen, and the same holds for success: you have to let it happen by not caring about it... Then you will live to see that in the long-run—in the long-run, I say!—success will follow you precisely because you had forgotten to think about it”

~ Viktor E. Frankl,
Man's Search for Meaning