Based on the response, positive feedback and demand received from the participants of the various open and institutional workshops, the Foundation started deliberating and contemplating on conducting a longer duration course in Integral Education. This course had to be planned in a manner which would give a practical experience to the participants on how to actually implement Integral Education in their educational spaces.

After giving a lot of conscious and deep thought, the Foundation came up with the idea of a Teachers Professional Development Course in Integral Education, which has been named as ‘Anubhuti – Teach by being it’. This Teachers’ Professional Development Course in Integral Education course (TPDCIE) is a flagship program of the Foundation and is a result of several months of intensive thought process, research, serious deliberations and pain-staking efforts. The framework and the entire content of this course was developed under the guidance of Mr. Prasad Eledath, during the lockdown period of Corona pandemic. ‘Anubhuti – Teach by being it’ was launched on the occasion of the Mother’s birthday, on the 21st of February, 2022. The current year 2022 happens to be the 150th Birth Anniversary of Sri Aurobindo and 75th Anniversary of Independent India. As a humble tribute to Sri Aurobindo and to commemorate his immense contribution to India’s freedom struggle, to the field of education and to a larger extent for giving the world his philosophy of Integral Yoga, Bejon Desai Foundation has decided to sponsor the first batch of this Anubhuti course. This is a conscious step on the part of our Foundation for contributing to take ahead the works of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother.

There were a total of 32 teacher participants in the first batch of Anubhuti belonging to 14 different schools from Nashik. The Foundation had the privilege of having the resource persons such as Shivakumar, Ms. Priti Mandi and Jasmine Di from Sri Aurobindo Society, Puducherry and a few others working in the field of Integral Education to come down to Nashik and facilitate a few sessions of the Anubhuti course. The participants benefited from their rich and varied experience and also through interactions with them.

The Mission of Anubhuti course is –

To nurture Integral Facilitators, Integral Learners and Integral Educational Spaces, thus strengthening and deepening the foundations on which, can be build a nation, which has a unique mission to fulfill in the evolutionary destiny of humanity, as inspired by Sri Aurobindo and The Mother… The details of the course are as follows –

• When will ‘Anubhuti – Teach by being it’ be conducted? The Course is an open learning program spread over 6 months. The course content uses weekend contact time on the second and fourth Saturday and Sunday of every month, combined with reading, research, assignments and other self-learning methods.
• Who can join the course? Candidates who are pursuing or have completed their D. Ed. or B. Ed. or Candidates who are keen learners aspiring to be teachers or who wish to contribute in the field of education and who have a working knowledge of English. Aspiring and current educational leaders and administrators can also apply for the course.

(Disclaimer: All selection of candidates will be the sole discretion of the Bejon Desai Foundation Management. Candidates will have to go through an interview process before being finally selected. Applying for the TPDCIE does not imply automatic selection)

• How will the course be facilitated? An effective implementation of the Integral Education approach will need to encompass:
  • the experience of both, the Facilitator and the Learner;
  • the experience of the choice and implementation of specific context based pedagogical practices;
  • the experience related to the system or environment that one is functioning in – with opportunities for freedom of exploration, reflection and self-learning, at the level of both the Facilitator and Learner.
  • The actual contact time will be sessions facilitated based on the words and works of Sri Aurobindo and The Mother, along with practical applications and strategies in real-life educational spaces. The session content also focuses on providing practical applications and addressing the real-life needs of the participant in an educational space.
• What will be the process of the course?
  • THE BUDDY SYSTEM FOR THE ENTIRE COURSE DURATION.
  • ON-GOING SUPPORT FROM THE SECOND WEEK OF THE COURSE COMMENCEMENT
  • ACTION-RESEARCH DISSERTATION SUPPORT
  • POST- ANBHUTI COURSE SUPPORT FOR A PERIOD OF 3 MONTHS