Meeting Mid-Way - Senior School publication

MEETING I D W A Y

INTERVIEWS

GET TO KNOW YOUR TEACHERS

AND EXCUSES YOU CREATE!

Now that we’re nearing the end, it’s safe to say that this entire year has been wild, similar to a roller coaster with bumps and bruises along the way, and as we tread towards the day, we can finally toss our hats. While the thought of it is definitely overwhelming and nostalgic, the time we’ve been able to spend here is irreplaceable.

Through the course of our unique journeys, we have been able to hold on to several moments that we are sure to remember forever. The program that we’re competing in these two years has been just the same – unexpected yet so enthralling.

Senior school- two words bound together with a single emotiondemanding, but every minute for the last two years, the faculty members and students have worked like a well-oiled machine to practice and perfect what is required of an IB student. Every teacher present in Pathways World School, Aravali endlessly pushes their students to go the extra mile and earn another medal on their chest just so we, as students can achieve the unachievable. This magazine reveals what we cannot fathom- to show that though underestimated, a teacher isn't merely someone who imparts knowledge, they mould our personality, shape our conscience- they are the workers who tirelessly hammer the marble to reveal the sculpture beneath.

Meeting Mid-Way is a product of the tireless effort the team channeled as well as the encouragement that Ms Ila and Mr Guru endlessly gave that propelled us to the final stage!

~ Baani Mehandru 1

Interview with

Ms. Manjula Shenoi

Principal Senior School

What would you title your autobiography?

Dare to Dream: The Power Beneath My Wings!

If you could spend your day as any fictional character, who would it be?

Elizabeth Bennett from Austen’s ‘Pride and Prejudice’. She dared to be different and break free from societal expectations of her times!

What is the one subject you thoroughly disliked during your school years?

Mathematics. My teacher expected me to work magic in a jiffy and I found it mind-boggling!

Who was the author that made you fall in love with Literature?

The Bard, William Shakespeare. His works are timeless and relevant till date.

What’s your guilty pleasure?

Ice-cream & Chocolates. I still hesitate to share these, lick and lap every bit of it!

What superpower would you want to have?

The power to spread Love and Happiness to all.

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INTERVIEW WITH Economics Teacher What is the most ridiculous thing you have seen happening in your class from your 1 year experience?

I have a student who was in the boarding and class was going on, and in the middle of the class, his friends put a blanket over his head and took him out off class, while his camera being on, so that was the most unusual thing that happened in class.

What is the coolest thing about being a Pathways teacher ?

There is an opportunity to interact with “ really cool “ students who have such a wide array of interest and are so precocious that they are taking interests in things I couldn’t have seen myself taking an interest in when I was younger. From a professional level, it’s a really supportive professional situation that I am in. The department colleagues are great, the DPC happen to be from my department and Manjula ma’am is great too, so it is a really supportive atmosphere, and I like having that kind of guidance.

You mentioned you’re a Bombayite, so what made you want to teach in Delhi/Gurgaon, because they are quite different.

Abroad travels for me have only been one being South Korea, and others I came to Delhi for a PhD in economics at JLN University, while I began my PhD, I took an interest in teaching and decided to do that. Pathways is my second school, Pathways is just something that came along in that journey. spent more travelling various different parts of India. But in India, I would prefer to live in the hills, particularly Landour.

CLICK HERE

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INTERVIEW

WITH

Ms Laveena Mathur What do you think is a cool thing about being a part of the admin team ?

The privilege to talk to any and everyone in the school, all school teachers and students, boarding team, admin team, and even the management team.

Is there any embarrassing thing that you have done ?

In order to get my seat for university and only 60 seats were available, I cut the line and at 4:00 the counselling/interview had stopped for a break.

So, I told the remaining students that they won’t take any more kids so we should all leave and go home. I exited the university but I turned and came back the next minute, while everyone else went home.

Who is your greatest living mentor that you had in your life?

(School, uni, or even work life.)

Neena ma’am is the guiding force behind me. She is the person that constantly tells me what is right and what is wrong even if I feel it isn’t good for me at that moment, she still says it to me on my face. She is the mentor that I can rely on and is the person that will give me the correct direction.

If you were given in a choice to live in any country, what would it be?

Singapore would be an amagazing country to live in!

CLICK HERE

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IN ANOTHER UNIVERSE... "if I wasn't a teacher

"I would really be

then I would love to be

interested in becoming

a part of the

a Cognitive Behavioral

Intelligence Bureau"

Psychologist."

MS. ILA PANDEY

MS. JAYA SHARMA

DP COORDINATOR

HOD OF ENGLISH

"I would love to become a Psychologist if I never became a teacher. "

" A Doctor is something I would really be interested in. " MS. SUMAN AGNIHOTRI

MS. NAZNEEN ABBASI

BUSINESS TEACHER

PSYCHOLOGY TEACHER

"I think I would really enjoy becoming a Human Resource Manager!"

"If not a teacher, My career choice would be an Air Force Officer!"

MR. GAGAN DEEP

MS. LOPA MUDRA

MATH TEACHER

BUSINESS TEACHER

"I would love to be a

"i would like to be a

dancer"

Farmer"

MS. LAVEENA MATHUR

MR. DEEPAK PATEL

EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT, COLLGE ADVISOR DEPART.

HINDI TEACHER

"I would be an entrepreneur" MS. NEENA VIRMANI SS CAREER COUNSELLOR

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"I would have left the job and settled in a peaceful hill station where I could open a centre for Yoga and meditation so that I could also find time for it. " "1. Invest wisely- so that this money doubles up 2. donate 3. adopt lots of children ( in terms of giving them financial support for education and heath , emotional care )" "I will donate 4 million and will keep 1 million for my self for a simple and less complicated life" "I would definitely open a hostpital with those 5 million dollars!"

"I would start a food business where I would build a restaurant for kids to play and eat food free of cost. This will mostly be for underprivileged kids!"

"I will go for a world tour and plant 5 million trees" " I would create a revenue generating opportunity." " I will start doing Social Service!" " I think I would go for a world tour and enjoy!"

" I would love to eat Fruits" "I suppose it also includes drinks so- detox Water" "Eggs would be great!" "i wouldn't like to eat anything for my whole life."

"Kadhi Chawal"

" I would eat Potato and Onion Paratha"

"Fruits! they are are amazing!"

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"Yet to find one"

"That I know dancing"

"I too have to discover this.

So, honestly no idea."

"My special talent would be Madhubani Painting"

"I am very good at multi-tasking"

" I am a secret singer"

"My photography skills are something I'm proud of!"

"It would be great to have an interview with J M Keynes!"

" I can actually paint quite well!"

" Shakespeare and Charles Darwin."

"APJ ABDUL KALAAM" "APJ ABDUL KALAAM" "Rani Laxmi Bai" "Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel" "Too many not able to pick one."

"An interview with Margaret Thatcher would be great!"

"Swami Vivekanand "

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Y B STUD S E S U E C N Y B S T S X U E DE TS E CUS NT X E Teachers' Opinio ns S "I have internet issues"

"I sent it to you"

Mr. Abil - Unreliable

Ms. Keerti - Hahaha

Mr. Kartar - Get a better internet pack

Ms. Xiomara - On snail mail?

Ms. Keerti - The lame excuse

Ms. Nazneen - It's an escape

"My dog ate my homework"

"My laptop crashed"

Ms. Laxmi - Give it some food

Ms. Laxmi - Where? Join from mobile

Ms. Xiomara - This is why I have a cat

Mr. Kartar - It's okay, restart it

Mr. Ashwani - Vague and a lie

Mr. Abil - Unreliable

Excuse that is now music to your ears?

Worst excuse for missing homework or class?

Mr. Abil - I forgot

Ms. Ila - Forgot to keep a track of time

Mr. Saurav - Internet issues

Mr. Dariusz - You haven't given us any

Ms. Ila - Laptop camera is not working

Mr. Kartar - Didn't feel like doing it

The craziest excuse for late work?

Excuse that annoys you the most?

Ms. Nazneen - I did it but forgot to send

Mr. Prudhvi - I attended the class

Mr. Dariusz - My parents had a party

Mr. Ashwani - I can't hear you

Ms. Keerti - My outlook isn't working

Mr. Dariusz - I haven't received it

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HONEST REVIEWS LITERATURE

Imagine yourself sitting in those dark academia oxford libraries, dimly lit by melting candles while you’re absorbed by the works of Jane Austen or the Bronte Sisters, trying to complete a twenty-page essay at the same time. Whether it was IB Literature or Language and Literature, both subjects work on the same lines. You probably shouldn't expect yourself to be organized and definitely don't expect any candles that’ll lift your mood.

Rather you’ll see yourself submerged in the chaos of the themes your literary works cover - authors you may have never heard of or the analysis of the paper one excerpts trying to unpuzzle the mystery that's present before you. You'd constantly find yourself sitting in the corner of your room trying to finish as much as possible in one night.

BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT

To study business in IB, one must certainly give their hand and brain up for charity. The amount of writing in a business exam means sacrificing your hand for good. Despite that, at least 8 marks will be taken away just because you didn’t mention “however” a bazillion times. Business students will get more marks for filling the paper the same vocabulary than writing the actual content. Moving on to the brain blast, When you open the business book and ppt to make notes you cannot figure out what not to highlight. From ands to buts everything in the ppts and books is important. Eat your book if it’s possibly, worship it - make it your bible.

MATHEMATICS Whether it’s AI SL or AA HL, be prepared to drown yourself in loads of formulas and functions that will keep your head spinning. We might not be able to solve our own relationship dramas but finding the ‘x’ to our math problems seems worse than if we were to go back to our toxic exes :’(

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ECONOMICS Economics is that subject where you know you're getting a Nobel Prize if your theory has no understanding of how real life works. The subject has a 10 marker, where the highest mark is 9, and a 15 marker, where the highest mark achievable is 13. Matlab kyu. Hope milra hai ki yes 15 marker I will crush it and then you write everything and you get a 10, because "sorry student but the max I can give is 13, so actually you've got a 12". It is one of those subjects where if you look at the number of graphs, you’d think it’s a visual arts course mixed with the finance of scarcity. The subject has this phrase called ‘Ceteris Paribus’, and it's always looming in the background. Ah, you didn't put Ceteris Paribus in your definition of demand. A CRIME. A CRIME HAS BEEN COMMITTED. To put it concisely, econ is an experience :)

ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES The only subject that has managed to maintain its reputation of the teachers being more thrilling than the subject itself. Your ESS teacher is the most approachable ones and easy to talk to, ESS Field Trips are one of the few things that will excite you through the year but may also let you down due to its cancellation.

VISUAL ARTS Being an IB Art student is like being a part of an elite club.

Here are some of the requirements for the club: Clothes covered in paint marks The talent to make random doodles into abstract art Making the Art room your second home The ability to pull all-nighters a day before the deadline Making a 100-word paragraph into a 500-word essay The ability to deal with art blocks If you think you meet most of the requirements, we’d welcome you with open arms and pray for your survival. Just kidding…

Art is amazing…

THEORY OF KNOWLEDGE A subject wherein everything is unknown, whatever you ken is consummately null and void and all you require to do in order to achieve the best is to always recollect that your word count for your commentary just cannot go above 950 words and you require to question everything - even your identity :)

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BIOLOGY IB Biology, a not so scoring subject has you writing at least a thousand words which aren't really enough for every question. You will still miss out on some important point that will make you lose marks one way or another. Either level of the subject will be strenuous that giving it twenty-seven hours in one day won't be enough.

CHEMISTRY The first step to excelling in IB Chemistry is forgetting everything you have learnt in the previous grades.

Apparently, everything we were taught in MYP, was only because it was easier to understand that than the actual facts. From the electronic configuration of any element to the definition of acids & bases, everything is a lie. A word of advice, don’t take chemistry without going through a brainwasher first.

PHYSICS Basically the cousin of maths, except with more theories, definitions, and applications. You’ll know you’ve made the RiGhT decision when your projectile seems to defy gravity and your circuit seems to be an infinite source of electricity, so good luck to all you future engineers, scientists, and STEM majors, I hope it was worth it :)

PSYCHOLOGY While you may expect yourself to be studying about why your best friend is going through a constant existential crisis, you’ll find yourself indulging in movies that make no sense to you and even sessions of Koffee With Karan with your Psych teacher.

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COMPUTER SCIENCE One of the most difficult subjects you could possibly come across, find yourself contemplating your choice every day you study this. You’re basically alone in this one but if you’re able to find resources that make even the slightest sense to you, you’ll be able to conquer it all.

DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY We successfully dissect things that we never would’ve thought of; from user-centric design to production integration, Design and Technology covers it all. We literally sketch the world out with its sharp italicised essence and acquire such an immaculate sense of imagination and cultural grounding. It sparks a mature sensibility- a sensitive sensibility

GLOBAL POLITICS History but evolved and modern, right? it doesn’t have tons of dates to remember so that’s good but the theories are A LOT so be prepared!! you know when you can apply those theories in real life you’re doing something correct, for example voldemort the realist and dumbledore the liberalist, that’s fun right!!!

HISTORY If you want to be swamped with 5 textbooks, 20+ ppts, and endless documents and printouts, IB History is the subject for you. Jstor is your best friend, you see him every other day where he helps you write your essays. If you were expecting to just learn about Hitler or Mussolini’s shenanigans, trust me, that’s just the minor leagues, wait till you’re introduced to Mao for the real broadway show.

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SPANISH Imagine having Duolingo as your actual spanish teacher, well IB Spanish is quite the opposite. While us students expect to learn how to actually communicate in spanish, we end up learning about the food pyramid and the colour of a room wall. If you're apt with SpanishDict and Google Translate then Spanish is going to be an easy ride.

FRENCH Through this course you’ll find yourself using words that you probably don't even know the meaning of, just trying to sail through it easily. Vocabulary sheets and oral mocks are definitely tasks that make your head spin. By the end of it, if you manage to remember any big words you’ve learnt from the previous unit without using google translate, you’ve successfully made it to the end.

MUSIC From Beethoven to Bach, music covers just every element under the sun. It would involve you trying to analyse famous pieces where you would attempt to put as many words that relate to the subject just to enhance your commentary. Don't forget to remember your scales because each piece has variations of the same ones just with words that would make absolutely no sense to you.

CREATIVITY, ACTIVITY, SERVICE You’d find yourself in your FT room being questioned every single day about your CAS reflections because you can't make it out of IB without them. CAS involves completing three different aspects where you find yourself planting trees, completing several hours of community service and so much more.

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TEAM K. GuruCharan Kumar

Baani Mehandru

TEACHER IN CHARGE MAGAZINE HEAD

Aanya Dhillon

Kyna Sharma

OUTREACH HEAD CONTENT HEAD

Siya Mehra DESIGN CO-HEAD

Saanch Madaan

CO-HEAD VIDEOGRAPHY

Khusshi Arora DESIGN TEAM MEMBER

Aarushi Mal

CO-HEAD VIDEOGRAPHY

Saira Arora DESIGN CO-HEAD

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