Uberoi Teacher Training

The Uberoi Foundation sponsored a pilot program held at the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth campus, during the summer of 2010. The intended audience for the program was high school teachers, and the objective was to broaden the teachers' views of India as a country and, in particular, of the traditions of Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, and Sikhism. Eight high school teachers from the northeast of the United States took part in the pilot program held over five business days that first summer. The program's primary organizer was Bal Ram Singh, the director of the Center for Indic Studies at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, where he is also a professor of biophysical chemistry.

In each of the summers since the pilot program in 2010, the Uberoi Foundation has continued to sponsor teacher training at UMass Dartmouth. Each year, individualized workshops cover a general introduction of India followed by in-depth background on Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, and Sikhism. Local and regional experts lead the workshops. The participating teachers also enjoy cultural activities, such as a classical Hindustani music concert by a trained sitarist, tours of nearby Hindu temples, and trials of Indian clothing such as saris, lehngas, dhotis, and kurtas. On the final day of the training, participating teachers showcase the two lesson plans they have designed throughout their days of training as well as their plans to continue working on eight lessons plans designed for use in their high schools back home.

Teacher Training Programs

The Uberoi Foundation for Religious Studies serves to “raise awareness of Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, and Sikhism and their respective music and arts through scholarly study.” With that mission in mind, two of the Foundation’s most significant programs each year are:

1)    UTT-US (Uberoi Teacher Training in the US): a one-week on-line training session for 60 or more middle and high school educators and administrators, held each June as an introduction to the four traditions indigenous to India – Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, and Sikhism – and more broadly, to India as a whole through the prism of those four traditions

2)    UTTI (Uberoi Teacher Training in India): a three-week, in-country experience for 15 to 20 middle and high school educators and/or administrators, as well as several professors and/or PhD candidates, held each July in India, as a more extensive introduction to Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, and Sikhism than that which is covered by UTTUS.

Along with a broader grant-making program, UTT-US and UTTI are vital means by which the Uberoi Foundation seeks to accomplish its mission. 

Application are being accepted from school middle and high teachers, administrators, graduate students, postdoctoral students, and professors who teach World Religions. This is an opportunity for educators to gain first-hand knowledge of Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism. Priority may be given to applicants who have completed UTT-US, the Uberoi Teacher Training in the U.S., although having done so is not a requirement.