What are the images that come to your mind when you read the words granny cloud? A band of grey haired ladies smelling of powder, (maybe medicine too), singing tunefully while strumming the harp, with wings sprouting out of their backs, to hover and watch over you? Well, Prof. Sugata Mitra's 'granny cloud' is anything but that! His premise is that children can educate themselves with the Internet and the teacher’s role is reduced to that of a cheerleader, as learning, rooted in questions and collaborative in nature, happens. "It’s not about making learning happen, it about letting it happen,” says Mitra.

Praise and encouragement are the best motivators to get children to learn, and the role of an admiring audience, once played to perfection by a granny in the (now defunct) joint family, falls now to teachers, especially pre-school teachers. Only grannies have the patience to listen to and placate the fears of children; they don't mind answering a string of questions; they applaud and praise the antics of the young and agile; they admire the boundless energy of the kids; they caution, counsel and admonish but are never judgmental. For teachers, it’s just one more role we get to play, along with that of a doctor, news reporter, law maker, photographer, psychic, awestruck spectator, comedian, personal trainer, detective and counsellor. ( Did you really think we were just teachers?)