The school bell rings sharply, and the children of Kumud Vidyamandir, Govandi, rush out of their classes, glad to be set free for the day. However, children of Class VII remain seated, eagerly waiting for a fun session on science and maths. Soon, a young teacher enters and divides them into four groups, with one leader for each. They are told to build a house with newspaper and scotch tape. There is one condition: the youngest member in each group should be able to sit in it.
Activity-based classes
After considerable shuffling, the children begin discussing the possibility of completing what appears to be a Herculean task. While some feel it is impossible, others start jotting down ideas. This is exactly what the teacher wants them to do. The simple exercise is aimed at helping them understand the concept of balance, gravitation, height (they need to measure the height of the youngest member), besides group dynamics. The method is part of a technique that three graduates from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai, have created to foster knowledge development among students, and enhance their life skills.
Vidyoday, the organisation that Vinayak Mali, Rushikesh Kiritkar and Suhas Prabhawale started in 2015, has been experimenting with activity-based methods of teaching upper primary and secondary school children in Mumbai and Kolhapur.
Mr. Mali says, “It is important for children to acquire skills in identifying problems, analysing different dimensions, finding solutions, experimenting, interpreting and applying results. This is possible when children are engaged in practical activities and problem solving rather than learning merely through books and lectures.”
The idea of starting Vidyoday occurred to Mr. Mali in 2013, when, as a fellow at Gyan Setu, Pune, he worked as a project trainer and taught science through hands-on activities for children from ‘developmentally challenged’ States such as Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Chhattisgarh and Jammu & Kashmir. Mr. Mali had some experience in the education sector. He had served as a caretaker and mentor for students at an orphans’ school at Vidyarthi Vikas Kendra, Kolhapur, in 2010-11. And as a Fellow at Jnana Prabodhini, Pune, he was involved in development of teaching and learning aids in mathematics for primary schoolchildren.
Through his experience, he realised the importance of developing an analytical approach in children rather than have them depend on rote learning.
Meeting of minds
Around the same time, Mr. Mali met Mr. Kiritkar and Mr. Prabhawale. They shared his desire to bring about active change in teaching methods, and had the same goal: wean children away from rote learning. Mr. Kirtikar, a Social Work graduate from TISS, is pursuing his Ph.D there. He did his M.Phil in 2015 on ‘Constructivism in Education’.
He said, “My research gave me a philosophical understanding of the problem in education, and developments in curriculum and pedagogies. There are limitations in the contemporary education system, which mostly relies on bookish knowledge and rote learning.” He began to conceptualise a ‘practice-based education’ model through Ashoka’s Youth Venture Fellowship, which he won in January 2010. He was later awarded the TISS Fellowship for the project, which he practised in a rural area in Thane, in co-ordination with the non-governmental organisation ‘Quest’, for over a year, and subsequently in Mumbai. The model encouraged children to solve real-life problems with an analytical approach.
The third member of the team, Mr. Prabhawale, is pursuing a Master of Arts in Elementary Education at TISS. His three years’ experience in a primary school in Ichalkaranji and workshops for teachers in designing teaching-learning materials, have given him an understanding of the lacunae in the sector. As a coordinator for Gyan Setu, he travelled from Chattisgarh to Jammu & Kashmir, working with children in these areas.
Vidyoday uses toys, paper crafts, real-life experiences and life skills sessions to impart training in science and maths. Their method, which they call a problem-based learning model, is activity-based, simple to implement and low-cost, said Mr. Prabhawale. As most of the toys are made out of waste material, expenses are low.
Classes are held mostly in government-run schools, where children are from low-income groups. Vidyoday has 17 teachers on its rolls.
The organisation does not design activities or methods for specific topics, as that “disconnects from the holistic nature of science and how the world operates,” said Mr. Mali. Instead, it focuses on activities like getting the children to make science-based toys. While making these toys, children learn a range of concepts that are often taught to them through different chapters in school. More importantly, through ‘Doing and Discovering Science’, they develop a range of physical and cognitive skills, “largely ignored in the education system,” said Mr. Kirtikar.
For example, teachers encourage students to make a car from cups and plastic boxes, and attaching a balloon to it in such a way that after the balloon is blown and released, the car runs in the opposite direction, following the rocket principle. The teacher does not teach the science behind the toys; the problems they face generate the need to understand the core principles.
“The teacher discusses each problem in detail, asking them to find the reason behind problems and how these can be solved. Further experiments can be performed to test if the reasons provided by children are scientifically correct,” said Mr. Kirtikar. For instance, if some say the car tilts due to the weight of the air in the balloon, the others may not agree. Experiments to prove whether air has weight can then be performed in class.
“The method covers a range of concepts simultaneously, integrating them together in a holistic manner,” said Mr. Prabhawale.
Training teachers
Vidyoday is implementing its teaching initiative with the students in three schools: Kumud Vidya Mandir, Govandi for Class VI and VII students; Ramrao Ingawale High School, Hatkangle (Kolhapur) for Class VIII students; Mahatma Gandhi and Mane High School, Rukadi (Kolhapur) for Class VII and IX students. Sessions are conducted after school hours. They plan to train teachers next year to help them incorporate the method in their classes. In the third year, the organisation will follow-up with schools to refine it. “In three years, we hope to transform teaching practices in the schools,” said Mr. Kirtikar.
The s chools are pleased with these workshops as they find remarkable change in children’s understanding of subjects. “As the children themselves have to do the activities, they are able to understand the logic and principles much better. There is more fondness for science and maths now. Ideally, such activities should be made a part of the curriculum,” said Vilas Dabade, science teacher at Kumud Vidyamandir.
