CHENNAI : The news of India’s first Big Bang — Science-A-Thon ’18 — an event where mega science experiments would be performed with an aim to inspire young minds (students of classes 4 to 12) comes as a cool breeze in this hot summer. Welcome to LMES (Let’s Make Engineering Simple) Academy founded by Premanand Sethurajan. With an aim to help students relate Science with real-world applications, a team of 30 science enthusiasts along with Premanand have embarked on a mission to create an unforgettable learning experience for kids.
Flashback
The idea of using video content as an effective learning material came to Prem’s mind while he was working at aerospace companies in America. “I took to decoding and simplifying theories in Science and Mathematics when I understood that we were not taught the basics right at school. The scenario will change only when we start studying for knowledge instead of marks,” says the electronics communication engineering graduate.
After working for six years in the United States, Prem decided to return to India with the sole aim of revolutionising the way kids approach Science. His inclination was to make theories simple and attract kids into this magical world.
Where is the problem?
Living in the era of technology wouldn’t serve much if we do not make efforts to understand the techniques behind simple aspects, Prem said adding “...teaching Science should not stop with blackboards. Of course, there are several demerits in the teaching methodology here. It is time we stop playing the blame game and come up with solutions.”
Education should excite learners to develop an interest in the subject, he says. “Unlike the Big Bang shows we have been holding in the initial stages, Science-A-Thon would be very different. It is a large-scale event aimed at creating a ‘wow’ factor in thousands of students. We also provide a science kit and an experiment package for all those who attend the event.”
Discuss Science at home
What is more appealing about LMES’ videos is that they are available in Tamil. “My videos are for the layman. This was done with an intention to cater to a wider audience. I felt that our application-based stories should also benefit the Tamil-medium students,” he shares. Now his focus is on working with government school students in and around Pallavaram, where his office is located, to expose them to fresh methods of teaching. “Across the state, a few schools began using our videos to teach students. We have been receiving good feedback from them,” Prem says.
Not stopping with videos, LMES soon began developing products for children. In 2016, it was just focussed on redefining the approach to learning Science, but now, large-scale events like Science-A-Thon are part of the strategy. “Providing a package aligned with the current curriculum was not easy,” he adds.
Recalling an instance when students came up with their own project plans, Prem says, “We have been training a few students from a government school in Urappakam. One of the trainees used to be late to classes. He had to help his mother in cleaning the rice before coming to school every day. It was then that the kids developed a product to segregate black rice from the good ones under our guidance. As many as 20 interns have worked with me from various colleges,” he says.
Talking ‘social’ science
LMES’ videos began discussing the science behind issues like jallikattu, Cauvery water, hydrocarbon extraction, plastic rice, thermocol project, NEET among others. “I strongly believe that a scientific approach to any problem in the society would help people reach a feasible conclusion,” he shares.
Apart from inspiring more than 20,000 students in a couple of years with his brainstorming approach to Science, Prem has also conducted as many as 200 Big Bang Theory events and week-long Teacher Empowerment Programmes.
Future plans
After receiving a “great” response for the Science-A-Thons conducted at Madurai and Coimbatore, LMES is expecting more than 3,000 students for a similar event at Sri Sai Ram College of Engineering, Chennai, on May 26. Interested students can register themselves at www.lmes.in or contact 9884222601. The LMES will also meet children of Salem and Tiruchy on June 9 and June 16 respectively.
Talking about his plans for next summer, Prem shares, “All my endeavours are aimed at challenging people to change their perspective about Science. We have grand plans of organising an international science fest next year.”Other projects on his cards include making educational videos based on the curriculum of classes 6-12, and form incubation clubs in schools, all aimed at producing more scientists for India.Owing all his achievements to his better half A Umamaheshwari and his parents, Premanand continues shooting for his next video.