The teaching methodology today is very different from what it was two decades ago. Students want to move beyond “subject knowledge” and “rote-based learning” to application of knowledge, skills and competencies that are required to succeed in the 21st Century. Hari Verma of Creya Learning left a lucrative corporate job in 2010 to address this gap, and the firm’s ideas are currently being employed in more than 40 schools, with 22,000 students using the system on a daily basis.
The “Learning Studio” setup in schools is a physical space where children work in groups of three to four, collaborating on different projects, and learning through discovery and research using online and offline tools. Even the classroom layout allows children to mingle easily and learn from each other. The Studio is equipped with different components like Cameras, Voice Recorders, Engineering equipment, Robotic tools, Bricks and Programmable software that help children come up with a diverse range of solutions for a challenge thrown at them, which helps break the ‘conformity’ mould that traditional education encourages.
An innovative curriculum, aligned to the National Curriculum Framework 2005, is aligned with what children learn in their theory classes (Maths, Science, English, Social Sciences, ICT) and allows them to work in a structured manner through a series of interdisciplinary projects using STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Maths), Experiential Learning and Design thinking.
Creya caters to different boards (CBSE, ICSE, State Boards, IGCSE, IB) from Grades 1 to 10 and has been featured in Education World Magazine as one of the “Big Bang Initiatives” in the K-12 education space in their October 2014 issue. Their price range varies and they charge on a per student per annum basis. Creya also provides continuous professional development for teachers of partner schools, with 120 hours of engagement spread over four years.
“Entrepreneurship was a decision based on the constraining environments and situations that I faced working for corporates. There is almost no new creation in large enterprises except for a few pockets and you should be extremely lucky to be in those spaces. I had very little challenge in my job and dreamt of being a creator, a disruptor, rather than just a manager, and thus decided to turn entrepreneur,” explains Hari, about why he ventured out. “Our curriculum inculcates creative thinking, critical thinking, collaboration and communication skills, all essential for success in the 21st century,” he adds.
Born in Vizianagaram, Andhra Pradesh, Hari stayed in industrial clusters like Chennai, Bhilai, Ranchi and Vishakhapatnam, because his father had a transferable job in the Central Industrial Security Forces. The Kendriya Vidyalayas that he went to had a very diverse set of children from all over the country, giving him exposure to different languages and cultures and helped shape his world view, adapting to changing situations, learning new languages and appreciating multiple perspectives. He took part in every possible extracurricular activity at school to get away from the regular classes. Hari was the youngest member of his school Hockey team and played other sports like volleyball, table tennis, cricket and soccer.
An engineer from Andhra University with a PG diploma in Industrial Management from National Institute of Industrial Engineering, Mumbai, Hari has worked in companies like Toshibro, Tata Technologies, Pune and Singalabs (an IBM Subsidiary), Singapore. His first entrepreneurial venture was G4 Software Technologies, a payment solutions company in Singapore, at the age of 28, which exposed him to all facets of business. G4 Software was eventually acquired by 3i-Infotech in 2006. He then joined another startup, Knowledge Universe (KUED) as General Manager.
rohit@learnbizsimulations.com