COIMBATORE: Some life experiences often shape our paths in unexpected ways, guiding us towards our true purpose. For V Alexender, this calling emerged in the aftermath of the tsunami that struck Nagapattinam in 2004. Deployed by an NGO to provide computer education in two schools within the affected areas, he worked with children who lost their parents to the killer waves. That was a turning point for him to offer education services to the underprivileged students to make them capable enough to reclaim their place in society.
In September 2024, the 46-year-old man established a ‘STEM ICT’ lab at Sidhapudur Corporation Primary School in the city for the first time in corporation schools. To support his initiative, Appviewx and Experifun funded `5 lakh to establish the lab that was inaugurated by the corporation’s mayor and commissioner on September 16. Alexender, programme manager of Hope Foundation, is working with a big dream of producing corporation school students as scientists in future.
Alexender, a Ramanathapuram native, completed his undergraduation and postgraduation from colleges in Madurai and Tiruchy respectively. Due to his interest in teaching, he went to Chennai and got a job at an NGO and started teaching computer to corporation school students in 2002.With his effort, STEM education is being provided to 100 students under the programme ‘Young Scientist 100’ from Classes 6 to 9 at 15 corporation schools in Coimbatore through a trainer to stimulate their knowledge further in science. These students attend a minimum of two classes and a maximum of three days in a month, for three months.
Alexander told TNIE that the state government introduced Vanavil Mandram, a programme to encourage scientific interest among government school students in the academic year of 2022-2023 in government schools.
“The school education department is focusing on teaching Science and Mathematics concepts in STEM education to the students. Hence, I decided to teach the remaining two concepts of Technology and Engineering in STEM education to corporation school students. STEM education will shift the mindsets of the students through five key behaviour changes: moving from ‘Yes to Why,’ ‘Looking to Observing,’ ‘Passiveness to Exploring,’ ‘Textbook to Hands-on,’ and ‘Fear to Confidence,” explained Alexander.
When asked about how he came up with the improvisation of the plan, he said, “I sought permission from the Coimbatore corporation by explaining to them the importance of STEM education. After that we started to provide STEM training programmes such as explaining the concepts in Engineering and Technology and conducting experiments on different simple topics in 20 corporation schools. We got a good response from the students. Soon it was equipped with over 80 models in Science, Mathematics, and Robotics, featuring STEM panels with digital content.”
As a part of these programmes, they also organise construction workshops on telescope, mini satellite, and drone workshop for the students. Alexender said they also prepare the students to make an innovative model to find solutions. Ahead of the children’s day on November 14, they will show their working models on STEM and they will be announced as young innovators on graduation day on the same day. Discussing his future workshops, he said that the students are looking forward to World Science Day on February 28, 2025 where they have planned to launch a small satellite within a 20-30 kilometre radius.
When asked about future goals, Alexender said, “I desire to set up a space lab, telescope lab and drone lab for corporation school students in future.” Alexender has worked in 45 government schools which were located in tsunami-affected areas in three districts such as Ramanathapuram, Tiruvarur and Nagapattinam through another NGO.
His work extends beyond STEM, including programmes like Spoken English, STIR, flipped class methodology, establishing herbal gardens, raising environmental awareness, waste management, and promoting science in corporation schools until 2020 through various projects approved by the corporation administration. Only a few scientists, like APJ Abdul Kalam and Mylswamy Annadurai, have risen from government schools. “I want underprivileged students to follow in their footsteps, and I hope that ‘Young Scientist 100’ will be a spark to support them. We are planning to provide digital literacy and cyber security education to corporation school students through Hope Foundation,” Alexender said while signing off.