What parents have to say about our Home-Based Learning Program
\Amitav Mallick’s contentment could barely be contained as he spoke joyously about the progress that his 4-year-old son Sahin has made throughout this lockdown. A resident of a small district called Kendrapara, he had never imagined that his son would be able to continue learning in the middle of a global pandemic that has brought the entire world to its knees. Among a slew of menacing revelations that the pandemic has brought to the fore, logistical challenges with regards to imparting education is certainly a chief concern for state governments across the country. The imposition of a nationwide lockdown has meant that the only viable method to impart education is through an online platform. With smartphone penetration rates and access to the internet being abysmal in India, it was imperative to devise innovative models that could enable quality education within the prevalent constraints. All of these apprehensions that plagued Amitav’s mind as the parent of a child in his formative years had been taken care of by ThinkZone, he said.
We at ThinkZone have been endeavoring to impart quality education in the under-resourced, rural areas of Odisha in the past few years. Our programs are mainly designed for kids between the age group of 3 years to 10 years, attending primary schools, anganwadis, and community learning centers. They have primarily been categorized into the Early Childhood Education (ECE) Program and the Primary Grade Education (PGE) Program. The ECE rests on the principle of developing skills required for the holistic development of kids. The PGE adopts a level-based approach among children to build foundation skills for arithmetic and language.
However, the ongoing crisis and the resultant lockdown led to the closure of schools and anganwadis. This posed a brand-new challenge for ThinkZone, but the long-term planning of the team resulted in the fruition of a home-based learning model which ensured that the circumstances failed to impact the affected kids’ education. Through our concerted efforts, we reached out to parents who could facilitate engagement through activity-based learning for their children, free of cost. All the parents need to do, is to call a number and learn about the quality learning modules that can be used to educate their children effectively. The home-based learning model also offers the facility to receive bi-weekly voice-based calls and SMSs on their phones, regarding the Do-It-Yourself (DIY) learning modules. This has considerably eased the process of imparting education for parents, in these trying times.
The USP of these modules is that these can be used by anyone, irrespective of educational background, or the type of mobile phones they use. These are highly user-friendly and are available in multiple languages, namely, Hindi, English, and Odia.
At ThinkZone, we strive to improve every day. In pursuance of our goals to ensure quality education for children from modest backgrounds, we have been seeking detailed feedback from the users of the home-based learning model. We are determined to appropriately gauge the accessibility and impact of this new model, and work towards minimizing shortcomings, to make this a seamless experience for the users. Hearing about all the success stories has indeed been overwhelming for us.
The engagement that this activity-based learning model has created among children is unparalleled, said Mrs. Bhuyan, mother of Akankhya Bhuyan from the district of Cuttack. She said her daughter would be cranky about having to travel for 30 mins to go and learn. Akankhya would show very little interest and focus. However, this has changed drastically since the introduction of the home-based learning model and now Akankhya actively looks forward to learning every day. The aspect of learning through activities is something that has gained immense popularity among children, said Mrs. Bhuyan as well as Mr. Mallick. Both parents were worried that they would have to resort to teaching their kids just through books during this lockdown, and that would hamper their interest levels considering books can be a little dull sometimes. This activity-based model has, however, made learning fun for children, and even the parents have been finding it easy to teach their children through this simple model. All the parents that we have been speaking to are extremely satisfied with the content that is offered, the method through which the children can be taught, as well as the user-friendliness.
Most parents have been so pleased with the model that they have resolved to spread awareness about this model in their respective localities. A lot of the parents are also now calling on our IVR number, and believe that more and more activity-based models will transform the act of learning from drudgery to fun. They believe that even after the lockdown is over, ThinkZone should continue with these activity-based models that have kept their children engrossed. They think that this model has been incredibly beneficial in various aspects, and has the potential to completely revolutionize the process of learning in the long run.
Just like all of these parents, we would urge you to come aboard and help us in our efforts to make quality education accessible to the most underprivileged. The process is really simple and all you have to do is to call on 8570-829-829 and follow extremely simple instructions. You will be guided towards appropriate activities depending on your child’s age and class. We are firmly devoted to improving every day and would love feedback on our initiatives. Do send them on info@thinkzone.in or write to us on any of our social media handles.
