Call it destiny, call it passion, call it this desire to create disruptions, I am grateful for the universe conspiring to allow me to work in education space

In a country where competition is ingrained in our DNA and there’s this constant push to succeed and achieve, I was no different. I remember crying when taking my ICSE Math exam because I knew the answer was incorrect despite burning the midnight oil. In school, you know, it was this race for marks and tuition after school hours and spending hours and hours revising the notes taken in class that made me value ‘attention to detail’ as an important skill. It wasn’t an easy journey wisening up and coping with the lack of teachers and relying just on my ability to grasp concepts in the textbooks independently, I remember having a hard time. Never the one to memorize, I found ways to use graphic organizers and acronyms and mind maps (terms I learned later in education space) to help me manage my workload at school and university. So, the unlearning of ‘model’ answers from the Indian system to cope with the practical and relevance of an international MBA program in the UK that focused on research skills, out-of-box thinking, and group work, I think every stage contributed to what I am today!

I started as a Commerce student, who like everyone pursues a Master’s in Business Administration to join the corporate world -wanting to be a part of the banking fraternity. Be it with a bank or media house and eventually, a consultancy brought me closer to the world of education. One thing led to the other, and I joined hands with educators who wanted to bring in transformations in education space. They were keen to introduce a better teaching-learning process. And for someone like me for whom the school was not an enjoyable experience because of the pressure and intense competition, I sensed an opportunity to create a difference. While I was a topper in my school, it came at the price of being one dimensional. I missed my childhood trying to be the perfect student – the one who got the marks! I always wanted to make learning an enjoyable experience. Being with children is something I love. They are filled with sheer innocence and spirit and keep you happy throughout your day. I wanted to do something for them. So, I knew this feeling to be a part of education fraternity was something innate. That’s when I decided to change the educational journey for the generations to follow.

Even when studying in college, I worked with pre-schools and was able to customize content to adapt to every child’s learning needs as part of a formal school without really being trained. So, for me after my MBA, I went on to be qualified with degrees warranted in education space. And since then there was no turning back!

The MBA which I did, in many ways, shaped the way I think and approach tasks. It defined the leader I am today and opened my mind to a host of possibilities that I did not have previously. I struggled in my first semester because of the way I was taught or I learned in school and college was one dimensional and the expectations at the university level were completely different! So, it taught me to adjust, rethink, build an attitude that helps me even today.

Most of my inspiration and zeal to do something for this education industry comes from my son! You know, motherhood changed a lot of things for me. Born in 2005 and who turns 15 in 2020, his presence has made me a better person and certainly a better educator. I value all my professional associations and each project is precious to me and I remember every single detail but being the mother, tops it all!

It may sound cliché but anyone who knows me will vouch that I see my son in every child that I work with through any of my associations. For them, I strive to do more and that’s why, when I became a mother, it was the single most important moment in my life.

Although our education industry today is gender agnostic, it tends to be dominated by women. The challenges which we face as educators are the same. Most importantly, it is about the amount of hard work, strong work ethics, level of discipline and ability to make decisions that help us become great teachers and educators.

Being a veteran of two educational start-ups, and Founder of yet another one- Agarkar Centre of Excellence I think we need to rethink our expectations of children. And going forward, this will need to be a top-down mindset with academic boards reviewing content that is more skill-based and relevant rather than marks oriented. Our country with its demographics has both private and public sector schools. And if as a nation we need to become a force to reckon with (and we will for the sheer numbers we have), we need better collaboration between the two so that better practices can be adapted especially for the public sector. Right now, we see that many teachers are falling into the trap of complacency. We need better implementation of ideas and more governance in schools along with a constant skilling and upgrading of teachers. The educational degrees awarded for those aspiring to become teachers need to be re-thought and revised in terms of content that is contextual to our times and relevant for the future!

I have a strong belief that education needs to be more holistic – more emphasis on sport, performing arts, creativity, social and political awareness initiatives, life skills and social skills and certainly centered around socio-emotional learning platforms. My journey taught me all the important life and social skills that I lacked as a student in school – communication, project management, decision-making, relationship management, etc. As a student, you don’t have to kill your desire to be a topper but at the same time, you can build an attitude to enjoy the small things of student life. As educators, it is our responsibility to create foundations for students to forever remain lifelong learners and happy students. Lastly, we need to embrace technology as an enabler and utilize its inherent strengths in making things more cost-effective and efficient. This is happening in small doses but must be more integrated to get us to our goals quicker.

“True leaders do not create followers, they create more leaders.” And my biggest joy is when I see the young entrepreneurs working it out because they were inspired by what they saw me do!