“The 10 Best Education Influencers in India 2020”.

TM

N O W L E DEducation.

G E RInnovation.

E V I ESuccess W Meghna Ghai Puri

Inspiring Lives to Accomplish Dreams

Pratish Nair

Ardent Educator Sculpting Young Intellectuals

VOL - 09 SEPTEMBER - 2020

ISSUE - 02

Manish Goyal

THE 10 BEST

EDUCATION

INFLUENCERS IN INDIA, 2020

EDITOR’S NOTE

NO MATTER WHAT, LEARNING SHOULDN’T STOP!

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he education sector has always been the one to adapt quickly. It has never failed to surprise us by adopting new methods of learning and teaching. For instance, let us consider the current scenario of education industry during COVID-19.

As with many sectors, the current pandemic crisis wreaked havoc on the education sector, leading to the closures of schools, universities and colleges. A learning crisis occurred and snowballed into a catastrophe. It took time and massive efforts to respond to these disturbances, but a strong comeback was made by universities in the form of remote learning. Despite the adverse effects of a learning crisis, one thing became evident that the future of education is promising. Be it the conventional method of classroom teaching or through digital means, the education sector is surely on the path of development.

Education influencers have played a pivotal role in addressing the crisis and bringing a paradigm shift into the education system. While teachers and students are struggling to cope up with the technological challenges, education influencers are walking an extra mile to make these transformations simpler and effective. Some influencers have contributed by spreading the culture of online learning, while some have built exceptional platforms and tools to make learning an enriching experience.

Secondly, education is a fundamental and enabling right that compliments other human rights and thus,

efforts are being made for education to reach to the masses as much as possible. Some education influencers have come forward to extend the reach of education where least traces of it are found. As voices of authority in the industry, they have left no stones unturned to impact the lives of people, who are willing to learn.

Whatever be the reason, the ultimate goal of every education influencer is to improve the quality of education and make it accessible to all. Considering the same goal and an intent to acknowledge and admire the contributions of some education influencers, who have been at the forefront of the education arena, we have compiled a list of “The 10 Best Education Influencers in India 2020”.

Mastering the art and science of investment, an ardent investment expert, Manish Goyal has featured on the cover page of this edition. Manish Goyal has redefined the investment industry by offering multibagger investment advice. To cultivate his love for investment, he became a full-time investor and even began offering financial recommendations on undervalued stocks.

We have also enlisted Bunker Roy, the Founder Director of Barefoot College; CS Ankit Tiwari, Co-Founder of LectureDekho.com; Arpit Chadha, Vice Chairman, ITS; Meghna Ghai Puri, President,Whistling Woods International; Rachit Agrawal, Co-founder of AdmitKaro; Sachin Ravi and Raghav Chakravarthy, Co-founders of Walnut Knowledge Solutions; and Sunil Sharma, the CEO of EasyShiksha for their valuable contribution in the education arena.

We also applaud the contributions of Suresh Nair and Sushil Sukhwani.

Delve into more such inspiring stories and lessons from many such significant entrepreneurs in this issue and reap the fruits of motivation.

Also, make sure to scroll through the articles penned by our in-house editors and CXO standpoints which will give insight into various leadership traits and qualities that global leaders possess. We hope this edition would be a positive addition to your treasure of knowledge.

Happy Reading!

T R

Sumita Srakar

Meghna Ghai Puri Inspiring Lives to Accomplish Dreams

24

Education Opportunities Education Overseas: Perks and Advantages

Cover Story

Article Interview with The Knowledge Review Pratish Nair

Ardent Educator Sculpting Young Intellectuals

16

Manish Goyal

36

CXO

08

An Expert Guiding Others to Reach Higher Financial Altitudes

Skill in Demand

Importance of Developing Communication Skills

30

Brand in Making

Personal Branding For Millennial

46

Arpit Chadha

A Stellar Edupreneur Redefining Education

20

CS Ankit Tiwari

22

Mentor to Educational Leaders

Rachit Agrawal

Enabling a Socially Active Platform by the Students, for the Students

28

Bunker Roy

34

Exemplifying ‘Simple Living High Thinking’

Sunil Sharma

Making Education Better and Easy for Everyone

40

Sachin Ravi & Raghav Chakravarthy Kindling Curiosity for Learning and Innovation

42

SEPTEMBER , 2020

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Cover Story

MANISH GOYAL An Expert Guiding Others to Reach Higher Financial Altitudes

“

READING THE MARKET IS THE SECRET OF GETTING

SUCCESS IN EVERY BUSINESS “

A trained and qualified rank holder in 2005, Goyal was a Chartered Accountant and worked as a finance manager in an MNC for four years before opting to invest in the stock market. To cultivate his love for investment, he became a full-time investor and even began offering financial recommendations on undervalued stocks.

Mr. Goyal now conducts an advisory service through which he finds undervalued multibagger stocks using his advanced analytical methodology. An effective user of social media, Manish even shares his thoughts on Facebook. He even publishes updates and provides suggestions on www.multibaggershares.com and www.facebook.com/manishgoyalinvestor.

Pursuing the Heights By qualification, Mr. Goyal is a Chartered Accountant and since the enrollment, he has always been involved in the stock market. But, instead of opting for a chartered accountancy practice, he chose stock market investing as his professional career. Although he has been investing since 2002 and has come across a lot of bulls and bears cycles since then. It was his approach and quantitative methodology that he uncovered some undervalued small to mid-cap stocks at his early stages in the business.

After completing his CA, Mr. Goyal initially served as a Finance Manager in Ranbaxy Laboratories for four years.

There, a thought stuck in his mind; ‘what is the point of making money if I don’t have either free time or quality of life’. Hence, he decided to walk the path of stock investing as a career as it will allow him to take some personal time alongside making money.

and fluctuations across various business verticals alongside reading about technology trends that are responsible for the fluctuation in the stock market

Mr. Goyal regenerated the habit of reading very early in his life. He began to enjoy the entire day researching history, finance, investing, etc. His favorite reads included Warren Buffet and other leading investors who assisted him to gain a lot of understanding of the stock market.

He states that reading and going through diverse subjects have been the biggest help in his career in investment. He shares Nial Fuller’s views citing the quote, “To master the art of reading price, action, you must study, practice and read more and more about the company consistently”.

He asserts, “I think, reading the stock market is the secret of getting success in every business. It not only sharpens your

“

Investors should concentrate on business performance instead of daily price movement. If business does well, price will eventually follow

“

On the same note, we bring forth such a personality who has mastered this art and science of investment. We would like to introduce a well-recognized face in the stock market, Manish Goyal, who redefined the industry by offering multibagger investment advice.

“ I look for market trends

“

T

he current stock market consulting industry, like every other, is evolving at a rapid pace. The markets are evolving and are demanding that the associated investors and their approach evolve too. Success in stock market investment is all about thinking strategically and planning ahead than others. Investing is both, an art and a science.

mind but also helps you develop and think from different perspectives. I started investing in fundamental analysis because my aim was to make wealth, which can be only made through long-term value investment in small and mid-cap stocks.”

Mr. Goyal remembers his very first multibagger bet with 40 bagger stocks viz., Chaman Lal Setia which helped him to beat millions of Intraday traders, FIIS, and MFs. Afterward, he dived deep into the financial knowledge and industry expertise as a finance manager to gather information about the stocks.

He says, “Fundamental analysis is perhaps the most essential part of investing that a trader can use to improve his trading skills & performance to grow in the market. It needs constant follow up and research skills.”

For many years, Mr. Goyal was investing his own money in markets but received requests to commence an advisory business. Hence, in 2017, he came up with the name after taking relevant approvals from SEBI. His primary goal is to find stocks that have the potential to become Multibaggers instead of seeking thirty to forty percent returns. The firm has been able to identify some big multibagger stocks such as Swiss Glascoat, Chaman Lal Setia Exports, KPR Mills, Mold-Tek Packaging, Maithan Alloys, etc.

Additionally, the firm got the exclusive rights to the word Multibagger from the Trademark Department of

Time management is the most essential aspect of every business that everyone should learn

“

“

Government of India. Hence, no other business/advisor can use the same word.

Mistakes – The Necessary Evil Talking about the hurdles and setbacks, Mr. Goyal labels his mistakes as his greatest teachers. After failing here and there, he introspected the reasons behind and cultivated a list of Dos and Don’ts of the stock market. He reveals the most significant lesson of following fundamental strength stating, “The most important lesson I learned is that we should not focus on the noise or herd mentality in the stock market and should focus on the fundamental strength of business in which we are investing. I think a person should learn from his previous mistakes. Instead of overlooking the wrong decisions, he must review them and find the loophole that resisted him from achieving success.”

Words to Live By Mr. Goyal advises newcomers to conduct stock market research more scientifically. They must deter from any kind of noise or hearsay. “Keys to success in this business are transparency, integrity, and hard work. No fake promises should be made to the clients, and investment advice should be given considering the client’s financial and social position. New entrepreneurs should follow all types of guidelines and rules of SEBI,” he asserts.

Guiding the learning path, Mr. Goyal suggests referring to plenty of free trading resources online. He also advises to form a network via Google, Facebook, and LinkedIn to share and help other professional traders. He further emphasizes on the importance of reading by saying, “In the initial days of my firm Multibagger Securities & Research Advisory, I helped many traders on Facebook and my website with the little knowledge that I had. And I think reading is what can only make a person successful in any business, so whatever your goals are, you must read and learn continuously.”

Investing in the Future Revealing their plans for the forthcoming years, Mr. Goyal wishes to open another branch of the firm in Chandigarh.

The firm is also contemplating about applying for PMS service and for the near future, and it will also cater to other associated services of capital markets such as stockbroking. T R

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Meghna Ghai Puri

Inspiring Lives to Accomplish Dreams

E

very teacher we have in our life plays a significant role. They are our driving force in our journey towards success. A Teacher is not necessarily the person who teaches us in school or college. It can be any person who gives you valuable life lessons.

With changing times, education has received a broader sense to it. Learning of all kinds like, cooking, acting, dancing, etc. have a variety of courses and colleges to choose from. One such course is Filmmaking.

Film making has been a course of passion and enthusiasm. It is not every day that we see or hear someone who is learning or wants to learn filmmaking. One passionate Filmmaker Subhash Ghai founded Whistling Woods International (WWI), a filmmaking school located in Mumbai, to pass on his knowledge to the upcoming generation of filmmakers.

The President of WWI, Meghna Ghai Puri, has been a constant and strong pillar in the journey WWI’s holistic growth. Immense energy, passion and perspective has gone into bringing WWI to life. Let us learn about the journey of Whistling Woods International from, Mrs. Meghna.

Kindly brief us about you and your journey since the beginning of your career.

I had just finished college education in Business Management from Kings College UK, when my father called me back to India to start Whistling Woods International (WWI). Avery successful filmmaker of his time but always a

teacher at heart, he had always dreamt of building a film school.

It was a promise that he had made to himself when he had first started working in the industry, to provide a formal platform to the talents of our country. I knew how passionate he was about this and returned to India to help this dream blossom into a reality. And, of course, somewhere along the way, his dream became mine as well.

How do you describe yourself in one sentence?

I would say I am a compassionate and empathetic human being. I like to help people and see the joy in their lives. It makes me genuinely happy to see others happy.

What is your source of motivation & inspiration that drove you to become an educator?

My father’s dream and passion to build WWI for the next generation filmmakers was the paramount inspiration for me to get involved.

Having an ethos of creativity around me since my childhood and then pursuing a Business Management degree somehow joined the dots for me. I realised that managing an institute of film, communication and creative arts was the place for me.

Tell us about the challenges you faced to withstand the complexities of the educational forums.

I would like to mention a quote by Joshua J Marine that I really love.

“Challenges are what makes life interesting and overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.” The past

decade has shown me how life’s challenges must be accepted and dealt with courageously. I feel strongly that challenges always lead to opportunities. And in my entrepreneurial journey of 20 years, I find this to be very true.

In an industry as dynamic as ours keeping abreast with growing trends can be very challenging.

For instance, not just staying in sync but staying ahead of times, with technological advancements. Being an educational institution, we have embraced this challenge and are focussed to stay ahead of the time.

Students associate with us to attain education and be able to carve their niche in the industry; hence, it becomes very crucial for us to stay in balance with new technologies, ways of working and new academic advancements as well.

In this way, our budding talents can adapt to the change they aspire to bring. So, at any given point of time, WWI is always 6-8 months ahead of the regular technological advances.

Secondly, people management also possess its own challenges. It takes a lot to groom and retain good talents and most importantly to ensure they stay passionate about the professional goals.

In addition, we also faced a major challenge that led us to being forced to vacate our campus. Fortunately, we stayed in positive spirits and continued doing our best. Just like the lotus blooms in muddy waters, my

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INTERVIEW WITH THE KNOWLEDGE REVIEW Meghna Ghai Puri President

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The role of educators is one of responsibility as you set out to empower the next generation of students

SEPTEMBER 2020 | THE KNOWLEDGE REVIEW | 17

entrepreneurial journey has been just like that lotus…we have been able to thrive amidst all the chaos.

Brief us on your perspective about the current scenario of the educational sector.

Indian education system has the potential to be completely reshaped by newly introduced technologies, processes, and services. However, we still have a long way to go before we are able to fully utilise these new systems. Though, owing to the current Covid-19 scenario, we have embarked on this journey of revolutionised methods in the education sector.

Teachers need to inculcate digital skills and be trained to effectively implement new teaching methodologies in their classrooms.

The existing technologies available to schools need to be upgraded and modernised in order to allow the integration of new technologies. And students need to be made receptive of new learning techniques. Only once all these steps have been accomplished, will India truly benefit from this latest industrial revolution.

India and across the world, has been the advent of e-learning. E-learning and digitisation have opened new and exciting pathways within the education sector allowing a vast number of people to attain knowledge and qualifications.

By incorporating the latest technological advancements, the factors preventing access to education have been stripped away – costs have massively reduced, geographical distance is no longer a concern, and overcrowded classrooms and lack of qualified teachers have become issues of the past.

Whistling Woods International has always been at the forefront of advancing the education sector, and we have done so in this instance as well with the introduction of the WWI Virtual Academy. Our pioneering elearning platform offers video-based courses across multiple creative fields.

Through the melding of technology with our unique teaching methodologies, the WWI Virtual Academy allows aspirants from across the country the opportunity to explore a career in the creative arts through a flexible, state-of-the-art curriculum.

The biggest recent development in the Indian education sector has been the Draft National Education Policy (NEP) 2019. The introduction of new educators is bound to have a net positive impact on the sector. Their arrival will be accompanied by an infusion of funds, allowing for worldclass teachers to be recruited and trained. Significant investments in infrastructure are always required for new endeavours.

Which people or books have had the most influence on your growth and why?

My father has been and remains the most influential person in my life. I have learnt and continue to learn so much from him. Also, for the past 10 years I have been reading books by Buddhist philosopher, educator & President of the Soka Gakkai International - Dr. Daisaku Ikeda.

Private players also bring with them the experience of the real world, which I feel is very important especially in the times today. This is vital in a creative field like ours and Whistling Woods International has already adopted and successfully carried out this model for the past 14 years. I believe we should view it as a boon and complement traditional means of education with their learning rather than viewing them as threats.

Another key development, both in

President Ikeda has been at the forefront of founding schools and universities based on the Buddhist concept of Humanism under Soka Schools & Universities. The purpose of Soka Humanism is the endeavour to educate children to become happy first.

Success will follow. I really believe that this is the only way to build a better, more peaceful society. So, books by President Ikeda have really had a deep impact on my thinking as an educator and I wish to bring that

through my work at Whistling Woods International and in education.

According to you, what are the essentials of being a good educator?

President Ikeda says “Education is to ignite a flame. When teachers burn with a passion for truth, the desire to learn will be ignited in their students’ hearts. When teachers are excited about culture and beauty, the creativity of their students will leap up like a bright flame.”

A good educator influencer apart from being compassionate and dedicated needs to possess a passion for learning themselves. They should strive to be a role model for children, while willing to put in efforts and never give up on them.

As it goes without saying that educators, be it teachers or parents, are the most important members of our society. They have the ability to shape positive and inspired future generations. Apart from making children future-ready, a good educator molds a purpose in their life. They inspire children to dream bigger, while helping them to push their limits and creativity, enabling them to enhance their potentials.

What advice you would give to the new-age educators?

“Education can make the invisible visible in the same way that empowerment transforms powerlessness. Education that can spark that transformation, that can ignite one’s passion, is education that can transform the world.” - Maria Guajardo, Dean of Faculty of International Liberal Arts, Soka University The role of educators is one of responsibility as you set out to empower the next generation of students. If you approach being an educator as the calling of your life, inspiring and creating future greatness, the satisfaction received is exponential, while serving a higher purpose becomes contagious. T R

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CS Ankit Tiwari Mentor to Educational Leaders

A

n old, but epic saying from Hindu mythology roughly translates to ‘When My Teacher is standing with The God, whom shall I greet first? It shall definitely be the Teacher; after all he was the one who made me aware about the significance of God in the first place!’

Such has been the timeless beauty of student-teacher relationship in our times that this bonding has maintained its gravity since ages without even being stained a tad due to the changing tides of the time. Now this relationship has advanced with times and owing to current circumstances, has shifted to Influencer Education.

same issues he had faced in the initial phase of his career.

The idea of “Lecture Dekho” came from his own life and from all the issues he himself faced as a student Mr. Vivek Tiwari, MD & CEO of Satya MicroCapital Limited had always inspired him a lot from the day he joined his group. He had an implicable aura. This is what CS Ankit Tiwari had to say, “A guy who started from zero and joined the Thousand crores club and still so down to earth, his warm nature the way he treats his employees inspired me a lot.” His biggest learning is that Expense is income. Don’t be afraid of expense today’s expense is the source of tomorrow income.

Institute’s Association with Social Media

With the passage of time the definition of Teachers and the Art of Teaching per-se has changed a lot and now provides with a different perspective. It has become more understanding based and has devoured a taste for the technological world. Technology has been taking over the masses and has been in schools for a decade now with Edtech. Ed-tech has been in the market for sometime now and has definitely made its presence felt.

Education Influencers have become the new ‘it’ thing when it comes to online learning. They have devoured different techniques for presenting education in a way that makes it drastically simple.

One such Influencer is CS Ankit Tiwari, Co-founder of LectureDekho.com. By qualification he is a Company Secretary and as far as professional journey is concerned he started his career with Satin Creditcare Network Limited.

His last Company was Satya MicroCapital Limited and he served as Company Secretary and Compliance officer.

LectureDekho deals with school education and one of the most important thing being that they are the most affordable Ed-Tech Company in this Country. They provide quality content to students at the most affordable prices through their Mobile App which is available on play store by the name of LectureDekho- Inspire Learning.

Being an educational company, technology plays the key role for teaching and reaching out to thousands of students. “sometimes I wonder how drastically we had grown up in the last 20 years... And when it comes to social media... I would love to say its like those extra chocolate chips on a chocolate cake without which we all can't survive.”, said Mr. Tiwari.

Social media has become an undeniable part of everyone’s general routine and being the founder of an Ed-tech company has encouraged him to comply with the social knick knacks. Reaching and educating students and parents has never been easy.

Inspiration behind the Company Interactive learning : need of the hour The inspiration comes from being a CS from a small town where learning opportunities were limited. He wanted to create a platform that could serve all the students facing the

Mr. Tiwari shared his views, “I still remember reading a survey result that says, ‘we remember 10% of what we

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learn, we remember 20% of what we hear, we remember 30% of what we see and we remember 50% of what we hear and see.’

Currently, maximum amount of students study via learning and listening and they can remember upto maximum 20% of what they hear and learn while in interactive, online content they can remember 50%.

So, interactive, online content helps the students in understanding concepts in place of mugging up.

NEP : Boon or bane?

The founder thinks that NEP is just that change that was required in the education system. Our outdated education system had been creating hurdles and to be able to compete meaningfully and equally has become the need of the hour. He thinks that this was an absolutely right and long awaited decision that the government has finally taken.

CS Ankit Tiwari, Co-Founder, Introduction of newer subjects and broadening of the students horizons is exactly what was needed.

LectureDekho.com (Most Affordable Learning App in India)

A word of advice

He shares from his own personal experience that, “all one needs to do is sit with the kids. Be friends with them play with them and learn from them then only you would be able to understand what are their wants. What is their basic need, and the little thing that if provided to them they can do wonders that me and you can't even imagine. So all you need to do is spend time with kids.”

Future Prospects Ankit aims to help more than 10 million students with their careers by the end of the year 2022 while going along with them and be a part of their journey. He has powerful plans for his company and would like to maintain his success as marking stone for the journey he is about to embark. T R SEPTEMBER 2020 | THE KNOWLEDGE REVIEW | 21

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Mr. Tiwari thinks that he himself is in the learning process, as this never stops.

Arpit Chadha A Stellar Edupreneur Redefining Education

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n recent times of rapid and insightful revolution, education needs ever evolving development, believes Mr. Arpit Chadha, the Vice Chairman of one of the leading Group of Educational Institutes of India, I.T.S – The Education Group. Mr. Chadha has therefore fore-visioned to purposefully augment upon curriculum innovation and talent development of students and faculty. An Alumnus of Scindia School and University of Delhi, Mr. Chadha is a Post Graduate in Business Administration.

I.T.S is a 25 years old leading educational group of the country. The Group provides an array of courses that contribute to the ultimate ambition and goals of many young nascent professionals. It offers 17 Diploma, UG, PG & PhD Programs in the areas of IT, Management, Engineering, Dentistry, Pharmacy, Biotechnology & Physiotherapy along with 02 Hospitals. The Group was started in 1995 and has now grown in 4 different campuses, 8 Institutes with over 8000 students.

Creating Benchmarks Under the visionary leadership of Mr. Chadha, I.T.S – The Education Group is creating benchmark in the field of Higher Education to be followed by others and is committed to provide high quality education and to serve the underprivileged segment of society. These efforts are well recognized and appreciated. A keen drive for continuous improvement follows Quality initiative, sustenance and enhancement, hence the working of the institution revolves on patient management software thereby enabling a completely digitized hospital which renders patient management in an organized manner.

Along with this, the college augments academic learning through innovative teaching methods such as flipped learning, microteaching, hospital training, digital methods, webinars and Integrated Academic Reinforcement & Curriculum Enhancement (IARCE) which includes Enhanced modification of curriculum, integrated teaching, Feedback system and Curriculum enrichment to make the learning experience more interactive. The institute has propelled to scale new heights under his able guidance and has shown tremendous growth through time and resources offered by him. The institute is known for organizing various national

and international conferences to fetch updates of up and coming academic details. The conferences are elaborated on the premises of research and development so that the students are informed about forthcoming advancements in their respective fields. His commitment to quality education and relentless pursuit for perfection has helped the institute rise exponentially within a short span.

His dynamic role in promoting progressive ideas, building a strong infrastructure, adopting technically advanced methodologies in teaching, encouraging research activities and recommending collaborations have brought the institute at an exemplary platform of dental education.

Embracing Technology Mr. Chadha strongly believes that aspiring college instructors also need to know much more now in order to teach effectively. A large and increasing body of useful knowledge has accumulated about learning and pedagogy, as well as the design and effectiveness of alternative methods of instruction.

As evidence accumulates about promising ways of engaging students actively, meanwhile, the advent of new technologies has given rise to methods of teaching that require special training. He has taken significant steps to organize webinars and online education programs by distinguished speakers and alumni for global exposure and upgrading skills and knowledge for all students and faculty.

In addition, he has also taken efforts to bridge the gap between theoretical teaching and technology-based advanced practical learning through incorporation of latest advancements like Cone beam CT technology, CAD-CAM, Artificial simulation centre and Centre for Advanced Research in revolutionizing routine dental diagnosis and research. Also there has been advancements regarding technology enabled tools like video (stream and live), learning management systems, collaborative platforms, data visualization which have imparted quality and focused teaching and learning environment for Information technology and management students.

Encouraging Extracurricular Activities as a Part of Curriculum Mr. Chadha always encourages holistic development of

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young individuals. He at all times prophesses intertwining of extracurricular activities with academic advancements. Being himself an active member of many prestigious sports and other association bodies, he encourages by setting an example for young minds to be proactive in various platforms of knowledge and other activities. Mr. Chadha has been recently elected as Vice President of GMA. He is a vibrant member of diverse Professional bodies including CEGR, AIMA, ICCI, ICPEI and contributing in the growth and promotion of education, research & sports in the country. He is a distinguished member of Delhi District Cricket Association (DDCA), Vice President, Table Tennis Association, Vice President, Chess & Sports Association of Ghaziabad and Patron in Chief, Karate Welfare Society.

He decisively believes in sturdy enhancement of extracurricular activities of the students. The college celebrates various inter and intra college cultural and sports events (Occlusion and Euphoria) and encourages its students to participate in cultural activities hosted by other colleges for their comprehensive development. The students actively participate in leisure activities which includes yearly excursion trips.

His contributions towards promoting Sports in the vicinity are noticeable. He has been credited for bringing various State & National Championships of different Games including Table Tennis, Badminton, Chess, Karate etc. in Ghaziabad. Towards this, various initiatives of I.T.S – The Education Group including - Sports and education for deprived segment of society through the initiatives like – DISHA, UTTHAAN, PARIVARTAN and Healthcare through Mobile Clinics and Hospitals in rural areas are widely talked about initiatives.

Education & Health for All Mr. Chadha has always believed in the policy “Education and Health for all”. He has always been working and guiding the team taking up the Education and Healthcare to last person in the society. He has contributed to the betterment of society by providing health and education facilities specifically to the underprivileged strata who need them the most. All his initiatives and contributions have been widely recognized by various organizations including ASSOCHAM, Scouts & Guides Organization, ICCI, CEGR and Education Review.

Some Glorious Recognitions and Awards The institute is extensively involved for the extension activities targeted towards social/community developments and has received various awards for such contributions. Mr. Chadha has been recently awarded with the “Most Preferred UG & PG Institute of the Year”” by Bharat Ratna, Padma

Arpit Chadha, Vice Chairman Vibhushan His Excellency Ex. President Shri Pranab Mukharjee in New Delhi during ASSOCHAM 12th Education Conclave. He has also been awarded with Young Entrepreneur Award by leading Media House of Delhi-NCR, HINT Media Group. Recently he was awarded with Mahatma Gandhi Skill Wave India Award - 2019 for his innovative leadership. He has also been awarded with Lord Bedden Powell National Award by his Excellency Governor of Assam and Award from Chairman National Board of Accreditation for Best Private Under Graduate College in India. His glorious achievements also include Best Edupreneur Award, Devang Mehta Award and many more in the past.

Besides, Mr. Chadha has been an invited speaker at various forums of national and international repute with global outreach. He has expressed his views on various present-day topics at different forums, summits, conferences and conclaves. He has also been actively involved in interactive sessions on various online and digital media platforms recently. He has given his expert outlook and views on contemporary topics such as impact of online teaching in professional educational courses and changes in educational methodologies in post- COVID era. He has also expressed his views on seeking positive outcomes in the way educational institutions have embraced the online education system in these extraordinary circumstances. T R

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EDUCATION

Overseas

PERKS AND ADVANTAGES

E

ducation differs from country to country. It also differs from institute to institute as not every institute offers the same courses, same degrees, same quality of education, etc. Every country has its own culture which can be seen in the way of teaching as well. Students all over the world want education from recognized colleges of the world. Nowa-days it has become a trend for students to pursue education away from their homeland.

Various countries now offer internationally recognized education from some of the top educators and academicians. It has become one of the preferred type of education among the students. There are several potential destinations like Canada, United States, United Kingdom, France, and other countries for students to choose from. The perks that colleges offer also vary.

World-Class Universities All over the world there are universities and colleges that are renowned for their research and innovation.

There is a diversity of higher education in Canada, United States etc. The size, scope, character and

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Education Opportunities

breadth of programs vary. The academic standards are high and the quality control systems give students the benefit of high quality education. Many countries provide degree or diploma which are recognized equivalent to that obtained from United States or any other Commonwealth countries.

Study and Work Among the various other benefits, one of the benefits for students studying overseas is that they can work while they study. They can earn and manage their finances without incurring enormous loans. There are a few guidelines in general that most countries need students to follow to work off-campus.

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• They should have a valid study permit • They should be a full-time student • They should be studying in an academic, vocational or professional training program that leads to a degree, diploma or certificate that is at least six months in duration • They should be enrolled at a designated learning institution at the post-secondary level, or in Quebec, a vocational program at the secondary level If the candidate is eligible according to the above-mentioned requirements, then the study permit allows him/her to: • Work up to 20 hours per week during regular academic sessions, and • Work full-time during scheduled breaks, such as the winter and summer holidays or spring break.

Campus Lifestyle In foreign countries, it is not all work and no play. The overseas college post-secondary campuses are wired with abundant latest technology. They also offer countless modern amenities for the students to enjoy.

There are sports facilities, concert halls, art galleries, etc. University campuses offer numerous possibilities for learning as well as leisure.

Post Graduate Work Permit The post graduate work permit is a typical path for a student to gain a permanent resident status in countries like United States, Canada, etc. This is not available in many countries too, so it would be wise to check before enrolling into any college or course. Without this feature available it is difficult to obtain work permit as well as work. A work permit may be issued after the completion of the study program. Generally, the duration of this permit is either the duration of the completed course or up to a maximum of three years.

If a student has completed a thirteen-month course then their permit will be of thirteen months and if a student has completed a four-year course the permit will be given only for three years.

There are countries that do not see international students as a source of income. Some countries want international students for the sole purpose of nation-building. They want students to study there and contribute to the country socially and economically, and if possible stay permanently. T R

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Bunker Roy

Exemplifying ‘Simple Living High Thinking’

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e all have come across a profound saying by Leonardo Da Vinci that “Simplicity is the ultimate form of sophistication”. Having aptly inculcated this approach in his life, Bunker Roy has been one striking instance of this ideology. Roy is an Indian social activist and educator, whose simplicity and excellence can be witnessed through his Social Work and Research Centre, widely known as the Barefoot College.

How it all Started?

Roy went to the most expensive, snobbish and elitist school (Doon School) and College (St Stephens) in India. While he was still the Indian National Squash Champion in 1965 he responded to a call by Jayprakash Narayan and helped in the Bihar Famine. It changed his life. In 1967, he decided to work as an unskilled daily labourer for five years digging 100ft deep open wells through hard rock in the deserts of Rajasthan for drinking water. In this period, he experienced the incredible wonders of traditional indigenous knowledge, simple practical skills, and village wisdom that Mahatma Gandhi talked about that had stood the test of time. They had never been brought into mainstream thinking to be identified, respected and applied on a global scale with a view to improving the quality of life of the rural poor.

Following the simple revolutionary practical ideas of Gandhi in 1971 (48 years ago), Roy constructed the Barefoot College at $ 1.50/sq.ft using illiterate rural barefoot architects. They received the Aga Khan Award for Architecture but it was returned because professional paper qualified architects objected. It is one of the very few places left in India where Gandhian values of simple living and collective decisions making are still alive.

He challenged the system by putting Gandhian thought into practice on to a global platform to remind the world he is still relevant. You can see and hear the calming non violent message of Gandhi through the life style and work style of the Barefoot College.

An Inspiration turned into Institution Roy never considered education as an Industry. His

inspiration was an idea to start a unique College only for the rural poor where more emphasis and focus would be given to the upliftment of rural women who were illiterate.

Alvin Toffler said “The illiterate of the 21st Century will not be those who cannot read and write but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn.”

When asked about his role model, he mentioned the names of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Roy’s wife Aruna. He has learnt compassion, patience, tolerance, humility and an openness to unlearn. He has learnt more from the poor than from the rich and wealthy and famous, as he believes that other than money given ungracefully they have really nothing to offer.

Illiteracy is not a Barrier Anymore Barefoot College is the only College in the world which does not consider “Illiteracy” as a barrier to any person wanting to be among other skills such as a solar engineer, an architect, a health worker, a designer, a communicator or even a barefoot dentist! The strange thing about this College is that it’s the only College where should anyone apply with a Ph.D or a Master, they are disqualified to come.

Roy is of strong belief that fundamental mindset change in poor village communities is only possible if we empower illiterate rural women with sophisticated technology skills usually identified with men. They will be the change agents and role models of tomorrow and inspire rural youth especially girls.

Since the early 2000, the College has been training illiterate rural women (mostly between ages 35 to 50) in 6 months through the use of sign language to be competent and confident solar engineers. These illiterate women know more about fabrication, installation, repair and maintenance of fixed solar units and solar lanterns than any graduate after 5 years of University education. Now, the Barefoot College operates in 1,300 villages in 96 countries worldwide. The impact of direct training and services ripples out to impact about two million people, giving

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communities access to clean water and safe, reliable energy.

In 2018 the NGO Advisor, a Geneva based independent media organisation committed to highlighting innovation, impact and governance in the non profit sector, judged Barefoot College as the 13th best NGO out of 500 in the world.

Gandhian Lifetsyle

On 6th June 2017, Princeton University honoured Bunker Roy with an honorary degree of Doctor of Laws. He is the first and only Indian in the history of Doon School and St. Stephens College, Delhi University to have received this honor. The last Indian to have been so recognized was Nani Palkiwala, then Indian Ambassador to the US in 1978.

Bunker Roy Founder Director

Promising Future Roy asserts that the Barefoot College is a community based organisation. What he sees ahead of him are serious challenges outside the four walls of the schools where millions of people are facing hunger and starvation and it is the duty of every citizen who are fortunate enough to have food to eat to think how best they can contribute.

Roy is striving through the Barefoot College to address these basic problems so that within 500 kms around them there are Hunger Free Villages. T R

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“ “

Roy believes in setting an example for others. He still follows a simple gandhian life style after 48 years of starting the College. He still sits on the floor in his office and takes the minimum wage prescribed by the State Government i.e. Rs 12,000/month. He doesn’t believe in using social media like twitter, blogs and Facebook to spread the message, as he uses none. He believes that the bush telegraph or word of mouth is equally strong as social media. Perhaps it is his simplicity that has attracted many other people today. His talk at TED Global 2011 in Edinburgh has over 4.3 million hits and been translated into 45 languages.

Importance of Developing

Communication Skills I come from humble family background, my parents were like any parent who would put their children’s education on top priority. Having said that my big fat family is full of authors, orators & professors who made sure that their knowledge is well spread among generations.

Many times I get asked by my trainees “If the language has to be a deal-breaker in communication” to which I say that language does help you avoid miscommunication but the real deal-breaker are three A’s of Communication; Articulation, Assertiveness & Authenticity.

One thing that runs well in the family is “The gift of gab”, each one of us come with worthy communication skill, but not everyone gets it right all the time, we still end up misunderstanding landing to communication gaps.

Articulation: Regardless of how engaging or interesting your content is, it will turn out to be an uphill struggle to influence, inspire, or inform your audience about your purpose of communication. To be able to speak your mind, you need to develop your thinking ability followed by practice to express your thoughts by:

This is the reason why Communication is considered a skill is because it can and it must be honed. In this article, I would take you through some best practices to learn & practice the skill of communication in your daily life and also throw some light on ‘what not to do’.

Quoting George Bernard Shaw “The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place”, it is imperative to understand the repercussions of misinterpreted communication. Most of the time, it is because of the assumptions we create based on our previous experience, failed understanding of language or terminology, bias & prejudices.

Hence when we think of developing this skill, we need to have a well-rounded approach.

Being earnest communicators can make us better executives, team leaders, negotiators, home managers, partners and so much more. We can manage complex activities, delegate efficiently, handle the challenging conversation, conflicts, encourage our people, and strengthen relationships. Effective communication not only empowers one to express but also enables one to be an empathetic listener.

• storytelling (written + oral), • record and listen to yourself while speaking, • identify your unique fillers and consciously work on removing them • Time your speed • build on your vocabulary • applaud yourself for your minute progress • Take inspiration from good speakers • Listen to podcasts & attend speaking sessions • Participate in open mics • Dissect your weaknesses & work on them one at a time Assertiveness: You must have heard a term called “being your advocate”, this best describes the quality of assertiveness.

Another common complaint I hear from managers, parents, teachers, sales associates, or people of a similar profession is “unable to say no” “cannot reprimand”, “unable to question back”, I am sure it happens with many of you when you find it hard to put your point of view with clarity & conviction. The reason behind this is lack of discipline, wrongly set examples, poorly defined

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Skill in Demand

About the Author Ms. Neha Mishra, Leadership Trainer, Communication Coach & Partner with Epinomi Consulting is a thought leader & a new gen entrepreneur with 13 years of experience in corporate communication & marketing. She is an MBA by education and is also certied in Neuro-Linguistic Psychology, Career Counselling, Personality Development Analysis, and trained in Cognitive Behaviour Therapy. She also conducts counselling sessions and coaching assignments for individuals. So far, she has trained more than 30000 individuals across age in various skills & self-realization workshops. She is also partners at Epinomi Consulting which is into facilitating transformative learning through customized & blended learning programs.

You can connect with her at neha@epinomi.com or on her social media handles: @Nehtalks

@Nehayesitsme

@NehaTalks

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goals, lack of confidence, self-ego. Hence you end up either compromising or land in trouble due to poor decision making.

Assertiveness is all about setting expectations from the communication that is about to happen, it is about managing their emotions. If you make sure to clearly define your purpose of the discussion and what does it mean to you. Set goals for yourself & your teams, communicate about your time commitments well in advance. Here are a few tips to practice Assertive Communication; • Do a tech rehearsal to practice how you would like to look and sound • Remain focussed on the issue & do not stray • Use the technique of calm repetition of your point even though you feel others being argumentative • Accept the criticism, acknowledge it and bring the discussion back to the original point • If you feel cornered by your audience, do not be apologetic in your discussion, in place of using phrases like “I am sorry”, say “I accept my mistakes and I believe I can improve on myself” • Remember to always conclude by rephrasing yourself • Make sure to use a non-manipulative language & adopt a non-judgemental approach Do not forget effective assertive communication is not about being rude or derogatory to someone, instead, it is about knowing & understanding the expectations of your teams and communicating your goals so that together you can drive effective collaboration.

Authenticity: In one of my training cohorts with a group of mid-level managers of a large corporate house, I asked “If there was an upcoming change proposed in the organization which required restructuring, would they as managers be comfortable to communicate to their team leads & members?”, to which here were the common responses “I am not sure”, “I will tell them when the right time comes”. “My team anyways needs restructuring, now I can say on behalf of the organization”, “They will not be able to take it in good spirit”, “Their motivation will be down”.

I noticed that all managers focussed on the final reaction of their team members, very few focussed on the process. I call authenticity in communication as the process that takes time to build. It is not an easy tide to ride. One of the biggest reasons why teams and relationships fail is because we are not focussing on building trust & transparency in our communication.

The next day of the cohort when I tweaked the same question to “how would they feel if they were not told about the big change coming up”, they felt the emotions of: • • • •

Deceive Anger Frustration Fear

As quoted by Sheryl Sandberg “I learned that effective communication starts with the understanding that there is MY point of view, (my truth), and someone else's point of view (his truth)”, this should become the base of communication.

Authentic communication helps in removing barriers of communication, makes you more dependable, and lets you make mistakes in other forms of communication because it gives you the power of people being on your side. After all, miscommunication is reciprocal.

To sum it up, I would say that Communication skill is considered a critical skill for your personal & professional growth. It makes you express, become dependable, lead people, influence, and inspire generations. Remember it neither comes easy nor leaves you high & dry!

Honing it ensures you a lifetime success. Just do not stop attempting and let no barrier (self-constructed or external) come in the way to your long persistent growth. T R

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Rachit Agrawal Enabling a Socially Active Platform by the Students, for the Students

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he educational industry today is observing a change in its dynamics due to the sudden outbreak of the novel Coronavirus. As this disease has put constraints in the modes of studying like group study or classroom study, the education sector has been diverted to adopt digital platforms to enable learning for students.

Various innovative learning modules and processes are implemented to facilitate a hassle-free learning experience for students. Not only students but teachers are also adapting to the digital transformation that the industry is going through. This crisis has paved the way for a teaching mechanism that is going to shape the future.

Rachit Agrawal, Co-founder of AdmitKard is similarly helping students through a digital platform that takes all the hassle of physical admission process away. AdmitKard provides students with the necessary aid for applying to a course or an institute overseas. Let’s get an idea of how Mr. Agrawal is creating solutions for students who wish to go abroad for studies through this interview given below: Kindly brief us about the graph of your career as an educationist. Also, tell us about your entrepreneurial journey.

I am a graduate of IIIT Allahabad & IIM Calcutta, with a good stint with top companies like Adobe and BCG. After my successful exit from my previous Start-up Lifespan, my Co-founder, Piyush & I, we both saw a huge potential in the Ed-Tech arena, back in 2017.

Many teams were solving the problem of K-12, TestPrep, Certification etc., but in our market research we realized a big gap in college admissions as the process was broken. It was a problem for both Indian colleges and International admissions, it was even more. Millions of students travel abroad every year globally but they lacked the right, updated & unbiased guidance which we believe can be delivered with the help of technology and students who are currently studying in those universities. Hence, we started AdmitKard to bridge that gap and improve students’ experience.

Pertaining to your rich industry experience, how according to you has the need for international education and skilled labour increased over time?

As per the Ministry of External Affairs the number of Indian students studying abroad in 2013 was 1.8 lakhs which grew to 5.5 lakhs by 2017 and 10.9 lakhs by 2020.

Also destination countries where students are going increased from 18 to 43. In the same time-frame such fast growth has been witnessed by only a few traditional verticals. A lot of these countries are facing the problem of the aging population and India, being a country with an average age of 26 becomes a great source of both students and skilled labour.

The demand for International education & skilled labour has always been there and will always be. What restricted people from pursuing the same is the lack of correct knowledge. With the advent of the Internet, people are now more aware of their options. This has also led to people getting more knowledge about opportunities and scholarships. The ease of getting financial assistance has also contributed big time to this scenario.

Please tell our readers more about AdmitKard and its range of services.

AdmitKard is a Socio-Tech platform which helps students in their end to end journey from Admission to Migration.

We intend to build a platform through which a student of any country can migrate to any other country. It is a socially active platform by the students, for the students.

The entire student admission process that takes place offline has been mapped on a single online portal and hence students can take entire control of their process. We believe every student is unique and hence every student gets their personalized plan generated by the platform itself.

Also current international students guide future aspirants on AdmitKard as they feel they were misguided when they were applying to study abroad. So a student coming on the AdmitKard platform can avail all services ranging from Information Research to Applications, Visa to Education Loan, and Accommodations to Insurance, etc.

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What challenges have you faced throughout the course of setting up AdmitKard?

Building a start-up is not easy. Also, when you're trying to disrupt how an industry works or try to change customer behavior, it's even harder. Being someone new to this industry it took us time to understand the customer pain points and industry constraints.

The biggest challenge that we've faced in the past has been product adoption. The challenge affected us not only externally but internally as well. When the entire Industry asks you to come and meet physically, we ask people not to meet us physically but digitally. Trying to amend the thought process of students, parents and even our team members has been a good challenge but now we have overcome that.

What is your opinion on the effect of globalization on the education sector?

Globalization has radically transformed the world in every aspect. It is evident across all sectors – Manufacturing, Services, IT, etc., and hence to do business better, there has been a massive demand for multi-cultural team members.

Education has served as a backbone to the demand of all such sectors and it continues to serve. In my view the development of multicultural awareness from an early age may integrate ideologies sourced from various societies to arrive at well-balanced conclusions regarding issues that surround the world as a whole.

Considering the current employment scenario impacted by the COVID-19 crisis, according to you, which educational discipline or industry could open the most opportunities for the future workforce?

Well, Covid-19 has forced every one of us to change the way we think or behave. Most of us including our parents and grandparents have moved online and have started using platforms like WhatsApp and Zoom etc. With more time being spent online we are witnessing many more verticals coming up like Content Creation (YouTube and TikTok), and Digital marketing, etc.

The digital economy will continue to flourish and all the traditional businesses will find a way to integrate it and hence studying STEM (Science, Technology, and Engineering with Mathematics) would remain evergreen for students.

Rachit Agrawal, Co-founder of AdmitKard digital payments sector. Even after the demonetization ended, the average number of people using digital payments shot up multiple times as compared to previously observed transactions. The same scenario will happen for Ed-Tech & digital content creators after COVID19 is over.

What would be your advice to those who wish to venture into the educational consultation business?

Build knowledge & keep customers success as a metric would be my advice to young people planning to venture into educational consultation. There are short-cuts but the key would always be doing 1 thing better than everybody else in the industry.

What have you envisioned for yourself with respect to career growth?

Building AdmitKard as a global platform helping students migrate from one country to any country. This one line summarizes how I envision myself and my start-up to grow in the coming years. T R

In EdTech we are witnessing students, colleges, teachers moving online and hence a strong wave of online education is being seen. It is similar to what demonetization did to the SEPTEMBER 2020 | THE KNOWLEDGE REVIEW | 35

Interview With The Knowledge Review

PRATISH NAIR

An Ardent Educator Sculpting Young Intellectuals

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ducators play a major role in shaping our life and future. Any person can teach us a small lesson and we would say he or she is an educator for us. A good educator makes learning fun and valuable.

Educators are nothing less than artists, as educating is also an art form that requires creativity. It is not an easy job to impart knowledge into others in a way that the students will understand. One such influential educator that we came across is Mr. Pratish Nair.

In 2016, Mr. Pratish Nair along with his friends launched Prahlad Kakar School of Branding and Entrepreneurship with the sole aim to transform education as they knew it. The vision grew and in 2019 they partnered with NMIMS and the School of Branding and Advertising was born.

Let us learn more from Pratish about their voyage towards success and academic excellence Kindly brief us about you and your journey since the beginning of your career.

Looking back I can easily say each phase of my life has shaped me into the person I am today. I am the product of the places I have travelled, the people I have met and the education I have been grateful to receive. I was born in Banaras, did my schooling in Banaras and Panchgani, then went on to graduate from Mumbai University and got my MBA in Marketing from Manchester. I then finally pursued the CIM degree from Lancashire, UK. My educational journey has been exhilarating.

While pursing my MBA in UK, I spent a brief stint working with Dolce and Gabbana in London. On my return to India I was but naturally inducted into my family business. The business was a robust 40 year logistics company and it was my realm. But I felt like a fish without water. My father sent me to USA with the only words of wisdom “Figure things out”, which I hold true even today.

In US, I set up my first business in exports in Las Vegas and New York. I went through tremendous failure, criticism and anguish. I worked 24/7 to barely sustain myself. The business finally took off and it self-sustained for an additional three years, post my return. If there is anything that I have learnt, it is that failure builds character and makes you the person you are always meant to be.

Being an entrepreneur at heart with a continuous itch to build something new, I then went on to start a corporate training company with my friends. It was a booming business and I put my skills to the test. We did a lot of leadership workshops with Shashi Tharoor, Saurav Ganguly, Brian Lara, Chetan Bhagat, Wasim Akram and many more including Prahlad Kakar.

We trained more than 500 multi-national companies. While being in the training industry, we did a lot of events for companies and we soon metamorphosed into an educational event management company. We organized a run in Bangalore which we christened ‘Get Fit for Kids’. It was the first family run in India, the first reverse run in India, where we had more than 8000 participants.

The energy was high, the intent was right and exposure was correct. So we started our own education institution to transform people’s lives. I still believe I have a long way to go in terms of breaking stereotype learning, getting the government support for educational activities and turning students dreams into a reality.

What is your source of motivation & inspiration that drove you to become an educator?

Ironically, my source of motivation has been the endless boring lectures, vis-à-vis the most entertaining lectures that I have attended as a student. It was from the boring lecturers that I learnt who not to be. This frustration inspired me to become an educator.

Looking back I have realized that a few teachers changed my life just by giving a few words of encouragement, a

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“

Our world requires thinkers who can bring change in this world because whatever they are going to do is going to have an effect over this planet

“

Mr. Pratish Nair

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little direction and perspective. It was through them that I learnt I could be a beacon of light in someone’s life. Today, very few students actually like to attend lectures.

whatever we are planning should benefit everyone in the country and it should change the education system for the greater good.

My challenge as an educator has always been about how to make teaching an interesting trait. How can education help a student reach their true potential? I have always been clear that I didn’t want to educate for the sake of education.

As an educator, what do you think are the factors influencing a career-decision? How do you think a career decision should be made?

I would not like to call myself as an educator, even today I’m a learner and will continue to learn till the last day of my life. There are several factors that influence a careerdecision but how beautiful it would be if a 10-year-old kid knows what he or she wants to become in their lives. But in true honesty, we have no idea till the age of 20-25 of what we want to do or become. Many of us just follow the bandwagon or take up a job for its monetary benefits.

Kindly tell us about the challenges you faced to withstand the complexities of the educational forums.

The corporate world is very different from the educational world. If there is one thing that I am grateful for, it is the management team at all the corporate companies who showed immense trust in us when we started our corporate training company. They supported our vision and out of the box workshops. It was something never done in the corporate world before. We invited celebrities and experts from various industries to shine their wisdom in the corporate world.

The take was very different in the educational world though. We created a school with ad-guru Prahlad Kakar to teach students the wisdom of advertising and branding. To bring out true creativity, we wanted students to face their fears. The idea was of pushing people out of their fear like placing them in a room full of snakes, just to make them realize that snakes are just another animal.

In the beginning, people laughed at us while others were curious, but no one was interested in investing. Slowly the perception changed as our students stood out from the rest in the corporate world. Our students are game changers, job creators and will add value to our world. We believe we have now taken education to the next level, where our students are turning the ordinary into something extra ordinary. We are trying to make a wholesome education system. Our aim is to develop a student without fear, and who are willing to explore, express and do something they wish for and subsequently add value to this planet. We believe we are a step in the right direction and have a long way to go.

Brief us about the current scenario of the educational sector.

The pandemic has been an eye-opener. It has helped us put things in perspective. It took a virus to see that our education system needs to change and be more adaptable. I feel the education industry is going through a transformative change for the better. I feel positive about this.

Now the job of our government is to reach every one and not just the privileged in the city. I have seen students from tier-two and tier-three cities are hungrier and more passionate than the students in the urban cities. I hope that

Our world requires thinkers who can bring change in this world because whatever they are going to do is going to have an effect over this planet. I want that thinking to be imbibed by people and put as a gem of thought in a child, then let the child decide what they want to become when they grow up. I have seen some great artists, who at a very young age know what they want to do. It is wonderful to see their family support them to achieve their dream.

Career decision should be made by asking yourself, “What is that one thing that will not make me feel that I am doing a job? What will make me spring out of the bed and make me work till 2 am, while still having fun? What is that one thing that makes me happy?” The answers are easy but often difficult to follow. The sad part is people give up on finding their true passions.

One should have a heart-to-heart talk with themself and ask, “What makes me happy? What would I be happy doing on the last day of my life?” When you get that answer, please make it your career. It will also require 100 % of your commitment. Go ahead and do what your heart tells you – because in the future one shouldn’t have to look for a job, but have to create one.

What advice you would give to the new-age educators?

Do not concentrate only on the bright students. If you want your students to bring a change in the world, make learning more interesting for them. Hire the teachers that are not just subject matter experts, but teachers who show more empathy towards them.

Hire people who can laugh and dance with them.They have been in school for 12 years of their lives. Make their life beautiful, it is our responsibility. And how you want to go about it is your call. The noblest profession is teaching and nursing, they always give and try their best to provide. T R

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Sachin Ravi & Raghav Chakravarthy Kindling Curiosity for Learning and Innovation “Curiosity is the wick in the candle of learning” – William Arthur Ward, Writer

B

eing curious is the essence of learning anything.

Leaning into daily problems with curiosity versus worry and going back to our roots of being childlike would be a starting point. A key value to keep ourselves curious is humility. When we accept that there are many more things to learn, than we already know, we stay curious. It is like the Chinese proverb of keeping our cups empty, of wanting to know more. One of the best ways to keep ourselves curious is through quizzes. The question and answer games can be played anytime, anywhere, and at different levels to suit the people playing it.

Based out of Bengaluru, Sachin Ravi and Raghav Chakravarthy, Co-founders, Walnut Knowledge Solutions, use questions, stories, and activities to build lifelong skills in children. Walnut has been working with school children for the last 5 years engaging over 80,000+ children, partnered with 80+schools across the country, and engaged 2000+ students and parents online. The flagship product is QShala, a curiosity-based learning platform designed to inculcate a continuous learning mindset and equip children with 21st-century skills through questions, quests, and “quriosity”, delivered via the online and offline medium.

This time around, for a change, we had the privilege of asking questions and it was the Co-founders turn to answer them.

What is your idea of an educational influencer? How do you align with that idea?

An influencer uses his or her leverage in terms of experience or deep understanding in any domain to impact the industry/domain in a positive way. We are using insights we have garnered over the years in the education and K-12 learning eco-system to deliver products and services to

children which will make them lifelong learners, collaborate effectively with industry colleagues to create mutual partnerships for children. We are part of think tanks including FICCI edtech task force to voice the demands of the edtech industry to the Government.

What unique ideas have you implemented as a leader at Walnuts Knowledge Solutions that make it different from competitors?

Over the years of experience of working with school children, we have created a unique curiosity curriculum which not only builds critical skills needed for children for navigating an ever-changing world but also be equipped with tools for better decision making and enabling a child to develop as an empathetic and responsible citizen of the world. We are also leveraging technology to create an effective curiosity-based learning AI platform that can give insights to the child, parent, and other stakeholders on the learning journey of the child and his/her own interest thereby facilitating an informed career choice.

What’s the one thing you would change about the education system (nationally or globally)?

The insistence on only marks- based assessment should be replaced by multifaceted and diverse learning outcomes that children usually exhibit. Further, creating safe-spaces in school and other learning environments which kindle curiosity, encourage exploration, experimentation, free expression of independent thought, reduces fear of failing, develops grit, growth mindset, and promotes socio-emotional learning.

What aspects of your job are the most challenging and how do you overcome them?

The most challenging aspect of our jobs is to take decisions in the light of uncertainty and take calculated risks with bold moves without full information.

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As much as possible we use quick prototyping, user interviews/feedback loops, accountability conversations/structures to ensure we minimize the risks. We are constantly building mental models/checks and balances which help us avoid making grave mistakes but continue to move to take bolder bets.

What advice can you give to the aspirants who seek to become influencers or leaders in the field of education?

Think long term, leverage relationships, use your influence to positively impact and support education for children and stakeholders who have access, and more importantly extend it to those who do not have access.

How do you perceive your career to be in the near future?

For us it would be for the vision to build the largest school/learning platform in the world empowering the children with tools and skills which help them lead fulfilling lives.

Sachin Ravi Co-founder

Raghav Chakravarthy Co-founder

Beating the Quarantine Blues:

(https://www.qshala.com/familyquiz)

T R

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In the last couple of weeks during the lock down, Walnut conducted a unique experiment – “QShala Family Quiz” during the weekends. The program grew from 50 families to 11000+ families being engaged through a fun quiz every weekend with participation from families from across the world including India, USA, Japan, Canada, Sweden, Germany, Norway, UAE, the UK among others. You can participate in the weekend quiz by registering here.

Sunil Sharma Making Education Better and Easy for Everyone

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ach country has a highly skilled representative willing to go beyond their call of duty to bring world-class education to those who need it. Such influencers have access to a huge database of resources for teachers, schools, and colleges or universities. They believe that equality in education for everyone is the greatest gift one can offer the world. “Together we can make this dream a reality,” says Sunil Sharma, an educational influencer and CEO of EasyShiksha.

Mr. Sharma is exceptionally well-versed with the EdTech industry of the country and with his online platform, EasyShiksha, he has been making a difference in the field.

Despite being new in the industry, EasyShiksha has evolved as a nationally acclaimed educational forum. As ones’ education does not end after a degree, EasyShiksha not only helps you get educated in your field of interest by offering online courses with certification but also guides you in choosing your career based on your performance.

Through the following series of questions, we can understand out how Mr. Sharma plans to enable education that is feasible for everyone: Kindly brief us about the graph of your career as an educationist.

I consider myself a ‘tech-pundit’ driven by the social change who has a deep understanding of the levers of revenue growth, from picking up the phone to closing a deal, to full-funnel digital acquisition, to building amazing products. Being a creative and innovative professional, I have helped develop various Indian and international start-ups and platforms such as HawksCode, EasyShiksha, Navhoo (a ride-sharing platform in the UK), AQT Australia, Amstore Innovation UK, and Grasshopper Australia, Maccabiah Israel, Qstomize and Podify Israel, and Make My Styles to name a few. I have also worked with the US

government for a pioneering online education platform. I am a passionate leader with first-class communication skills and a long track record of successful management.

I am educated to a very high level, with extensive knowledge of all current technologies, economic, social, and regulatory issues. Being an inspiring and motivational leader with first-rate interpersonal skills, I have the ability and passion to develop the vision for any company. I can push performance improvement whilst at the same time delivering growth. I have built numerous widely admired businesses and products in Human Resources, Educational, Software Development, B2B/B2C as an entrepreneur.

These ventures include: HawksCode, EasyShiksha, HRCrux, The NationalTV, HawksCool. EasyShiksha, an endeavor of HawksCode, began with a vision to make education better and easy for everyone. The education platform aims to make Shiksha (education) easy for educators and Edu-seekers alike. Coming from a rural background, I faced multiple challenges in my path to getting an education.

There was a lack of awareness and little information available to students in small towns and villages about the multiple options they can choose from. Due to financial constraints, lack of information, and guidance about the new-age education fields, I believe that children remain orthodox in their thoughts and fail to get a proper education following their skill-set. Hence, I was motivated to work in the education sector to provide a level playing field to all children, by providing them with information and mentoring them on the varied opportunities available globally. I quit my US-based MNC job in 2012 and founded EasyShikha, which is based in Jaipur.

In this internet era, a student from a village too can get information about opportunities with the help of an

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educational portal. We think that every student has the right to get a quality education. Initially, EasyShiksha was envisaged to be a simple website that provided user details about thousands of colleges across India. Slowly, the web portal evolved to provide students and parents all the necessary tools required to help them make an informed choice about the education and the jobs and career prospects thereafter.

Over seven years, the website has come to host the following verticals: Career Helper helps students know their career choices. The program helps them discover their strength, interest, and talent, thereby providing them information on varied occupations. The career helper program is based on four tests - IQ test, Basic Test, Advance Test, and Psychometric test.

EasyShiksha Magazine, introduced in April 2018, is a small prototype of EasyShiksha’s web portal. It aims to provide a user with all information related to the field of education like, case studies, opportunities, new updates in the education world, and informatics. The Campus Ambassador program enables the organization to stay connected with colleges and their events. This initiative gives them a chance to represent their college at a global web platform.

With the program students from all over India can share their ideas and maximize their learning.

They are also responsible for administering and managing the EasyShiksha events and activities on their campus. The web portal also provides information on over 200 distance learning online courses & internship training programs with certification and support students and help them improve their knowledge without being physically present for the studies.

What is your idea of an educational influencer? How do you align with that idea?

An educational influencer is an established independent company/individual with high credibility on the topic of education, usually with a niche focus. Educational influencers may be teachers/instructors, education enthusiasts, educational content creators, or ed-tech companies/experts.

EasyShiksha is empowering students from small towns and villages with online distance learning program offering

Sunil Sharma CEO online courses, internship training programs with certification, Career Helper, Online Test series, Campus Ambassador Programme, Enterprise plans for colleges & universities, etc. Through its various verticals, EasyShiksha hopes to empower the students and move from technical knowledge to technical skills-based education programs.

What unique ideas have you implemented as a leader at easyshiksha.com that makes it different from competitors?

With digitization, students today go online to access information related to their college education and for study materials to prepare for competitive exams to gain insight and real-time information about educational institutions.

Through EasyShiksha, users can explore thousands of institutes with their courses, faculty, facilities, and placement details and can choose the right institution for higher education.

The website also provides a platform for colleges and universities to advertise their courses. Further, many institutes also publish their press releases on the website, providing regular updates on school registration, scholarship availability, exam results, jobs, and vacancies.

We believe that every student has the right to get a quality

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education. EasyShiksha is a leading e-learning global platform providing numerous services on a single platform which makes us different compared to our competitors.

become truly engaged in the overall eLearning process, they have to be aware of how the content is going to translate in real-world settings.

What’s the one thing you would change about the education system (nationally or globally)?

To overcome the challenges, we create effective and enlightening eLearning courses & internship training programs for our learners with a preview video, detailed course description, etc., to encourage them to enrol for the programs.

While India is home to some of the oldest universities, EasyShiksha opines that the present universities and education institutions, other than the IITs and IIMs, fail to focus on practical knowledge and skill development. Even the school-level education does not provide any skill development courses, as they focus primarily on theoretical knowledge.

An outdated syllabus is also a big issue. Schools and college curriculum are not updated. College syllabus should be according to industry requirements. Our education system does not offer working and research-based programs. We need to produce creative minds from our universities and colleges. India needs job creators, not job seekers.

In your opinion, what is the best way to establish a good relationship among students, staff, and parents?

We believe that the most valuable resource we possess is our stakeholders (students, staff, and parents). EasyShiksha provides students, staff, and parents a place to find support and help. As we are all striving for the best e-learning foundations for the students, we have the resources to make this happen. The platform is built not only on someone’s exceptional skills but rather on collaboration and teamwork between all stakeholders. EasyShiksha unites students, staff, and parents from all corners of the earth to find resources, advice, and support as they strive for quality education.

What advice can you give to the aspirants who seek to become influencers or leaders in the field of education?

There is a revolution happening in the field of education and expert educational influencers can help in this process of bringing a positive change.

How do you perceive your career to be in the near future?

Online learning platforms cannot completely replace a college degree since it would not provide a student with all the skills that he/she can develop in a real-time environment. With the current COVID19 pandemic almost every student, school, college, the university is switching to eLearning platforms for online education and skill-based courses.

EasyShiksha will be continuously striving to enhance the eLearning platform and introduce the new online course, training programs, and looking at even launching online academic courses in the near future. Additionally we are working at various levels to partner with leading colleges, universities, institutions, and promoters etc., which will give us a leading edge in the eLearning sector. T R

What aspects of your job are the most challenging and how do you overcome them?

Whether your users consist of students and staff or parents, various roadblocks can prevent learners from actually absorbing the content and the key aspects of eLearning deliverable. As an eLearning professional, we have to consider a wide variety of eLearning challenges such as lengthy to-do lists, hectic work schedules, and several other distractions, before designing your eLearning courses.

Sometimes a learner is not able to see the value or benefit of the eLearning course, and especially how the subject matter is going to help him/her in the real world. For learners to 44 | THE KNOWLEDGE REVIEW | SEPTEMBER 2020

Personal

BRANDING For Millennial Have you ever thought that You Are a Brand!!!

Why Personal Branding is Important?

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Having carefully crafted Personal Brand helps you stand out in the market and has a lot other benefits which we will discuss here further. In Contrast, if you don’t actively build your personal brand and don’t have any control over it, other people will form their own beliefs about what you are and what you stand for.

ell, you must be feeling that Brands are only Companies. Let me help you understand this Important Marketing Jargon that-“Everybody and Everything around You has a Brand”.

We live in a world of Brands. Most, if not all, companies pay attention to how they appear in public and work on building their Unique Public Identity, competing to get more eyeballs and more revenue from the market. So why can’t we do the same?

You already have a Brand. What do people think when they hear your name?

Now, what important is as you already have a brand, you need to take more control over it. So that it leverages to your benefit in Personal and Professional Life- Called Personal Branding.

Benefits of Building Your Personal BrandBuilding your Personal Brand carefully will carry you towards success in Personal and Professional Life. Let’s see how1. You are More Visible Personal branding helps you stand out in the crowd. Having your active visibility on online and offline platforms turns you to greater opportunities to grow.

Let’s see how we define Personal BrandingPersonal branding is a process of carefully crafting your Public Persona to portray the image you want people to see and believe about you. It is a unique combination of your skills, experiences, interests, personality, values and beliefs – together this is your personal brand.

2. Leverage Your Network When you have a strong Personal Brand, people believe in your values and skills and things you stand for and therefore, they buy more from you, take you more seriously for your opinions and consider you more authentic in the specific field.

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BRAND IN MAKING

ABOUT SHIKHA SHARMA Shikha Sharma is a Leading Educator, an Interna onally Cer ďŹ ed Career Coach and So Skill Trainer. She is also an Experienced Human Resource Professional and a listed Coach in India and Canada.

She works with Students, Professionals and with Businesses in the areas of Career Coaching, Career Development and So Skill Training.

You can reach her for your career queries at M: 9315520496 (Call/ Whatsapp) Email: coachshikha1115@gmail.com

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3. You Become More Identifiable Person Personal Brand helps you get noticed more and you become more identifiable to your network which otherwise would not happen. It gives you opportunities to grow more and network more.

4. More Job/Business opportunities There are Recruiters’ survey reports showing, people with Strong Personal Brand are hired much faster, get more opportunities in career, get more salary hikes and are promoted faster. So why to leave that to chance. Take benefit of having strong Personal Brand.

5. Your Credibility Grows When you are more visible in your network with a strong personal brand, your credibility grows for the values you serve to your community. That is where you are considered Thought Leader in your network and the community you serve.

6. Strong Networking If you have strong personal brand, you get more networking opportunities, people would be more interested to connect with you, to refer you and to buy from you.

Now let us discuss some important tips to Building a Strong Personal Brand for Yourself1. Build your website or blog online This is a great way to start building your presence online.

Build your website (with your own name preferably) to highlight your skills, experiences, achievements and interest areas. Write blogs on your interest areas and start sharing it on multiple social media platforms. This a great platform to highlight your strengths.

2. Network Building You can attend events, meetups and gatherings of your interests to build strong networking and building contacts with industry leaders. It will help you grow in many ways in your professional life.

3. Work on your Social media presence Be careful about what you post on your social media accounts. Avoid posting stuff which can negatively impact your online presence. Recruiters and Hiring Managers often check your online presence like Facebook, LinkedIn, etc. during hiring processes. You don’t want to lose a great career opportunity just because you didn’t notice your social media presence.

4. Update Your LinkedIn This is your professional profile and a great platform to showcase your skills, experiences, achievements and network building. Join groups and conversations, share content and interact with more people to establish your presence on the platform. LinkedIn can work as a great tool to land you awesome opportunities, jobs and building professional network.

5. Intern or Volunteer Your Work Volunteering your skills can help you build strong professional network and gives you a chance to establish yourself as a Leader. You can also Intern with leading companies to learn and deliver their projects.

6. Professional Headshot Having a professional headshot across platforms online put you in a more professional light which increases your credibility as a professional and a strong point to build your irresistible Personal Brand.

You should know that Personal Branding is a Personal Process and isn’t something that happens overnight, it takes time but you can’t leave that to chance. You need to take control over your personal narrative and make sure that you know exactly what you want to share with the world.

Plus, as your personal brand flourishes, you never know what types of opportunities might present themselves once you become well- known. T R

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