Jodo Gyan - a unique initiative

(source of this article- http://www.minds-india.org/images/Educationworldonline_net.htm)

A small, enterprising Delhi-based group of people banded under the banner of Jodo Gyan is engaged in the task of banishing fear of mathematics from the minds of children by devising, producing and marketing enjoyable, activity-based maths teaching-learning materials. Usha Menon, a scientist with the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research’s Delhi-based National Institute of Science, Technology and Development Studies is the tech brain behind this independent NGO, dedicated to finding workable solutions to common problems in school classrooms.

"Education is a sector where technological innovation can make a huge difference, something all of us want to see," says Menon who together with E.K. Shaji, a social activist and former employee of Scholastic (a global children’s publishing company) floated Jodo Gyan — a charitable trust — in 1999.

In 1995-96 following a World Bank initiated literacy campaign, Menon became directly involved with education. "Literacy per se is not enough to help people who face social deprivation, so we brainstormed about teaching basic hygiene skills and basic maths. Shaji, a man of letters and strong activism thought we should provide children high- quality reading material rooted in local folklore and culture. After he resigned from Scholastic, we registered Jodo Gyan as a trust," she recalls.

A graduate of IIT-Madras who read for a doctorate in technology transfer policy without completing it, Menon is a development researcher helping Jodo Gyan in conducting cutting-edge research. "Our ultimate objective is to make scientific innovations useful at ground level. At Jodo Gyan, we address two main objectives: to develop methods and materials to enhance maths teaching/learning processes and develop appropriate context-specific strategies for education," says Menon.

Activity-based mathematics (addition and subtraction, multiplication, fractions, decimals and geometry) is taught through games, puzzles and educational toys (in the price range Rs.10-500), which are either the NGO’s own creation and adaption or sourced from similar organisations like Navnirmati and Eklavya. Moreover, Menon and her team have moved beyond mathematics and incorporated science teaching as their next objective.

Jodo Gyan volunteers showcase their technological prowess, methods and products at teacher workshops, education fairs and parent-teacher meetings and schools ranging from slum schools to top-end institutions like Doon School, Dehradun; Woodstock; Bishop Cotton School, Shimla, and Delhi Public School which use their material. Currently an estimated 1,000 children are benefiting from Jodo Gyan’s programmes. "We have to establish a linkage between old and new knowledge to make practical and conceptual knowledge valuable to young minds," says Menon.