The pandemic has altered almost every area of our daily lives. Teachers and students, in particular, have had to adapt to online education, which has proved difficult for many learners. Educators agree that online courses are no substitute for in-person learning experiences. In 2018, the New York Times reported that online classes do not allow for the same level of individual attention as in-person classes, and children studying online perform worse than those directly studying with teachers.

Despite this, some students have managed to thrive by embracing this remote style of learning. Learning styles can be deeply individual, and students who respond well to online learning usually have a strong sense of independence and self-motivation. Those students often choose this learning style because they can work at their own time and pace.

Let’s look at why some kids are succeeding in online learning.

👉 Self-Paced Learning

There is a lot of flexibility in online learning. The choice to learn at your own pace instead of being forced to go through the material in a certain way can help you stay focused and attentive. Therefore, students who do well in self-paced, flexible learning situations thrived while learning online. It allowed students to remain focused and attentive to course materials. Students could take any past classes they may have missed or repeat them as many times as needed. Anytime students wanted to repeat a lesson, they could replay it at their own pace, allowing them to fully comprehend the material and gain an understanding that would not be found in a classroom setting.

👉 More Time, Less Distraction

It is not an overstatement to say that today’s students had a grueling schedule in a pre-pandemic world. They attended school and were also expected to manage different extracurricular activities, such as sports and arts, alongside their classes. In addition to this, most students had to receive additional support from private tuitions and preferred going to these sessions in the evening or on weekends. As a result of the pandemic lockdown, many students had to curtail social activities, focusing on their online courses and studies, which proved to be beneficial for many.

👉 Mental Well-Being

Mental health is an integral part of overall wellbeing, and it varies from person to person. Regardless of the child’s age, some students may suffer from anxiety about going to school or the thought of being in a physical classroom where they feel uncomfortable. For these students, online schooling provided the opportunity to learn without all the pressures and expectations of being in an actual classroom. Even if they weren’t able to keep up with their classes at first, they were still able to complete their assignments at a later time without worrying about falling behind.

👉 Family Support

While it is widely known that school-based interactions and relationships with peers helps develop a child’s academic and emotional well-being, many children thrived while learning remotely. Parents play a significant role in how well their children flourish at school. Since online learning was new for children, many parents were actively involved with their children’s education. Most children were able to cope well with the demands of online learning because parents assisted them with the technology being used. This helped in boosting their child’s self-esteem and confidence.

The Bottom Line

There are several reasons why some kids thrive during remote learning, but it’s important to remember that every child is different. It’s never a good idea to compare your child with others or expect them to perform just as well as their peers in every subject area. While the thought of virtual schooling may have been far from parents’ minds when it first emerged, they can now view it as a viable alternative to attending classes physically in school, for now and the foreseeable future.

Our comprehensive interventions span across the lifetime of a child’s education journey, and impact multiple factors that influence a child’s educational achievement – such as learning, teacher support, parent support, educational infrastructure, access to technology, health & exposure to other skills. 

To know how our array of products and programs improve learning outcomes from pre-primary through secondary grades, visit ecce.squarepanda.in/ 

Generating questions is often equal parts a creative and cognitive process. Teaching students to ask their own questions as part of the learning process is a powerful and fascinating way to promote deeper thinking about a topic. Asking students to generate their questions and troubleshoot their answers develops critical thinking skills.

Student-generated questions have great potential for deeper thinking because students are prompted to reflect upon what they have learned before articulating their thoughts and ideas in a back-and-forth manner with peers, teachers, or both. Elaborating the content goes beyond knowing ‘what,’ ‘how,’ or ‘why’, and encompasses exploring ‘who,’ ‘where’, and ‘when’ factors relevant to the content or subject-matter.

Students are more than just observers and recipients of information in many cases. They also possess the potential to influence and change that very information. A study found that teachers ask 93% of classroom questions, leaving little scope for students to formulate their own. Encouraging students to develop their own questions fosters critical thinking, helps internalize the subject material more fully, and identifies areas where they need further clarification.

The Importance of Student-Generated Questions

Student generated questions often point out gaps between what students know and what they need to know to understand what is being taught. These gaps may not be apparent from a teacher’s lecture or from the answers students write on worksheets or give on tests. The questions students ask indicate that they are processing what teachers are discussing, and they have been trying to draw connections between the ideas presented and other things they already know.

Questions are an excellent way for students to check their understanding of a topic before moving on to new material. Student-generated questions also allow students to take control of the direction of their learning. Furthermore, when students ask questions, they engage with the material at a higher level and understand it in greater depth. They have a better chance of understanding the material or skill if they know their knowledge gaps, and articulate it. The teacher also gets insights into what the students understand and what areas they might do well to pay more attention to during instruction. This helps the teacher get more out of each class period.

While in-class discussion of student-generated questions is practical, teachers can also use such questions in online or in-person activities. Here are three classroom activities that incorporate student-generated questions.

✏️ Teach Students How to Ask Relevant Questions

Teaching kids to ask great questions is just as important as teaching them how to answer them. Some students may be hesitant to generate questions independently and resort to yes/no or factual prompts at first. To elicit more complex questions, ask students to reflect on some of the more difficult concepts they have encountered in class and then pose questions that begin with “explain” and help them focus on the how’s and why’s of a concept.

✏️ Have Students Create their Own Tests

Students who generate their questions often think more deeply about what they do not know or understand. This active learning technique enhances students’ content knowledge, develops critical thinking skills, and improves retention by forcing them to think about the material differently. Learning is much more effective when we actively engage with the material rather than passively read or listen to it. When students create test questions, they are forced to process and reflect on what they are learning rather than simply reading about it or listening to a lecture about it. Additionally, creating test questions requires that students analyse and synthesise information and critically evaluate the quality of their research and arguments.

✏️ Play Games to Encourage Creative Questions

Playing games encourages students to ask questions because it engages their curiosity. At the end of each class, give the students a puzzle to take home and think about. At the next class, each student has to ask at least one question about the puzzle, whether asking for hints or checking their answer. Students are often reluctant to speak up in class, so this exercise gets them talking. The game is also fun for kids because it can be played in class or small groups.

Another way to do this is to ask children to play with a few pieces of Legos or building blocks. Children who played by themselves created new shapes and designs, followed the directions in the manual, or built things that already existed. When people played in groups, they asked more questions of one another, such as “What if we did this?” and “What would happen if we combined these pieces?” These questions allowed them to create more innovative designs. 

Student generated questions tap into a child’s natural curiosity, and helps unlock a world of learning for them that will lead to a lifelong journey of discovery and enrichment. 

At Square Panda India, our team of experts creates adaptive, self-paced curriculum that engages children throughout their learning journey. Our programs are tailored to deliver improved learning outcomes and provide a more holistic educational experience. To learn more, visit our website – ecce.squarepanda.in 

You might not think it, but room arrangements can actually make a big difference on a student’s performance. As a learning environment, it’s not too surprising that flexibility impacts success by putting the student at the center. Flexible room layouts allow for a more student-centric teaching and learning methodology. In fact, flexibility can be a driver for increased engagement and performance in students, teachers and the school as a whole.

Let’s understand what flexible classrooms are

Flexible classrooms are an innovative idea that strikes a balance between the two dominant educational paradigms: traditional classrooms (with rows of desks), and project-based problem-oriented learning. Each flexible room has its own unique set of features. Children and teachers adjust them to suit the activities they choose to complete while in those spaces. Because no two flexible-space classrooms are alike, and children who study in them may be from different grades, each flexible-space classroom presents unique challenges for those working in them.

Flexible learning spaces are not one-size-fits-all, nor are they static. There is no one right way to set up a flexible classroom; every teacher should decide what works best for them and their students. Below are some of its features:

✏️ Movable Furniture

A flexible classroom allows for the movement of furniture, creating a variety of seating arrangements to best suit a variety of different classroom activities, such as lectures, small group discussions, and lab exercises. The classroom arrangement depends on the curriculum and purpose for which it is being used. In addition, furniture should be comfortable, durable and sized appropriately for students.

Flexible classrooms are designed to give students choices about where they work and how they learn. For example, if a student wants to collaborate with other students on a project, they can move desks into a circle so that all members can be involved in the discussion. If another student needs space from others or wants time alone to concentrate on an assignment, they can choose a quiet corner or workstation away from the group activity.

✏️ Storage Spaces

A flexible classroom has shelves or storage bins for each child’s belongings to avoid clutter around the room. There also might be a little kitchen area where children can make snacks and keep their lunch readily available.

✏️ Technology Integration

The current generation of learners have grown up with technology. They expect it to be part of their learning experience. They live in an interactive world where mobile technology allows them to connect with others continually, access information quickly, and multitask daily. It’s also essential to have technology available to support a flexible classroom layout, where students have the freedom to decide how they organize their time, space, tools and activities.

The technology used in the classroom takes many forms, including interactive whiteboards, projectors, document cameras, computers, and digital recorders. Technology will enable teachers to present content in numerous ways and engage students in hands-on learning activities.

✏️ Display Areas

Display areas also provide opportunities to revisit past lessons and concepts. Children’s work is displayed throughout the room to showcase student effort and encourage peer review. 

✏️ Supportive Materials

Flexible classrooms contain various instructional materials that support multiple learning styles and interests. Materials may include elements such as blocks or number tiles,  audiovisual aids such as videos and games, science kits, art supplies, maps, musical instruments, dress-up clothes, and dramatic play props such as puppets or play money, sports equipment, etc.

It’s important for teachers not just to allow flexibility, but also make use of it themselves. While some instruction will happen at the front of the room, for example, during whole-class discussions, teachers may occasionally move around the classroom while teaching and checking student progress.

The Bottom Line

Formal learning spaces are becoming more flexible and informal, creating a blend of work and lifestyle. While traditional classrooms are the most used learning spaces, they do not offer all the elements desired in a flexible learning space. A study has shown that flexible classrooms provide increased collaboration, more engaging material delivery mechanisms, close proximity between students, and teacher workstations that are not separate from students. Flexible classrooms can help create the right environment for learning for students and educators, and it is something that teachers and institutions everywhere need to closely consider when setting up their classrooms, for it can create a joyful learning environment.

Inclusive classrooms will be the norm in the near future. Educational institutions are already taking steps toward more-flexible spaces for students of all learning styles. Our programs are designed considering the differences in students’ learning styles and how teachers can be flexible in their approach to stay relevant and in tune with the needs of each student. To know more, visit, ecce.squarepanda.in.

In a world that’s becoming more and more globalized, the “majority” language can no longer be the only language being spoken. An increasing number of schools are beginning to offer their students the opportunity to take lessons in a foreign language. Building familiarity in multiple languages can make students smarter, more open-minded, and even more appreciative of their own culture. 

India has seen an increase in the number of courses taught in its native languages, including Hindi, Marathi, Tamil, and others. In 2021, there were 1,230 seats for study in approved engineering schools for this purpose. The Odisha School Education Programme Authority has created more than 302 textbooks and 2,500 reading materials in 21 tribal languages. 

As parents and educators, we want to equip our children with the tools to succeed in life. Multilingual education is a rewarding way to build proficiency in communication and language acquisition while ensuring enjoyable and engaging learning experiences. Children who are exposed to two or more languages at an early age develop enhanced executive functioning skills and show higher levels of cognitive efficiency—and research indicates that students continue to reap these benefits throughout their post-academic careers.

NEP 2020’s Emphasis on Multilingual Education

The New Education Policy has stressed the importance of using mother tongues and local languages as the medium of instruction. It aims to make the English language learning process easier for students, and aspires to teach in local/regional languages for better learning experiences for students. 

NEP 2020 provides students with access to study Sanskrit and other classical languages at all school and higher education levels. All children, however, will have a choice to select the one additional language that they wish to study. Students in Grade 6-8 will be able to participate in a language project, such as an activity about one of the languages ​​of India, under the ‘Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat’ initiative. At the secondary level, several foreign languages will be offered. An effort will be made to standardize Indian Sign Language (ISL) throughout the country.

Here’s how a multilingual classroom makes children smarter:

📍 Builds Empathy among Children

Multilingual classrooms are more likely to produce students who appreciate different cultures and languages. It is vital that we foster empathy in our children, which multilingual classrooms do better than single-language classrooms. Teaching different languages helps them understand the importance of accepting the differences of one another. 

Moreover, when children understand the value of being inclusive of other people’s differences, they learn to be better citizens. As a result, they will be able to respect the rights of others more efficiently and exercise more tolerance towards people who are different from themselves.

📍 Develops Cognitive Skills

Language is not just a matter of communication. A solid foreign language curriculum provides students with opportunities to explore their own world-view through the lens of another culture. This way establishes a foundation for genuine cross-cultural understanding and communication. Early exposure to a foreign language provides children with an opportunity to develop what some scholars call a “language instinct,” giving them a foundation for communicating and interacting with people from around the world.

📍 Positive Effect on Academic Performance

Multilingualism in the classroom fosters positive effects on the academic performance of their students. A class with diverse languages allows for increased collaborations and interactions between its members. Students who speak multiple languages are better equipped to solve problems and engage in critical thinking. This is because they have learned how to view things from different perspectives, which helps them analyze situations more accurately and develop sound solutions for problems.

At Square Panda India, we believe that in a multilingual country like India, children and educators need to be well-versed in more than one language to properly succeed in the future. Our initiative ‘Aarambh’ immerses educators, Anganwadi workers, and children in a multitude of local languages, and aims to greatly impact India’s early learning landscape. Learn more: ecce.squarepanda.in

Formative assessments are a vital component of effective classroom instruction. Rather than using only summative assessments to grade student achievement and development (e.g., administering the same maths test at the beginning of the year, again in May, and again in June), there is a growing emphasis on attempting to gauge student’s understanding throughout the year to influence teachers’ lesson planning and classroom environment. In this way, the formative assessment focuses on developing students’ learning each day instead of testing their knowledge at the end of each learning block.

With this in mind, the Telangana government plans to bridge knowledge gaps through formative assessments. The three R’s, reading, writing and arithmetic, will be taught to students as part of a comprehensive program that aims to improve education standards. The lessons will take place over three hours during February, with regular teaching sessions.

Using a variety of assessments over the week will allow you to keep track of student progress and pinpoint areas in which they have not yet mastered curriculum. Here are some strategies that can enable you to accurately determine whether your students have learned what you taught them, allowing you to tailor future instruction for their needs.

Types of Assessment Strategies Teachers can use:

📍 Summarize

Learning requires students to step back, evaluate what they have learned, and reflect on it. During the formative assessment, you should ask students to make sense of what they have learned, derive personal meaning from their learning experiences, and increase their metacognitive skills.

📍 Visual Representation

Presenting information in a visual format often serves as a practical learning tool. Graphical representations of information help people to make connections and increase memory, facilitating retrieval of information later on when needed. When presenting textual information in a diagram, chart, graph or other visual representation, including text, reinforce each lesson’s meaning. This helps teachers address differences in learning style and types of knowledge of children.

📍 Exit Cards

The use of exit tickets is one of the easiest formative assessments you can implement in your classroom. Exit cards are an opportunity to collect data on students’ immediate grasp of a concept that they have just received in extensive group instruction or small group activity. For example, with reading comprehension, students may be asked to summarize a story or draw a visual representation of what the text says about a particular topic.

Benefits of Formative Assessment:

📍 Define Learning Goals

Students need to set and meet learning goals. This helps them regularly check their progress, ensuring they haven’t strayed off course. It gives you a platform to periodically check in with students as a teacher. This fosters a communication culture to ensure that all students are on track and helps you redirect any potential misunderstandings early on so that your lesson stays on track from beginning to end.

📍 Focused Feedback

Regardless of the subject or lesson a teacher prepares for their students, there will always be gaps in understanding. Providing descriptive feedback will give you a detailed account of what students can observe while working on particular tasks. This type of feedback provides teachers with information regarding how students approach a task, whether they are maintaining their focus, and how they are working to reach their goals.

📍 Personalized Learning

Formative assessment is an ongoing practice in which continuous data is collected from your students to determine how effective a teacher’s instruction is. Through this system, the teacher can assess student understanding, make judgments about the success of their instructional strategies, and provide additional instruction when needed. Each person learns at different rates and to varying levels of understanding. Within this scenario, a teacher’s challenge is to create strategies that instruct each student at the right level and helps them achieve their educational objectives.

📍 Self-Paced Learning

Research shows that constructive and formative feedback is an effective strategy for cultivating self-regulated learners. Chunking, previewing, and self-checking are three essential prerequisites to becoming an independent and successful learner. A unique combination of instructions, practice, assessment and feedback provides students with plenty of regulatory opportunities, helping them develop into successful learners.

Square Panda India’s comprehensive programs utilise formative assessments to motivate and inspire students. This helps them realise their full potential while keeping them actively engaged and motivated to continue learning in a joyful manner. To know more visit, https://ecce.squarepanda.in/

As parents, we all want high grades for our kids, and no one wants to see their child struggling in school. But sometimes, things just don’t work out that way. There are few things more frustrating than seeing our kids spending so much time with their homework and trying so hard, but not getting the grades they deserve for all that effort. Now, it might be tempting to scold them for not studying better or longer—but aren’t there enough stressors on kids already?

The first step to building an effective study routine is identifying the problem areas that most frequently sabotage your child’s ability to learn and retain information. Once you understand where your child is struggling and what techniques they need to stay focused, the process of creating a study routine can help them build skills for academics that will last and serve them well.

Here are some reasons why your child might have trouble studying effectively:

• Lack of Planning: Students who do not plan their time effectively will often have trouble with deadlines and miss opportunities to get good grades. Lack of planning leads to disorganization, making it hard to stick to a study schedule and commit enough time for a task.
• Hesitant to Clear Doubts: Students are reluctant to seek answers to their doubts, as they fumble over a lack of clarity about how such queries should be raised. They fail to clarify whether the teacher can be approached personally or during a proper time slot. While the bigger class size and more number of students can make the task of teachers really difficult, the lack of confidence in oneself and the fears that one’s query might be repeated by someone else could be other reasons why students refrain from asking questions.
• Poor Results despite Efforts: Children are typically assigned numerous tasks at school and are instructed to study specific topics. However, these instructions might not be sufficient for the students to reap the maximum benefits from their study time. Even for the really bright kids, getting good grades is a constant concern that haunts them. Therefore, it is essential for you to understand your child’s study habits and how they learn best.

Below are strategies that could be hidden in plain sight, which can help young people develop the skills they need to learn that bit better!

📍 Leverage New Technology

In the 21st century, learning is no longer confined to books and classrooms. With internet connectivity reaching almost every household, it has become possible for children to learn from the comfort of their homes through the available learning platforms. Help your child use their educational apps and study platforms with gamification at its core. Game-based learning has shown positive results, especially in areas where students find otherwise tedious subjects interesting. By choosing the right learning platform for your child, you can increase their interest in specific topics and help develop their cognitive abilities.

📍 Remove Distractions

For most students, distractions are everywhere and can interrupt the learning process when it comes to studying. The biggest distractions in a student’s environment are often their mobile phones, iPads, or television. To keep these things at bay, it’s helpful for parents to find a place for studying where there is no television or other distractions. One way to do this is by setting up your child in a designated study area to focus on their homework without the worry of being disturbed. 

📍 Encourage Short Breaks

Studying for too long can cause symptoms of “brain fade”. Brain fade occurs when your child feels like they are losing concentration, or their brain just doesn’t want to focus anymore. In order to avoid brain fade, parents should encourage their children to take occasional breaks while studying. Recent studies have shown that taking a break during learning is vital for the brain to be able to absorb and retain information.

📍 Encourage Play and Sleep

The world today is a rat race for all. There is no room for error, and every kid feels pressure to be the best they can be. But as parents, we need to understand that our kids are going through a crucial stage in their lives where they need the best possible care. It’s crucial for them to have an active social life and an active lifestyle outdoors. Encourage your kid to play sports and allow them to have a good night’s sleep. When kids are outside playing and having fun, they tend to keep themselves free from worries, which keeps them relaxed. Research has proven that kids sleep better after playing, thus helping them perform better at school the next day.

📍 Appreciate Them

Positive parenting is one of the best ways to raise happy children. While it’s good to put your child in a time-out now and then, helping your child see that their behaviour leads to positive consequences will help them build effective study habits. Kids love to be praised for their efforts and achievements, regardless of whether it’s a big or small win. Celebrating even the smallest of victories can be just the encouragement they need to keep going.

Square Panda India employs a unique learning approach that makes the learning journey engaging, joyful, and often more productive than traditional studying methods. We do this by utilizing techniques like gamified learning, group work, mixed activities, and utilising a personalised adaptive learning platform to adapt content and curriculum to the unique needs of each child. Our programs help children discover and develop the best study habits. To know more, visit ecce.squarepanda.in

Just as all of us are unique in our own ways, so too are our learning requirements and journeys. Simply put, there is no one-size-fits-all approach to educational delivery. With the national debate over standards and “teach to the test” performance at an all-time high, alternative education facilities like self-paced curriculum are needed more than ever. 

But questions abound; such as 

• How do you create a self-paced curriculum? 
• What is individualized instruction? 
• How can you incorporate self-paced tasks into your course? 
• What are some of the positives and potential challenges of self-paced learning?

These are questions frequently encountered by course designers. After all, it’s essential to design a learning module that allows students to learn seamlessly at their own pace. When children can determine the duration and speed of their learning, it increases their retention of learning, and helps them become motivated to soak up knowledge at a rate that is comfortable for them. However, not all students work at the same pace or have the same motivation level. This is where a self-paced curriculum works best. 

So, what is Self-paced Curriculum?

At its core, it is a way to organize students into an interactive learning environment that encourages responsibility and accountability. This form of management creates a different type of energy and activity in the classroom, where each student’s contribution is essential to the learning process. A Forbes study emphasized the importance of self-paced learning, where several schools have adapted this model to make changes in their curriculum.

Below are a few benefits of having a self-paced classroom:

• Students of all ages can find success with a self-study model that caters to the needs of each individual. They can focus their attention on the most relevant material based on personal interest, thus reducing feelings of frustration, anxiety, and boredom in an otherwise rigid classroom environment.
• The self-paced format lets students take responsibility for their learning, construct their study plans, and pursue goals at an independent pace. This keeps the momentum by regularly reviewing the materials and organizing their time.
• Self-directed curriculum allows students to control their learning. Self-directed students benefit from learning-management systems that give them real-time data on test performance, in addition to insights into their strengths and weaknesses.
• Students are inspired to learn more when they can move at their own pace and take control of their learning. They will try new things, take on challenges, and experience new insights.

So to help you create a self-paced curriculum design, keep the following principles in mind:

📍 Keep the Content Simple

The number one reason most students fail to finish an online course successfully is that they get overwhelmed with the amount of content presented. We all want students to take ownership of their learning and use the instructional time constructively. However, overly complex content discourages learning, making it difficult for students to use the site effectively, ultimately doing more harm than good. No matter how great your content is, no one wants to navigate a mindless maze just to get to what they need. These four things can help you avoid this pitfall:

• When designing your online curriculum, it’s essential to keep the navigation as simple and streamlined as possible.
• Don’t add more information than is necessary. Keep it simple by giving one instruction at a time.
• Reduce the need for students to click or scroll by embedding content into each screen to avoid distractions.
• To keep students on track, keep your directions short and precise.

📍 Keep the Content Organized

If you have been teaching for a while, the chances are that you have encountered students who haven’t followed your instructions. They ended up confused about assignments and learning material, and often frustrated that they could not locate what they needed. 

One way of resolving this is better organization. Whether you’re a high school teacher, college professor or home tutor, you’ll want to keep your important material organized and easily accessible. For instance, label file folders with the course name and number, and save lesson plans in labelled files on your computer desktop. Course organization should not be an afterthought — or worse, a quick fix at the end of a development project when it becomes clear the course still lacks structure. Instead, course organizations should be part of the development process, not just a “fix-it” final check. 

📍 Give Clear and Consistent Directions

Students need a road-map to help them accomplish the task at hand and reach the final destination. Good communication practices make it easier for students to know how to find their directions and expectations. Many teachers wait too long to begin setting classroom expectations and communicating how the classroom functions. 

It can be challenging for students to adjust if you randomly tell them what is expected behaviour in a classroom and what happens if the homework assignments are not clearly posted or explained. Provide your students with well-written lessons, activities, and projects. Instruct them in sound techniques of research and grammar. Students must learn to respect deadlines and follow directions.

At Square Panda India, our team of experts develop adaptive, self-paced curriculum that joyfully engages children throughout their learning journey. Our programs are tailored to deliver improved learning outcomes that can be measured and provide a more holistic educational experience. To learn more, visit our website – ecce.squarepanda.in 

Remember postponing your assignment until the last minute before submission? While many children are familiar with the concept that procrastination is bad, fewer know why. As technology advances, the opportunities to put off work increases at a rapid pace – this often results in countless hours spent on smartphones, tablets, and video games. It’s not uncommon for a student who has no idea how to get started on an assignment to meander and while away time checking YouTube videos and Instagram posts before diving into the assignment. 

Most students have experienced the four D’s at least once during their academic life: Dread, Delay, Doziness, and Dawdling. Procrastination is a habit that feeds off fear and prevents students from using the time allocated to study effectively. The following are the top three reasons why students tend to get into procrastination.

👉🏻 Fear of Failure – The fear of failure may come from not wanting to do something if you will not succeed at it. This can also cause stress and overwhelm a student, making it harder for them to concentrate on the task at hand and make an effort to finish it.

👉🏻 Lack of Motivation – Motivation is the key to sticking to and finishing any task or project, be it at work or home. When children are motivated and keen on a particular task or project, they give themselves the power to move forward and do what they need to do. When children lack motivation, they feel there is no sense in doing something unless someone forces you or entices you somehow. In such moments, even the most minor tasks seem like a personal Everest.

👉🏻 Waiting for a Better Time – This reason is closely connected with a lack of motivation. Often, people think that they will be more successful or motivated if they put off their work until a better time comes along. This can exacerbate the problem, as a “better time” might not come along until tomorrow or next week. 

Even today, student procrastination remains a widely discussed and observed phenomenon. However, there is little agreement regarding its causes or the best way to combat it. There is quite a bit of variance between how different students procrastinate, and since no one solution fits all, it can be challenging to find the right solution for a specific student. Considering these points, here are ways to encourage children. 

⚈ Multiple Deadlines
A series of smaller deadlines lead to improved performance and better results than if there was only one deadline for all work to be handed in. This is because working towards that deadline helps us better focus and act upon the task at hand. When you break a large project up into smaller bite-sized chunks and spread these across smaller deadlines, it can reduce your stress, improve concentration, and increase your confidence while also making the project more manageable. 
Have students turn in drafts of their work instead of waiting until the last minute to write the whole thing. This makes it easier for busy students to manage their time and show their professors what they know. In other words, having separate deadlines — such as weekly milestones — is more helpful than having students hand in all of their work at the end of the deadline.

⚈ Supportive Feedback
There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to providing feedback to students. You and your students are unique, so it’s essential to consider several factors when choosing a method to ensure the best results. Get in the habit of telling your students what you loved about their piece, especially if it’s something that you don’t usually compliment. This positive feedback can help build confidence and improve performance in the future. The purpose of your feedback, the types of assignments you’re giving your students, and the makeup of your classroom all affect how you interact with them.

⚈ Teach Time Management
With an ever-increasing workload and an almost unending list of assignments and projects, it becomes easy for students to get overwhelmed quickly. But there are simple strategies you can teach them to help make a stressful situation more manageable. Students who employ time management effectively are better able to be productive, which is vital to achieving good grades.

In the face of high competition in the sphere of education, it is imperative that students are equipped with appropriate tools and resources to make learning an effective and seamless process. Square Panda India offers a comprehensive studying solution for children, thanks to our Personalised Adaptive Learning platform that adapts to the needs of individual learners. Our programs promote adaptive learning that allows students to engage in their assignments and avoid procrastination actively.

The Assam government has taken progressive steps towards implementing the National Education Policy 2020 (NEP 2020) that aims to bring out holistic qualitative improvements in academic education. By 2022, the state hopes to implement 75 percent of the guidelines outlined NEP 2020, with total compliance to be achieved by 2023.

The government has already directed schools and colleges to merge the State Education Board of Assam (SEBA) and the Assam Higher Secondary Education Council by next year. More than 1000 high schools will be converted into higher secondary schools under the first phase of reforms announced by the government, which has also decided to merge lower primary and middle levels of education to prevent students from dropping out.

The policy aims primarily to bridge the gap between enrollment, attendance, and quality of education in formal schooling. It also aims to improve basic literacy, enhance uptake of non-formal education, and promote both equivalence and equity in learning outcomes for all children regardless of the types of schools they are enrolled in. 

Square Panda’s foundational learning programs and educator empowerment programs perfectly align with the NEP 2020’s vision, and the efforts of the Assam government to improve education outcomes. Let’s have a look at some of them:

Formative Assessment

Currently, no conclusive data is available in India for elementary and middle schools to assess learning levels at crucial transition points, such as those from primary to middle school and then to senior grades. Without such information, teachers cannot identify students who fall behind, leading to learning gaps later in life.

NEP 2020 focuses on regular formative assessment rather than summative assessment and how it is essential as a foundational principle of the curriculum. Additionally, the policy mentions assessments as one of its foundational principles that encourage practical learning strategies.

Square Panda India offers programs that provide a formative assessment of student comprehension, learning needs, and academic progress using various methods, including quizzes, conversations, and activities. Our programs have integrated assessment tools that allow educators and parents insight into each child’s learning process. It tracks progress with detailed graphs, task completion logs, real-time assessments, and sophisticated personalization algorithms based on the individual student’s profile. It also gives a complete report on each skill in an easy-to-read format.

Developing New-Age Methodologies Of Teaching

NEP 2020 describes a whole new way of teaching beyond rote learning. Instead, it emphasises experiential learning via gamification and apps. It’s more than just memorizing textbooks – it encourages holistic learning using the web to discover new things every day. 

We believe that education should be an experience that goes beyond the classroom. By incorporating new-age skills into our existing teaching framework, we provide young learners with a fun and exciting environment to explore their cognitive, social, and emotional potential. Our mission is to create future innovators ready for the globalized world through holistic learning, and we aim for them to realize their potential by equipping them with the requisite skill sets. Our programs are made to suit practically any demographic and have been carefully curated based on years of research, client feedback, interactions with kids & parents, and formal training.

Inclusivity and equality

NEP 2020 aims to provide equitable access to education for all types of learners, across social strata, demographics, and geographies. It is primarily focusing on delivering early education for all in order to tackle the learning crisis. 

We believe that inclusive classrooms where students with diverse learning needs and backgrounds interact can help eradicate systemic inequalities. At Square Panda, we focus on delivering multisensory and inclusive foundational learning programs to meet teachers’ diverse teaching needs. Our adaptive platform uses AI to personalize lesson plans to individual learners based on the requirements of each student, thus delivering curricula tailored to their specific needs or knowledge state.

Placing an emphasis on world-class technology, modern teaching pedagogies, and future-ready curriculum is the need of the hour. Our programs are designed to help educators understand how children learn, thus giving them the necessary insights needed to teach children effectively. In addition to this unique curriculum, educators will also have access to professional development courses, which will provide them with a complete understanding of English pronunciation, grammar, reading comprehension, filing skills, and writing proficiency. 

With NEP 2020’s policy principles and Square Panda India’s array of programs founded in scientific principles of the 21^st century, we believe its implementation can equip educators with vital skills and concepts, and help them effectively share their wisdom with eager young minds. In doing so, we can leverage strong curriculum and state-of-the-art resources to reimagine education across all levels, and in doing so create a brighter future for the nation.

To know more about our programs, please visit https://ecce.squarepanda.in/ or email us at marketing@squarepanda.in

Teaching Kindergarten children online is no small feat—so much to consider, so many challenges. First, there are few restrictions as with in-person classes, so teachers must be on their toes at all times. Second, children can be distracted by far more things than physical teachers are used to. Add video calls, various methods of communication and chatting, or simply spending too much time trying to figure out the technology involved, and it can be quite a difficult task to keep students’ attention focused on classwork. An online survey revealed that 84% of teachers experienced challenges during online classes, such as maintaining discipline, keeping parents from interfering, and figuring out online etiquette.

Many factors come into play with an online class, and teachers must be prepared to change how they teach. As an educator, you must be aware of how these factors affect your teaching style and how you can make the best adjustments to serve your students best. Aside from being creative in your teaching style, it’s also vital that you establish a good rapport with the students and their parents. That said, here are three challenges virtual learners may face and suggestions on how to overcome them.
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🤔 Challenge: Students Passiveness

Anyone who teaches has faced the challenge of converting passive learners, or students that are disengaged, into a state of active learning. They are present only physically, with their mind elsewhere. They don’t read the materials or do the homework, and don’t ask questions or engage in discussion. They just watch or listen and let knowledge wash over them. The challenge of teaching passive learners is especially apparent for kindergarteners, who have not yet developed independent problem-solving skills or exhibit autonomy over their own study habits.

💡 Solution: Formative Assessment

There are a variety of ways this can be beneficial, such as allowing students to receive ongoing feedback throughout the learning process. Classroom assessment practices should be designed to enable students to practice the course material under low-stakes conditions before the final assessment. It also helps educators gain insight into whether their students understand the content. Rather than testing what students think they know about the topic, formative assessments allow you to determine how well students comprehend content and guide instruction based on that information.
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🤔 Challenge: Limited Interaction

The lack of interaction between teachers and students impacts learning in many ways. If a child is struggling with a particular concept or activity, a face-to-face interaction would help quickly identify and remedy the problem. An online instructor cannot see when students are confused and cannot provide help individually; this hinders progress in learning. Additionally, some children may feel reluctant to ask questions or admit they are struggling with a concept, because they will be embarrassed to ask questions in front of their peers.

💡 Solution: Constructive Feedback

Since online coursework is self-paced, it raises questions of how to give effective feedback quickly yet reasonably. By explaining the reasons behind the evaluation and suggesting ways to improve, you can encourage students to think about their current progress and what they can do to move forward positively. Effective feedback loops are crucial to helping impactful learning happen, no matter which platform you teach on. Without them, distance learning either goes nowhere or runs the risk of being a students’ least favourite class. To get your point across in an online course, sometimes you may need to use examples and stories or react to a student’s assignment.
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🤔 Challenge: Lack of Collaboration

The need to communicate successfully is another essential element of successful online education. Unfortunately, one of the pitfalls of teaching kindergarteners online is that collaboration may be challenging to achieve when children are not physically present together. Children may have issues communicating with other children because of their young age and inability to express themselves properly.

💡 Solution: Frequent Communication

Give your students a chance to give each other feedback and receive feedback from their peers – it’ll help improve classroom participation. You’ll also be helping them build their communication skills, which will pay off throughout their school years and beyond. Model good feedback techniques during mini-lessons before students practice assessing each other’s work.

Encourage your students to share their ideas with each other and then get back in the loop with you. If you notice that feedback from peers is conflicting, or if you hear something from one student that makes you think of something new to try in class, use that opportunity to get feedback from all of your students. You’ll be amazed at how much information you can gather by doing this.
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In an effort to aid teachers in teaching online courses, various technologies have been designed to help improve the student experience and effectiveness of online learning. At Square Panda India, we are committed to creating a learner-centric education ecosystem. We understand both challenges and possibilities of technology in classrooms. Our experts collaborate with educators, parents and children to build online solutions that use the power of technology to improve learning outcomes.

To know more, visit ecce.squarepanda.in