Learned helplessness is considered a debilitating mental state, where a person believes that they cannot influence the outcome of a situation. This condition, as well as crediting “failure” to be a learning opportunity, has had dramatic effects on the education system, most notably by contributing to chronic underperformance and high dropout rates.

Research indicates that students who have experienced repeated failure from a young age can develop an emotional state of helplessness. These kids actually start to believe there isn’t anything they can do to change their situation, and even if there were, they think they don’t have the skills to do it.

For many students, failure is accepted as a normal part of their school experience in India. They see themselves as helpless to control their own grades and outcomes, but educators can encourage students to reframe their experiences in positive terms. This leads to more engagement with learning, and it offers students the opportunity for more engaging learning experiences.

Students who have learned helplessness may experience several negative traits while learning in a classroom context. These include: 

• Refusal of help because they feel they won’t need it 
• Frustration with whatever situation comes up. 
• Using whiny or negative language when trying to solve a problem 
• Lack of motivation or initiative for complex tasks 
• Lack of self-worth and self-efficacy (a feeling that indicates whatever will happen, you decrease your chance of success).

Educators need to adopt practical strategies and techniques that target these feelings to effectively address learned helplessness. Here are a few things they can do.

Rethink the Grading System

In many schools around the country, teachers hand out low scores for poor performance on homework or exams, and even a zero. The idea of a zero may be too negative and off-putting, especially when there are so many other ways to highlight the best work. If possible, allow for retakes on some or all assignments, and emphasize that only one opportunity is offered. If a student can show that she tried her best, then giving her another chance to do the assignment may be the best option.

Normalize Failing

Failure is a part of what makes us human. However, failure can often be hard for kids to handle. Kids are very emotionally sensitive, and failure can lead to frustration, discouragement, and even shame. Teachers can help kids reframe failure to see it as a necessary part of life that leads to success. This allows students to create a growth mindset, reinforcing the idea that challenging problems are an essential part of problem-solving activities in school. It also teaches students that effort, not talent, is the critical ingredient for success.

Praise and Encourage

Research shows that praising effort over an individual’s ability has long-lasting benefits on children’s motivation, self-esteem and intrinsic interest towards a particular task. An effort is a more malleable characteristic, so praise for it can have a more significant impact. Efforts are also less prone to attribution error; we are just as happy to praise someone’s effort as we are with their intelligence or skill. Praising effort can change the way students think about themselves and their inherent abilities. When we praise only innate ability, students feel they have limited control over their success. But when we applaud the effort, students see that their actions play a role in determining their success. It reframes success as the result of effort, not because of an already existing, intrinsic ability. And that reframing can be very helpful to help them with learned helplessness. 

At Square Panda, we are passionately focused on enabling children to succeed. Our personalized learning programs enable each student to learn at their own pace. We believe that everyone needs a little extra push to overcome learned helplessness and start believing in themselves again, and realize not just their learning and development goals, but also their full potential. 

To know more about us, visit https://www.squarepanda.in/

When it comes to the world of education and teaching, things are changing rapidly through technology. This has led to a unique transformation process that requires adapting many strategies, policies, and practices fitting with the new standards. There have been many recent trends in education, new applications and programs that will help both kids and teachers. Together, these will make the learning process more transparent and engaging, while also looking at everything from a much more modern perspective.

Although the difficulties of the lockdown and the instructions provided on how to convey information openly and engagingly were unclear, edtech has offered teachers fresh opportunities, such as being able to offer lessons remotely and thus achieving learning goals. Online resources considerably replaced the physical availability of textbooks, exercise books, and class notes. Thus, students shifted from regular books to online ones. Many resorted to documenting management software or even Google Classroom to upload their class notes for after-class reference. 

From learning apps to assistant teachers, smart classrooms are already here to stay. The world of education will soon be one in which entire lessons and platforms are integrated with digital tools. To gain some insight into the future of educational technologies, here are the top 5 EdTech trends predicted for 2022 by experts.

📍 Modern e-Learning Platforms

The convergence of technology and education is producing a massive shake-up in the way learning institutions operate. Simply put, online degrees are here to stay, and as many online degrees are coursework reliant, educational institutions have come up with creative ways to engage students online. 

While there are plenty of education platforms, innovative e-Learning platforms advance the art of learning. They are designed using cutting-edge learning theory and game models. These innovative methods and tools include gamification, social networks integration, visual narration and collaborative communication. They offer a list of features that cannot be found on other platforms like Wikipedia integration, e-Commerce tools, forums and quizzes. These innovative learning tools are not just perfect for students but also for teachers and educators. 

As online education continues to evolve, so does its dedication to providing quality learning experiences. Virtual labs are just one of the trends in online education that go beyond traditional textbooks and connect students with their environment. 

📍 Gamification

Gamification for educational purposes has become quite popular recently. The approach involves using game mechanics (such as points, badges, levels) to increase engagement for learners of all ages. Gamified learning does not necessarily mean developing games; it may also refer to adding elements of games into existing courses or making gamified versions of existing applications. The difference is their high complexity and sophisticated level of interaction in comparison with the early games. Modern technologies allow creating more elaborate scenarios, as well as collecting, storing, and processing data on users’ actions.

Gamified learning is not just about providing rewards for students’ knowledge acquisition. It is an effective way to make activities more engaging, motivate students to take specific actions and improve their performance. At the same time, it can also help boost positive emotions and build self-confidence. By focusing on multisensory learning, Square Panda’s learning platform teaches young learners to read in an enjoyable way that reinforces home and classroom learning.

📍 Virtual Reality/Augmented Reality

Opportunities to apply Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) are expected to surge in the near future. These technologies could push the envelope across the education spectrum, and major companies and small startups alike are eager to make the most of this. For instance, Google Classroom VR is a platform that brings together Google’s tools with immersive educational experiences. It offers teachers and students humanized collaboration tools as well as fun and engaging educational activities. In addition, it is also designed to help students improve their attention span by providing a more immersive experience with the help of Google Cardboard technology.

A virtual, augmented reality classroom is a great idea that will help add extra vim and vigour to learning. With the introduction of such classrooms in schools, students will no longer find an excuse not to attend classes. They will be more likely to participate and learn using VR and AR technologies because they are getting to use such new gadgets and tools. The Virtual Reality course at Stanford lets students experience the potential of VR through hands-on interactive activities. The course combines conventional and virtual reality to allow students to be fully immersed in VR environments.

📍 AI-powered Programs

Today’s learners are becoming more tech-savvy and eager to learn on cutting-edge learning devices. Edtech has made the use of Artificial Intelligence ever more prevalent and is helping redefine the possibilities of education. This development has made a considerably different approach to instructing and empowering learning. 

Artificial Intelligence-driven programs are currently tasked with the end goal of changing what it means to be an educator for young, curious minds. This new tech is ready to help educators push new boundaries, and it can also help enhance what educators are doing today. Educators and different learners could take in more by using AI innovation to its fullest extent.

📍 Chatbots

For more than a decade, chatbots have been synonymous with customer service and customer experience. However, the adoption of chatbots in Edtech is relatively low compared to other industries like e-commerce, retail, and healthcare. While introducing this new concept to education was inevitable, the shift happened in recent months, where several educational institutions started deploying chatbot solutions. Students may encounter many of these when making education-related queries, such as clarity on admission dates, courses offered, or even to access course curriculum. Chatbots are starting to become the ideal solution for a comprehensive supporting ecosystem.

Several educational institutions use AI applications like chatbots, robots and predictive analytics to bring competencies into their teaching and learning processes. So, setting up a chatbot would ensure that there is increased accuracy as well as efficiency.

The Future of Edtech

While aspirations have definitely grown for the industry, many educators are still struggling to make the full use of technology as they seek to realize these dreams. The reason being that they are not fully aware of the latest educational technology trends and just how they can play their part in the smooth implementation of technology in the classroom. Many aspects need to be considered before outlining an action plan. 

With the emergence of innovative tools in education, a real and positive change is imminent in the status quo pertaining to the standard approach to education. Education technology has been evolving at a faster rate than ever before. The upcoming years will be termed an era of disruption, as these technologies will undoubtedly disrupt several educational organizations by making them more student-centric, flexible, and collaborative.

Education is a great enabler, and key to unlocking the benefits of India’s demographic dividend. However, to realise its full potential, we need to focus on addressing the cost and reach of education by embracing technological innovation. At Square Panda, we leverage cutting-edge technologies to create accessible, inclusive, and easily replicable learning solutions that can be deployed and scaled up across India. Know more about our work: ecce.squarepanda.in

With the vast proliferation of digital tools and the growth of online learning platforms, blended learning has gained traction as the go-to instructional strategy for teachers and students in early classrooms. Today’s digital-age learners have grown up amidst technology that would have been almost unimaginable a decade ago, which is why they have found it much easier to transition to a blended learning class as opposed to a classroom in which they do not use any form of technology. 

A study has suggested that when blended with face-to-face instruction, online learning can help preschoolers develop a deeper understanding of course material, promote creativity and collaboration, and result in a greater sense of student engagement.

Blended Learning: A Modern Imperative

Although most early childhood professionals would agree that blended learning is the ideal teaching method for pre-K, it can also be one of the hardest to implement. Finding ways to foster creativity in your classroom will help you build a thriving blended learning environment that will be better than ever before.

Connecting with your students is a vital part of the blended learning framework. By getting to know each student one-on-one, you better understand their personal needs and interests. When you know your students, you can then decide how to bring that learning into the classroom. Creating a dynamic classroom where individual learners are challenged according to their strengths and weaknesses is the foundation for blended learning. As preschool teachers, you can introduce a few concepts of blended learning throughout the year. It’s crucial to constantly break new material down into smaller bits before teaching 4-year-olds who learn new material faster.

Blended learning integrates various learning styles and strategies—such as digital learning, independent study, and project-based instruction. The use of technology enables teachers to assess each student’s skill level and align lessons around their specific interests, needs, and abilities. A teacher can use these methods to determine how well a student is progressing throughout the course, then offer further lessons that target differing needs for each student.

One of the most popular blended learning models, the station rotation model, requires teachers to split their classes into smaller subgroups. Students are given a schedule that prioritizes learning activities, including an online or digital component, which are rotated through on a timed schedule. Another way to implement blended learning in a preschool setting is by a flipped classroom. It is educational training that allows students to go home and review the coursework online. Teachers then meet with individual students to further develop an understanding of the course content. The class time is spent applying material by working through simulations or other hands-on activities. Research has shown that using these modes provide better opportunities for individual instruction and more frequent feedback to the student.

The Impact of Student Engagement in Early Childhood Classrooms

With the pressure to meet academic standards implemented in early grades, such as preschool, teachers need to help their students focus on the tasks at hand. One strategy to help promote engagement is blended learning. This type of learning combines face-to-face instruction with digital tools to provide personalization and differentiated instruction based on student needs, encourage technology integration, and motivate students toward desired ends. It combines the individualized attention of traditional brick-and-mortar classrooms with the adaptability and flexibility of digital tools to facilitate lively, engaging learning sessions. Through blended learning, teachers will meet each student wherever they might be, students will be able to learn what they need outside the classroom setting, and students will have more opportunities to collaborate with their peers.

Screen time in the form of technology and interactive media has provided opportunities for our students to grow in ways we could never have imagined. This, however, raises concerns due to the ever-growing concern of overuse and misuse. This has brought on the need to switch up teaching style in an effort to understand how to use blended learning effectively and what dangers might arise from its use. 

However, when students and teachers embrace technology in the classroom, everyone wins. Students gain access to a more diverse curriculum, and teachers are able to reach more students. With a comprehensive learning platform, teachers can help students bridge educational gaps and set individualized learning goals. Blended learning provides educators with the tools they need to engage students so they are empowered to create an inclusive learning experience, and through it, begin a hopefully lifelong love for learning that stands one in good stead.

Square Panda encourages the use of blended learning in classrooms and beyond, giving students access to the personalized learning they need to succeed. Children learn at their own pace using interactive programs, giving them the self-confidence to realize their full potential. 

To know more, visit ecce.squarepanda.in 

An understanding of language is the foundation of literacy, with vocabulary development impacting all aspects of communication. Building a stronger vocabulary in preschool will improve reading comprehension and prepare a child to learn and grow. A child’s vocabulary can have a profound effect on their future success in school, so the child must be surrounded with reading material that is varied, interesting, and stimulating. By expanding their vocabularies before entering school, young children are better prepared to understand the classroom literature they are about to read.

Research suggests that for young children, language does not just talk. It is a primary vehicle for formulating new concept. A child’s language abilities are directly correlated with their cognitive growth, with words representing increasingly sophisticated ideas. And the more words children use, the more new words are available to them, and the better they can make sense of the world around them. They can talk with their parents about new topics, follow along with stories on television, and follow directions from teachers. 

Why does vocabulary instruction need to be in preschool?

The preschool years are crucial for laying a good foundation for language development. Children grow and learn about words through experiences with their environment. In addition to gaining knowledge of meaning from everyday interactions, preschoolers can enjoy building their vocabulary by learning new words from books and rhyming with silly songs. The failure to develop a rich vocabulary in the preschool years has a cascading effect on later reading skills that often hampers academic progress in school. 

Comprehension is a critical component of reading, but comprehension can be nearly impossible for a child without a solid vocabulary base. A study shows that vocabulary instruction should begin in preschool. This will benefit students by building a professionally prepared vocabulary and tone with teachers and peers in an organized setting. The ideal preschool setting provides various opportunities to explore and play with new objects and materials not commonly available in a home. It also allows children to learn from one another as they build relationships and facilitate communication skills. 

Ways to build a child’s vocabulary in preschool

Good teachers have a specific style in which they unleash their knowledge on students in a way that they can grasp. Teachers who have a good understanding of how to use words, especially when discussing themes or subjects, ensure that their students receive a more cultural understanding of the world and its meanings. While there is no one way to teach vocabulary to preschool-age learners directly, there are several methods teachers can use to encourage their students to learn new words and practice them outside the classroom.

📍 Verbal Storytelling

Verbal storytelling provides children with a way to think about the language that is far removed from the formal written word. It enhances children’s sense of audience and their ability to edit what they say, focus on the point they wish to convey, and respond to feedback from others. Children can improve their actual speech abilities using this approach.

Good storytelling begins with an engaging opening. Young listeners are more apt to be drawn into a story if you grab their interest early. Children are also more attuned to your voice, the pitch, the pattern of stress, and even your breathing pattern as you tell them a story. By recounting real-life incidents or telling familiar fairy tales, you can weave information about the world around little ones by using familiar vocabulary.

📍 Share Rhymes and Songs

Songs, rhymes, and poems are familiar features of the classroom in every preschool. Songs help children remember things. They can also help children express feelings and ideas. Rhymes and humorous poems encourage children to talk in sentence patterns that are more complex than they might use when speaking informally or in single words or short phrases. You can use songs, rhymes, and poems to stimulate language growth in young children and help them become increasingly confident using language for their own purposes.

Children can reap tremendous benefits when they hear, say, and learn nursery rhymes. These catchy rhymes can build literary language skills and enhance sound-symbol relationships that lay the foundation for later reading success. As early as one-year-old, children benefit by hearing classroom songs and nursery rhymes. These joyous tunes teach basic language skills and general animal sounds, which lay the foundation for reading. Include at least one nursery rhyme daily in your classroom instruction.

📍 Use Synonyms

Another way to help your children better their vocabulary is to model the appropriate use of new words in daily conversation. The most powerful tool in this regard is a simple substitution of synonyms in place of common words. For example, when referring to a large living space, avoid using the word “big” and try calling it spacious or enormous instead. A child’s mind absorbs and retains more detailed and descriptive information, and they are more likely to remember words, such as spacious and enormous.

Each child is unique and has their own potential, which should be identified and channelized at the right time. Preschoolers are at a unique place where they can readily learn previously encountered concepts, thus creating opportunities to open learning horizons. At Square Panda India, we create research-based programs that aim at making children ready for school. 

To know more, visit https://ecce.squarepanda.in/

Nowadays, most parents are keen to give their children the best they can, especially regarding education. The challenge lies in the fact that most of us are taught by someone with a performance mindset, which believes students learn best when motivated by punishment and reward. Now, this may work for some, but more than likely will result in extrinsic motivation that will create stress, anxiety, and fear. However, just understanding what a growth mindset is and how it can help your child could bring about noticeable transformations at home and school.

What Does a Growth Mindset Mean?

A growth mindset is a psychological concept born from developmental psychology. It was primarily developed by Carol Dweck, and is mainly inspired by work on cognitive development and self-perception in the 1960s and 1970s. A growth mindset hypothesizes that you can develop your intelligence and abilities through hard work and dedication. 

A person with a growth mindset believes that with effort and determination, you can continuously transform your capacities. It views abilities as malleable rather than static. Research suggests that people can change their capabilities through learning and effort, which will positively impact classroom behaviour and academic achievement. 

Fixed Mindset vs. Growth Mindset 

Students believe their basic qualities, like their intelligence or talent, are simply fixed traits in the fixed mindset. They spend their time documenting their intelligence or talent instead of developing them. They also believe that talent alone creates success — without effort. But the effort is where the growth mindset of students really shines.

In a growth mindset, students understand that intellect and talent are just the starting point. This allows them to follow a healthy mix of passion and perseverance to achieve more than they thought possible. A student with a growth mindset will know that mistakes are typical and there is always room for improvement. The key to success lies in learning from such errors and using them as a platform to grow.

How Do You Foster A Growth Mindset In Your Child?

It’s no secret that today’s educational environment is more focused on students meeting grade-level proficiency on standardized tests than embracing a passion for lifelong learning. In fact, the current emphasis on testing has negative implications for children’s development and subsequent achievements. Here’s how you can change this and develop a growth mindset for your child. 

📌 Reward the Process

Rewarding the effort and strategies they put forth during their assignments rather than praising the outcome or final grade will teach them to focus on getting better at tackling different kinds of problems, not just trying harder. Encourage your child to celebrate their ability to persist and improve. Rewarding even small steps toward a significant achievement helps develop the mindset needed to reach any goal. It’s essential to be clear about your expectations, so your child knows how to achieve success. This way, if they struggle with a concept or aren’t quite there yet, you can identify the issue, and find the solution together.

📌 Mind Your Language

The way we talk about children’s accomplishments and challenges can impact how they view themselves. Schools tend to employ language that makes children feel like failures when it comes to the grade system. For example, teachers use terms like “see me” or “remedial reading.” These phrases can sound scary to kids, even though the assignments are not particularly difficult. The language schools use tells students that they are failing instead of needing some extra focus or skills work. This creates an impossible standard for kids to live up to. It reinforces negative thoughts that can lead to further issues down the road.

Language and the words we choose to use in talking about intelligence and ability can significantly impact how children view themselves and their future life opportunities. If you talk to kids in this way, they’ll feel more self-confident about themselves. You can ask them, “What strategies are you using when you study?” Also, discuss current events your child is passionate about. They’ll be glad that someone is interested in their hobbies and interests. Showing that you care will encourage kids to stay connected to the ones they love.

📌 Show Them What a Growth Mindset Is

The best way to teach a child a growth mindset is by example. Children learn visually, and they also learn from the behaviour of their parents. Parents who practice fixed mindset behaviour can inadvertently teach their children fixed mindset thinking.

If you want to raise a child who believes they can master challenging tasks and reach their goals, you need to model the right kind of thinking and behaviour. Hard work and perseverance are crucial. If you’re able to develop a growth mindset along with your child, he or she will be more likely to maintain it throughout her life, regardless of the challenges faced.

Generate opportunities to model behaviours related to a growth mindset in both learning and non-learning situations. As you model a growth mindset, be specific about working through mistakes to approach challenges with a growth mindset. This helps children learn how they can use their own thinking in similar ways.

At Square Panda India, we provide education and interactive learning programs that instill a growth mindset. Our learning programs are humanized and dynamic. Unlike a traditional school, we design lessons based on each student’s unique pace and requirements and monitor their progress through these metrics instead of giving them grades. To know more, visit https://ecce.squarepanda.in/

Diwali brings with it a lot of fun, frolic, and loads of festivities. It is a time when you get to enjoy your favourite dishes, buy new clothes and gifts, and celebrate with friends and family. Children enjoy this festival more than anyone else, lured by the bright colours and lights, bursting of crackers, and Diwali-inspired artifacts. But with online learning and proliferation of technology, kids are so hooked to their gadgets, they have a hard time making out the colours and the feel of the festival. So how do you make your child’s Diwali special? And how can you make sure they enjoy the festivities to the fullest?

To make your little one’s experience of Diwali more meaningful, we bring you five simple activities that will ensure everyone has a heart-warming celebration.

Rangoli Sketching and Painting

With the colourful festival of Diwali around the corner, there’s a natural tendency to think of it as a celebratory time. However, this Diwali, you may want to go a step further and focus on at least one aspect where you can help your kids tap into their creative instincts. And what better way could there be than going over the age-old tradition of rangoli pictorial art, which has been seeing increased interest in recent times. 

Rangoli is a quintessential and essential part of almost every Diwali festival celebration in India. It’s, in fact, just as important as the diyas and crackers you to mark the occasion. The trend of rangoli art is becoming popular even among young kids, thanks to the internet and other avenues amplifying their popularity.

Glitter Diwali Cards

Holidays are always exhilarating for children, and a special day like Diwali seems all the more remarkable for kids. Therefore, it is essential to be creative when you decide to celebrate this festival through the eyes of your kids. A project that will help them have fun and develop some creative ideas would be to get them some Diwali greeting cards. Let them add a bit of sparkle and colour to the cards they design on their own. In this way, they can exercise their creativity and learn a lot about Indian customs and celebrations. 

Storytelling

One of the best activities to engage kids in Diwali celebrations is to tell them stories associated with the festival. The different versions of why Diwali is celebrated will ignite their interest in the significance of the festival. There is a different story about why we celebrate Diwali in each part of the country, so your child will be aware that people from different ethnicities commemorate this holiday. Provide them context behind the reasons we celebrate Diwali and answer any questions they might have. This helps engage them and may get them to ask more, which encourages them to participate further in festivities.

Diwali-inspired Artifacts and Origami

Adding origami to a child’s craft repertoire provides them with a fun method of art-making. And what better way to introduce them than Diwali-inspired origami? Origami creates a significant impact on children’s brain development, fostering their creativity & imagination. By teaching them origami, they can make colorful earrings, flower garlands, greeting cards, and more. All you need is origami paper along with glue or double-sided tape to create lovely designs they’ll love to wear, give as gifts, or display at home.

Green Diwali

Climate change is a cause for concern, and we must understand the environmental impact of our actions. Educate your children about the importance of eco-friendly Diwali celebrations. Allow them to use their creativity to create alternatives to traditional firecrackers. This will teach them about caring for the environment in a fun and engaging way. You could try cutting thin pieces of paper into animal-shaped rhombus, playing with the shape to create an aesthetic appeal for your papier mâché firecrackers.

At Square Panda India, we believe in the importance of playful discovery and learning during early childhood. Incorporating joyful learning about Diwali helps children develop skills that contribute to their creative and intellectual development. Let your child be fascinated about this festival of lights!

Happy Diwali! ✨

With schools closed due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the government advocated for online learning to ensure the continuity of academic work. The integration of online learning platforms and digital technology in education has revolutionized how modern kids learn. Online platforms like Zoom, Google classrooms, and Microsoft Teams made it easy for teachers and students to stay connected, collaborate, and get things done. However, the shift from conventional learning to online education has been challenging for some traditional institutions, especially in rural India, which have found the transition to be challenging. They are still devoid of all the online learning advantages.

Even almost after 1.5 years of lockdown, providing digital classrooms to remote areas is one of the challenges. While it is possible, in many villages and rural areas, there is a vast digital divide in education in India. Although many basic infrastructure requirements have been developed, rural India still struggles to transition to an entirely online or digital education model.

Below are some challenges faced during this transformational period.

⚈ Limited Access to Technological Devices

Available digital content does not reach a sizable population due to the limited availability of technologically advanced devices, such as personal computers and mobile phones. Most families from underprivileged areas do not have access to these devices, limiting the accessibility of the learning materials. In addition, the cost and availability of data plans and devices can restrict teacher and student interaction. Since students cannot participate in live sessions, they cannot learn the material independently, which may be difficult due to the absence of appropriate teaching aids. 

⚈ Unfamiliarity with Digital Technology

While urban schools may thrive with modern methods and easy access to technology, rural schools in developing countries often lack the same advancements. Remote regions often lack internet access and simple digital devices. This transition from traditional techniques to digital ones is a slow-moving process that cannot be rushed. If you observe the level of digital literacy in classrooms, teachers and students alike are still lagging. The challenge here is to train them to get comfortable using Smart Classrooms and Digital Learning facilities.

⚈ Shortage of Teachers

The shortage of teachers in rural areas is another challenge in achieving complete digitization of education. To overcome this barrier, teachers need to be equipped with the latest skills and pedagogy to enable them to teach online. Moreover, online classroom solutions are only effective when teachers are present to guide students in an interactive learning environment. This is one of the areas where Square Panda is making efforts to upskill teachers in rural India. 

We started by understanding the landscape and then developed a deeper understanding of the problems. With this knowledge, we developed our programs to fit the needs of learners and educators who want to bring about a positive change for the next generation of students. Through these workshops, teachers from different language schools will be able to refine their pedagogy and better impart learning to their students.

The Way Forward – A New Normal

The changing school paradigm requires new strategies for engaging students in their education and the development of interpersonal skills. However, existing non-availability of equipment, lack of trained teachers, and network connectivity issues prevent learning on a wide scale in India’s rural areas. We need to ensure that teachers are able to return to work so that the learning journey continues uninterrupted. Square Panda India’s programs are designed to help teachers transition into the digital age easily, and supports their continuous professional development. 

When schools reopen, children cannot return to school immediately. School leaders and government will have to have a staggered plan to assimilate students back into normal classes without stretching resources too thin. One of the most significant drawbacks to returning to school is that students will be unprepared for traditional standardized tests. We should take this time to allow students to reinforce the learning they already know, and mould them into well-rounded people. Additional time should be spent on skill-building, career development, and emotional growth.

In the past couple of years, India has made great strides toward advancing rural education. While some see online learning as an ephemeral trend that offers little value to students, others believe that the hybrid learning models will be the future of education. Advancements in government policy, technological innovations, and asynchronous learning programs can make online learning more equitable and accessible for communities across India’s hinterland.

The advent of digitisation in education is helping create new education possibilities for a generation of Indians all across the nation. Know more about our work, and how Square Panda has been making significant strides towards growing India’s education ecosystem. Click here: Our ECCE Empowerment Programs

The last two years have been all about adapting to change, with schools closed across the globe and students staying at home as health and safety concerns took centerstage and learning was being conducted remotely. Teachers use digital tools to communicate with students and impart education. But with messy remote learning, parents are looking for ways to help their kids stay on track. At the elementary level, there is a strong correlation between parental involvement and student achievement. Research has shown that when parents are involved in their child’s education, children tend to feel better about school and perform better in class. Both at home and school, there are many things parents can do to help their children’s learning. Here are some ideas to get you started!

Demonstrate a Positive Attitude

One of the advantages parents have over teachers is that they spend a lot of time with their kids, and they get very good at reading the nuances in their words and actions. Parents can help support their children’s learning outside of school by offering them positive, relaxed, and fun learning environments at home. Although children naturally want to learn new things, they are often most successful when they are allowed to discover new concepts at their own pace, in their own time. 

Parents can demonstrate how to think about things (such as solving problems) rather than tell them what to think (or how to do something). Rather than instructing children with directives like ‘Don’t forget your homework,’ you might remind them that they will need their workbook for class tomorrow morning. A study has shown that parents and families can play a crucial role in boosting student achievement and sustaining the momentum needed to reinforce positive attitudes toward school.

Monitor the Screen Time

Remote learning has become a widely accepted trend across the globe.  While the internet has proven to be a valuable educational tool, several studies highlight just how dangerous it can be for young children. Students who spend an excessive amount of time surfing the web are less likely to perform well in the classroom.

Today’s children are immersed in the media. With remote learning, children are already spending a lot of time on their computers. And it’s not simply the TV shows, videogames, or internet they watch or play with—it’s all of them. One hour of television uses the same word-retrieval skills as two hours of homework. Media without parental guidance can become a detriment to learning by taking away time usually spent studying and completing schoolwork. 

Monitoring a child’s screen time is a way to help them develop their time management skills and avoid getting distracted. The first thing you should do as a parent is to inventory how much time your kids spend on screens. In particular, take note of what they’re doing on those screens. While there is no set rule on how much screen time is allowed, you can try to limit it, especially when your child does facetime and gives up physical activity and face-to-face communication with people.

Promote Active Learning

Active learning is significant for young children, who are still building their understanding of the world. It helps them learn not just new things but also how to learn. When children are constantly told what to do or simply left alone with an assignment or a book, they are not challenged to think for themselves. As a result, they miss opportunities to develop the skills required for higher-order thought, including critical thinking and problem-solving. 

Active learning involves guiding your child’s exploration and helping her develop her interests to acquire social skills. You can help build your child’s active learning by providing opportunities for him to play freely with other children. Also, teach functional problem-solving skills by asking your child questions about his activities and explaining your problems at work. With the use of technology in today’s classrooms, it’s no surprise that nowadays, there are many real-life applications for this theory. 

Active learning can be anything that encourages the brain to think, test ideas and take action. It can include doing art or playing musical instruments, reading nonfiction or opinion pieces in the newspaper, making models, building things with blocks and Legos, taking photos, watching videos, and playing with your smartphone.

Encourage Reading

Reading is an important skill, not just for schoolwork but for life. Having used digital tools for studying for the last 1.5 years, we have already moved from the printed word to the screen. Reading isn’t just about getting good grades or passing some tests. Having a reading habit is an essential element for children to enrich their knowledge, whether from newspapers or storybooks. In addition to practicing reading skills, it can enhance their imagination, widen their perspective and improve their language skills. 

You can’t rush a child’s reading development — but you can help your child along the way by establishing a love for reading from an early age. By being aware of your child’s readiness for learning how to read, you will be able to nurture a strong foundation of literacy that will serve your students well for decades.

The Bottom Line

Children learn better when their parents are involved. As a parent, you can reinforce your child’s learning through routine activities at home. We believe that a child’s development is a direct product of home life and that an early childhood educator’s responsibility begins before the school day. 

At Square Panda India, we acknowledge the importance of parental involvement in early childhood education. We take special measures to create awareness amongst teachers about how important it is to share ideas and resources with families. This awareness helps our educators develop effective strategies to integrate family participation in learning activities.

We all know that teachers have the most significant impact on student learning. For this reason, it is crucial to recruit and retain qualified teachers as we seek to build up the proficiencies of the next generation. However, the staggering shortage of teachers has created an imbalance, leaving schools with thousands of vacancies each year. Data has shown that this ongoing shortage is adversely affecting the education system in India.

Teacher Shortage in Rural India

Teacher shortages are defined as a diminished teacher-to-student ratio that affects access to education for many children. In other words, though positions are open, there aren’t enough candidates applying for them. But the shortage of teachers in government schools has reached alarming levels. Even some reputed private schools are struggling to fill their vacancies each year. In public schools, as teachers retire, they’re not being replaced fast enough by younger applicants. Because of this multi-generational gap in the workforce, students may not get the quality education they deserve. Many schools lack the infrastructure, resources and the required number of teachers. Studies show that this has resulted in more than 500,000 elementary schools nationwide lacking teachers, and 14% of high schools employed non-state certified teachers or contractual teachers. These are pre-pandemic numbers, with a recent study showing that a total of 19% or 11.16 lakh teaching positions in schools lie vacant in the country, 69% of them in rural areas.

Key factors contributing to the teacher shortage

Salaries and compensation

Teacher compensation impacts the supply and quality of teachers. Salary levels affect the distribution of teachers, which affects the level of schooling and the quality and quantity of individuals pursuing a teacher-training program and becoming teachers. Higher wages may also influence teacher attrition; teachers are more likely to leave low-paying positions than high-paying positions. Teachers who work in districts with low salaries may be less experienced or qualified than those who work in districts with a higher salary schedule.

Lack of Preparation

School districts and private schools alike have tried homogenising and easing standards for teachers because of surging demand for well-trained instructors. As a result, some school districts have had to hire graduates without the requisite certification or classroom experience. Complete preparation for teachers means more than just solid pedagogical knowledge. Increased confidence, support, and collaboration improves the likelihood that a teacher will remain in the profession.

Working Conditions

The different norms and rules of the school and treating teachers as professionals can play an essential part in decision-making for leaving teaching in a particular school or district. In particular, teachers’ feelings of being treated as professionals are strongly associated with the administrative support, resources, and influence over policy within schools. Education systems must pay attention to the fact that teachers are not held accountable for how they spend their time at school and have a sense of being heard.

Impact of Teacher Shortage

A shortage of teachers hurts everyone involved in our educational system. Not just students, but also teachers and the public education infrastructure itself. It is important to remember that this isn’t just about getting more teachers in classrooms or just improving teacher pay. It’s really about improving teacher quality, so the learning experience matches the rising expectations for student achievement in today’s world. The quality of teachers has a direct impact on academic achievement. Low retention rates delivered to the teaching profession reduce teacher effectiveness and morale, diminishing student learning outcomes. 

The teacher shortage makes it difficult to build a solid reputation for teaching and increase the profession’s prestige, both of which hinder the goal of professionalizing teaching. Moreover, the uneven distribution of teachers means that specific parts of the population are not receiving the same educational opportunities as others. The teacher shortage hinders sustainability and challenges the vision of providing a quality education for all students from a diverse range.

Ways to Redress the Teacher Shortage

A strong public education system is key to fostering economic growth and innovation in any state. Raising teacher pay is one way to cultivate a talented workforce to support it. When teachers feel a sense of belonging, they become more engaged and feel empowered to share their voice. On the other hand, teachers who feel uncared for and whose voices aren’t heard often “burn out” by leaving the profession.

In light of the widespread effects on public education and society at large, it is imperative to understand this crisis and address it immediately. To design policy interventions or plan institutional action, we must first understand the factors contributing to the growing shortage of high-quality teachers. Only then can we help the next generation of students across India realise their full human potential, and the entirety of their aspirations.

Square Panda aims to tackle this problem by leveraging technology and world-class training to transform under-resourced schools and Anganwadi centres into learning spaces. Know more about our work. Visit ecce.squarepanda.in

Look around. What do you see? 

Nine times out of ten, your eyes will land on a piece of technology, a device, or a machine that is changing the way we live.

Technology, and thus screens, are now an integral part of the world we inhabit. This is making its way into children’s lives to the extent that schools have begun to adopt technology-led teaching aids. Research into screen time usage shows that it boosts the development of young children in many critical areas. Data even suggests that children who spend an hour or two every day interacting with digital devices have higher social and emotional well-being levels than others.

There is tremendous value to ensuring children are digitally literate. But how do you use the educational and imaginative power of screens to engage kids? How can you turn screen time into positive learning time?

Here are four ways you can use screen time to your advantage.

Make Screen Time Interactive

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends adults co-view, co-play, and co-engage with children when they are using screens. Screen time doesn’t have to be bad, just as long as you help them engage with what’s on the screen. And for this to happen, you have to be active yourself. You can increase the interactive nature of screen time by:

• Watching videos and asking related questions (Did you like this character? Why do you think he looks like that?)
• Introducing them to learning games with highly interactive apps

Encourage Educational Entertainment Or Edutainment

A study by health scientist Taren Sanders has linked educational screen time to doing better in school. Balancing screen time so that children can enjoy it from an educational or playful perspective is a prudent choice. Also, such apps and games are often based on research and are very intuitive to young children’s needs. There is a bevy of carefully designed instruments that offer crucial skill development; pick toys, games, and apps that are labeled edutainment or educational.

Weave Positive Habits Into Screen Time

Introduce positive habits while children are using screens. Teach them how to handle devices responsibly and safely, including starting, charging, and shutting down the devices. Encourage them to self-regulate the time they spend in front of screens, too. This way, you show children how to develop good online etiquette that keeps them safer when they begin using personal devices. At the same time, you are helping them become more independent as they play and learn.

Join In The Fun Yourself

One of the best ways to make screen time memorable and beneficial is to join in and play with your young learners. Teach them how to use devices, watch YouTube videos with them, and play edutainment games alongside them. Of course, you don’t necessarily have to oversee every single moment of their screen time. Children need the freedom to explore on their own as well. However, letting them know you are available to play with them goes a long way towards keeping kids happy and making sure their screen time is positive.

What are your views about positive screen time? How can edtech help support teachers in the classroom? Comment below.

Student-centric, playful learning experiences are an essential component of learning. At Square Panda, we are committed to innovatively impacting education. Know more about our work: ecce.squarepanda.in

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