Asmita Maurya
Fatema Agarkar, Founder, Agarkar Centre of Excellence (ACE) shares how sports and education can be a lethal combination for the holistic development of an individual
Tell us about the Agarkar Centre of Excellence
Given Ajit’s and my own experience with sports and education, ACE combines two important verticals – sports (in school curriculum design, after school hour programs and specialised sports division strategies) and education (teacher skilling, curriculum design, consultancy, parent workshops, student engagements as well as school audits) to provide owners/promoters/school leaders the necessary support and advice to create impact-driven platforms for generation next. The intent is to build life skills through each of the verticals apart from enhancing talent and creating opportunities to work with each child’s strength.
How difficult is it to include multisports curriculum? Even today, there is a sizable number who swear by academics alone.
The NEP has spelt it out for the non-believers that the future of learning is about a multiplatform, multi-dimensional approach including technology. The compartmentalisation of academics and co-curriculars have been challenged, especially in Covid times, as teachers fought hard to create learning engagements that could be sustained and capture the imagination of the students. This allowed them to explore integration and sports and math for example emerged as ‘easier’ options to teach concepts; humanities and language combined beautifully with Project-Based Learning, and teachers found that the assessments were far more impressive when the students were allowed to learn in their area of passion and interest.
In large classroom sizes, teachers often state it becomes difficult but the truth is that it is a matter of grouping students in smaller ‘batches’ and engaging with them with different complexity levels. Subject integration has substantial research to support its position in lesson planning, and as far as a multi sports curriculum is concerned, it is straight-forward as it requires a scientific mapping of a child’s developmental milestones and introduction of sports as a skill at the age appropriate level. Initial years must be dedicated to more exposure so that skill of one sport helps lend its potential to the developmental of another skill in another sport, and more the exposure, the more the child learns to adapt and adjust before it is time to specialise.
Again, it is a case of time-tabling, pre assessment of the students and their skills and devising a program over short and long term goals with exposure as the key. Individual and team sports provide the necessary platform to understand the range, and this executed well if planned well in advance.
During these tough times, it has been difficult for children to engage in outdoor games and sports what advice would you give children to cope up with this reality?
In India, our children, unfortunately, have been locked up for longer than most countries, and my advice simply has always been that fitness is a big non-negotiable as is keeping yourself engaged with the game through literature, watching games, understanding strategy and when possible putting that rest, fitness to use and honing the talents. I feel the mental aspect is critical and many sports therapists have recommended visualisation exercises, and journal writing to keep connected. There is never going to be a replacement for physical practice but in the interim, if the fitness levels are maintained, then it is easier to transition into the skill practice sessions. Difficult times, but that’s when you work extra harder to build stamina, fitness and eat well with enough rest as a structured routine to create a healthier lifestyle.
School managements are affected by the coronavirus pandemic. How can holistic learning take place in the present scenario?
One has to take stock of the situation, understand the circumstances of the families and teachers that they work with, and define their own short-term goals. I always believe the audit and assessment evaluation will indicate what the priority areas are. It is important that the transition addresses the “threatening” areas … it is not possible to achieve pre-Covid levels when you have had 290 odd days in lockdown. So baby steps may mean a gradual more paced out schedule for the students. Remember, most were locked into a screen without physical exercise, eating at will, sleeping less because online did provide some flexibility but not necessarily the structure. I would approach this as the ‘Gear’ Strategy – warm the kids up with a gradual increase once the muscles and routines get well oiled. The transition will take a few more but once the platform has been set, the scaffolding happens more seamlessly. I always believe in the 80:20 management rule, focus on what’s important for your school.
What key values or principles do you think the present school ecosystem needs to develop students’ 360 degree personality?
Life skills – decision making, team-work, relationship management, critical thinking, money management, problem-solving, communication, etc, must be the core of everything we do because attitudes to learning will define the learning outcome. We keep talking about gearing these students to be life ready for which we need them to become more adaptive, more resilient, a risk-taker, more balanced, and respectful as they evolve through school. Conceptual understanding of different subjects will become easier with more confident students who seek to ask more questions.
Students need to become more aware, more empathetic and more compassionate to the needs of those around, apart from their own and also the ability to course correct and mentally more able to cope with changing variables as this will be a key skill in professional or personal relationships.
Development of these skills and attitudes will help create more all-rounders, than specialists and as even specialists need more well rounded skills.
Learning loss is a major concern today. Technology too has its limitations. Your comments.
It is and there is no denying it. But I will say technology has made it some what continuous, which is great because children were in lockdown for too long. I think if managements prioritise and revise, revisit some concepts, and re-think the syllabus, this “learning loss” will soon be corrected. It is the need to accelerate that worries me – you can build a foundation, if the base is weak and this needs to be recognised and acknowledged. Progressive schools will focus on the core, and allow for some topics to be taken up as a subject integration. I call it smart goal setting and smart teaching strategies.
What is your vision for the Year 2022?
Building more 21st-century learning environments that value sports and subject integration, skilling more teachers and inspiring more talent to participate in the teaching-learning process. We definitely want to create more opportunities for students to build on their own unique skills outside of India and expand operations. For me personally – 2022 is a year of transition and I would strive hard to make this a seamless one for owners, school leaders, parents and students.
