Abhishek Kariwal and Aneesh Bangia, both alumni of IIT Madras worked in the corporate sector for a year before realizing that their calling was to help children in becoming deep thinkers and started Open Door.
Ten years ago, Abhishek Kariwal and Aneesh Bangia knew one thing for sure and that was children should learn how to learn. They saw that there are certain students who are good at many things science, math, sports, and music. What makes these students different from others? These students have learned how to learn.
They say, “Students can learn good learning habits while in school. If schools make teach children how to
think critically, how to reflect, how to evaluate their understanding then students can become good learners.”
In Edtech, Ed comes before Tech. Rather than force-fitting a technology in schools, Open Door likes to think from first principles. Not surprisingly, only 10% of Open Door’s offering has ‘technology’ in it. The founders decided the name ‘Open Door’ because it metaphorically means to allow children to freely think and question.
Open Door offers three products to schools:
a. Thinking Assessments: Helping teachers ensure mastery of a topic before moving to the next topic
In most of our classrooms, we teach a topic and then move on to the next topic even if 80% children have not fully understood the topic.
Open Door’s assessments provide children a system of assessment and re-assessment. The assessment informs teachers about the misconceptions in their students and the re-assessment provides students a second chance to improve.
Through a series of enjoyable and high-quality questions and instant feedback, schools notice their students gaining in-depth understanding.
b. Thinking Classroom: Helping teachers use beautiful questions to help children think on their own
Open Door’s ‘Thinking Classrooms’ is a dream come true for Science and Mathematics teachers. Thinking Classrooms is a set of workbooks with beautiful questions mapped to the CBSE curriculum. Declarative statements made by teachers are replaced with thought provoking questions. For example – ‘If we did not eat fruits, we would fall ill regularly’ is the answer to the question ‘What if we did not eat fruits for a year?’
c. Concept Foundation Week: Ensure strong foundation of previous year’s concepts at the starting of the new academic year
Concept Foundation Week is 10-15 days-long program conducted in the beginning of the academic year. It helps students in developing a strong understanding of basic concepts needed for the upcoming academic year. Open Door’s programs are designed by a team of young graduates from
IITs and NITs.
Open Door started off by teaching children at their learning centres in Bangalore and Pune with the method of questioning in 2013. This method became extremely popular among a set of forward-looking parents. In 2014, they started their first program for schools which was on the idea that most children can master difficult concepts when presented with multiple chances.
Open Door has made both students and teachers better thinkers. Each Science and Math topic is now explored more than before. Much of the classroom teaching has changed from monologues into dialogues. Earlier, the teachers were constrained to teaching for the exam. Now, there is a focus on thinking and understanding. Open Door works with schools across the length and breadth of India and is present in UAE, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait.
Impact on teachers
- There has been an improvement in classroom teaching. There is more questioning and dialogue in classrooms. Teachers have also been making better lesson plans.
- Better appreciation of science and math concepts. Open Door’s questions have helped teachers see regular concepts in a new light.
- More confidence in their own teaching due to an improvement in their students
Impact on students
- An average of 10% improvement in the understanding of core concepts
- More willingness to improve and learn
- The students have started seeing concepts in a completely new light
Open Door : https://www.opendooreducation.in
