Santosh Subramanian, Harikrishnan Narasimhan, Kamlesh Lokeshwaran and Tejas Maru founded Scadoosh App for co-curricular activities for kids. Scadoosh meaning awesomeness is being lapped up by kids across India. Santosh Subramanian speaks to Brainfeed Magazine on Scadoosh and its future plans
How did Scadoosh come about and what does it mean?
During the initial lockdown in 2020, we conducted a free online summer camp for kids for a month which was well received. The feedback from parents and kids spurred us to start Scadoosh. The word Scadoosh was extensively used in the movie Kung Fu Panda meaning ‘unparalleled awesomeness’ that reflects the ideas that we stand for. Our goal is to educate the child whilst having fun through games by engaging the heart, the hand and the head.
Tell us about the curriculum
Our Curriculum is extensive covering arts, humanities, science, math, music, handwork, languages and the academic subjects which are interwoven with art and hands-on activities. Our proprietary learning framework – “LEAD Framework for online learning” derives its inspiration from various popular frameworks. Partnership for 21st century learning (also known as P21 century skills designed by NEA and US department of Education), Donaldson 12 Pedagogy Principles (The Wales curriculum), Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences and Chinmaya Vision program.
Presently, we have more than 65 registered teachers from Qatar to Coimbatore. The teachers bring in vast experience from different geographies and share experiences from Hong Kong, Mexico and Chile.
How is Scadoosh different from other educational Apps?
There are a lot of Apps, but Scadoosh not only caters to extracurricular but also co-curricular activities. We have more than 100+ Science Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM) & life skill based online classes for kids. Ranging from making bubbles to teaching kids aero modeling. We have a wide range of classes curated in these areas.
The aim is to prepare kids for life, to think and become innovators. There is a need to come out of rote learning and Scadoosh is a platform. One school is scrapping its existing extra-curricular programme and completely moving online with us. Another school is planning on setting up a digital infrastructure in their school for a post pandemic scenario.
How did the four of you come together?
Kamlesh and I were classmates in Class 11. We would always talk about doing something unique that also is helpful. The pandemic affected everyone in the world but it also provided an opportunity. Kids were confined to homes and engaging them with valuable content was a need. The encouraging signals from our summer camp paved the way and by November 2020 we were ready to launch.
What is interesting, I was in Kerala, Kamelsh in Bengaluru, Hari in the US of A and Tejas in Gujarat but all of us thought similarly and each one chipped in with his expertise. Hari takes care of the Tech, Kamlesh takes care of the Business Operations, Tejas helps with financial planning and I take care of content.
The last few months have been positive and our growth rate is over 20% month on month. The students too are diverse and are pan India.
Share with us the response from kids
Children enjoy Arts, Science, Innovation and Brand Stories. They are curious to learn, if we teach them in a way that kindles their curiosity.
There was one parent who forgot to renew the subscription for our platform. So the child told her to renew the subscription straight away for 6 months so that he doesn’t miss his class. Another child actually broke her piggy bank to pay for her own learning. So it is very inspiring to hear such stories.
Do you also customize projects?
We have a team of experts who have worked with several schools and created projects. We’ve built a platform to give complete access to as many courses as we can so kids can pick and choose and explore before deciding on their interests.
From art, languages, communication, fun science and math to origami and fitness, we’ve covered it all. We have also replaced their regular extra-curricular activities with our STEAM based classes online. So all that the school needs to do is, give us 2 to 3 hours a week per class. And pick and choose topics that they want their students to learn. For example we are running Spanish classes for grades 6-9 in one school. In another school we are running Design Thinking for grades 8, 9 and 11. In yet another school we are running DIY science experiments for grades 3 to 6. So we have experts in almost all topics under the sun. So tell us your wish and we make it happen.
Even when pandemic gets over and schools get back to the regular mode, for them to find local talent to teach international language or run STEAM courses is going to be a challenge. That we where we bring the international expertise and connects.
Schools with specific request can reach us at hello@scadoosh.com
What are your future plans?
The plan is to reach out to more schools and make a meaningful change in the lives of children. Unless children think on their own, innovation cannot happen. The traditional method of a monologue needs to give way to a dialogue where kids interact, ask questions and find solutions by exploration.
Our research and development team is always working to design new programs. If we are able to make even a small percentage of students to gain STEAM skills, then I believe we would consider ourselves successful.
