Chevapet school’s novel teaching method for better learning

At SK Vidyalyam in Chevapet, Mathematics is taught using yoga, food habits are taught on a life-size snakes and ladders mat and Social Science lessons are made into songs. Offering till Class 5, the school has a strength of around 450 students.

The management of the school decided to do things differently and tied up with Shraddha Learning whose “good to great” programme aims at making classrooms more interactive. “We use a multiple intelligence methodology propounded by Dr Howard Gardner, Professor of Cognition and Education, Harvard Graduate School. 

We cannot say if the child is intelligent or not using just one aspect. Not every child is good in Math, but that does not mean he is less intelligent than others,” explains Madhumanti Narayanan, head, Academics and co-founder of Shraddha. She further explains the that there are multiple types of human intelligence. 

One is verbal-linguistic intelligence, referring to an individual’s  ability to analyse information and produce work that involves oral and written language, such as speeches, books, and emails.

The second is the logical-mathematical intelligence describing the ability to develop equations and proofs, make calculations, and solve abstract problems. Visual-spatial intelligence, on the other hand, allows people to comprehend maps and graphical information. The next is the musical intelligence, enabling individuals to produce and interpret different types of sound. Naturalistic intelligence refers the ability to identify and distinguish among different types of plants, animals, and weather formations found in the natural world. Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence entails using one’s own body to create 

products or solve problems and finally comes the interpersonal intelligence reflecting an ability to recognize and understand other people’s emotions. 

“We first trained the teachers of the school in this methodology and they are now implementing them in the classrooms. The result has been very good. Most of the students who come to this school are from the villages and belong to the lower-income group. They come with the risk of dropping out and absenteeism is also high. However, that has drastically reduced as the students are more attentive in the class and look forward to a host of activities,” says VV Jalaja, Principal of the school.