Let your Kid Learn Math the right way with SchoolCountry

Tuesday July 10, 2012 , 3 min Read

India has produced and is producing some of the best minds in the world, in possibly every field there is. Although the education system can take a lot of plaudits for this, there has been criticism that at ground levels, the way math is taught, for instance, is more exam-oriented and less concept specific.

Kunal Gandhi, co-founder of SchoolCountry shares this view saying, “The biggest issue is that our school system is geared to produce some stars and then a vast majority of unsure followers, who have not really understood anything in the class.”

Starting Off

With a view to improve upon the current system, Kunal and his friend Gunjan Agrawal, who were both working in lucrative jobs, got together and debated on a few ideas. “The vision for Schoolcountry took shape when I went to Finland once. Discussions with some teachers and school authorities there was an eye opener. Finnish students score at the top year after year in their mathematical aptitude. Indians are 5^th from the bottom,” reveals Kunal.

SchoolCountry was then born, in July 2011, with a clear focus on Math and that too for early classes (KG to 6), since that where the biggest concerns were found.

Tackling the issue

Kunal identifies the following three areas as the ones to improve upon from the current education system:

The learning must be Active. It is proven by several researches that we understand and retain up to 45 times more when we ‘do’ things rather than just see and hear. And “see and hear” is what happens in today’s classrooms. So we plan to make it active. The kids will DO math.
The learning must be Engaging & Fun: Student must find joy either in the learning process itself or in the outcome. So we plan to bring fun through a right combination of activities, games, rewards, incentives and competition.
The Application must be clear: We are taught things for a reason, but often we are not told what that reason is. The students must understand the real life application of what they are learning. It will increase their enthusiasm multiple fold.

Products Offered

These products ensure complete alignment to NCERT-India and NCTM-Singapore curriculum.

BrainX is a worksheet based math training program. These application based worksheets are printed and sent home or to partner schools where teachers use it in their class rooms.
MathLab is a computer based math game where students have to climb a mountain and solve problems on their way up. They get powers, discover new objects and reach new milestones as they hone their math skills.
Physical games: SchoolCountry is coming out with board games and card based games that address concepts like number identification, sequencing, equations etc.

“We feel we are trying to achieve the right balance between learning and fun. Most of other courses compromise on the fun part. Very few people have actually strived to get this balance right,” informs Kunal.

Revenue model and Traction

The products mentioned would all be available on a subscription basis and can be ordered both online or via phone. “We have made sure that we keep a very affordable price structure for our products so that it is within reach for most people.”

Starting off with a little apprehension, the traction in terms of subscription rate is now excellent. With products being sent across 12 Indian cities, various online and offline marketing models are used to gain traction.

With plans to expand to countries outside India in the next 3 years, we could expect and hope that this paves the way for a couple of major changes in the education system. Have a look at their products on their website here.