Believing that the process of education can be customised for children, PV Dinesh founded the Prakriya Academy in Vizag as a learning environment with a difference.
The inception
All set with a job offer in Abu Dhabi, life had other plans for PV Dinesh, who was keen on finding a solution for the educational challenges the society faces today. “I would see parents, children, and teachers talking about educational woes, with no creative solutions in sight.” Inspiration came through a TED talk by renowned Professor Sugata Mitra, and it fuelled his desire to provide a solution, that took the form of Prakriya Academy.
The institution
Set as an after-school center, Prakriya Academy addresses aspects of academics, social and emotional growth in children. The center in Gajuwaka operates on a unique format with hourly slots for students from Class 1 to Class 12. Kids learn through play way methods, with flexibility in approach. With PV Dinesh being the Founder and CEO of Prakriya Academy, there are ten members who are part of the core team. They bring together the expertise of psychologists, NLP practitioners, academicians, business development, IT development, and mentors together.
The classes
Believing that there is more to learning than just getting a high percentage, Prakriya Academy in Vizag offers a holistic approach. “We identify problems that a child faces and help them cope up through interactive sessions related to child emotions, social skills, and academics.” With the concept based on neurosciences and child psychology, classes are based on one to one sessions with 250 students being trained till date. Kids are also offered the flexibility of timings and can come for any amount of time on any day. The first ten hours are allotted for child observation, following which problem areas are identified and customised learning is provided. Both the child and family are offered counselling as well.
The Challenges
Working with a unique concept comes with its challenges. The first hurdle was setting parameters to help identify the child’s problem. The next hurdle was telling parents that this wasn’t a tuition center where the child completes homework. A lot of explanations on why children need social and emotional skills had to be given.
The Success
For an education-oriented center, success can best be measured through the child’s progress. A reward system motivates many to do better, it also encourages them to help each other. “In fact, the grade 1 students are encouraged to help the grade 7 ones too!” shares Dinesh. The fact that they ranked in the top ten at Andhra University business competition in 2016, is an added feather in their cap. They were in the top ten startup list when they represented AP in international competition where 28 countries participated.
The Future
With one center in Gajuwaka, in the coming months, would see Prakriya Academy open 30 centers across the city. Tapping into the talent pool of educated people across the city, they have also created a mobile app to facilitate standardisation. ‘The app will be used by the facilitator to render information on students and the data will be crunched at our end for tailor-made programmes” he adds.
Quick facts
Inception: 2015
Founder: PV Dinesh
Employee count: 11
Location: Gajuwaka, Vizag
Awards/Recognition: Represented AP in India International innovation fair 2017,
Winner of AU business plan
competition 2016, Showcased in UNESCO Tech 2017, Incubated at NASSCOM 10,000 Startup
Discussion about this post