Episode #33: Sandeep Dutt in conversation with Monica Kochar, she is a Mathe-magician! She has given numbers a heart and abstract concepts a ground to stand upon, has taken the sting out of the learning of Maths. A doctor who cures math-phobia, Monica’s approach makes Maths not only interesting but humane. Founder of Humane Maths, it is about humanising the maths curriculum. Making it human-friendly for all kinds of learners. The focus is to create an environment where all children ‘come to maths and then maths is taken’ to all of them. The environment is created by taking teaching strategies that make the classroom mentally stimulating, emotionally appealing and physically relaxing. This is done by integrating maths with art, poetry and much more. In the podcast, Monica talks about the unconditional love between the learner and the teacher, the joy of learning and how the day is the anchor to experience real exhilaration for an educator.
More about Monica
Monica Kochar has given numbers a heart and abstract concepts a ground to stand upon. She’s taken the sting out of the learning of Maths. It is not just about acquiring the skill of playing with numbers, but a journey that makes you a more rounded person. Maths, when combined with art and poetry, become a red-blooded poem, a splash of colour, a game on the sports ground! Offering an integrated approach to Mathematics, the learning becomes a way to deeper and wider growth where fears are removed and fun becomes official.
Monica has applied this approach successfully in her long and colourful teaching career, which expanded after earning her M.Sc (Maths) and B.Ed at Delhi University. There was a further turn to her teaching style after she came in touch with students with special needs. She did a diploma course in Inclusive Education with the Spastic Society of Karnataka, and subsequently created successful programs for students with special needs and which helped them gain sufficient confidence to tackle mainstream syllabus.
She has worked with CBSE, ISC as well as the international curricula – IGCSE and IB – in her search for the right curricular base that could put her innermost quest to create a space for the best in a child to emerge. Finally, she found the right blend by taking the core philosophy from Indian spiritual traditions and practising style from the international arena. She continues upgrading herself through MOOCs and attending workshops by experts in multiple fields associated with education.
She can be contacted for fresh curriculum approaches, teacher-training and writing and assessment related to Mathematics for print or digital media.
Website humanemaths.com
More about Monica
Monica has applied this approach successfully in her long and colourful teaching career, which expanded after earning her M.Sc (Maths) and B.Ed at Delhi University. There was a further turn to her teaching style after she came in touch with students with special needs. She did a diploma course in Inclusive Education with the Spastic Society of Karnataka, and subsequently created successful programs for students with special needs and which helped them gain sufficient confidence to tackle mainstream syllabus.
She has worked with CBSE, ISC as well as the international curricula – IGCSE and IB – in her search for the right curricular base that could put her innermost quest to create a space for the best in a child to emerge. Finally, she found the right blend by taking the core philosophy from Indian spiritual traditions and practising style from the international arena. She continues upgrading herself through MOOCs and attending workshops by experts in multiple fields associated with education.
She can be contacted for fresh curriculum approaches, teacher-training and writing and assessment related to Mathematics for print or digital media.
Website humanemaths.com