Story of Nandini Gavnook

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A silent leap towards success

We started the Math Remedial Program with baseline assessment to understand the learning level of students. Our grade 3 question paper included problems from grade 1 & 2. We maintained the difficulty level of question paper as EASY (2/5) in line with Experifun assessment framework. The overall average performance of school for grade 3 was 47.57% as compared to remedial batch students’ average of 30.16%. We shortlisted 43 students for the remedial program.

I started taking classes for all students according to their capabilities. I began with very basic fundamentals. This was the initial step which helped me to connect with all the students very soon. The students started feeling comfortable with me after few classes in 1-2 weeks time. I took my next step and started talking to each students personally to understand each and every students profile & capability.

On the first day, I called a girl near the blackboard and asked her to write 1-100 numbers. Unfortunately, she was not able to write even smaller numbers. Though in grade 3, she couldn’t write 1 to 100 which is taught in the 1st and 2nd grades. I found she was very weak in her understanding of numbers. Clearly, she needed support and start in lower grades too. When I interacted more, I realized that she lacks confidence and stammers while speaking. She had been selected for remedial batch as she scored only 28% in her baseline assessment. Her name is Nandini Gavnook.

I started interacting with Nandini closely and realized her potential and curiosity to learn is very high. While I was closely observing her, I realized that she knows & understands about her difficulties. She used to try a lot to improve herself, but every time she failed. She was not used to speak and discuss her problems with teachers. She was very low in her confidence. She did not speak anything about this to her parents and teachers.

One day I spoke to her personally. She shared her difficulties with me and began to cry. I consoled her, showed lot of compassion, shared few stories of other children who have had such challenges. I helped her understand that there are many children who have similar difficulties and she is not alone. Then, I asked her,
“Is your problem going to get resolved by crying? No, not at all, isn’t it?”
You must concentrate more on the things which trouble you the most. Try to start with the simplest & basic thing. Start by learning small numbers rather than working on higher numbers. If you can understand your problems by your own then nobody can stop you to succeed!

She listened to it very carefully and accepted what I said. She assured me that she will take greater efforts to improve herself. I assured my help and personalized attention to her in not only reading and writing numbers but also to get her through the problems and troubles in understanding math. I also started working with her on personal side to instill confidence.

Within 7 to 8 days, she learnt writing numbers. Later, I started with basic math. I taught her addition and subtraction of one and two-digit numbers with the help of popsicles and many other concepts like directions, shapes and so on. She was enjoying learning with activities and math lab kit. She was learning fast!

For personality development, I used to ask her to tell stories or sing a song in front of the whole class. This enhanced her confidence and also improved her speaking abilities. Once she got hold of basic math, I started teaching her according to the syllabus.

Now, Nandini Gavnook talks with extreme confidence and answers my question quickly in classroom. She scored 84% in her mid-line assessment, an amazing feat by all mean! I told her how it was her efforts and I was just a support. She thanked me and wants me as her teacher forever. The sense of satisfaction and happiness has no bounds even for me for I helped transform a student like Nandini!