In discussion with Nitin Vijay, MD – Motion Education Pvt Ltd, VP – Byju’s JEE NEET Division.
How the idea of Motion Education did come to your mind?
I was always driven by the idea of teaching students, learning and growing with the young minds. I was lucky to get the opportunity of teaching in my college days. It all started with taking coaching classes, and it helped me have relevant exposure on conducting myself in classes, developing confidence to converse with students. My Alma mater was IIT- BHU, where I graduated in B.Tech (2007). Ever since then, it has been 18 years, and it is a moment of immense pride for myself that I have been able to successfully fulfill the ambition of over 7500+ aspirants into becoming an IITian via Motion Education. Motion has been a dream come true not just for me but for my students and fellow team members, who were elated to be associated with one of the finest and futuristic learning institutions in Kota.
How has the journey been with Motion Education so far, given today it’s the most prestigious educational institute for providing coaching for top-level engineering exams
The journey has always been exciting and challenging. Throughout my journey, I was overwhelmed by the support and cooperation from my team members. It all began with me travelling 100-120 Km every day for my passion-‘TEACHING’.I became an entrepreneur at the age of 22. My goal was to break the stereotypical student-teacher equation and make learning environment conducive and cost-effective for students. The time spent with students helped me understand that students’ problems were not just at mental level but also at technological level. Challenges came mostly from competitive institutes that had a firm grounding in the coaching market of Kota since many years. Motion on the other hand was established with a clear vision, and my family and team members supported me throughout. We faced troubles of all sort but it did not put us back instead acted as a motivation. Motion Education was one of the first institutions in Kota to take classes via projector.
Challenges for students and teachers, especially for competitive exams like IIT during this pandemic when there is less than physical interaction
The major challenge for students and teachers has been the shift in mindset, from physical classroom learning to completely virtual learning. I was always keen on integrating technology in our traditional education framework, for making learning convenient and accessible for all. In order to achieve this, I implemented various technology tools specially designed for Motion Education and it helped me shape our institution in a manner, which was not just effective but became thought provoking for the educator’s community in Kota.
Some of the technological developments introduced in Motion Education long before the pandemic have been-
- MOTION SOLUTION LABS (MSL)
Each Lecture since 2013 taking place in Motion Education(all India centres) has been recorded for better understanding of students, MSL students can see recorded lectures when they miss it by any chance. MSL aids them in completing their syllabus timely.
B) EDU- TAB
Motion was one of the pioneers in Kota to introduce distance learning via Tablets. Video lectures,weekly tests, attendance, performance chart of each student were some of the interesting features incorporated in it.
C) A quiz show named as ‘Kaun Banega Einstein’ on the similar model of popular TV show ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati’ was unveiled to instill values of healthy competition among young minds and at the same time prepare them well for the competition lying ahead. We invited students from all over Kota to participate in it. Winners were rewarded with cash prizes or scholarships.
D) Mentor’s app is our small effort for building a strong relationship with the students’ parents. The application helps them keep a track of their wards’ marks, attendance and weekly performance.
What will be the possible changes in the curriculum of colleges and the approach to a process of teaching/ subject post-COVID era?
Change has become inevitable ever since the world has been struck with the pandemic. We are constantly witnessing the government and higher institutions altering their policies to make basic education, an easier and affordable process for all. Apart from the offline-online convergence of study material available, we are likely to see reduction in syllabus, adaptability to industry-oriented and skill-building courses etc. Time is right for enhancing the capabilities of our students, making them globally competent via online learning courses and abundance of material available.
Youtube as a platform for imparting knowledge to the younger generation.
YouTube has proved to be an extremely useful platform for the Motion team. I always believed that by introducing technology in the learning process, we can make specialized courses cheaper and accessible for all. ‘Education is a basic right for every human being’, in light of this thought we designed and introduced an entire Hindi medium program for JEE & NEET, without charging any fee on YouTube for students in lockdown. This was a step towards inclusion of sincere students from different backgrounds. There could not have been a better platform than YouTube to make this idea a reality.
