Annual Report 2020-21 by Agastya International Foundation

Resilience! Reinvention! Rising! Agastya Annual Report 2020!2021

Index About Us

Chairperson’s Message

Reinvent, Resilience, Rising

2021 at a Glance

Campus Creativity Lab

Science Center

Core Science Activity Center

Mobile Science Lab

Lab-on-a-Bike

Operation Vasantha

Young Instructor Leaders

Acharya Initiative Teacher Training Program

Innovation Lab

Digital Programs

Impact Assessment

Partners

About Us Vision: To build a new Mission:

India of Tinkerers,

Aah! Aha! Ha!Ha!

Creators, Innovators, and Solution Seekers

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15 million

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The idea of Agastya evolved from spirited debates between several accomplished individuals, all of whom had a singular vision -- to transform India’s education system. We discovered that the paucity of hands-on, experiential learning was leading to gaps in education, especially among underprivileged children and teachers. To address these gaps, and augment the existing school curriculum, Agastya has built a growing network of Mobile Science Labs, Science Centres, night community centers, and digital learning programs. The Agastya way of learning is designed in a way that sparks creativity (Aah!), nurtures creativity (Aha!), and instills confidence (Ha-Ha!). As we transition from an organization to a movement, we have pledged to take learning and innovation to curious minds across the country, who are ready to take on the world. As we continue on our journey, we have a new ambitious mission with the announcement of Agastya 2.0 giving a shape and an intermediate goal in our quest for converting Agastya into a movement.

250,000 01

From The Chairperson’s Desk The past year was a tumultuous time for organizations across the globe and Agastya was no exception. But, what started, as a year filled with uncertainty soon became a spring of resilience and innovation. First, our concern for Agastyans’ safety led to the decision to close down Agastya’s operations two weeks before the official downtown. Second, when the time came for Agastya to help surrounding rural communities deeply affected by lockdowns, Agastyans responded with alacrity to support relief work, including supplying food and PPE. Third, as the year progressed, we realized that the crisis presented us with a unique opportunity to reinvent our curriculum and enhance modes of reaching children and teachers. We shifted to digital and phygital (physical+digital) methods of teaching and learning, as a part of the Explore Play Learn (EPL) program. Through EPL we were also able to reach previously untapped communities. By launching COVID-19 Lab-on-a-Bike programs and creating online modules for Lab-on-a-Tab and other digital programs, we educated children about the spread of the virus and encouraged them to adopt safety and hygiene practices to curtail it. These modules are also included in myagastya.education, a new website that uses the digital medium to take Agastya’s hands-on methods to the masses, in both English and regional Indian languages. An Agastyan’s initiative to teach origami through Whatsapp accelerated the willingness of our students to learn on online platforms and prepared Agastya for a pedagogical shift. Both government school teachers and parents viewed EPL positively. Through reliance on accessible home materials for hands-on learning - the home becomes the child’s lab - parents and children became learning companions, as parents became active participants in the learning process.

In a year characterized by extensive and widespread school shutdowns and learning losses among children, Agastya’s innovations helped us reach over 1 million children. Agastyans’ exceptional resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic was featured in a widely viewed global podcast titled The Secret to Resilience: Curiosity and Creativity led by Prof. Phanish Puranam of INSEAD Business School, Iulia Istrate and myself. Since the inception of Agastya, we have made an enduring effort to promote innovation. I am pleased to announce that we have taken a step further in this endeavor, with the launch of Navam Innovation Foundation. Navam is a collaborative initiative between Agastya and Pravaha — the largest beneficiary of Mytrah Energy’s give-back-to-society commitment. Navam will focus on building new pillars of learning excellence, for example in early childhood learning, highly able children learning and innovation and design thinking. I am confident that this initiative will help to catalyze a new generation of grassroots innovators in India. The year witnessed a dramatic reduction in CSR and other funding for NGOs. We are grateful to our current and new partners, who proactively supported Agastya during a difficult period. I remain thankful as ever to our visionary board for their unrelenting support during a challenging year.

Ramji Raghavan

We remain steadfast on the path towards our Agastya 2.0 goal of impacting 100 million children and 1 million teachers by 2028. The implementation of blended learning marks a key milestone along this path.

Resilience! Reinvention! Rising! It has been almost two years since the world, as we knew it, came to a standstill. The lockdown and subsequent closure of schools meant that our operations also came to a grinding halt. We turned this challenge into an opportunity and focused on adapting our programs to the changing times. The principles of resilience and reinvention helped us rise again, stronger and more confident than before. Our annual report for this year is hence focused around the theme of ‘Resilience! Reinvention! Rising!’, narrating stories and instances in which the people behind Agastya’s movement braved the odds to ensure children did not miss out on the Aah! Aha! and Ha-Ha! experience. We began by transforming our Mobile Science Labs into transport for relief material during the first lockdown. The vans travelled into communities and distributed essentials like groceries, masks and hand-sanitisers. Online classes helped us bridge the gaps in education that appeared due to the closure of schools. We also developed special modules to educate children and their families on the spread and effect of COVID-19 and the importance of vaccines and social distancing. The engrossed efforts of our instructors and the willingness of our students to learn on online platforms show the preparedness for a pedagogical shift within the Agastya community. Both government school teachers and parents viewed the EPL (Explore, Play, Learn) positively. Through routine reliance on accessible home materials for hands-on learning, parents and children became learning companions as parents became active participants in the learning process.

Meanwhile, several stories of resilience and reinvention emerged inside the organisation itself. Two of our instructors from Maharashtra converted a cowshed near their house into a classroom and conducted teacher training sessions from it. Another instructor travelled miles to a hilltop so he could get a good network signal for conducting online classes. As you browse through the report, you will find more such stories that bear testament to Agastya’s grit and innovation.

The pandemic taught us several important lessons and helped us see gaps in the education system we were not mindful of before. As we slowly emerge from the clutches of the pandemic, we have taken a vow to be more cognizant and inclusive than ever before and continue onward in our journey to transform today’s children into tomorrow’s leaders.

2020!21 At A Glance

As the world reeled with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, we at Agastya too were faced with our share of challenges due to the lockdown imposed across the country. The closure of schools meant we had to pause our face-to-face sessions and halt our operations for a brief period. We focused on relief efforts in communities, using our mobile vans to distribute food and safety equipment like masks and sanitizers among the needy. Meanwhile, our instructors and staff underwent training as a part of the ‘Sikshana’ program.

With the belief that every challenge presents an opportunity, we began adapting our programs to suit the changing times. The result was a slew of digital programs under the umbrella of EPL (Explore, Play, Learn sessions), which enabled learning beyond the classroom. ‘Online Make Your Own Lab’ kits were used to conduct training sessions for teachers in a virtual model. Science and Innovations fairs also moved online and modules that educated children and communities about the origin and spread of the Coronavirus were introduced in digital programs like Lab-on-a-Tab.

In the latter half of 2020, we launched Innovation Express, an online platform and campaign for innovators to share their innovations and connect with their peers and experts. As the lockdowns eased and we resumed face-to-face sessions adhering to COVID protocols we emerged more resilient and ambitious. The year ended on a high note, with the announcement of Agastya 2.0. The initiative takes the Agsastya movement with a vision to reach 100 Million children, 1 Million Young Instructor Leaders, and 1 Million Teachers by 2025.

Campus Creativity Lab The Kuppam campus is located at a junction of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu and over the past two decades, was transformed from barren fields into a 172-acre space with flourishing vegetation and a range of clusters dedicated to both Arts and Science education for children from surrounding towns and villages. The pandemic may have suspended the daily presence of students on the Kuppam campus but the Aah! Aha! Haha! experience endured in both pre-existing and redesigned forms.

Highlights A pilot study of Parishodhana kits was conducted in 16 villages focusing on the target group of Grades 3 to 8. Parishodhana kits consist of DIY activities based on General Science, Mathematics, Art, Stories, Puzzles, among others. These kits serve the function of delivering hands-on-learning opportunities to children without internet access. The year 2020-21 witnessed several additions to the Kuppam campus infrastructure, augmenting both its efficacy and its aesthetic character. Some of these upgrades include a new BioDiscovery Center, a new conferencing facility, increased connectivity to the campus through Optical Fibre Cables, concrete roads and the plantation of 200 trees by the Eco Club. Four fairs with Science, Math and Art exhibits were conducted in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka between December-January and a two-week workshop on English language was conducted for Agastya instructors by Gitam University, Telangana. 26 science models, methods and prototypes were developed by the staff for the purpose of research and development on themes such as Ion Exchange Model Fabrication and Convex Lens for the visually challenged. The imaginative ideas for these models were provided by the students as a part of the Innovation Hub curriculum

Resilience and Reinvention The pandemic halted the daily movement of students, instructors and mobile labs to and from the campus. However, committed to their tasks and duties, the campus staff and teachers made both continuous and spontaneous attempts toward enduring activity-based learning for the children of Agastya. In lieu of an in-person summer camp, the summers of 2020 and 2021 saw Digital Summer Camps (DSC) which were conducted through online zoom sessions and covered a range of subjects from Mathematics to Science and languages. The success of the DSC is evident as it has been extended till December 2021. Due to the hindrances posed by the lockdowns, the campus staff and instructors conducted mixed-grade classes with the help of government volunteers. With the reopening of schools, the staff travelled long distances of 40-45 kms to reach students who could not be accessed through online classes.

“Anything you don’t know, you can learn here” - BS Nandakumar, Class 9

Science

Centers

Agastya’s Science Centers function as hubs, where models and experiments are exhibited for children to explore, experiment and discover the joy of learning. Our buses transport children from their schools to these centers which are located in urban and semi-urban areas. Our instructors are ever present to provide them with context, encouraging them to have a curious mind and to never stop asking questions. While the pandemic did not allow children to come to the science centers in person, we filled the gaps in learning by reinventing the curriculum and switching to phygital and digital modes of learning.

Highlights The first math center was started in Chennai, Tamil Nadu to ignite curiosity and interest in mathematics among students and teachers and increase access to practical, hands-on math education.

Reinvention Online Project-Based Learning sessions were initiated in all the regions during the lockdown so children could learn from the comfort of their homes, using material that was available in their surroundings.

“‘Courage’ is the most important lesson I have learned at Agastya” - N Sathya, Class 8

Core Science Activity Centres

96, 550 u iq

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23,02,006

e S t ude

ur os

u iq

Core Science Activity Centers (CSACs) are an inventive extension of our Science Centers and are outreach facilities with advanced large-sized models and distinct labs for each subject. The CSACs operate in 5 districts of Karnataka (Hubli, Bidar, Bagalkot, Bijapur, Shivamogga) and organize engaging activities throughout the year. Despite many challenges, 2020-21 was no exception to an engrossing calendar for the CSACs.

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Highlights tion Pvt. Ltd.in collaboration with NASA, our teams from Bidar and Hubli were placed 2nd and 3rd among the Top 100. uitous. Do-It-Yourself (DIY) activities were published in newspapers and a programme was broadcasted on the local channel Chinnara Chilpili which reached 65000 unique views weekly. Additionally, TV sets were installed in 8 villages where smartphones could not be accessed.

low-cost and content-based model making, Lab-in-a-Box programme, digital training. Distribution of 100 education kits was also undertaken. Additionally, a monthly magazine Nanna Vagnana Mitra was circulated to 5000 teachers via mail.

Resilience, Reinvention, Rising Summer Camp (DSC) operated through the CSAC centers. With DIY activities conducted across the subjects of Arts, Science and Mathematics, the DSC was a comprehensive learning experience for our students.

Our teams virtually trained 475 volunteers who in turn reached 9885 students both virtually and through face-to-face sessions.

dial-in sessions for exam preparation and the distribution of masks.

“Take initiative, speak with courage, help people and work without fear” - J Prakash, Class 10

Mobile Science Labs Our Mobile Science Labs (MSLs) are at the forefront of Agsatya’s mission to take hands-on learning to remote corners of the country. They are based on a simple philosophy: If children cannot come to Agastya, Agastya will go to them. Our instructors accompany these vans are equipped with scientific models and experiments which help augment existing school curriculum. The closure of schools due to the pandemic hit our mobile science programs the hardest. But the unrelenting drive to ensure that no child is left behind on the learning curve emboldened us to adapt the program to suit the changing times.

Highlights

Reinvention, Reinvention, Rising

Education Kits were designed to get students to experience hands-on education from the comfort of their homes. The kit enables children to perform experiments and create models using low cost material, all by themselves. A step-by-step instruction manual accompanies the kits that makes the process easier. The kit is designed to be used by 3-4 children in a group and activities are designed covering different subjects like Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Mathematics, Health and Hygiene etc. The activities are suitable for children between 6th and 10th grade

Online classes were conducted by instructors of our Mobile Science Labs for students who were a part of the program. The Mobile Science Labs were repurposed as vehicles for distribution of essentials like food, water and hygiene products to communities that were severely affected by COVID-19. Our strong existing presence in these communities enabled us to identify vulnerable groups and employ our resources to ensure they got the necessary support.

A community visit manual that was developed to streamline the process of interaction with communities under Agastya’s ambit.

“I want to use my education to become a doctor and treat people free of cost” - V Lavanya, Class 8

Lab!on!a! Bike In some parts of the country, the terrain renders it difficult for our Mobile Science Labs to reach children and communities. This is where our Google-award winning Lab-on-a-Bike program comes in. Our instructors take the bike, carrying Lab-in-a-Box, to the remotest corners and promote digital literacy and experiential learning with fun experiments and science models. The learning modules of the program were redesigned in 2020-21 to spread awareness on the COVID-19 pandemic.

Highlights Several activities were designed for Lab-in-a-Box to include curriculum for children from lower grades. Three such boxes filled with fun activities were developed and taken to children through Lab-on-a-Bike. Materials from Lab-on-a-Box were also used to conduct online classes for children in South Karnataka.

Reinvention and Rising A special COVID-19 Lab-on-a-Bike was developed to offer children an opportunity to understand diseases and epidemics in an interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary manner.. Through these activities, disease spread is covered in Biology, drug development in Chemistry, outbreak dynamics in Math, social impacts in Economics and Humanities. Boundaries. Two such COVID LOBs were launched in Gadad district of Karnataka.

“Don’t say ‘yes’. Ask ‘why’”. - Subramani H, Class 10

Operation Vasanta

A demonstrably widespread reality in Indian schools is the high drop-out rate of students, a predicament that is linked to pervasively low incomes across the country. Agastya’s Operation Vasantha (OV), a night community center program, is expressly focused on bringing dropouts back into mainstream education. OV shifts school hours to the evening so that learners, both adults and children, do not have to choose between obtaining an education or earning a livelihood. Socially conscious volunteers from the communities we work in are given training so they can conduct these classes. The activities include arts and crafts, quizzes, and reading exercises and enhance the scientific and interpersonal skills of youth and children in the community.

Children Exposures

18,22,128 Number of OV Centers

330

Highlights

Resilience, Reinvention, Rising

-A “Meet the Scientist” event was organised for OV children with special two-hour sessions conducted virtually. 45+ OV volunteers participated and eagerly resolved their doubts regarding science education and research.

1. In response to the restrictions posed by the pandemic, our OV volunteers participated in the events conducted by MSL and Science Center teams, thereby exhibiting a resilient sensibility of improvisation and spontaneity.

-Dr. Amrita Dass, a distinguished career counsellor, conducted a virtual event for both volunteers and students and discussed varied themes such as the exploration of different career options and setting career pathway goals.

2. During the lockdown on physical classes, our local teams trained OV volunteers to conduct both online and offline sessions, considering all covid protocols and precautions. Our OV students learnt via EPL sessions and remained connected to the community through varied media.

-A Mime workshop was conducted virtually by Ms. Suhasini Seelin. The workshop spanned 4 extensive sessions focusing on how to express emotions through objects and through our own bodies thereby introducing the children to nonverbal theatre.

3. Our OV teams plan to recuperate by restoring the community libraries in OV Centers and restarting the OV fairs. An internal quarterly magazine, collecting creative works from all OV centers, is also under development.

-On the occasion of Children’s Day, a Film contest was organized by the Agastya team where 40+ OV volunteers participated and contributed their creations. Dasumanupalli village in Andhra Pradesh, won the first prize.

“My confidence has grown since coming to the Agastya Kuppam campus” - V Poornima, Class 10

Young

61024 Unique YILs

Instructor Leaders The Young Instructor Leader (YIL) program redefines the traditional relationship between students and teachers, and between the students themselves. Children who show leadership abilities are identified and trained to become Young Instructor Leaders, engaging their peers in an interactive environment. Peer-to-peer teaching method not only helps YILs expand their knowledge, it also allows other children to grasp and retain concepts easily owing to the fact that they are learning from their fellow students. The YIL program also has an active alumni group, the members of which have gone one to become accomplished individuals in their chosen fields.

214678 Direct Exposure reached

Rs.7.5 Lac given as Scholarship to

272 Alumni

18 locations, 7 states, 9 regions 19

Highlights 3700 YILs graduated in the year 2020-21 and 2700 new YILs were added. YILs attended a 5 week long mentoring workshop in Maharashtra. Home Lab Kits filled with hands-on science experiments were distributed among more than 2500 YILs to encourage them to explore from the comfort of their homes. Two virtual alumni meets were conducted at Hubli and Kuppam with more than 500 YILs in attendance for each.

Reinvention The YIL team showed resilience by shifting from physical mode to digital sessions and eventually to “Phygital” (Physical+Digital) in the latter half of the year. More than 5000 YILs were trained on " How to use digital platforms". The activities which could not be taught via online classes were conducted through pre-recorded videos.

“Agastya is a weapon of change that can transform a child’s personality” - V Velmurugan, Class 9

Acharya Initiative Teacher Training Program

Acharaya Initiative Teacher Training Program (TTP) is one of the crown jewels of Agastya’s programs, equipping government school teachers with the resources and methods necessary to transform the learning landscape of India. Through workshops, we train teachers in ‘Constructivism’ (the method of constructing knowledge out of experiences). They are also trained to develop low-cost experiments that enable them to demonstrate scientific knowledge in an experiential manner in their classrooms. While we have conducted hundreds of face-to-face workshops over the years, this year, we began to organise virtual sessions owing to the lockdown.

Highlights developed as teaching material. Several of these videos are now available on the Agastya YouTube channel. was developed. to co-create educational resources that would be made available to all educators.

Reinvention on a volunteer basis. strate scientific experiments, were transformed into Online Make-Your-Own-Lab kits. These were couriered to teachers and an interactive, participatory virtual training program was developed.

“If we can save the environment, it will save us”

- DM Naresh, Class 10

Innovation Programs Mini Innivation Hubs and Mobile Innovation Bus Exposures (Mini Innovation Hub)

207640

Number of Prototypes

570

Innovation Fair’s

308

Prototypes

Innovation Fair exposures 4432

If there is no innovation, there is no progress. And in today's fast-paced world, it is impossible to remain relevant without progressing with the times. Our innovation programs ensure children can enhance their inherent innovative mindset to not just keep up with the times, but to get ahead of them. Mini Innovation Hubs are centers that focus on developing inquisitiveness and problem-solving skills in children. These hubs concentrate on innovation in STEM subjects and the design process, thereby prioritizing the cultivation of a design thinking mindset in students. The curriculum is divided into 8 parts and entails a comprehensive layout that ensures both class participation and extensive student retention. The hubs operate in several regions across Delhi, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Chennai.

Innovation Fairs Exposures 3837

Mini Innovation Bus Exposures 108511

In 2019, we launched the Mobile Innovation Bus, a mobile maker-space that travels to schools and engages students in experiments and in designing inventive prototypes with the resources of the bus, under the guidance of our instructors. The end results are showcased at the Innovation Carnival, which acts as a platform for the children to present their innovations to the world

Highlights with J.P. Morgan. 200 children from Mumbai participated in the virtual session and with the help of volunteers from engineering colleges and experts from J.P. Morgan, they created 33 ideas and prototypes that were intended to act as solutions to problems in their surroundings. shops focused on empathy, problem solving and innovation and were attended by children, Agatsya instructors and even parents. culture of innovative deliberation and discourse. Innovation Clubs interact at regular intervals after school hours and are a self-space for student groups and peer interactions. Award (USAID) at the IRIS fair.

Reinvention Our teams responded to the changing times by redesigning the curriculum and creating a teaching schedule fit for online learning. They devised a methodology based on the three pillars of Design Thinking, Frugal Innovation and Rapid Prototyping. The content was made corresponding to 1-2 week long projects that could be completed using household materials and 12 thematic sessions were designed covering both local and global issues.

“People in the village take us seriously because we ae from Agastya” - V Hemavathi, Class 10

Digital

Programs

iMobile The iMobile programme was launched in 2012 with the objective of bridging the gap in digital literacy and enhancing the self-learning of science concepts. The programme has been running across 8 states through 26 vans with a specific focus directed toward middle and high school children. Motivated towards cultivating technological proficiency, the iMobile programme is an enriching supplement to the everyday experience of learning through models, books and discussions. The curriculum entails 24 modules that are taught over 2 years and the lessons include Sketchpad, Tux typing, Photo editing, MS-office, Computational thinking and Scratch programming.

i-Mobile labs.

Highlights Agastya collaborated with STEMpedia as a community partner for Codeavour 2020, the biggest international online Artificial Intelligence and coding contest for kids. The expected impact of the Codeavour competition was 40K students and 5000 teams over 30 countries. 18 students participated in a special session on Scratch programming conducted by Ms. Rachna, a Computer Science student at the University of Texas, Dallas. More than 20 Tech Fairs were conducted, providing a platform to both students and teachers to learn from each other’s innovative experiments. The Tech Fairs were replete with reports and models made from household items by elementary, middle and high school students.

Resilience, Reinvention, Rising The routine arrangement of 3 children sharing one laptop was discontinued as per Covid protocols and instead the iMobile team conducted classes through Android Application Package (APK) and through GoogleEarth, PosterMaker, Tangrams among others. The team conducted EPL (Explore, Play, Learn) sessions and reamined motivated to teach science content through online classes.

“My exposure to Agastya’s teaching methods have helped cement my desire to become a teacher” - N Kusuma, Class 8

Lab!on!a! Tab Keeping pace with the times, Agastya has intently incorporated technology within education and taken its modules online. In the Lab-on-a-Tab (LOT) program, the children are given tabs that contain interactive lessons on Physics, Chemistry and Biology curated in English and in vernacular languages. The modules, which employ contextual examples, are easy-to-understand and accessible and are additionally sources of enjoyment as they allow students to conjointly work with touch-screen technology.

Highlights Covid-19, were launched in 6 languages, including English. These multidisciplinary covid modules employ whiteboard animations and comic strips to address a diverse range of themes such as the socio-economic impact of pandemics, mental health, the history of germs, viruses, pandemics, antibiotics and vaccines. The team also published modules addressing the hesitancy to get vaccinated. 25 Integrated Science Modules were published in English, Hindi, Kannada, Marathi, Odia and Telugu. The distinguishing characteristic of these modules is that they approach scientific concepts as an individual entity that can be understood through an interdisciplinary perspective.

Resilience and Reinvention The LOT team utilized the lockdown by updating the content within their repository and also significantly redesigning the LOT application. The LOT app is now functional in both online and offline modes and is thus unhindered by issues of internet connectivity. The application was also upgraded with the noteworthy feature of being compatible with all smart devices and renamed as “WeLearn”on PlayStore. Prior to the pandemic, there was a greater focus on increasing the number of beneficiaries. However, the lockdown offered time to reevaluate the core aspects of the LOT content and the curriculum. As both the conceptual and technological aspects of the program are strengthened, the team is looking forward to welcoming a greater number of students within its fold.

Secondary students. Furthermore, the ideation for 10 new modules in 5 languages on Healthcare and 10 Mathematics modules was completed.

Impact assessment Through carefully collected feedback and evaluation, we continually improve and redesign our programs to bring the best of the Aah! Aha! And Ha-Ha! experience to children. The year of the Covid-19 pandemic presented the impact team with many challenges and thus propelled many developments in the system of data collection. With negligible physical interaction with students, existing independent tools of data accumulation such as Pi cards were not conducive for assessment. The inaccessibility and unavailability of compatible mobile devices, particularly in rural and tribal areas, ensuring data credibility and designing a uniform, aim, and scalable assessment system that also corresponds to the attention span of young children, were other substantial challenges. We incorporated Google Forms into impact analysis this year and proved to be a zero-cost model which also allowed for unique responses to be filled in directly by the students eliminating the middle-man interface. The other techniques employed were the collection of Case Stories, Focused Group Discussions between the impact team and students, government teachers and parents, and Student Profile Building. While the shift to Google Forms for the year 2020-21 reduced the sample size, it ensured data credibility in statistically significant numbers.

Qualitative Assessment Agastya’s initiatives are also focused on encouraging important behavioral shifts: from saying ‘Yes to Why’, from ‘Looking to Observing’, from being ‘Passive to Exploring’, from ‘Textbook bound to Hands-on’ learning, and from ‘Fear to Confidence’. Evaluated through testimonies and case stories, we map these indicators via a behavioral matrix. The matrix indicators are Persistence, Active Participation, Generation of Ideas, Development of Ideas, Linking Ideas, Attentive (Self regulative), Teamwork, and Leadership. 333 case stories and 2037 instances were curated in the 2020-21 and the results were:

Create Behavioral Indicators 23%

Create Behavioral Shift 15%

Yes to why

12% 7%

Fear to confidence

10%

Active Participation

Generation of ideas

Teamwork

Linking ideas

29%

18%

Textbook to Hands-on

Development of ideas

27%

Persistence

25%

Passiveness to exploring

21% Looking to Observing

5% Leadership

Attention

Quantitative Assessment The method of quantitative evaluation has developed over the years to keep pace with the increasing reach of our programs across regions. With our programs currently operating in 21 states, our impact team evaluates over 1 lakh samples every year. The various techniques of assessment have progressed from observational techniques and simple questionnaires to digital data capturing via Pi-card applications on mobile phones. This digital framework, which was designed by IIM-Bangalore, served the dual purpose of increasing data accuracy and reducing paper wastage while also eliminating 99% of manual data entry. This framework also planned four parameters that closely corresponded to Agastya’s primary objectives.

Assessment Parameters Awareness

Knowledge among relevant stakeholders of alternative methods of learning and teaching science that is preferred

Curiosity

Behaviour characterized by exploration, investigation, observation, and a desire to learn more about new, incongruous, or unknown elements

Confidence

The ability to stand up and speak their mind and consciousness of their own ability and power and also demonstration of the same

Sample size – 2020!21 Girls – 5800

Total Sample – 9963 students

Boys - 4163

Overall improvement score Average % Score 76.6%

79.5%

Awareness

80%

85.7%

Curiosity Pre

77.3%

81.4%

Confidence

Post

-Knowledge of alternative experiential methods of learning and teaching science (AWARENESS) is improved by 2.9% -Behavior characterized by exploration, investigation, observation, and a desire to learn more about new, incongruous, or unknown elements (CURIOSITY) is improved by 5.7% -The ability to stand up and speak their mind, to develop consciousness of their own ability and to demonstrate the same (CONFIDENCE) is improved by 4.1%

Genderwise score 2.9%

3.0%

Awareness

3.8%

5.7%

Curiosity

4.3%

Confidence

Partners ABB India Foundation Adobe Systems India Private Limited Aeques Foundation Aerostructures Manufacturing India Pvt Ltd Alok Oberoi Foundation AMM Foundation

Kapadwanj Kelvani Mandal Kiran Mazumdar Shaw Philanthropy L&T Technology Services Limited Larsen & Toubro Public Charitable Trust Laurus Labs Limited Lenovo India Private Limited

ANZ Support Services India Pvt. Ltd.

LSI India Research

Association Saikorian (Krushi Home)

Namita Gandhi(Give2Asia)

Australian High Commission Avaya India Private Limited Azim Premji Philanthropic Initiatives BA Continuum India Private limited Balrampur Chini Mills Limited Bangalore International Airport Bata India Limited Bharat Oman Refineries Limited Bosch Limited Carl Bechem Lubricants India Private Ltd Charities Aid Foundation America Cipla Foundation Cognizant Foundation Cognizant Technology Solutions India Private Limited Deshpande Foundation Deutsche Bank AG DOW Chemical India Private Limited EdelGive Foundation Expleo Solutions Limited (SQS India BFSI Limited) H T Parekh Foundation Herbalife International India Hero Moto Corp Limited Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited

Nomura NTPC Omega Healthcare Management Services Pvt Ltd Origin Learning Solutions Private Limited Piaggio Vehicles Private Limited Pravaha Foundation Professor Krishna Ganesh R K Industries Ranger Apprarel Export Pvt.Ltd Rolls - Royce India Private Limited Rural India Supporting Trust Sabre Travel Technology Pvt Ltd Saint-Gobain India Foundation SanDisk India Device Design Centre Pvt Ltd (Western Digital) SBI Funds Management PrivateLimited Shoft Shipyard Private Limited Siemens Technology & Services Private Limited Smiths Detection Systems Private Limited SNC Lavalin Engineering India Private Limited Sonata InformationTechnology Sony India Software Centre Private Limited Srinivasan Services Trust (SST) Suven Trust

Honeywell Hometown Solutions India Foundation

Symantec Software India Pvt. Ltd

IIFLW CSR Foundation

Synopsys (India) Private Limited

Iimpact Indian Machine Tools Manufacturers Infosys Foundation Ingersoll Rand India Limited Intuitive Surgical India Private Limited J P Morgan Services India Private Limited

Taegutec India P Ltd Texas Instruments (India) Private Limited The Doon School Old Boys Society The MurthyNAYAK Foundation Titan Company Limited Truetzschler India Private Limited

John Crane Sealing Systems India Private Limited

Verizon Data Services India Pvt Ltd

Kalaari Capital Advisors Private Limited

VFS Global Services Private Limited

Kallianji Chaturbhuj and Vijay Cantol Charitable Trust

W S Atkins (India) Private Limited Wells Fargo India Solutions Private Limited

Disclaimer Some images featured in the report were taken before the COIVD-19 pandemic Agastya International Foundation (hereafter referred to as ‘Agastya’) reserves the right to use any photograph/video/recording taken at any program/event organized or sponsored by Agastya, without the expressed written permission of those included within the photograph/video/recording. Agastya may use the photograph/video in publications or other marketing material produced or commissioned by Agastya. This includes (but is not limited to) brochures, social media posts, books, websites, and news articles. Agastya ensures the privacy of children and individuals featured in the photographs/videos/recordings. The individuals will not be identified using full names or any other identifying personal information. Agastya seeks explicit written approval from the photographed individual, parent, or guardian where identifying information will be disclosed. If any individual objects to their photograph being featured in the Report, please write to us at info@agastya.org.

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