Our present-day education system is a place where marks, grades and report card antics take precedence to a child’s creative and inherent skills. The formative years spent in schools are the most conducive for a student in terms of the learning that takes place and gets ingrained in the child’s memory. This sets the direction in which the child’s acumen gets sculpted, and it is our responsibility as teachers, parents and mentors to provide a dynamic learning environment. This change can only be brought about by encouraging students not only to move away from rote learning but also to see things in a logical, rational and analytical way. The entire Indian education system now believes in providing education that does not burden the student and relies more on experiential learning. The focus is on moulding individuals into wholesome personalities.
One widely held perception which requires attention is that children experiment less and memorize more. Especially, in an environment where we are exposed to a lot of information and facts, we tend to assimilate and reflect others’ opinions and ideas and in the long run lose out on the cognitive ability to think independently. There is a need to provide an environment and introduce methodologies where every child does not just quietly accept the things being taught but is urged to question and think.
Given that there is a growing demand for such educational services and the vast market remains untapped, we believe that there is potential to build a profitable business due to economies of scale. We, at Phyzok™, firmly believe that the better way of learning and nurturing one’s thought process is by being analytical. The analytical thought process boosts scientific temper; it brings students to a state of mind where, before accepting anything new, they question the objective behind the thought being invoked, seeking knowledge and being satisfied only when things are proved with substantial evidence.
Phyzok aims at providing comprehensive educational solutions that can complement the existing framework of the school educational system by introducing technological innovations for content delivery to make the learning experience an enjoyable one. It transforms the way education is delivered.
Technology application from the point of view of content delivery has so far been very limited in the Indian educational system. The traditional classroom setting with a predominantly lecturebased method of delivery together with an evaluation system based on memory testing and a bit of analytical ability continues to be a common phenomenon. NASSCOM report of 2005 reveals that ‘Only one in four engineering graduates in India is employable, based on their technical skills and practical abilities.’ In this backdrop, a perception that exists is that children experiment less and memorize more. Especially, in an environment where students are exposed to a lot of information and facts, they tend to assimilate and reflect on the limited framework that their teachers provide by way of reproduction from texts and, in turn, focus gets lost in children in developing a cognitive ability to think independently. There is a need for an environment where every child participates actively in the classroom, interacts constantly and is urged to question, analyse and involve oneself in wholesome learning.
Phyzok is a venture that addresses the issue of developing cognitive ability to think and contribute in developing an analytical frame of mind. The solution lies in having a comprehensive approach coupled with an effective technology-based delivery system that can address the issue. Phyzok aims at a comprehensive school package integrated with the school’s regular system to revolutionize the education delivery system.
The package includes Phyzok’s experimental and simulation kits, that is, hands-on activity kits associated to the curriculum that allows students to explore, experiment and innovate. These kits are composed of separable structures that can be assembled as per the instructions to create the required design for different concepts of learning. For example, if oscillations and the simple pendulum is being taught, the students would be required to create a pendulum using the rods, string and bob. This would be the first step towards engaging the student, but only physically. The next step is to engage them mentally, which is executed through the content and instruction manual for the teachers. For example, the teacher then explains oscillations using the design, which every student in the class has, and then the teacher demonstrates the change in the time period by changing the length of the string, by changing the weight of the bob and by oscillating it inside a tub of water. The teacher, then, reveals the required formula to the students and relates it to the activity they just did. Not just this, once the students have understood the whole phenomenon, the teacher goes a step beyond and creates different scenarios in the class such as taking a hollow bob, filling water in it and then asking the student to predict the change in time period; pricking a hole in the bob, letting the water drip out and then asking the student to predict the change in the time period. These contents and thought-provoking scenarios are provided to the teachers by teacher’s training and a manual that guides them for each class.
The venture also provides a comprehensive and continuous evaluation mechanism to test the acquired knowledge and skill sets by the students and a feedback mechanism to improve on their performance by using the modules. A technology innovation, personal response system, a handheld portable device with keypads and sensor tags, which integrates the entire teaching program, will provide an engaging and inviting learning environment and maximize active learning for students, will improve teaching effectiveness as immediate feedback on the class’ performance is available and will greatly reduce paperwork and faculty labour associated with attendance, test administration, grade recording and analysis. It will act as a single source of information for students— school updates and notices. A comprehensive school management system will be provided which integrates all that has been just mentioned to facilitate smooth operation that can also automate a school’s diverse operations. Pedagogy of teaching-learning would be developed depending on the subject matter to be taught by using appropriate methods and techniques.
The team consists of Lohit Sahu, who studied mechanical engineering at BITS-Pilani. He was a member of the Centre for Entrepreneurial Leadership (CEL) and co-ordinated the Business Plan Workshop series. He was the president of Madhyansh (cultural association) at BITS and a member of the music club. Sahu has worked with the Department of Education, Government of Chhattisgarh, to implement a unique education delivery system in rural areas. He had won numerous national and international business plan competitions. On his graduation, the business plan was incubated under TBI by DST, Government of India, at BITS-Pilani. Since his graduation, Sahu has been working with the current students at BITS to develop an efficient education delivery for schools. He has been getting mentoring support from two of the professors of the institute having an expertise in the area of software development, educational technology and market research, respectively.
Sourabh, co-founder of the company, is pursuing a dual degree course of M.Sc. (Hons.) Chemistry with BE (Hons.) Chemical at BITS-Pilani, Pilani campus. Sourabh has leadership qualities as evident from having played important roles in the Students’ Union and in organizing some of the prominent activities on the campus. He has worked with NSS in improving the quality of education in rural areas. Sourabh is associated with Phyzok as a Team Lead for iSpire wing, and he has decided to pursue his career at Phyzok fulltime after his graduation.
Akshay, another co-founder of Phyzok, is a dual degree student at BITS-Pilani, Pilani campus, pursuing M.Sc. (Hons) Mathematics with BE (Hons.) Mechanical. Akshay has been associated with Phyzok for the past one and a half years. He has won various business plan competitions and intends to work with Phyzok fulltime on his graduation to develop the Phyzok lab kits.
Phyzok is to come up with this technology for improving the effectiveness of learning and making it a more enjoyable experience. It is expected that accelerated spread effect in terms of demand would occur with the benefits realized by the strategically selected schools in the beginning. The target classes to begin with have been identified as classes VII to X of schools in tier-2 and tier-3 cities, where the schools have realized the need to improve the delivery system and find it too difficult to attract good teachers. The proposed solution being more impactful and cost-effective is expected to find a better launch pad in this segment of the market, as the demand is high, and there is not a single player in the market that provides the solutions at this price. Some of the leading boards in the country such as Central Board for Secondary Education (CBSE) have initiated certain innovations during 2009–11, which are likely to be further intensified. As the first steps, the students at class X have an option to skip the board examination. The policy changes suggest that very soon the traditional examination system will be replaced by continuous comprehensive evaluation (CCE). The CCE guidelines have been released and the schools, at this point of time, are finding it difficult to introduce the same. Though CBSE has put programmes in place to channelize the schools during the transition period, the overhauling in the coming years provides a huge market for Phyzok to offer its services, similar to the case with state boards in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.
The venture team has done successful pilot projects for Phyzok in the schools of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab and is looking forward to further expanding the programme to states such as Uttaranchal and Delhi. In the last one year, the Phyzok sample kits have been demonstrated to more than 28,000 students in 30 schools, and the response has been overwhelming, as evident from their further enquiries and having paid a fee per student after the workshop. The schools were highly impressed by the performance and have already renewed the contract. In the North, certain prominent brands with chains of schools are in the process of negotiation to avail the services. The company is incubating under TBI by the Department of Science and Technology (Government of India) at one of the prominent and leading institutions in the country.
Phyzok envisions the classroom of tomorrow—a perfect mix of existing traditional methods infused with advancement in technology that can provide a dynamic learning environment for students. ‘Phyzok classroom programme’, which can be integrated with the regular curriculum in the form of workshop sessions or year-long programmes with exclusively designed content, would expose students to varied concepts in science, social sciences, economics and real-life scenarios through live concept demonstrations (Phyzok labs), simulations, activities (group and individual) and interactive sessions that nurture the analytical thought process, promote scientific temper and make students think beyond the textbooks, explore and understand the concepts taught in the classroom in a better way. Phyzok labs will be installed in schools for engaging students with the concepts through models, kits, simulations and experiments powered by PDCs (Phyzok development centres). Interactive questioning is facilitated through response systems.
Comprehensive and continuous evaluation will be conducted by exposing students to multiple, different and higher-order thinking platforms that provide continuous feedback for improvement. Customized supplementary content and evaluation materials aligned to the curriculum will be delivered as modules, which would consist of topic-wise case studies that evoke critical thinking and hands-on activity kits that allow the students to explore and experiment.
The Phyzok classroom programme will deploy ‘Phyzok classroom response systems’ (keypads or input devices) that can also be integrated in the school’s regular teaching environment. The response systems would provide an engaging and inviting learning environment and maximize active learning for students, improve teaching effectiveness as immediate feedback on the class’s performance is available and greatly reduce paperwork and faculty labour associated with attendance, test administration, grade recording and analysis.
Phyzok school package would also include a complete school management system that would cater to the school’s diverse operations (administration tasks).
Phyzok package includes an exclusively designed content that nurtures the analytical thought process and stresses on a case-study-based approach rather than lectures and provides a comprehensive evaluation system that tests students on different platforms that is stress free, thereby letting a student think beyond textbooks and exams and allowing them to explore, experiment and apply their learning in real life. Apart from exclusive content, Phyzok’s innovative delivery mechanism that employ workshops, hands-on kits, case studies and the use of student response systems would engage every child in the classroom, democratizing learning, thereby providing a dynamic environment with improved teacher–student interaction.
The student response system can also be used for test administration, grading and attendance, which will greatly reduce the school’s paperwork and faculty labour. Phyzok™ is the only programme that pioneers a unique classroom programme based on ATP (Analytical Thought Process) delivery across India. The emphasis is on moving away from rote learning while, at the same time, promoting higher-order thinking skills. The delivery model is unique and ensures the physical and mental engagement of students using the inquiry-based approach. Novel experiments, kits, models and simulations are introduced to the children rather than merely employing visual aids. This facilitates hands-on and minds-on learning. Phyzok’s evaluation system comprises a mixture of methods from activity based to paper and pencil that do not stress a student. By utilizing student response systems, Phyzok will pioneer in technology introduction in the academic evaluation market. Phyzok also aims at providing a comprehensive school management solution system that automates the diverse operations of the school. Overall, Phyzok is a comprehensive solution for education delivery, evaluation and general management of the educational institutions, directed with an experiential- and enquiry-based approach.
There are a few companies that are working in the domain, but with a different product, such as Educomp, Edurite and NIIT. Phyzok differentiates from their products in terms of highly customized products with multiple-times more impact on the end users at a cheaper cost. The team has undertaken a detailed market research to identify their niche areas and have found that there is no player in the market operating with the concept and product that Phyzok is offering.
Phyzok aims at utilizing the funding to expand the R&D wing for product development and move into mass production of Phyzok lab kits (experiments, models, simulations—both physical and audio/visual). It will consist of content research, instructional designing, prototype modelling, testing and revisions. In addition, the funding will be used to initiate research and prototype modeling of student response system hardware and software. The venture in this phase of development is in need of `65 lakhs to be incurred as follows: on initial technology perfection—`20 lakhs; for pilot runs taking care of development models, prototypes, software developments—`15 lakhs; for final prototype manufacture and hardware and software integration—`15 lakhs; for marketing initiatives mainly involving personal selling and some advertisement in the media—`15 lakhs.
The major hardware and software expenses would be incurred on workstations, motion graphics software, imaging software, engineering designing software and materials to manufacture the kits’ prototype.
1. What would be the best strategy from the long-term perspective to unfold the Phyzok venture? Explain.
2. Which stage of growth would one identify Phyzok with at present? Explain.
3. Viewing oneself as a funding organization, what are the information gaps that one would like to get filled in for taking a view to fund the proposal?
4. Which source of funding would one recommend to Phyzok and why at this stage of development? Critically examine different sources and their advantages and disadvantages to recommend a source of funding.
5. Would it be advisable for Phyzok to seek venture capital funding? Justify your answer by giving concrete reasons and rationale for your decision.
6. Would it be advisable for Phyzok to raise funding through equity or debt at this stage of their growth?