ImproMaths - A passion
Being an Electronics Engineer by education and Software Engineer by profession, I struggled for 8 years in the Software Industry, being unemployed for 3 years of those. Deep down I knew that I was not made for SW profession but I kept on going as I was under the impression that it was the only thing I knew. I used to think, I owed it to my parents as they had spent so much money and effort on my education. How could I say that I didn’t want to work in the Industry that everyone was dying to get into? I forced myself to like the work I was doing, at times lying to myself that I enjoyed the work. I was inherently sincere, so I got a fair amount of success there too. But that success always felt incomplete. My lack of enthusiasm might have been visible because soon I couldn’t find a new job when I migrated to Singapore. When I was unemployed, I was at the lowest point in my professional life. I tried doing Android programming, but that too did not give me the satisfaction I was looking for. I used to find excuses about not doing the work I was trying to do. I was at the verge of depression. Life was getting slower and it was affecting all the areas of my life.
However, one day, one of my friends called me up asking whether I would be able to teach her daughter Mathematics. Her daughter was extremely scared of Mathematics to the point that she used to get nightmares, before the Mathematics exam. I was more than willing to take the opportunity as I wanted something to put me into the gears and teaching sounded like fun. I had done teaching in the past. So, I was ready to start and I am forever indebted to my friend for giving me this opportunity. It was the start of a very beautiful journey.
As I started teaching, I realized that the void in my life was suddenly filled with warmth and passion. It was like a light bulb switched on in my head, my heart. My entire being was covered in light.
With every success my student was achieving, the light in my heart was getting brighter. I had found my calling. Teaching gave me everything I wanted from my professional life. However, the biggest thing it gave me was the satisfaction in the work. I was actually enjoying the process and the results were incredible. Even after I got a fulltime job I continued teaching and the students started to trickle in. Soon the floodgates opened and ImproMaths family started to grow. So, after my baby boy was born, I decided to say goodbye to the Software Industry and get into full time teaching. These past 7 + years have been amazing and fulfilling. Each and every student has given me a new lease of life. I have found my purpose.
My passion helped me to be different in many ways. I chose teaching as a way to pay it forward. I had a fabulous teacher who would go to leaps and bounds to make us understand and help us enjoy the subject. I have been trying to be like her. I can answer any question, any amount of times no matter how basic it is. No judgements there. Goal here is to make sure my students understand the concept before we move forward. I never get agitated if they do not understand. I can teach patiently and from the bottom of my heart, and that might be the reason I can motivate my students to perform better. My students can see the efforts I am putting into teaching them and they reciprocate with the same amount of efforts. That’s how we produce results together.
How patiently can I teach? I had taught integers to a student for 1.5 months till he could do any integer problem I put in front of him. I had taken his parents into confidence and they were happily onboard. Like me, they too believed in getting the fundamentals cleared before going on to bigger stuff. The 1.5 months we spent have paid off so well. Even today if I give him an integer question he can answer without a second’s delay. Repeating until students understand and teaching in different ways are my strengths. I can mold my teaching according to the student’s grasping. Getting parents involved helps to channelize the efforts in the right direction. The student, their parents and I make a great, successful team.
I believe that if I remove the fear of asking questions and fear of being judged then students will be more willing to share their problems. Encouraging the students to ask more questions gives them a clear idea of what they know and what they need to know. At ImproMaths we have a rule that no one laughs or mocks anyone else for any kind of questions asked or mistakes made. Infact, at ImproMaths mistakes are encouraged. The more mistakes they make the better they learn. This in turn helps them to learn Mathematics in a way that is fun and interactive.
As my students are improving, I am growing too. I am growing as a teacher, as an individual and also as an entrepreneur. Every step I am taking is directing me to a new life. My students and their questions always keep me on my toes. They encourage me to learn new things and keep on improving myself. My students make me a better person.
All along this way, my husband Vishwas was with me like my rock. He patted my back on my triumphs whereas pushed me forward when the road got rocky. He always said as long as I made progress I was winning. He helped me change my definition of success and I am doing the same for my students.
I always keep on searching the why behind everything, So I started to see that fear of Mathematics is a very common phenomenon. I started digging in deeper and started to see what’s actually behind the fear. Either the subject was not taught properly or the student did not get their doubts cleared on time or they just believed that they were not made to do something as complicated as Mathematics. The fear and anxiety due to Mathematics only grow bigger. So, by the time they come to their crucial years of 8 grade and above Mathematics has become a scary monster. So I started making sure that their concepts are upto date. ImproMaths even launched a course “ImproMaths Basic” to make sure that the students get their basics cleared. We will keep doing these courses periodically. So keep a watch on this page for further updates.
I realized that only teaching Mathematics is not enough. I need to work on the negative emotions around Mathematics as well as limiting beliefs like “I am not good enough to do Mathematics.” I started searching for the ways to help students battle this fear and anxiety and then found my solution in NLP techniques. I immediately started working on my NLP certification. Now I am an NLP certified Life coach. I am positive that along with teaching Mathematics, these techniques will help students perform to their optimum potential.
If you want to know more about NLP do watch my video or read about NLP and give me a call to discuss more about it.
So once again welcome to ImproMaths and I am looking forward to seeing you as a part of ImproMaths family.
Great content! Keep up the good work!
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Very nice article. I definitely appreciate this site. Keep it up!
hank you for your appreciation. Please keep supporting us. You can also subscribe to our Youtube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCi-I12XFuWsA7GQOneDQjiQ for more such content.