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BACKGROUND - WHY SMARTQ?
As usually happens with the rhythm of change in life, there comes a time when the need to turn a corner beckons us all. It calls one to engage in something more meaningful in life, to make a contribution that satisfies a higher level of service, and most of all, to follow what one believes in. In my case this happened after i had worked for many years in the education sector. BACKGROUND - WHY SMARTQ?
As a teacher I was always a natural ponderer. I pondered on the gaps between the top performers in class and those that struggled to catch up. I wondered why some children loved learning and doing school work, while others became alienated easily. My empathy with those that needed extra support grew with time.
My big question, particularly after I raised my own children, was how the struggle to meet standards in class impacted on the human spirit of the affected child. Was the struggle itself further demolishing the child's inner confidence and hence contributing to the downward spiral.
I further questioned who was responsible for creating such a situation for the child. Was it a shortcoming of the individual child or the system? Did the system provide what the child needed, specifically? A hard question. My search for answers overpowered anything else I did.
I set forth to sacrifice many things in life to study some key programmes that were centered around assisting a child to develop their inner thinking powers to their maximum potential. I was hooked into the idea of supporting young minds with isolated, content free, and systematic approach to thinking skills development, I saw a very big need for this.From 2006 I started explored many brain based programmes and systems of learning. I researched and attended many courses. I found that brain based learning was still in its infancy in many part of the world. It was not a concept developed or understood sufficiently. Hence it was not a practice of most mainstream classrooms.
Feuerstein Instrumental Enrichment tools and methods was the first programme I trained in and experimented for many years, while still keeping a day job. The independence, empowerment and satisfaction this approach offered children that I worked with pushed me to carry on despite many road blocks and struggles.
Today I use several important brain based learning models in my programme. With a thorough understanding of both the New Zealand and the Australian curriculum (where I spent 10 years in Australian classrooms), the issues with learning and the children I have worked with, I have been able to design an online version of Intelligence Teaching and offer it to any interested child in New Zealand.
I hope the children I coach will find a much stronger platform for igniting and expanding their thinking skills. I now have over 12 years experience in helping children understand the thinking functions of their brains, and working to improve them.
I am currently a registered teacher in New Zealand but my focus now is completely on private tuition. I hope many children are able to benefit from my tutoring.
Urmila Devi
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