What Can't We Teach through Learning by Doing? Aditya Dev Sood (CKS)

Global consortium for innovation knowledge

Louise PulfordHead, SIX

UK’s nodal agency for innovation

Geoff MulganChief Executive, Nesta

Netherlands’ technical

and innovation university

Jan Carel Diehl Professor, TU Delft

India’s leading innovation

consultancy

Dr. Aditya Dev SoodFounder and CEO,

CKS

Existing Approaches Are Not Working

• Classroom lecture rote study approaches do not enhance the practical ability to work in the real world.

• This is a disservice to students and industry alike.

• The ability to prepare for exams does not translate into leadership and innovation skills.

• The pedagogy must be radically transformed.

“We don’t expect anything apart from theoretical lectures, mindless mugging and exams in higher education in India.” – Undergraduate Students

“Students only have a theoretical understanding of subjects and the core skills required to work on a job are completely missing.” – Industry HR

How Do You Acquire Skills?

• Skills can only be learned through – practical working, doing, trying and failing

• A hands on, open ended & project oriented approach is required

• Education must be skills oriented and not exam oriented• Faculty must provide feedback and mentorship• New technologies and media must be used• Industry must be involved in curriculum design

Learn by Doing

A 'studio' approach to developing skills

Fieldwork, Co-creation, Refinement Peer review using new digital technologies

Projects in partnership with industry

The Pillars of Professional Success

Assignment– Understand the Post-Consumer Waste

Industry by studying the Business Model of a Local Scrap Dealer (Kabadiwala)

Approach – Shadow, interview and document a day in

the life of a local scrap dealer to understand work routines, incomes, expenses, financial planning, networks and decision making

– Re-create and present the business model in a diagrammatic form including a Profit and Loss Statement for the last 6 months

– Make strategic recommendations to i) Increase productivity and income (by 20%) and ii) Strengthen local reuse and recycling cultures

Evaluation Criterion– Level of detail – Construction of the P and L – Strength of recommendations

Business Planning

Assignment– Create a parody twitter account of

personality, institution or even media channel. 1 pair, 2 weeks, 100 followers

Approach – Identify the right twitter people and

communities – Be updated on relevant subjects and feel

the zeitgeist while drafting your tweets  – Build conversations by tagging followers

and followees, responding to tweets and retweeting

– Participate in and initiate tweet-chats inviting similar high-activity accounts to participate

– Create twitter lists and groups

Evaluation Criterion– Quality / engaging quotient of content– Virality Scores – Klout Scores

Networking Online

Activity – All students will be assigned the role of

entrepreneurs or venture capitalist (VCs). – Both roles will be required to create a 1

minute pitch or profile for their start-up idea or VC philosophy

– Similar to a speed date, each entrepreneur will be paired up with a VC to deliver their pitch

– At the end of each round a bell will be rung to signal that entrepreneurs should move on to the next VC

– Once every entrepreneur has delivered their pitch to every venture capitalist, all VCs will be required to vote for the entrepreneur they would like to fund

Peer Evaluation Criterion– Delivery – Content

Business Negotiation