School Support: Conversation with School Leaders

In this section we will be sharing  online conversation with educational or school leaders from Karkhana’s circle. These conversations will be simply based on the topic around the challenges faced due to COVID 19 and how they are planning to tackle this.

Conversation with Mr. Madhu Lohani (Secretary, PABSON Central/Director, Sudesha School)

Date: 24th March, 2020

 

About the above conversation:

• The conversation was moderated by Mr Pavitra Bahadur Gautam, Chief Executive Officer at Karkhana
• The interview is taken with Mr Madhu Lohani who is the Secretary of the Central Committee of PABSON and Mr Sunoj Das Shrestha who is the Head Teacher at karkhana.
• The interview focused around mainly three things
  • Analysis of the current situation from the perspective of PABSON and Karkhana leadership
  • Challenges that exist in the days to come
  • Possible way outs and solutions
• The conversation also has ideas from the parents perspective.

Conversation with Premier Int’l School (Ms. Pravina Thapa, Curriculum Director)

Date: 24th March, 2020

• The conversation was moderated by Ms. Rakshya Chand , Chief Sales officer  at Karkhana.
• The interview is taken with Ms.Pravina Thapa who is the Curriculum Director at Premier Tnternational IB World School and Ms. Sangden Ghising (Community Lead of Teacher) , Ms.Rakhysa Chand(Community lead of Sales and Marketing), Mr. Pavitra Bahadur Gautam(CEO), Mr. Samaya khadka (Community lead of production and procurement) and Ms. Monika Kadel (Marketing and Communication Officer).
• The interview focused around mainly these things:
  • How two organizations are responding to COVID situation?
  • How can we teach online tools to other staff in our office?
  • How online tool is being useful in this situation and response to the online platform by other staff?
  • How social media has become a common platform to raise awareness about Covid – 19?
  • How we can spent time with parents and children’s staying at home?
  • How Karkhana is running internal Teacher Development workshop digitally? Students reaction to the Online classes. The conversation also has an idea how teaching and learning process can be more effective  by using online resources

Conversation with Google Educators Group and School Leaders

You can find the video record of the conversation here:

In response to lockdown due to the COVID 19 pandemic, Karkhana organized a Google Meet conference with four school leaders and leaders of Google Educators Group (GEG) Kathmandu. The conversation was moderated by Mr. Sunoj Das Shrestha, Head Teacher at Karkhana. Mr. Sushil Upreti and Mr. Sagun Dungana, Leaders of GEG Kathmandu were invited as experts of Google Tools for Education.

• Mr. Khem Raj Ghimire – Principal, Himalaya Boarding High School, Budhanilkantha,
• Ms. Birangana Maharjan – Principal, Sudesha School, Nakhu, Mr. Binaya Vaidya – Principal,
• The Elite’s Co-Ed School, Swayambhu
• and Ms. Kalpana Giri – Principal, University School, Kapan participated in the conversation representing the school leadership.

 

The online conference revolved around three main issues: 

• • School leaders are facing challenges themselves to adopt online tools and they are not being able to connect with their team.
  • Similar challenges are faced by school teachers as they are also trying to learn to use online platforms to get connected with their teammates and their students.
  • Google for Education offers a wide range of services and online tools for free that can be used by school leaders and teachers to run online education.
  • For more details follow this link: Conversation with Google Educators Group and School Leaders

 

Conversation with Kathmandu University and King’s College

You can find the video record of the conversation here:

 

 

The conversation was moderated by Mr Sunoj Das Shrestha, Head Teacher at Karkhana, it was held among:

• • Mr. Binod Pant, Assistant Professor, Kathmandu University School of Education
  • Mr. Umes Shrestha, Empowerment Academy, Assist. Prof King’s College
  • Mr. Pragesh Rajkrnikar, Public Relations Manager, Karkhana
  • Ms. Anu Shrestha, Public Relations Manager, Karkhana

The conversation was focused around three agendas:

• • How are participants utilizing the lockdown to be productive at home?
  • What are the challenges the school leaders and teachers facing at the time of lockdown
  • How can a group of technology friendly educators support educators who are willing to learn online tools?
  • For more details please follow this link: Conversation with Kathmandu University and King’s College

Conversation among School Leaders in Multiple Cities: Pokhara, Tilottama, Hetauda, Kathmandu

You can find the video record of the conversation here:

The conversation was moderated by Mr Sunoj Das Shrestha, Head Teacher at Karkhana and was held among

• • Mr. Abektya Khanal, Director, Navodaya Sishu Sadan, Hetauda
  • Mr. Deepak Gautam- Principal Apex School, Tilottama 
  • Mr. Sanjeev Thapa, Academic Coordinator, Diamond Secondary School, Pokhara
  • Mr. Roshan Bhatta, Teacher
  • Ms. Anu Shrestha, Public Relations Manager, Karkhana

 

• The conversation was focused around three agendas:
  • How are school leaders utilizing the lockdown to be productive at home?
  • What are the challenges the school leaders and teachers facing at the time of lockdown
  • How a support system would help school leaders and teachers be productive at this hour of lockdown.

 

Conversation among School Leaders in multiple cities II: Pokhara, Butwal & Kathmandu

Karkhana conducted second online conversation with school leaders from two different cities in Nepal. Pokhara and Butwal. The conversation was moderated by Mr Pavitra Bahadur Gautam, CEO at Karkhana

You can find the video record of the conversation here:

 

• The conversation was held among
  • Mr. Pradip Kumar Lamsal, Principal, Mount Annapurna School, Pokhara
  • Mr. Laxman, Pinewood School
  • Mr. Roshan Bhatta, Teacher
  • Ms. Anu Shrestha, Public Relations Manager, Karkhana
     

The conversation was focused around three agendas:

What are the short term and long term challenges brought by this pandemic in education.
What are the challenges faced by schools, school leaders and teachers while trying to incorporate the use of technology in teaching learning.
How a support system would help school leaders and teachers be productive at this hour of lockdown.

Conversation among School Leaders of QKS (Quality Kathmandu School) and Karkhana

QKS is a group of private school leaders in the Kathmandu Valley. The group works to collaborate among member schools for professional development of school.The conversation was held among QKS School leaders and  moderated by Mr Sunoj Das Shrestha, Head Teacher at Karkhana.

The video of the conversation is here: 

The conversation was held among

• • Ms. Diptee Acharya, Academic Director, Sanskriti Int’l School
  • Ms. Kamana Regmi, Principal, Nisarga Batika
  • Ms. Shailaja Adhikari, Principal, Euro School
  • Ms. Ayushri Rana, Alok Vidyashram
  • Mr. Kumar Thapa- Principal, Brihaspati Vidya Sadan
  • Mr. Chandrayan Shrestha, Principal Carribean School
  • Mr. Ranjeet Thapa,
  • Mr. Kapil Regmi
  • Mr. Pragesh Rajkarnikar, Public Relations Manager, Karkhana
  • Ms. Rakshya Chand, Public Relations Lead, Karkhana
  • Mr. Samaya Khadka, Public Relations Manager, Karkhana
  • Mr. Sagun Khadka, Public Relations Manager, Karkhana

• The conversation was focused around three agendas:
  • What are the challenges the school leaders are foreseeing due to COVID 19 lockdown situation?
  • How can these challenges be tackled?
  • What kind of support would help school leaders adopt online education?

Conversation with Miss Diptee Acharya (Sanskriti Int’l School) and School Leaders

The conversation was moderated by Miss Diptee Acharya, Academic Director, Sanskriti Int’l School, Mr Sagun Khadka, Public Relations Manager at Karkhana and Miss Rakshya Chand, Chief Relationship Officer at Karkhana.

The video of conversation is here:

The conversation was held among 15+ school leaders from various schools.

The conversation was focused around three agendas:

• • What are the challenges the school leaders are foreseeing due to COVID 19 lockdown situation?
  • How can these challenges be tackled?
  • Sharing of Experiences of School Leaders on how they have been tackling the current situation.
  • What are the resources and help Karkhana has been providing to various Schools at the moment.

Conversation among school leader in multiple cities III

Karkhana conducted an online conversation with school leaders from three different cities in Nepal. Pokhara, Butwal and Janakpur.

The video of the conversation is here: 

• The conversation was moderated by Mr, Roshan Bhatta, one of the core team members of Karkhana.
• The conversation was held among
  • Mr. Sundar Dhakal, Principal, Junior Citizens Academy, Pokhara
  • Mr. Narayan Prasad Sapkota, Academic Dean, Junior Citizens Academy, Pokhara
  • Mr. Bishwa Gopal Parajuli, Principal, Prativa Secondary School, Pokhara
  • Mr. Madhu Prakash Gyawali
  • Dr. Sonu Kumar, Monastic Higher Secondary Boarding School
  • Mr. Roshan Bhatta, Teacher
  • Ms. Anu Shrestha, Public Relations Manager, Karkhana

• The conversation was focused around three agendas:
  • What are the short term and long term challenges brought by this pandemic in education. What would be changed in the teaching and learning practices of 2076 and 2077?
  • How a support system would help school leaders and teachers be productive at this hour of lockdown.
  • What kind of training and resources that our teachers need to have in order to minimize the risk of emotional and psychological trauma of the students?

Conversation among school leaders of Pokhara

Karkhana conducted an online conversation with school leaders from Pokhara.

The video of the conversation is here:

• The conversation was moderated by Mr, Roshan Bhatta, one of the core team members of Karkhana.
• The conversation was held among
  • Mr. Dinesh Shrestha, Principal, Pragati Secondary School, Pokhara
  • Mr. Tribhuwan Sharma Baral, Director, Motherland Secondary School, Pokhara
  • Mr. Diwakar Joshi, Principal, Hillpoint Secondary School, Pokhar
  • Mr. Roshan Bhatta, Teacher
  • Ms. Anu Shrestha, Public Relations Manager, Karkhana
• The conversation was focused around the actionable items in time of this pandemic to ensure that learning continues.

Conversation with Premier International IB School II

Karkhana conducted an online discussion with School leaders from Premier International IB School around how COVID – 19 has been affecting the whole ecosystem and how they are reacting to it.

The video of the conversation is here:

• The conversation was moderated by Pragesh Rajkarnikar, relationship manager at Karkhana.
• The participants of the conversation were:
  • Pravina Thapa, Curriculum Director, Premier IB School
  • Mangolika Chakroborty, Middle School Coordinator, Premier IB School
  • Roshan Bhatta, Expansion lead, Karkhana
  • Rakshya Chand, Chief Sales Officer, Karkhana

• The conversation was around 3 main agendas
  • Since Premier has been practicing Online teaching for a bit, what type of support did they give initially to the teachers.
  • How are these online learning experiences planned? How is it different from the lesson plans in the school?
  • Premier believes in Enquiry based learning, where a lot of resources are required. Are all the materials required for the class available to the students?

Conversation among School Leaders from different parts of Nepal

Karkhana conducted an online conversation with school leaders from Bardibas, Butwal, Gulmi and Pokhara.

The video of the conversation is here:

• The conversation was moderated by Mr. Pavitra Gautam, CEO of Karkhana.
• The conversation was held among
  • Mr. Ratna Gurung, Principal, TOPS Boarding School, Pokhara
  • Mr. Ganga Prasad Phuyal, Bardibas
  • Mr. Vivek Panthi, Vice Principal, Arjun Boarding School, Gulmi
  • Mr. Dinesh Bhusal, Principal, Oxford, Butwal
  • Mr. Pavitra Gautam, CEO, Karkhana
  • Mr. Roshan Bhatta,
• The conversation was focused around the current pandemic and its impact on learning.

Google Meeting connecting Hetauda, Pokhara, and Dhanusa

Karkhana conducted an online conversation with school leaders from three different cities in Nepal. Pokhara, Hetauda and Janakpur.

The video of the conversation is here:

• The conversation was moderated by Mr, Sunoj, one of the core team members of Karkhana.
• The conversation was held among
  • Dr. Ramji Sharma, Principal, New Galaxy School, Pokhara, President, HISSAN Kaski, Kaski
  • Mr. Madhu sir, Principal, Maria Montessori – (grade 1-5, unique school – making based, supplies teaching learning materials,  55 students, )
  • Mr. Ashish Jha, Principal, Array Int’l school, Dhanusha, Vice president, NPABSON Dhanusa
• The conversation was focused around three agendas:
  • Current status of educational institutions around Nepal during this pandemic.
  • How are schools planning the year 2077  amidst the ongoing unpredictable lockdown?
  • What kind of support system would help school leaders and teachers be productive online at this hour of lockdown.

Conversation with Premier International IB School III

Karkhana conducted an online discussion with School leaders from Premier International IB School around the well being of the staff and how to work efficiently from home.

The video of the conversation is here:

 

• The conversation was moderated by Pragesh Rajkarnikar, relationship manager at Karkhana.
• The participants of the conversation were:
  • Pravina Thapa, Curriculum Director, Premier IB School
  • Mangolika Chakroborty, Middle School Coordinator, Premier IB School
  • Minaksi Gurung, Primary School Coordinator, Premier IB School
  • Pavitra Bahadur Gautam, Chief Executive Officer, Karkhana
  • Rakshya Chand, Chief Sales Officer, Karkhana
• The conversation was around 2 main agendas: well being of people and working from home.

Understanding the perspective of school leaders and teachers during the lockdown (Butwal and Pokhara)

Karkhana conducted an online conversation with school leaders and teachers from Butwal and Pokhara.

The video of the conversation is here:

• The conversation was moderated by Mr, Sunoj, one of the core team members of Karkhana.
• The conversation was held among,
  • Mr. Yam Bahadur Rana, Principal, Siddhartha Boarding School, Tilottama, Butwal
  • Mr. Tikaram Neupane, Principal, Deep Boarding School, Butwal
  • Mr. Siddhartha Sharma, Principal, Social Public School, Pokhara
  • Mr. Roshan Shrestha, Science HOD, Social Public School, Pokhara
  • Mr. Shree Bahadur Karki, Principal, Hetauda Academy, Hetauda
• The conversation was focused around three agendas:
  • Current status of educational institutions around Nepal during this pandemic.
  • What kind of support system would help school leaders and teachers be productive online at this hour of lockdown.

Conversation to identify the challenges of adapting online teaching Part I

Karkhana conducted an online conversation with school leaders and teachers from Pokhara, Kathmandu and Butwal.

The video of the conversation is here:

• The conversation was moderated by Mr, Sunoj, one of the core team members of Karkhana.
• The conversation was held among
  • Mr. Milan KC, Principal, Gurukul Vidhyasharam, Pokhara
  • Mr. Rishab Thapa, Coordinator, Pokhara Kindergarten, Pokhara
  • Mr. Pradip Kattel, Principal, Nava Gyanbhumi School, Budhanilkantha
  • Mr. Kulananda Pandey, Principal, Peaceland Academy, Butwal
• The highlight of the conversation was
  • Impact of lockdown on the academic calender of 2076 and 2077.
  • Experiments done by schools and challenges faced while trying to continue the learning via online during this lockdown.

Conversation to identify the challenges of adapting online teaching Part II

Karkhana conducted an online conversation with school leaders and teachers from Pokhara, Hetauda, Kushma, Chitwan, and Butwal.

The video of the conversation is here:

• The conversation was moderated by Mr, Roshan Bhatta, one of the core team members of Karkhana.
• The conversation was held among
  • Mr. Dilliram Adhikari, Principal, Karunanidhi Education Foundation, Pokhara
  • Mr. Raj Kumar Dhakal, Chairman, STAN, Gandaki Province
  • Mr. Indraman Khatri, Principal, Namuna Higher Secondary Boarding School, Kushma
  • Mr. Om Raj Mainali, Vice-Principal, Orcid School, Chitwan
  • Mr. Raghunath Kharal, Principal, Tulsi Meher School, Hetauda
  • Mr. Prakash Gyawali, Principal, Ideal English Boarding School, Butwal
• The highlight of the conversation are
  • The role of parents/guardians in making the online teaching/learning efficient and successful.
  • Challenges faced by teachers and school while experimenting with digital tools and online learning.

APTS Learning Webinar I

Karkhana in collaboration with APTS Learning conducted an online workshop on 24th of April 2020.

The video of the conversation is here:

• The conversation was moderated by Mr. Sagun Khadka, Relationship Manager at Karkhana.
• The workshop was facilitated by Ms. Anisha Bhandari, Founder and Director at APTS Learning in support of Ms. Sangden Ghising, Community Lead of Teacher at Karkhana.
• We had a total of 32 school leaders and teachers involved in the workshop.
• The workshop was focused around introducing  Inquiry-Based Learning pedagogy to the teachers.

This focus group discussion was our attempt to understand the challenges and opportunities that school leaders are facing during the lockdown.

We are organizing online sessions based on the needs of school leaders. Please fill in the online form or visit the link https://forms.gle/Lwj6A5YqLrFZ4LLG8 to know more about our webinars and  to participate in the future.

APTS Learning Webinar II