Page 21 - Shishir Jaipuria

Eduleader

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Since your appointment as chairman of Seth Anandram Jaipuria Group of Educational Institutions (SAJGEI) in
2010, what are the major initiatives/innovations introduced?
We have given high priority to modernisation and contemporisation of our institutions. Several pedagogy innovations
integrating ICT (information and communication technology), project-based learning, visual arts, music, sports, ac-
tive learning, socio-emotional learning with classroom teaching have been introduced to improve learning outcomes
while simultaneously upgrading infrastructure and other facilities. Moreover we have instituted continuous faculty
development programmes and have ventured into pre-primary education in a big way. As a consequence SAJGEI is
now an end-to-end preschool-postgraduate education provider.

Your most admited thinker / philosopher.
Swami Vivekananda. He had a unique blend of spiritual and intellectual brilliance.

Your leadership style.
I believe in nurturing future leaders by empowering them. A mixture of humility, empathy and encouraging others to
take responsibility has produced excellent leaders and managers.

Your favourite book on education.
Ignited Minds by Dr. Abdul Kalam

How satisfied are you with the growth and development of institutions under SAJGEI?
I believe we are on the right path. Indian education is rapidly evolving and our institutions need to keep abreast of
latest innovations in pedagogy and curriculum development. In the process our institutions have set benchmarks for
high-quality education. It's encouraging that our students are excelling in a wide range of scholastic and non-scho-
lastic fields of endeavour.

Pessimistic or optimistic about the future of education in India?
I am upbeat about the future of Indian education. A substantial number of high-quality private institutions have
been established countrywide during the past two decades. They need to be encouraged and incentivised to scale
up through innovative use of new digital technologies. We also need to strengthen public-private partnerships to
upgrade public education.

What are your future growth and development plans?
We have prepared a detailed plan to establish K-12 schools in tier II and III cities of Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana,
Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. Our target is to increase the number of SAJGEI institutions to 50 by 2025.

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