Unconventional School Prepares Kids for ‘Real World’

Watch this video to see how a Maharashtrian couple started Syamantak, or University of Life, which tries to teach kids how to deal with real-world challenges through a unique model.

Does the curriculum prepare students for real-world problems? Troubled by the shortage in the education system, this couple from Maharashtra ventured into a unique way of imparting education.

Located in the lush green forests of Dhampur in Maharashtra, this school can be every kid’s dream. University of Life, or Seamantakais the brainchild of Sachin Desai and his wife.

Driven by the desire to make youth able to create jobs in the village, the couple laid the foundation of the school in 2007. Their daughter, Mrunalini, became their first student. Today, she is skilled in farming, environmental, and heritage skills, as well as cuisine, natural dyeing, and sustainable architecture.

They proudly say that their school has no walls, no classes, and no exams. The non-traditional school does not have a fixed curriculum and exams; Just as there is no set pattern for life, the school aims to make its students ready for any challenge that life throws their way.

Some students conduct research in food labs, while others experiment with cow-related products in a lab Goshala (cow shelter).

The school also has an entrepreneurial project called Swayamwhere students make natural and preservative-free products such as apple cider syrup, pickled raw jackfruit, turmeric powder, and soaps made from natural ingredients.

Want to know more about this innovative method of teaching? watch this video:

Edited by Divya Sethu