Super at 40

Move over Anand Kumar. A government school teacher from Bhatinda is quite the rage among students from UAE to Kenya for his far-from-boring online math classes minus a fee

My name is Sanjeev Kumar… I am taking online mathematics classes for 3,500-plus students, free of cost. 

This message has been circulating on various WhatsApp groups of Indian students, in the country and outside through the lockdown. Kumar, who teaches at Kendriya Vidyalaya in Bhatinda, Punjab, says the requests to join his sessions have only grown since April, and they are pouring in from as far as Kenya, Nepal, Malaysia and the UAE. The teacher is clear that he is doing this for the greater good. 

Australia has Eddie Woo, we have him. Kumar would of course balk at the comparison. He says he’s simply sharing his love for math with the world, a world in which kids are struggling outside schools, and adjusting to online learning while locked in their homes.

After completing a post graduate degree in mathematics, he pursued a B.Ed and an M.Phil in mathematics. But teaching was never on the cards. “All I wanted was to land a simple job and earn a living.” But his first job was at a private school in 2002, and as he spent more time in the classroom, he realised teaching was his passion. 
Kumar, 43, whose wife is also a teacher, has been with Kendriya Vidyalaya since 2014. Most of his students come from lower middle class families, and its them that the lockdown hit the hardest. While the better-off kids could afford private coaching while school was shut, Kumar worried for the less fortunate in his class. 

And then came a blessing called Zoom. When Kumar learned of the app, he decided he’d join the bandwagon. “For the first nine days, I invited my family members and friends to join me on Zoom calls. I asked for their feedback. Were they able to understand all the concepts? Was I audible? Could they see the whiteboard clearly? Once I got a go-ahead, I launched my first online math class on March 29, 2020,” he says On the first day, only 50 students signed up. But things would change in a matter of hours. Word spread, and he had 359 students the next day. “Now, my worry was, how will I cater to them all!”
 
Kumar decided to divide them into batches—from Class VIII to XI, each class lasting 45 minutes. In six days, he crossed the 700-students mark. “Unlike now, back then, no government teacher was holding online classes. But I subscribed to a Zoom business plan worth R17,000 per month, so I could accommodate more students,” he adds.

His next investment was an iPad worth Rs 70,000. “I started drawing cartoons and showing videos and animation on the device. This way, learning got easier. A lot of people who had heard about my work, offered to pay but I politely declined. I can’t charge my students,” says Kumar who considers his R70,000 monthly government salary a “handsome amount”. “My wife earns about the same amount, and we have a house of our own. We are comfortable. I don’t see a point in making money when the world is in crisis.”  

Kumar spends Rs 20,000 every month on the venture, subscribing to Zoom’s business plan, and also paying the salaries of two assistants who handle the recording gadgets. “I was drawn towards social work since I was in college. Here is my chance to do it again,” he says. “Most teachers enjoy a siesta after school. I prefer taking a free class.” 

Sign up

You can register for Kumar’s classes on 9464387372 free of cost. You will receive two video links to take you through the registration process. Classes are held from Monday to Saturday

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