Posted by Hyderabad: Agastya International Foundation (Agastya) and Honeywell India has announced the expansion of Honeywell Science Experience – an experiential science education program for students and teachers of government schools in Hyderabad, Chennai, Madurai, and Mysore. As part of the program, Honeywell’s not-for-profit entity, Honeywell Hometown Solutions India Foundation (HHSIF), is supporting 25 science centers, 35 mobile science labs, and 3,000 student mentors, benefiting more than 135,000 students and 783 teachers across all these cities as well as Bengaluru, Gurugram, Delhi, and Pune.
Designed to cultivate curiosity, nurture creativity, and instill confidence, Honeywell Science Experience is vastly different from the typical rote-based learning system that discourages questioning and student-teacher interaction. It aims to foster child and teacher participation in experiential learning, and boost science education through its uniquely scalable, hands-on teaching-learning methods.
“We are living in the fourth industrial era where application-based education will have a more profound impact on students, making them skilled citizens of tomorrow. Experiential learning improves critical thinking and helps students apply classroom concepts to real-world challenges. I congratulate Agastya and Honeywell for bringing this integrated science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education learning program to bright young minds from vulnerable communities,” said Jayesh Ranjan, IAS, Principal Secretary, Departments of Industries & Commerce and IT&C, Government of Telangana.
Ramji Raghavan, Founder, and Chairman, Agastya, said, “It is our privilege to launch this program with Honeywell in Hyderabad, Chennai, Madurai, and Mysore. We run one of the world’s largest hands-on science education programs and believe that innovative, fun, and student-centered learning is needed to enable scientific learning among children, especially those from underprivileged backgrounds, rural, and remote regions. It is heartening to see children of farmers, stone cutters, and construction workers demonstrating curiosity and creativity and excelling in science. With support from our enlightened and committed partner Honeywell, we are able to make this program impactful, sustainable, and scalable.
Akshay Bellare, VP and GM , Honeywell Technology Solutions India, added, “Being one of the world’s leading technology companies and a top recruiter of technology talent in India, Honeywell understands the importance of STEM education and its impact on the global economy. Having seen great results in the schools where we have already launched our program, we are excited to see the transformation that the Honeywell Science Experience program will bring in locations where we are deeply committed with our strong presence.”
Launched in August 2016, Honeywell Science Experience targets middle and high school students and teachers in government schools.