Fostering STEM education ensures an equitable future-ready workforce with an innovative mindset

When it comes to building the right ecosystem for good quality integrated computer science (CS) education in India, the private sector – comprising of NGOs and CSR bodies, among others – has played a pivotal role in supporting, enhancing and upgrading the existing infrastructure. It has also helped increase last mile access to technology and know-how, especially in the hitherto untapped rural and economically backward areas. But more needs to be done.

We chatted with Akshay Kashyap, India Lead, Amazon Future Engineer (AFE) initiative, and Nirbhay Lumbde, Head, ESG at CGI, to get their perspective as leading funding bodies/partners on what motivates their decision to support organizations working to improve CS education in India. We also discuss their criteria for selection, and some of the challenges and success stories that have come to inspire them in working with programs and foundations focused on bettering STEM/computing education in India?

Pranjali Pathak: As funders and donors, what motivated your organization to support
initiatives focused on STEM/CS education?

Akshay Kashyap: Amazon is a company of innovators and creators. We realize that computer science has a huge potential to help shape the careers of the future. And while we do not generally believe that
everybody needs to be an engineer, we think knowing computer sciences can help because
any career they choose, can benefit from an understanding of computer sciences.

We know there is talent everywhere, but opportunity is not. And we want to use AFE (Amazon Future Engineer) to bridge that gap when it comes to computer science. We want to demystify technology for students, and make them curious about it. We feel we are very uniquely positioned to do that because of our understanding of tech and us being one of the industry leaders in that space.

We started the AFE (Amazon Future Engineer) program in 2019 in the US, as one of our first flagship education initiatives. Our goal is to support kids from underrepresented backgrounds in exploring and learning computer sciences. Another related objective is to provide the necessary support for those who want to build their careers in computer science. We analyzed similar challenges to solve in India. We realized that in India there are kids who are getting into computer science engineering. However, the data is not diverse in terms of representation of social strata or how many have access to computer science education in K-12 systems, particularly those in the public schools.

Nirbhay Lumbde: Our commitment to STEM education is deeply rooted in our belief in technology’s transformative power. I have always believed that the future of India hinges on embracing the digital age. By championing STEM education, I see us not merely as funders but as catalysts, shaping the next wave of innovators and leaders who will spearhead India’s digital journey.

Ruchira Roy Chowdhury: What criteria do you consider when evaluating and choosing programs or foundations to support in the CS/STEM education space?

Akshay Kashyap: More than the organization we want to support, our focus has been on what is the problem at hand that we want to solve. Our leadership philosophy revolves around obsession with the end user. Our focus is on students from public schools. We ask, is this partnership or collaboration students-centric and how best does it benefit them? Will our engagement be an enjoyable experience for students? It’s not just about learning outcomes, but are they really excited about learning?

We want to demystify computer sciences for students and have them interact with technology in a way they have not had access to, so far. So, we can bring real world computer science to students. That is the center of all our discussions, partnerships and funding. Our focus is on supporting the government school students and make more learning and growth opportunities available to those who have the least access to top industry resources.

In the school-based programs, our emphasis is on hands-on learning. Also, how sustainable are our partnerships? Are they scalable initiatives? Can they be integrated into a structure that already works, maybe the school education system, maybe some other channels that are already reaching out to students, or can they be integrated, and we keep increasing the level of support, but become sustainable in the long run? These are some of the answers we look for while looking for good programs to partner with.

We also look at what can we bring to the table, apart from the funding? How can Amazon support this partnership or the initiative through our employees, technology, resources and infrastructure? For example, we have organized multiple hackathons in our office, this year and the last, for children. We have what we call class chats, in which our employees connect to students and talk about the careers that exist in the future and tell them about their own journeys.

Nirbhay Lumbde: Our five main criteria include –

Visionary alignment: Any initiative we consider must echo our overarching vision of nurturing a technologically adept and innovative generation.

Sustainability: We are drawn to programs with a clear long-term viability and a self-sustainability roadmap.

Inclusivity: It’s paramount that the initiatives prioritize inclusivity, and ensure that girls and marginalized groups aren’t left behind.

Innovative approach: We value programs that bring fresh, groundbreaking approaches to STEM education rather than just mirroring existing models.

Impact metrics: Clear, measurable outcomes are non-negotiable. We need to see the change we are creating.

Pranjali Pathak: From an industry/ funder perspective, how do you believe supporting CS/STEM education aligns with your organization’s values and long-term goals?

Akshay Kashyap: At AFE, our long-term vision is that every student should have access to computer science education. Like I said, we as a company are focused on, almost obsessed, with the end user and drawing from the same principle, our focus here is how we can help the student who comes from an underserved community with technology and empowerment through computer sciences.

This year we have introduced a new leadership principle that states scalability and sustainability brings broader responsibility. So, Amazon Future Engineers takes inspiration from the same philosophy. As a tech company, we are a company of creators and innovators. We’ve seen, and we believe in, the power of computer science to change the world for good. We can contribute to the community by improving access to quality CS education. This is very crucial because computer science will become essential in some sense or the other to every career that students pursue.

Everybody equates computer science with just coding. But the way, for example, we use technology in our company, in our logistics, in our sort centers, in the way stuff is getting delivered to customers, the way you are using data, to predict what is the right application of technology, goes beyond coding. And we feel, we bring immense value when we help students understand computer science as it is applied in the real world.

One of the things we have organized is the Amazon Cyber Robotics Challenge. Here children program a robot in a fulfillment center, where they virtually deliver a package to someone. Through this process, they learn that it is not just about punching out codes. This exposure lets them in on the real-world application of tech and computer sciences that invokes curiosity.

Ours is a three-tier program. We start with computer science exploration or real-world exploration, which is where our children or the students in AI-supported schools first go interact with computer science via an hour of coding. These interactions are also facilitated through unplugged activities which involve modules for a resource-constrained environment. Unplugged activities help students learn computer science principles without computers or the internet. This is where they get introduced to computer science, design thinking, logical sequencing, parallelism, structural problem-solving, among other things. This is the “Explore” level.

Then you move up to the second level – “Learn.” Whenever we see that there is interest among schools, or children, we support them with enabling deeper learning of computer science, where students end up creating a live working project. It could be a digital or physical project but uses computational thinking. Then the last leg of our program is called “Build,” where we support students post their school education, to build careers in computer science.

We are trying to bring this pyramid together with, “Explore,” “Learn” and “Build.” Our goal is to support students from childhood to career while building curiosity and the right skill sets, and once they are ready, to help them transition into successful tech careers. Usually, we support organizations and partners, and co-create programs with people who help us build on this.

Nirbhay Lumbde: Championing STEM education resonates deeply with our core values. Being at the forefront of the Information Technology sector, we recognize the imperative of a robust foundation in these disciplines. By fostering STEM education, we ensure a future-ready workforce and nurture innovation and sustainable growth.

Ruchira Roy Chowdhury: Can you share some success stories or outcomes from projects that you have funded in the CS/STEM education domain?

Akshay Kashyap: It has been two years since the launch of AFE. Through this program we’ve been able to reach out to 1.2 million students across 7,000 plus schools, with 5.8 million hours of computer science learning behind them. Most of the schools we have worked with are in remote rural areas, including the Eklavya schools under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs and the Telangana Tribal Welfare schools. We have also supported Karnataka State Education Residential Society that caters to the educational needs of students from marginalized sections of the community.

In Maharashtra, we have partnered with the State Education Department to train more than 7,000 teachers in CS modules. We have partnered with various district administrations to allow voluntary computer science courses. Here we have seen very high level of participation by teachers. And these are all teachers of math and sciences for younger grades, who are showing exceptional skill and interest in learning and utilizing computational tools in their teaching. This is being done in a scalable way, so that the government can replicate the model and build on the framework.

For example, somebody is teaching language using Scratch or Scratch libraries on Code Mitra (mobile based platform built by Pi Jam Foundation to learn coding and application in the real world). Some teachers are integrating their CS learnings in mathematics and science and are asking students to make projects on topics such as photosynthesis using Scratch.

We have seen students build and innovate in ways that we did not imagine. For example, one of the students built a local weather system. Another wrote codes to automate irrigation pumps for farmers. Some other student made smart heater rods that monitor the temperature of bath water while the user finishes other chores. Some of our children, in an innovation lab in Mumbai, went on to build robots and participated in a global challenge in Switzerland. They were the only team from India. These were kids who had never learned computer science before in any meaningful way. It has been a revelation what bringing opportunity for those who have the talent, but lacked access, can do.

Our scholar internship program has 29% women, pursuing first year CS engineering. We have supported 200 women scholars in the first year. We are supporting 500 this year. We offered fully paid internships (a gateway into Amazon) to 68 of them this year, based on a competency assessment. We support the scholars with a scholarship worth Rs. 50,000 per year for four years, along with a structured boot camp to help them acquire new and relevant skills. These girls who have interned with us, come from rural India and are studying engineering. They are role models for their own communities now.

Nirbhay Lumbde: Some of our success stories are incredibly inspiring.

National Recognition at NCSC: A prodigious student from one of the programs supported by us developed an ingenious automatic fertilizer dispenser. This solution showcased the practical application of STEM. It earned the student a gold medal at the 30th National Children’s Science Congress (NCSC), a prestigious national science communication program spearheaded by National Council for Science and Technology Communication (NCSTC), in January 2023.

Spotlight at Rashtriya Bal Vaigyanik Pradarshani: Another testament to the talent we nurture is a student whose groundbreaking working model was exhibited at the Rashtriya Bal Vaigyanik Pradarshani, formerly known as the Jawaharlal Nehru National Science Exhibition.

Interaction with the Prime Minister: A cohort of young girls from schools we support presented their innovative solutions directly to the Prime Minister of India, at the Akhil Bhartiya Shiksha Samagam. Another group of talented students were handpicked to present at the National Technology Week Celebration, an event epitomizing India’s strides in technological innovation and advancement.

Recognition by Government of Karnataka (GoK): CGI’s commitment to STEM was spotlighted in a coffee table book titled “Impact of CSR Initiatives in Karnataka,” which was unveiled by the Chief Minister and the Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka. It’s a matter of immense pride for us at CGI to be acknowledged for our “Magnanimity for Social Equity” through CSR by GoK.

Pranjali Pathak: What challenges do you foresee in scaling CS/ STEM education initiatives? How can these be addressed collaboratively between donors, governments and educational institutions?

Akshay Kashyap: We need CS to create the 21st century skills that will shape the future careers. There needs to be more appreciation of the need for foundational learning of CS, and not just CS but computational thinking, where kids are able to problem-solve using creativity and logic. We all must work toward integrating CS systematically into the channels that serve students across the country in education systems, large non-profits, other platforms, etc. We must start introducing CS early on. It is not simple to remove the resource constraints from a country of the size and demography of India.

We need to be able to use innovation in problem solving. For example, we are taking computer science education to places without access to physical computers. We are doing this through the use of mobile based applications like Code Mitra, Meraki or Chatbots that can run on basic mobile devices. We are undertaking unplugged activities for this purpose. We also need to educate and inspire students about the wide-ranging career options that they have, thanks to these newly acquired computational skills from UX design to SDEP app development, and others.

Nirbhay Lumbde: Adequate infrastructure still needs to be developed in many regions. And then there is educational quality. Upholding a consistent educational standard across diverse terrains is challenging. Some areas still resist contemporary educational methodologies. Talking about resource strategy, the challenge lies in channeling resources to the most deserving areas. There is a need for a unified approach. We need a harmonized strategy, bringing together donors, governments and institutions, which is the linchpin to surmount these challenges.

Ruchira Roy Chowdhury: What are your thoughts on the role of CS/ STEM education in fostering equity, inclusion and access.

Nirbhay Lumbde: Initiatives with well-defined inclusivity blueprints need to be prioritized. These may encompass scholarships for the underrepresented, outreach in underserved regions, and mentoring that encourages girls in STEM education and champions diversity. STEM education is a linchpin for equity, inclusion and accessibility. In today’s digital epoch, proficiency in these domains is tantamount to literacy. By ensuring universal access to quality STEM education, we can level the playing field and empower students.