Days are numbered for the fear of maths, counts Cuemath

That ‘dreaded’ moment at school, when the bell rings announcing the beginning of the maths period! The bitter fear of numbers and calculations, in short an aversion to mathematics, isn’t unfounded. The subject has haunted many students since the history of school education itself.

In the last three years, IITian Manan Khurma’s venture Cuemath has attempted to turn this fear into fun, and has helped many a student view this ‘menace’ called maths as a trusty friend in need. Explaining the psyche that pervades school children’s approach towards maths, Khurma opines, “Schools are designed to cover a certain subset of maths owing to limited time and the existence of large groups. The method of teaching is very broadcast-based, with students passively consuming what the teacher wants to say.”

Going beyond this pedagogy, Cuemath aims to make the subject more engaging, placing the learner in the centre. Its learning programme is designed to be a complete replacement to normal tuition — enabling a child to conquer maths — and is not just focused on homework completion or exam revision, which is the purpose of most tutorials.

“Cuemath’s core philosophy is that maths is not merely a subject to be learnt in school, but more of a life skill,” Khurma, who is also Cuemath’s CEO, says. Accordingly, the company has conducted extensive research and created its own tech-driven curriculum, learning tools and models to aid children. Its unique programme includes everything that school maths covers, along with imparting mental aptitude and creative reasoning, among other skills, blending multiple formats to form an engaging learning experience.

“In our model, we have small groups of students, who themselves involve in the learning process, while the teachers are there as facilitators,” he adds. The company partners with highly qualified stay-at-home women, who become fully-certified Cuemath Teacher Partners. They adopt its system and set up a learning base at home, where they teach students from around the locality. “Students between the ages of five and 13 years are inducted, and they attend hour-long learning sessions thrice a week, usually after school. They pay a monthly fee, and whatever revenue is generated is shared between the teacher and Cuemath in a 60:40 split,” Khurma says.

Today, Cuemath is present in Bengaluru, Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Hyderabad, Chennai and Ahmedabad, with over 2,000 teachers, instructing more than 10,000 children.Having raised around $20 million in funding till date, the company aims to partner 5,000 teachers this year, translating to more students joining this mathematics movement.