Kodala Academy: combining education with fun
By Salome Modebadze
Thursday, March 14
In the 21st century, where the internet has become the leading means of communication, the Kodala Academy has opened the door to the world of knowledge. For those who find it hard to study math, biology, geography or chemistry from the school manuals, the virtual academy can become a wonderful source of inspiration and may even encourage you to repeat the experiments at home!
Kodala is the Georgian name of a woodpecker that digs into a tree deeper and deeper in search of food. Thus the name of the website according to Merab Labadze, Director and founder of Innovative Education Foundation, emphasizes that the main purpose of Kodala Academy is to provide knowledge.
Labadze says the “technological revolution” caused by mobile devices, computer and the internet reflect on education and the question of how to integrate the two directions became an important issue.
Following the success of Salman Khan, an American man of Pakistani origin, founder of Khan Academy, the Innovative Education Foundation decided to create a Georgian version of Khan Academy by recording video lessons to help people understand the subjects they find difficult.
Launched in 2010, the Kodala Academy creates valuable educational e-resources in Georgian and promotes their usage in schools by matching the topics of the video lessons to the national curriculum. Thus, the videos can also serve as a reference for students during their preparation for exams.
Labadze told The Messenger that the format of the 10-minute video lessons makes it easier for the teacher to explain the lessons, as the latter can save the classroom time by referring to the e-resources of Kodala Academy. Students can also learn at home and at their own pace. This creates the so-called “flipped-classroom” model becoming now popular due to Khan’s innovations.
The main target audience of Kodala Academy is high school students and university entrants. With the help of “a magic” blackboard, teacher-enthusiasts play important roles in recording the video lessons, so that they do not appear on the screen.
If on the one hand the e-resources make the studying process more enjoyable, it also motivates teachers to combine ordinary manuals with multimedia learning resources and, as Labadze says, encourages them to record new videos on their own.
Those who have not yet chosen their future profession; who think that math or physics are hard to digest and even those, who do not fear to make experiments, should by all means visit www.kodala.ge and explore the world of innovations.
“Those who are curious about natural phenomena will definitely find something interesting and original via video lessons or experiments including the everyday events which we do not pay much attention,” Labadze said, adding that easy forms of expression like videos are becoming more popular than the complex alternatives, which require huge amounts of money for promotion and skills development.
So if you are ready to get as much knowledge as possible, you should use the example of a woodpecker and dig deeper into the world of knowledge and experiments and achieve your goals studiously.
