Padmapriya has been associated with the Krishnamurti schools for forty years now, teaching in Rishi Valley School, Sahyadri School and The Valley School. During this time, she has taught several subjects across age groups. She is currently engaged in writing a mathematics textbook for NCERT and creating a course on math pedagogy. She is also the editor of a mathematics magazine published by Azim Premji University.
Throughout my schooling and my forty-year career in school-level teaching, I have drawn inspiration from a wide range of individuals— the teachers from my early years in school, as well as professional colleagues, visiting educators, and educational writers. Identifying any one individual as a primary source of inspiration has thus proved challenging! Consequently, I chose to reflect on two individuals who have recently influenced my professional thinking. These are young educators affiliated with a premier science institute in the country.
My association with them developed over the past few years during collaborative work on the development of a children’s textbook. Although I have, over the years, experimented with numerous methodologies and pedagogical approaches to enhance the teaching and learning of mathematics, my interactions with these colleagues introduced fresh insights into innovative and engaging ways of approaching the subject.
Several aspects of their professional practice were particularly inspiring. Foremost among these were their deep passion for the discipline and the genuine intellectual pleasure they experienced in exploring mathematical ideas—an enthusiasm that naturally inspired others. Equally impressive was their commitment to sharing this joy with students and their conscious effort to make mathematics an enjoyable and meaningful learning experience.
Their motivation to communicate effectively with learners required a firm grounding in pedagogical principles and an acute awareness of children’s cognitive and emotional development. Such engagement demanded empathetic understanding and the capacity to view both the world and the subject matter from the perspective of a middle-school learner.
This experience has broadened my understanding of how mathematics can be approached to stimulate curiosity and self-directed exploration among students. At present, as I continue to interact with various teacher communities, I make it a point to share these new insights and perspectives to enrich collective teaching practice.