Pre-primary education is considered vital to the development of children even before they start their learning through formal education. Preschools prepare kids for the important phase of their lives and develop cognitive skills, necessary for the overall development of the child. But sadly, pre-primary education in India is unregulated to a great extent and suffers from poor quality education and the absence of a standardized curriculum. Namita Kapoor, Director, Pratha Pre-School is leading a commitment to address these issues and enhance the highest standards of education through her venture. Pratha Pre-School is an example of her vision to nurture young minds and impart excellent education to children. She believes preschools to be the second home for children, hence encouraging teachers to practice empathy & kindness while imparting knowledge. Namita has not only excelled as a prime motivator in the preschool industry but also made her institution move smoothly, despite the uncertainty & difficulty during the time of Covid. She is a passionate, enthusiastic, and remarkable leader who is a role model for many in the education industry. Let’s hear it from her.

Take us through the prior industry experience and your motivation to build Pratha Pre-School.

I started my journey in the education industry with Kingdom of Kids, a preschool brand in New Delhi. Within the first year of its inception, we were recognized with the Best Preschool Award. This event convinced us that creating a visually appealing learning-centric infrastructure coupled with the best teachers was the only way early education should be imparted. I believe preschool is a home away from home for children.

Hence, the love, warmth, and comfort that the child gets from school are very important. Once that bond is created between a child and the facilitator, the learning follows. So, with the vision to impart worldclass education to children and contribute to the development of the Indian preschool education system, we established Pratha Pre School. Today we are one of the most successful brands in the preschool industry in the region.

Tell us about the underlying idea behind the institution and some of its most unique features.

Earlier, when we started Kingdom of kids, we witnessed an unregulated approach in the preschool industry. There are so many preschools but very few are going in the right direction. I believe 90 percent growth of a child’s brain is visible in the first five years, but the schools are not doing justice to this age group. There is a need for more privatization of preschools for effective education to be carried out. Hence, I established Pratha to regulate this industry and make children capable of coping with the pressures of a formal school and ensuring their emotional, physical, and intellectual development.

"I established pratha to ensure that each child under our care gets the opportunity of holistic learning & ensure that there is smooth transition to the formal schooling .we at pratha ensure their emotional, physical & intellectual growth"

What are the various roles you play within Pratha Pre-School as the Director?

As the Director, I am at the helm of Pratha Pre-School and involved in its day-to-day activity. I have multiple responsibilities of monitoring the way the school goes on, how the curriculum is carried on and how the quality is created. I am also involved in the recruitment of staff. Overall, my role is to ensure that our vision and curriculum are getting passed through to the children. We are further expanding the chain of Pratha across New Delhi and soon wish to expand nationwide and then go global.

Mention the most critical challenges that you faced so far. What steps did you take to overcome the roadblocks?

When the pandemic arrived, we had to cope with it and made sure that the learning does not stop. We kept imparting knowledge by conducting online classes. Now as the children have returned to school after Covid, we have the responsibility to keep our children safe. Fortunately, the transition has been smooth with zero cases of Covid within the campus. Another big challenge that I face is to maintain the vision & ethos of Pratha which focuses solely on the development of a child. I do not compromise on our ethos and encourage my staff to do the same. As a result, we have acquired multiple positive feedbacks from parents and have remained the most favored choice in the region.

What would your advice be to budding educators & educational entrepreneurs?

Take challenges as opportunities; grow yourself first to be able to carry out your duty as an educator. Be passionate, be ready to take risks, and be optimistic about learning new things and you will see success will automatically follow you.

Namita Kapoor, Director, Pratha Pre-School

Namita’s establishment of Pratha Pre-School is an effort to make the best use of a child’s talent. She has two daughters and leverages her experience as a mother in her current role to develop young minds through unmatched curriculum, love, kindness, and empathy.