Abstract
An idea took shape in the slums of Mumbai in the early nineties and went on to become a peoples’ movement to address the problem of providing quality education for all of India’s children. This piece profiles Dr. Madhav Chavan, the man who provided the dynamic vision for and creative leadership of that mission/movement. Dr. Chavan combined the wisdom of an ancient Chinese philosopher and lessons from the fast-food restaurant model to develop innovations in education that are enabling children and youth to learn. His unwavering focus on the human values behind the big numbers, as well as his celebration of the joy and wonder at the heart of all learning, are a large part of the educational story that is unfolding in faraway villages in India and providing a trigger for social change. This article is an attempt to present his contributions to education innovation in India.
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References
Banerjee, A., & Duflo, E. (2017). Opinion: Pushing evidence-based policymaking for the poor. 16 October. http://www.livemint.com/Opinion/nYjG4JP2ve6YpeXkMb3AHJ/Pushing-evidencebased-policymaking-for-the-poor.html.
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This article is based on conversations with Dr. Chavan and stories about him. Unless otherwise cited, I recorded the quotations from Dr. Chavan that appear in this article during my interview with him on December 20, 2017.
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Mukerji, S. The wonder years: A profile of Madhav Chavan. Prospects 47, 293–304 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11125-018-9433-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11125-018-9433-1