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My K12 Story, Journey So Far: Mrs Kajal Chhatija,Executive Director, Gayatri School & Junior College

SHARING AN INSPIRING AND EVENTFUL JOURNEY OF MRS. KAJAL CHHATIJA - A PASSIONATE EDUCATIONIST, AN EDULEADER AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF GAYATRI SCHOOL & JUNIOR COLLEGE, PUNE.



Mrs. Kajal Chhatija

Executive Director, Gayatri School & Junior College, Pune


Introduction: Kajal Chhatija is an enthusiastic and energetic leader in empowering and engaging young minds in innovative and collaborative learning practices. She has worked with SSC, CBSE, ICSE and IGCSE Schools and they are Vibgyor High, Rims International School, Euro School, Trinity International School, Kothari International School, Global Talent International School.


She is in this profession from last 15 years and has climbed the ladder of success from being a Co-teacher to Principal to Executive Director to the Founder of her educational initiative, EduDrone - We Connect. Currently she is with Gayatri Group of Schools as ExecutiveDirector. She has received many awards as the best teacher and the best Principal.

She is the recipient of 'Touch Bearer Award of ATC, Pune, for incorporating inclusive education. She has received the ISA, School Coordinator Award from British Council, Outstanding Community Award 2020, Indian Humanitarian Award 2020, Philanthropist Award 2021 to name a few.


Career in education: It just happened as I have explored myself as an educator, influencer, mentor, motivator, guide, counsellor and much more. I’m an extremist and cross all the boundaries to fulfil my goals and meet success. I believe, teaching jobs are very dynamic and gone are the days where teachers just had to sit with the textbooks and teach the concepts. These days, teaching is 50% of the content and 50 % of drama. A teacher has to be passionate about what she is teaching and must love her students as, we all know that students will apparently love the subject if they like the teacher so on.


Major initiatives towards education: At GEMS, we firmly believe in engage, enrich and empower the capacity of students in their foundational learning stages. They must experience stress free learning environment. This could be achieved by instilling latest pedagogical approach towards teaching and learning methods. By introducing innovative learning methods which reduce the pressure on children and is the need of the hour. We constantly create various competitive platforms to enhance confidence, creativity, innovation, collaboration, problem-solving techniques and build global citizens.


Educator’s View

Challenges in schools: : Schools must look into all-round holistic development of the child through social, emotional, cognitive and meta-cognitive domains. Students must experience a balanced education system where they get enough time to read, play, dance, learn and grow together. Education system must build character of students making them empathetic and compassionate towards society which in turn helps to sensitized them on various global issues. It should help them being critical thinkers, problem solvers and thinking out of the box must become a habit.


Views on NATIONAL EDUCATIONAL POLICY- 2020: The NEP 2020 is a revolutionary document stating the structure 5+3+3+4 from Nursery to College level. The big challenge is the implementation part of the document though all the departments at the government level hare trying to universalise the education system right from the foundational to Preparatory and Middle to Secondary stage.


Comment on 10 Bag less days as per Nep 2020: These 10 bag less days will certainly new energy in our students; where we educators can plan and execute them in a way; that these must help them explore new avenues. May it be spending a day on a farm, working on making the compost-pits in the school, learning to use solar energy, etc.


Current changes required for education sector:

Its hi-time for all of us to think loud and to change our education system from marks driven to stress free system, rote learning to free expression, traditional to international, manual to digital, hard-working to smart working, textbook to techbook, social to emotional, active to interactive, integration to collaboration, assessing to analysing, cognitive to metacognitive, analogy to technology and much more. It is the time to bring in the balance and need to understand when the traditional method works and when it’s right to try new and engaging methods. As very well said by Mahatma Gandhi, “Be the change you wish to see in the world.”


Comment about education system: We have come a long way, beginning from our Gurukulas to formal schooling to home schools. As the recent research on the education system of India (ASER-2018), proves that India has shown immense progress in higher education and scientific research, has been credited to various public institutions. We still need to strive hard to prepare our students to do better, be victorious in the top ten countries in the next PISA(Programme for International Student Assessment) test and this needs focus on training and empowering teachers with the latest pedagogy and technology.





Leadership style: Forming a dynamic community consisting of teachers, students, parents and management. Living each day witnessing their growth leading to great achievements in future. A total democratic approach giving importance to everybody’s inputs in changing lives and creating new opportunities for students so that they realise their human potential.


Future plans: Our plans are to equip our students with the 21st century skills, introducing coding and artificial intelligence and curriculum mapped with National Education Policy 2020. Bringing holistic development through curricular, co-curricular and extra-curricular activities. Engaging students in various community outreach programmes to develop responsibility towards society. Creating such an education system which develops character of our students, experience the joy of learning, inculcate social and emotional values, practice meta-cognition not only to succeed in life but also to be a good human being.


Mention two best practices mentioned in NEP 2020:

The first one is the inclusion of vocational courses for the students of Gr-VIth to VIII. This will turn out to be a revolutionary move to encourage students know their likes and dislikes and will result in new discoveries. In this process, parents and teachers play a major role to find child’s interest at the foundational years. These skills can be instilled right from young age and later they may act as a career launch pad.


Gayatri English Medium School & Junior College is a chain of English Medium Schools in PCMC Pune under the foundation Swami Vivekananda Shikshan Prasarak Mandal.


The Gayatri Group had a very humble beginning with 40 students in their first academic session 2002-2003. The Founder & President Mr. Vinayakrao Bhongale’s vision to provide affordable education to children from all sectors of society helped him to multiply and build four schools in Moshi, Charholi, Dhanori, Dighi and many more in the pipeline. In his mission, Managing Director, Mrs. Kavita Bhongale Kadu-Patil supported enthusiastically and took the reign of running the schools seamlessly.


Recently the endeavour of providing impactful and meaningful education to our students and helping them to develop holistically into Global citizens.


For Mrs. Kavita Bhongale Kadu-Patil’s constant efforts to bring an innovative change in the education sector, she was recently been awarded with ‘Gobal Icon Award 2021’ for “Most innovative learning CBSE school in Pune”.


Mrs. Kajal Chhatija

Executive Director

Gayatri School & Junior College, Pune





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