9 reasons every child must do a business project

In March 2017, a few of us experimented with an idea at a Bangalore school...for people from difficult backgrounds. A simple idea of providing learners with small seed capital and encouraging them to try something entrepreneurial. The results were mind-blowing! Confidence and communication in learners had shot through the roof!

See the confidence of this girl, as she quizzes the education minister in a stadium with 2k+ people watching!

I think that a business project with seed capital (to be returned if possible) is a fantastic pedagogical tool for high-school learners to build key mindsets. More importantly, it subtly challenges and reverses some of the deepest principles in our education system.

Let me explain.

1. Trust 

Our education system does not trust the student. They can’t decide anything, their inputs are not sought for anything. No Choice, No Voice. Giving INR 2000, no strings attached, demonstrates trust in learners that nothing else I know has.

2. Autonomy 

In a system, where no decision is left to the learner: what they learn, when they learn, from whom - learners are left with no avenue to exercise any choice or opinion they may have. Fixed syllabus, books, and timetable...learners have no avenue to exercise any choice or opinion they may have. In a business project, however, learners get to come up with their own ideas for the business, decide the roles each will play to achieve their goals, and also get to exercise immense autonomy.

3. Collaboration

Except for in sports - which is great for learning many things - our education system is singularly competitive. You study alone, write exams alone and get a personal report card. Whereas in a business project, you work as a team, and for a simple common goal that everyone gets!

4. Strength-based

Unlike the education system where everyone learns the same thing with standardized evaluations on it, a business project of this sort encourages individuals to work on areas of ownership based on what they are good at, which is often, also what they enjoy! They are more inclined to work hard because they love it!

5. Learning by doing

Almost all of our school education is theoretical. In this project, as students try to build something with their own hands ... magic happens. When they speak to customers and try to sell, they get a lot of real-time feedback. They iterate and improve!

6. Solving real-world problems

Our physics, maths, and other exams pose theoretical problems that we seldom face in the real world. In building business models and selling ideas, products, or services - there are numerous real-world challenges learners encounter, such as how to deal with poor quality ingredients, unplanned rains, customers backing out. Learners are forced to think on their feet and innovate!

7. Understanding the value of money

Money is taboo at school, in the present education system. After this project, listening to parents talk about how their children became value-conscious and even started to respect parents’ work, was re-affirming. I’m hopeful that now more parents will be comfortable trusting their kids to try out entrepreneurial ideas practically - with money -  rather than hypothetically or theoretically.

8. Unbounded

In every subject, in every grade: there is a limit to what you can learn and do - defined by the syllabus. In business projects, learners work on their potential! No limits! 24k profit with 2k seed capital in 45 days by a team of 2 girls! Hell yeah!

9. From Convergent to Divergent

Our exams and hence education has been based on "getting the right answer" 

As if there is only 1 answer to life! The Business Blasters project enables students to try many different ways to solve varied challenges, just as they are going to need to in life. It’s never going to be a one solution fits all situation and the earlier learners’ are used to dealing with uncertainty, the better for their lives!