One of the major infirmities of education systems the world over is that they tend to accord minimal importance to developing the general or extra-curricular knowledge of students. That’s a glaring lacuna which Mumbai-based education entrepreneurs Gautam and Ami Goradia are determined to address by providing a combination of qualitative content and robust technology. The husband-wife duo began this venture (Hayagriva Software Pvt. Ltd) in 2001, and are marketing their products and services under the brand yoknowledge.com. “Yo is an abbreviation of ‘your own’. Our objective is to offer software products that enable individuals to develop their own organised and customised content,” says Ami Goradia, a commerce graduate of Gujarat University and experienced quiz master.

For a start, the company has aggregated and developed general knowledge content for schools, colleges and students. “Adequate general knowledge is a mandatory requirement in all public entrance and other examinations. Yet this subject is cursorily taught in schools and education institutions in general. The objective of yoknowledge.com is to fill this knowledge gap in school and college curriculums,” says Gautam Goradia, a commerce and law graduate of Mumbai University with 20 years of experience in the textile industry, after which he switched tracks to enter the education sector.

To build a solid foundation for their closely-held company, the Goradias have invested heavily by way of time and resources. For the past five years, a 40-strong team of software professionals and content developers has been researching and compiling grade/age appropriate general knowledge content. This content, which is in a user-friendly multiple choice question-answer format, is available on CDs and marketed to schools and colleges.

“The content and services we provide are price sensitive and technology driven,” says Gautam Goradia. “The initial CD we market to schools contains 6,650 units of information in an innovative multiple choice question-answer format, and is priced at just Rs.365 or Re.1 per student per day. Subsequently our subscribers can download an additional 3,650 units of company-generated general knowledge content every year on payment of an additional Rs.365 or Re.1 per day. In this way a rich library of general knowledge content can be aggregated during the entire span of a student’s education, and indeed a lifetime. Moreover our software includes utilities to effortlessly create flash card and snap card pedagogies which aid student memorisation and retention. Such knowledge acquisition can develop learned, well-informed students and also prove very useful to students writing public entrance examinations,” he elaborates.

Although currently focused on marketing the general knowledge CDs and supplementary packages, the Goradias have plans to diversify the company’s operations into providing comprehensive exam preparation and self-testing services. “We will offer test questions and answers in multiple choice formats for every examination in India, and some abroad, right from K-12 to vocational and professional exams. Our corporate objective is to enable students to thoroughly prepare and test themselves before they walk into examination halls throughout the country,” says Gautam Goradia.

Wind in your sails!

Jubilee Cardozo (Mumbai)