Light of Hope: Torchbearers of children’s moral education
Skip to main content
  • Home
  • Economy
  • Stocks
  • Analysis
  • World+Biz
  • Sports
  • Splash
  • Features
  • Videos
  • Long Read
  • Games
  • Epaper
  • More
    • COVID-19
    • Bangladesh
    • Infograph
    • Interviews
    • Offbeat
    • Thoughts
    • Podcast
    • Quiz
    • Tech
    • Subscribe
    • Archive
    • Trial By Trivia
    • Magazine
    • Supplement
  • বাংলা
The Business Standard
WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 2022
WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 2022
  • Home
  • Economy
  • Stocks
  • Analysis
  • World+Biz
  • Sports
  • Splash
  • Features
  • Videos
  • Long Read
  • Games
  • Epaper
  • More
    • COVID-19
    • Bangladesh
    • Infograph
    • Interviews
    • Offbeat
    • Thoughts
    • Podcast
    • Quiz
    • Tech
    • Subscribe
    • Archive
    • Trial By Trivia
    • Magazine
    • Supplement
  • বাংলা
Light of Hope: Torchbearers of children’s moral education

Panorama

Adiba Hayat
21 May, 2021, 11:00 am
Last modified: 21 May, 2021, 02:21 pm

Related News

  • How Tech Giants Make Their Billions
  • The melting of our history
  • The doomed voyage of Pepsi’s Soviet navy
  • Lost Panorama: Exploring Old Dhaka’s heritage through walks in the alleys
  • Sluggish private investment: Why doing business in Bangladesh isn’t really easy

Light of Hope: Torchbearers of children’s moral education

Light of Hope is an edu-tech organisation that runs the country’s largest after-school programme based in Dhaka and provides moral education to children between four and 12 years of age

Adiba Hayat
21 May, 2021, 11:00 am
Last modified: 21 May, 2021, 02:21 pm
 Light of Hope develops content for children between four and 12 years of age
Light of Hope develops content for children between four and 12 years of age

The concept of after-school programmes is widely popular in many countries but in Bangladesh, it is comparatively new here. 

These programmes are meant to educate children on topics that are not essentially prioritised within academic curriculums such as social, emotional, cognitive, and academic development, reduce risky behaviours, promote physical health, and provide a safe and supportive environment for children and youths alike.

As much as after-school programmes are needed in Bangladesh, the idea of going to a 'school' after school can be frightening and even exhausting. 

Unless the after-school programme is spontaneous and focuses on creatively planning out the lessons, the programme may result in failure as children are fragile and prone to internalising fears.

The organisation has recently bought a franchise of Joy English School - the most successful English-teaching software programme in the US. Photo: Courtesy
The organisation has recently bought a franchise of Joy English School - the most successful English-teaching software programme in the US. Photo: Courtesy

To mitigate these biases, Light of Hope, an edu-tech organisation that runs the country's largest after-school programme based in Dhaka, is striving towards a brighter future by providing moral education to children between four and 12 years of age. 

The organisation develops content for children and their moral upbringing that includes publishing books, making video content, and a plethora of other media content. 

The Business Standard recently conversed with Fakhrul Alam, director, corporate and media relations at Light of Hope to shed light on the importance of moral and creative education alongside institutional studies.

"We want to make sure that children learn about the virtues of life from a young age. But they cannot learn by themselves; an adult has to supervise these factors of growth, which is why we also curate content, lessons, and courses for the children's caregivers," said Fakhrul. 

A different vision 

Light of Hope was established in 2016 by Waliullah Bhuiyan who dreamt of spreading the light of moral and creative education to every child in Bangladesh. 

Since 2016, this edu-tech organisation has been working on developing moral codes and nurturing creative skills with courses on crafting, sciences, puppetry, magic, and story making that promote self-expression. 

Light of Hope operates and bridges the link between children and their adult caregivers through their two wings - Kid's Time and Teacher's Time.

Kid's Time is Light of Hope's after-school programme that focuses on preparing children for the future by nurturing the children's creativity, problem-solving and critical thinking skills while paying close attention to their emotional intelligence. 

However, prior to this, Kid's Time was essentially a physical after-school centre. The online counterpart of Kid's Time came into existence after the Covid-19 pandemic forced educational institutes to shut down indefinitely from March 2020. 

"Going online helped us scale-up as now we can provide our services nationwide instead of being cooped up in a room," Fakhrul said.

He added, "We aim to prepare the children of today for a better future tomorrow. We want them to be prepared to enter and adapt to the ever-changing job market 20 years from now. Growing up, my generation did not have access to such schooling and now, after the Covid-19 pandemic, we have already seen the job industry going through a massive change but many were not prepared for it."

"We want to make sure that children learn about the virtues of life from a young age. But they cannot learn by themselves; an adult has to supervise these factors of growth, which is why we also curate content, lessons, and courses for the children's caregivers"

Problem solving, emotional intelligence, and moral value are great skills to possess for a child in this age. "Kid's Time hopes to develop these virtues in a child from an early age," continued Fakhrul. 

As leeway to Light of Hope's beliefs, a child can paint the sky any colour they want. "It is their sky and they have the right to imagine it in any colour they want. We always appreciate children breaking away from a conventional thought process and we promote it for their self-development," he said.

Fakhrul added, "Our success lies in the publishing of books that house the creative works of these children. We measure the changes in children through their talent and creative abilities. This tells us how much their critical thinking ability, moral values, and empathy have developed."

Products that open up new avenues 

Goofi Books, the publishing wing of Light of Hope, operates under the banner of Kid's Time and they have a range of books including those that teach Bangla alphabets along with home-schooling kits for English medium schools. 

Explaining the lesson modules, he said, "We have a course on storytelling that teaches children storytelling and character development. Goofi Books has been participating in the Ekushey Book Fair for the past two years and the stories told by the children are compiled in a book to be sold at the fair."

Light of Hope has recently bought a franchise of Joy English School - the most successful English-teaching software programme in the US catering to over a million young students - under Kid's Time. 

"Our partnership with Joy English School will be helpful for children who have just started to learn English as it is very interactive and children tend to learn better in an active environment rather than in a monotonous one," Fakhrul said. 

Teacher's Time is Light of Hope's parental teaching wing and the largest parenting and teachers' development programme in Bangladesh. Over 10,000 teachers and parents have completed courses under Teacher's Time from different parts of the world. 

"Parents and teachers are taught classroom management skills at Teacher's Time. Our workshops never focus on orthodox schooling methods. Instead, we focus on child psychology and their creative wellbeing and we teach the parents and caregivers to focus on these aspects as well," Fakhrul explained. 

Teacher's Time offers a range of parenting courses that include mental development for children, early mathematics for children, managing hyperactivity of children, speech delay management etc, with over 40 high-profile Bangladeshi and global experts on the platform. 

The Covid-19 pandemic has put an end to the livelihood of many businesses but some dared to make an opportunity out of the disaster and aim for larger successes.

Light of Hope did something similar. "Being an edu-tech organisation, it was easier for us to cope with the changing surroundings. Although our physical centre went out of business, thanks to the advent of high-speed internet, now we are serving the entire country and even abroad."

Fakhrul informed us that it was a bit difficult to play out the new courses at the physical centre but as they require fewer resources after going fully online, they have managed to expand their horizons and become available to a wider population.

In the future, Light of Hope aims to go global by purchasing more edu-tech franchises. 

"Our content is available both in Bangladesh and around 60 countries. We want to grow more so we can reach more children and parents in need of virtuous education," voiced Fakhrul.

Features / Top News

Panorama / moral education

Comments

While most comments will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive, moderation decisions are subjective. Published comments are readers’ own views and The Business Standard does not endorse any of the readers’ comments.

Top Stories

  • Now amnesty in the offing to bring back laundered money
    Now amnesty in the offing to bring back laundered money
  • India greenlights wheat exports to Bangladesh on G2G basis
    India greenlights wheat exports to Bangladesh on G2G basis
  • File photo of Chattogram port. Photo: Minhaj Uddin/TBS
    First direct container ship to China leaves Ctg port

MOST VIEWED

  • A Russian army service member fires a howitzer during drills at the Kuzminsky range in the southern Rostov region, Russia January 26, 2022. REUTERS/Sergey Pivovarov/File Photo
    3 months of Ukraine war : Miscalculations, resistance and redirected focus
  • Musk is denying the sexual harassment allegation that surfaced this week. Photo: Bloomberg
    Elon Musk’s crazily banal week 
  • Illustration: TBS
    ‘The move to introduce DVS has changed the entire spectrum of financial auditing’
  • At present, 80% of the umbrella market is dominated by Chinese products. Photo: Noor-A-Alam
    The canopy of change: How Chinese umbrellas drove out Bangla Chhatas 
  • Why everybody wants to be like TikTok
    Why everybody wants to be like TikTok
  • Illustration: TBS
    How the ban on porn sites spawned a local cybersex industry

Related News

  • How Tech Giants Make Their Billions
  • The melting of our history
  • The doomed voyage of Pepsi’s Soviet navy
  • Lost Panorama: Exploring Old Dhaka’s heritage through walks in the alleys
  • Sluggish private investment: Why doing business in Bangladesh isn’t really easy

Features

The balcony railings of the Boro Sardar Bari in Sonargaon. Made of cast iron, these railings feature vertical posts with intricate designs on top. Photo: Noor-A-Alam

The evolution of railing and grille designs

14h | Habitat
A Russian army service member fires a howitzer during drills at the Kuzminsky range in the southern Rostov region, Russia January 26, 2022. REUTERS/Sergey Pivovarov/File Photo

3 months of Ukraine war : Miscalculations, resistance and redirected focus

15h | Analysis
Musk is denying the sexual harassment allegation that surfaced this week. Photo: Bloomberg

Elon Musk’s crazily banal week 

1d | Panorama
Asus Zenbook 14 Flip OLED: A touch of brilliance to your life

Asus Zenbook 14 Flip OLED: A touch of brilliance to your life

1d | Brands

More Videos from TBS

Bangladesh Bank relaxes rules to deal with dollar crisis

Bangladesh Bank relaxes rules to deal with dollar crisis

4h | Videos
Russia claims use of laser weapons, Ukraine denies

Russia claims use of laser weapons, Ukraine denies

4h | Videos
Celebrity Gallery in Rajshahi like Madame Tussauds

Celebrity Gallery in Rajshahi like Madame Tussauds

5h | Videos
Burger-lover student becomes self-dependent, provides employment

Burger-lover student becomes self-dependent, provides employment

5h | Videos

Most Read

1
Tk100 for bike, Tk2,400 for bus to cross Padma Bridge
Bangladesh

Tk100 for bike, Tk2,400 for bus to cross Padma Bridge

2
A packet of US five-dollar bills is inspected at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing in Washington March 26, 2015. REUTERS/Gary Cameron
Banking

Dollar hits Tk100 mark in open market

3
Bangladesh at risk of losing ownership of Banglar Samriddhi
Bangladesh

Bangladesh at risk of losing ownership of Banglar Samriddhi

4
BSEC launches probe against Abul Khayer Hero and allies
Stocks

BSEC launches probe against Abul Khayer Hero and allies

5
The reception is a volumetric box-shaped room that has two glass walls on both the front and back ends and the other two walls are adorned with interior plants, wood and aluminium screens. Photo: Noor-A-Alam
Habitat

The United House: Living and working inside nature

6
Illustration: TBS
Banking

Let taka slide

The Business Standard
Top
  • Home
  • Entertainment
  • Sports
  • About Us
  • Bangladesh
  • International
  • Privacy Policy
  • Comment Policy
  • Contact Us
  • Economy
  • Sitemap
  • RSS

Contact Us

The Business Standard

Main Office -4/A, Eskaton Garden, Dhaka- 1000

Phone: +8801847 416158 - 59

Send Opinion articles to - oped.tbs@gmail.com

For advertisement- sales@tbsnews.net

Copyright © 2022 THE BUSINESS STANDARD All rights reserved. Technical Partner: RSI Lab