Medak teacher’s viral teaching wins global praise, but his school struggles persist

A primary school teacher in Admapur village, Medak, has gained international acclaim for his creative teaching methods shared via his YouTube channel ‘Raviraj Master’. Despite accolades and foreign support, his school continues to grapple with inadequate infrastructure and staffing needs.

Medak: The innovative teaching methods of B Raviraj, a primary school teacher at the Upper Primary School in remote Admapur village of Narsapur mandal, are drawing global attention from parents and educators.

Raviraj, who devised simple and engaging methods of teaching tagged as IQ Test and Brain Test, launched a YouTube channel during the Covid-19 period to help his students access lessons online.

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Initially meant for his pupils, the channel soon began attracting worldwide viewers. Parents and teachers from several countries wrote in comments that they had adopted his methods in their schools and homes.

His channel, ‘Raviraj Master’, has become widely popular, amassing two million subscribers in just five months. One video, showing his students drawing circles without looking at the board, alone garnered more than 20 crore views. An elderly man from the USA commented that “these kinds of teachers we used to have in the USA in the 1970s”, while another from Brazil wrote that such teachers were needed in their country.

Speaking to Telangana Today, Raviraj, a native of Srikakulam in Andhra Pradesh, said he wanted to make learning of mathematics, English and Telugu enjoyable and easy. He explained that the activities were designed to ensure students never felt like skipping school, which was reflected in the improved attendance.

Raviraj began his career in 2010 at Chowkanpally in Kangti mandal after clearing DSC 2008. There, school enrolment rose from 35 to over 100 within five years. He later moved to Ahmednagar in Narsapur, where enrolment increased from 45 to 120 over nine years. Transferred to Admapur in July 2022, he again boosted student numbers, with enrolment rising to 71 from 51 as nearly 20 children shifted from private to government schools.

In recognition of his efforts, IAS officers A Sridevasena, Yogita Rana and EV Narsimha Reddy invited him to the Secretariat and commended his work. On September 5, the State government honoured him with the State Best Teacher Award, despite his not having applied for it.

Interestingly, Raviraj has spent Rs. 1 lakh from his YouTube revenue on building a shed and buying sports uniforms for students. Several foreign donors, impressed by his methods, have also come forward to extend support. However, the school continues to face challenges with only three teachers and two classrooms for seven classes, which hampers effective teaching.

Watch the viral teaching methods below: