#Dr Shoury Kuttappa

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Closing the Gap: Bridging the Transition from School to University

The event "Closing the Gap: Bridging the Transition from School to University," organized by Mindler, a leading educational services company, was highly successful and well received.

Dr. Shoury Kuttappa, Academic Manager and Counsellor from Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, captivated attendees with his expertise on supporting students through this pivotal transition. His presentation offered invaluable strategies for handling university admissions, academic demands, and career planning, addressing the key concerns of students and parents alike.

The collaboration between Mindler and Suncity School in Gurugram provided an ideal platform to foster academic readiness, ensuring students and families felt informed and prepared for the next step in their educational journey.

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SELF-REFLECTION: INITIATION

Being present with oneself, in the moment, being mindful, mentalizing, reflective function—all of these constructs point toward a crucial recognition of one’s own experience that takes place over and over again on short time scales, as much as it is an overarching way of seeing that spans a lifetime. Practicing curiosity fosters open-mindedness.

There is the “a-ha” moment of realizing what one had temporarily forgotten, an often-amusing moment of noticing that one stopped noticing something basic. Witnessing one’s own witnessing while participating in the flow of other activities grounds one in a particular sense of security, leading toward integration as the scope of awareness becomes encompassing. There is a firm but gentle way to be intently aware, where one almost sees oneself as a beloved stranger. Being a stranger to oneself can represent alienation and nihilism, but it can also be the beginning of a love affair as we meet ourselves anew. Closeness to oneself, however, can pose a variety of real and imagined threats. It’s important to respect our own boundaries, self-consent to all major decisions, and equip ourselves well. Self-inquiry is a complex affair. There are so many layers and options, and fully cataloguing every dimension would be quite an undertaking. Taking it all in and using it implicitly would be ridiculous. In the meantime, here are a few questions and related observations, which may be handy. A) Why am I thinking this? I mean this thought, right now: . . . . .

While this can simply be a curious question, it may feel critical particularly if the emotional tone (the inner tone of voice) is short or explicitly berating. However, there is a possibility that this is a useful question, as it allows one to trace back the origins or triggers of a particular train of thought or sequence of experiences. “How come” or “when did you first notice this” can be other ways to wonder why. B) What is happening? This is what is passing through my mind: . . . . . . This feels like recognition, though the content may change. There is a sense of sureness, no doubt. It may be a fleeting notion, or an old familiar companion. Getting such repeating complexes of thought-emotion-behaviour, holistic experience, is useful. They may represent the brain’s resting state network, or default mode network (DMN) activity. Many people do not pay attention to this background noise, but it isn’t fully random. There are often large parts which are consistent over time. Whether they work as we wish, and so on, is another question. C) What am I seeing? More to the point, where is attention focused?: . . . . . .  A lot of how we think is in a visual mode. The mind is a high-entropy system, meaning it can be in many possible states.  According to physicist Emerson M. Pugh (though often ascribed to others), “If the human brain were so simple that we could understand it, we would be so simple that we couldn’t.” We can imagine anything, given enough time, but the reality is that at any given moment we have a limited capacity to hold information in mind. This is the paradox of the brain, which is effectively infinite to itself while being severely constrained, as in theory I can think, say or experience a massive number of possible things. In the visual metaphor, we can control how far away we are from the object of attention, creating a degree of detachment without disengagement. D) Am I listening? Did I stop listening to what is important to me?: . . . . .  Listening is key because we can expand the soundscape of how we take our own thoughts. Sometimes the littlest voices are the most important, as is often said. The default mode network is meant to meander, and meandering is healthy, creative, and restorative. It lets us stumble upon interesting and potentially important things we might otherwise zip past. The executive control network can remember what was prioritized, execute plans, and direct resources. The salience network decides what to highlight and what to filter out, to a significant extent based on past experiences, for better or worse. Clearing the mind makes listening easier. E) Am I using all my senses? . . . . . . Other ways of self-attention track with other sensory modalities, scent or olfaction, touch, taste, body sense or proprioception, and subtle cues of a very basic nature, such as level of tension and groundness, feeling uprooted or firmly planted. It takes a bit of a Sherlock Holmes mentality to fully get a sense of oneself first by looking for all the tell-tale clues. Any sense can be a metaphor or template for ways of inner perception. The immersion in digital reality tends to make it harder to cultivate other senses, though, as audio-visual systems get disproportionately used, and highly developed. Adaptations to cyber-reality may make it harder to be present in an embodied form, as we come to expect and have become accustomed to obvious simulation. It also changes the way we relate to one another. F) Am I present? . . . . .  The act of asking this question, which may be dispassionate and compassionate, can have the immediate effect of returning one to the present. This is especially true if the path is well-travelled. Neurotic tendencies interfere, with second-guessing and worry. It’s like building a bridge into the air over a canyon without being able to see the other side. Being present uses up mental resources, taking other brain systems offline, such as those involved in excessive worry. It also means that we can’t think about the past and future in quite the same ways, as there is a sense of time standing still in the present moment. Long-term planning from this perspective is more of a blueprint, perhaps as imperfectly glimpsed in a dream. There is a question of whether humanity has been sleepwalking — a manifestation of collective self-hypnotic somnambulism — and whether we are becoming woke, or not. Being present allows us to at least take stock of our personal inventory, possibly catching more of what we ordinarily downplay or completely miss.

Sometimes we have an idea, and while we are thinking about it, we realize we are struggling to clarify to ourself what we are really thinking. We have an idea and wanted to communicate it to someone else, but find ourselves saying, “it’s hard to explain”. Some questions that may help us out of this are:

Clarity: . . . . . . . . . . . . Can we illustrate what we mean? Could we give an example in a visual format?

Accuracy: . . . . . . . . . . . . How could we verify or test it? Can we check it some way? Do we need or want to do this?

Precision: : . . . . . . . . . . . .Could we be more specific? Can we give a clearer more detailed version of this idea?

Relevance: . . . . . . . . . . . .How does that solve a problem? How does it bear on a question?

Depth: . . . . . . . . . . . . What are some of the complexities with this idea? What factors make this a difficult problem?

Breadth: . . . . . . . . . . . . Should we consider another point of view? What is the other perspective?

Logic: . . . . . . . . . . . . Does this make sense? Does it need to make sense? Is this abstract? If so, can we explain it in a way others will understand?

Significance: . . . . . . . . . . . . Is this the most important idea to consider right now? Does it line up with our priorities?

Fairness: . . . . . . . . . . . . Do we have a vested interest in this? Are we considering the feelings of others here? Is this idea self serving or not?

Content Curated By: Dr Shoury Kuttappa

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MENTAL/ BRAIN BANDWIDTH

Everything we do (thinking and doing) occupies some bandwidth. Some things occupy a little and others a lot. Examples of things that occupy a little, for most people, are walking, drumming your fingers, or tapping your foot, and things that we are expert at because we have done them often. Examples of things that occupy a lot are talking, listening to information, doing anything we have to concentrate hard on, doing things that we are not expert in because we have not done them before.

Driving a car is a good way to envisage this. When we were learning to drive, we had to concentrate extremely hard. We would not have been able to hold a conversation while driving. Almost all our attention was involved in trying to drive. Now that we are an expert, we do not usually have to use so much of your attention. Of course, we still must use a fair amount, but we could also have a conversation while driving. But then, every now and then while you’re driving along, something happens that means you have to focus more: the traffic increases, you come to a part of the journey where you have to look out for a turning, roadworks happen, the weather becomes difficult. Then you will find that you tend to stop conversation; you might turn the radio off; you have instinctively realised that you need more brain bandwidth for the driving.

A few more interesting examples:

1)      If someone is walking at their own pace while being asked simple but increasingly difficult mental arithmetic questions, or questions that need concentration, they will begin to walk more slowly as it become harder. Eventually, they usually stop.

2)      When someone is working while listening to music, they will almost always voluntarily turn it down or off when they come to something, they need lots of concentration for.

3)      Air force pilots practise managing disasters repeatedly because the least amount of bandwidth should be used, freeing the rest for reacting to the unexpected. Such unexpected takes a lot of bandwidth, so as many as possible scenarios must become “expected” or at least practised and automatic.

What is Mental Bandwidth (or Cognitive Bandwidth)?

Bandwidth is what allows us to reason, to focus, to learn new ideas, to make creative leaps and to resist our immediate impulses. Bandwidth refers to our cognitive capacity and our ability to pay attention, make good decisions, stick with our plans, and resist temptations. Cognitive bandwidth is the maximum amount of thinking that is available per unit of time. It can be simplified a step further. We use the term ‘bandwidth’ to refer to two broad, related components of mental function:

1) Cognitive capacity: the psychological mechanisms that underlie our ability to solve problems, retain information, engage in logical reasoning, the ability to think and reason abstractly and solve problems.

2) Executive control: our ability to manage our cognitive activities, including planning, attention, and initiating and inhibiting actions.

Time Scarcity Vs Mental Bandwidth

Scarcity creates a powerful goal that inhibits other considerations. By constantly drawing us back to that urgent unmet goal, scarcity taxes our bandwidth and our most fundamental capacities. Busy people all make the same mistake: they assume they are short on time, which of course they are. But time is not their only scarce resource. They are also short on bandwidth. For instance, although the room seems quiet, it is full of disruptions—ones that come from within. Such internal disruptions stem from scarcity. An unrealized need can capture our attention and impede our ability to focus on other things.

The impacts of scarcity on mental bandwidth can be a vicious cycle. Feelings of scarcity, whether money or time, prey on the mind, thereby impairing decision-making. When you are busy, you are more likely to make poor time-management choices – taking on commitments you cannot handle, or prioritising trifling tasks over crucial ones. A vicious spiral kicks in, your feelings of busyness leave you even busier than before.

This scarcity mindset consumes ‘mental bandwidth’ — brainpower that would otherwise go to less pressing concerns, planning ahead and problem-solving. This deprivation can lead to a life absorbed by preoccupations that impose ongoing cognitive deficits and reinforce self-defeating actions. When you focus heavily on one thing, there is just less mind to devote to other things. We call it tunnelling — as you devote more and more to dealing with scarcity you have less and less for other things in your life.

A Cognitive Bandwidth Formula

A simple but different approach to cognitive bandwidth can be demonstrated by a formula that we can all use to find mental balance:

(Cognitive Throughput + Cognitive Overhead) ≤ Cognitive Bandwidth

1)      Throughput: The actual amount of thinking done per unit of time…the throughput depends on the complexity of the stuff we are working on.

2)      Overhead: Overhead is the cost of doing stuff where we must care about organization, task switching, etc, and is paid against the bandwidth limit.

3)      Bandwidth: The bandwidth is fixed at some level which we can barely change.

The idea is to try and always make sure your throughput and overhead do not exceed your perceived total bandwidth. If you know your overhead is going to be high one day, try to plan for a reduced throughput (and vice versa).

Why is this brain bandwidth theory so relevant to wellbeing, stress and performance? 

1)      Stress and preoccupation. Three main disadvantages (among others) are:

a)      That you can have too much adrenalin and have a sense of panic instead of simple alertness.

b)      Cortisol has a habit of building up and over time causing problems with sleep, mental health, focus, mood, performance, and physical illnesses.

c)      Preoccupation. This describes the fact that if our brain bandwidth is occupied, then we have less available to focus on the task in hand.

2)      Things that occupy a lot of bandwidth:

a)      Worries, anxieties, intrusive negative thoughts – if we are worried about something or someone, it’s hard to focus on our work; we’ll make more mistakes; and we’ll be snappier.

b)      Processing information or tasks – such as things we are trying to learn, understand or remember

c)      Anything new and unfamiliar

d)      Other people being around us – they could be distracting us or making us feel unrelaxed; other people are hard to ignore

e)      Working on screens – because when we are using a screen there is almost always competing information on the screen, adverts and icons and notifications designed to attract our attention away from what we are doing.

3)      The consequences of that:

a)      Exhaustion.

b)      Mistakes and forgetfulness – the times when we have “a lot on our mind” are the times when we make mistakes.

c)      Loss of executive control –the times when you snap, say and do things you don’t mean.

d)      Loss of cognitive ability – it is harder to learn new things if we can’t devote our full attention. 

Tips for managing your mental bandwidth

A)     Ignore the Generic Methods and Experiment

There are several conflicting philosophies. For instance, a penny saved might be a penny earned, yet we're also told not to be penny smart and pound foolish. The same holds true with advice for mental bandwidth, where one source might encourage multitasking, while another demand absolute singularity of focus. Rather than trying to adapt your working style to someone else's, experiment with different techniques and keep those that are functional for you, while casting aside those that do not.

B)     Actively manage your mental bandwidth

Perhaps the biggest mistake many people make is allowing their mental bandwidth to be managed for them. The beeping phone, meeting request, or act performed for ritual or obligation all rob our limited mental bandwidth, and many perform these actions unquestioningly. If you allocate your focus as you see fit, and actively choose what you want to focus on, you'll be in command of your mental bandwidth.

C)      Do a bandwidth cost/benefit

Most of us are awash in meeting requests and accept without question. Everyone complains about excessive meetings, yet it's often a guilty pleasure to summon a group at your whim, or join a discussion under the assumption that your input is necessary and valuable. Simply asking yourself whether requesting or attending is worth the cost in mental bandwidth is a great start.

D)     Plan for focus time

There are tasks that require great focus, whether performing precision or dangerous manual work, or designing a complex system or bit of code. Or, you may need to spend some time with a small group, free from distraction. Book a block in your calendar, shut off your phone, move to a different physical location, or do whatever is required to create the right circumstances to have the necessary focus to get the job done.

E)      Know when to throw in the towel

For many of us it can be tempting to put in the extra hour at the office, or delay vacations for what's perceived as a critical set of meetings or deadlines. Trying to squeeze out the last ounce of mental bandwidth can be tempting in the moment, but it's ultimately an effort with rapidly diminishing returns. Calling it a night, taking that long-delayed vacation, or even the simple act of a quick walk around the office will recharge your mental energy and make you more effective in the long run.

F)      Don't make assumptions about your team

It can be tempting to assume that what works for you will be effective for others, even to the point of designing your physical spaces and policies around what you assume will allow your team to best manage and deploy their mental bandwidth. Rather than assuming, ask your team how you can help them be most effective. Allow your teams to experiment and find what works for them, and use the end result as the benchmark for success.

Content Curated By: Dr Shoury Kuttappa

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Parent Counselling Session: Building Resilient Mindsets for Career Challenges

The recent Parent Counselling Session, "Building Resilient Mindsets for Career Challenges," led by Dr. Shoury Kuttappa, was a remarkable success, drawing positive feedback from parents seeking to support their children’s career journeys.

Dr. Shoury Kuttappa, known for his deep expertise in academic counseling and career development, provided insightful strategies to help parents cultivate resilience and adaptability in their children. His engaging approach highlighted the value of a growth mindset, teaching parents how to encourage perseverance and confidence in students facing the evolving demands of today’s job market.

The session also emphasized how a resilient mindset can empower students to navigate career challenges with clarity and purpose, making it highly impactful and beneficial for the audience.

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Augmenting Emotional Intelligence

The "Augmenting Emotional Intelligence" webinar, featuring Dr. Shoury Kuttappa as a key panelist, was a significant achievement, drawing in an engaged audience of students, educators, and professionals.

Held by Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, the session emphasized the importance of emotional intelligence in education and career growth. Dr. Shoury Kuttappa’s expert insights into building emotional resilience and leadership skills resonated with attendees, who commended the event for its practical strategies and inspiring guidance. This successful event underscored the value of emotional intelligence in achieving both academic and personal success.

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Time Management During Board Exams

The "Time Management During Board Exams" webinar, hosted by Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham and led by Dr. Shoury Kuttappa, was welcomed enthusiastically. The session attracted high school students, educators, and parents seeking practical advice on how to enhance productivity and manage study schedules effectively during the critical board exam period.

Dr. Shoury Kuttappa, an experienced academic manager and counselor, shared proven time management techniques, goal-setting strategies, and stress-reduction tips tailored for exam success. Attendees engaged actively in the interactive segments, and the post-webinar quiz, which featured exciting prizes like an Amazon Echo Dot and smartwatch, further boosted engagement.

Participants praised Dr. Shoury Kuttappa’s insightful, hands-on approach, expressing that the session left them feeling more prepared and confident for the exam season. The positive feedback on social media platforms highlighted the impact of the webinar, solidifying it as a valuable resource for students looking to excel in their exams.

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Experiential Learning

The recent webinar on “Experiential Learning” led by Dr. Shoury Kuttappa was a great success, drawing a large, engaged audience eager to explore innovative teaching methods.

Hosted by Kasturi Institute of Management, the event highlighted the importance of experiential learning for effective skill development and knowledge retention.

Dr. Shoury Kuttappa’s insights on "learning by doing" resonated with educators and students alike, sparking positive discussions and feedback.

Participants appreciated the interactive format and actionable strategies for implementing experiential learning, making it a valuable session on educational innovation and student engagement.

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Should Reality Shows be Banned (Kids)

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Assessments and Benchmarks

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Characteristics of Highly Effective Schools

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Sustainable School Campuses

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Covid Learning Loss- Have Students Recovered Yet

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Can We let Teens Decide their Syllabus

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Master Class - Circle of influence