Involve: Divanshu Kumar on Peer Learning and Empowering Student Agency
In most traditional classrooms, students are passive recipients of knowledge. Divanshu Kumar, Founder of Involve, is flipping that script. An IIT Madras alumnus, Divanshu believes that the best way to learn is to teach. Through Involve, he has created a platform where senior students teach juniors, fostering deep subject understanding and critical leadership skills like empathy and problem-solving. His mission is to empower students to become the primary agents of their own development.
Divanshu’s journey into social entrepreneurship began during his college days, where he spent significant time in education centers and NGOs. "I realized that students often lack ownership over their choices," he reflects. "The traditional system treats them as vessels to be filled, rather than individuals with a voice. Involve was born out of a simple question: What if we trusted students to lead the learning process?"
The Power of Agency
Involve focuses on "Developing Agency" in students—the ability to take independent action and make choices. "When an 8th grader teaches a 4th grader, they aren't just explaining a math concept," Divanshu explains. "They are learning how to communicate, how to solve problems on the fly, and how to be responsible for someone else's growth. That's real-world leadership development."
The 'Work' Before the 'Startup'
Before launching Involve as a full-fledged company in 2018, Divanshu and his co-founders ran a massive pilot. "We didn't start with the intention of building a billion-dollar company," he says. "We wanted to see if the model worked." The pilot received unexpected national media coverage and support from the IIT Madras incubation cell, providing the validation needed to go all-in. Divanshu even skipped his final year placements to focus on the venture, a decision he describes as a choice between personal security and societal impact.
This early focus on impact rather than income allowed Involve to build a high level of trust with schools and parents. By the time they reached out to investors, they had a proven model that was already transforming lives in classrooms across Chennai and beyond.
Hiring for Trust and Expectation
Building a team for a social enterprise requires a unique approach to hiring. Divanshu looks for people who have high self-honesty and a commitment to the cause. "In a startup, trust is everything," he asserts. "I want team members who feel the company is their own. We spend a lot of time aligning expectations—if someone isn't clear on their role after three months, it's a failure of the system, not the person."
This culture of transparency has allowed Involve to attract "bright minds" who are willing to trade the safety of corporate roles for the chance to rethink education. For Divanshu, his team isn't just a workforce; they are co-creators of a new educational system.
Divanshu's Roadmap for Educational Founders
- Start with a Pilot: Don't just build an app. Get into a classroom, work with students, and see if your model actually solves a problem.
- Build Agency: Your product should empower the user to take action, not just consume content.
- Be Patient with VCs: Investors in education often look for different metrics than those in consumer tech. Focus on proving your impact and sustainability.
- Money is a Byproduct: If you solve a real problem for students and schools, the revenue and funding will follow. "Don't build for the money; build for the mission."
Reimagining the Student-Teacher Bond
Looking ahead, Divanshu envisions a future where every student in the world has a "trusted peer" to guide them. He believes that peer learning is the key to solving the global education crisis, where teachers are often overburdened and students are disengaged. For Divanshu, Involve is not just a platform; it's a movement to return education to its roots—a collaborative, human-centric journey of discovery.
Involve at a Glance
- Innovation: Pioneering a structured, school-integrated peer teaching model.
- Impact: Transforming classroom engagement and building leadership in thousands of students.
- Philosophy: Trusting students to be the primary drivers of education reform.
About the Guest
Divanshu Kumar is the Founder of Involve. An IIT Madras graduate in Mechanical Engineering, Divanshu is a visionary social entrepreneur and an Echoing Green Fellow. He has been recognized by Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his contributions to the education sector and is a vocal advocate for student agency and peer learning. Divanshu is dedicated to building sustainable, scalable solutions for the global education crisis and believes that the youth of India are the key to a better future.
Involve is a peer-to-peer teaching platform that transforms senior students into mentors for their juniors. By integrating into existing school structures, Involve improves academic outcomes and fosters essential 21st-century skills like leadership, communication, and empathy, creating a more dynamic and inclusive learning environment for all.