Usaid Mohammed Baig
Engineering out. Education in.
Crossing from mechanical engineering into education.
- Now
- Design coach in edtech
- Before
- Mechanical engineer in manufacturing
- Programme
- PgCTL, one module in when he recorded this
- Project
- A short film on climate change, published online
He was a mechanical engineer in manufacturing, pulled toward education but unable to find a way in. One module into PgCTL he had the confidence to switch fields, taking a job as a design coach in edtech and making a short film on climate change for teachers.
Creative, with a love for physics.
Usaid Mohammed Baig describes himself as someone known for being “very creative and artistic” who also had a love for physics. That mix, he says, is what led him to mechanical engineering and to work in manufacturing. When he found Suraasa, it “really seemed to make sense” to him. What resonated, he says, was the passion he saw there for “present as well as aspiring educators”.
He recorded his account early. “I am one module into the course now,” he says, “and this has really given me confidence to make the big transition from engineering to education and to get a job in the edtech domain as a design coach.”
Just one module into the course has given me a whole new perspective in understanding and interacting with children.
A question, then a film.
He also began exploring what he learnt “in the real world around me”. The issue he chose was climate change and the environment. People know the damage being done, he says, and know a difficult time is ahead. “So where as teachers did we go wrong?”
He took his starting point from the introduction class: the idea that education brings about a change in behaviour by giving the right kind of environment and experiences. “With this as the foundation I went in quest for my answers,” he says. “I travelled, I met people, I learnt and I did get what I was looking for.” He made a short film about it and published it on the internet, and in his video he shows what some educators had to say about it.
Usaid was already a content creator before he enrolled. He shows his progress over time, marks the point where he joined the programme, and then points to the film, which he says “happens to be the most engaging content that I have created”.
A second transition at home.
The career change was not the only one under way. He was about to become a parent, “very soon” in his words, and he calls it the second and very important transition he is going through. “Sometimes it gets overwhelming not knowing what to expect and how to deal with things,” he says. His answer is that “every parent is also a teacher to their children”.
His aim from here is broad. “My vision is to make a positive impact to the world through education,” he says, “impacting young lives and eventually the lives of parents and teachers.”
Each class gives me a great sense of relief that I’m preparing not only to become a good teacher but a parent as well.
