Understanding the Problem
In April 2010, India became one of the 135 countries that recognizes education as a fundamental right of every child. The only way to deliver on this promise, in most of the villages in India, is through the government run schools, which are the only schools in these areas.
Today, most students in government schools are from economically challenged families and are often first-generation school goers. The running condition of these schools and the quality of education that they impart is hence crucial to the educational progress of children in these villages. Yet the current conditions of these schools leave a lot to be desired even in terms of basic school infrastructure and quality of academic instruction.
WE BELIEVE, EVERY CHILD should have the opportunity and access to good education.
The Good School Project is designed to develop government schools that serve as the sole source of education to rural children and urban poor.
Scope of the project
School development through the Good School Project is classified into three major areas of development
- Basic School Infrastructure
- Academic Outcomes and Additional Learning Infrastructure
- Skills and Counseling
Basic School Infrastructure
The bare minimum infrastructure that a school needs to have, to be a conducive learning environment for children includes building infrastructure, furnished classrooms, toilets, drinking water, playgrounds and some sports equipment.
As part of this project we undertake development of these basic infrastructure (except construction of school buildings and toilet construction for which there is a thrust through government schemes)
Furnished classrooms create a positive learning environment for the children and enable proper sitting posture. Clean drinking water is essential for health and hygiene. Playgrounds are an outlet for children’s energies and development of physical fitness and social skills.
Academic Outcomes and Learning Infrastructure
Here we try to address gaps in academic outcomes and bring in quality learning infrastructure into schools.
Academic interventions are primarily designed to address the English language gap in schools. The program that revolves around their academic curriculum teaches language skills in a simple and practicable skills and has shown to greatly improve student confidence and academic performance in the crucial Std X exams.
In addition to this, where we cannot directly conduct programs for academics we try to bring in establish e-learning infrastructure and quality content to address staff gaps of student learning gaps.
As a further step towards digital education which is highly essential for the students’ future prospects we also develop computer labs wherever possible.
Skills and Counseling
Going beyond academics we have also sought to develop student skills in communication through the Confidence Catalyst program (see more..link to the Confidence Catalyst page).
As a pilot towards imparting life skills we have created a tailoring training unit in a school (see more…)
To help students face their public exams better we provide examination prep materials and assistance.
To enable students to be aware of explore the whole gamut of career options before them we conduct career counseling sessions in various schools.
The number of possibilities to develop these schools are many and the potential is immense.
To support this cause….