more on the experiment...
here is a copy of the email that i wrote to a friend about this experiment....hopefully, this will give some idea as to how our experiment is going -
let me tell you more about this experiment. as mentioned in my blog, this started without any planning...i met a few children and i thought it would be great to connect with them and give them acceptance...teaching them to read and write was a way to connect with these children. so we started meeting in the rose garden...once a place was set, other people/children also joined us...the group dynamics really varied....there were rickshaw pullers, some children who make their living by begging or polishing shoes and a few ladies (who come randomly) who either beg or rag-pick...this group had never been to school and it seemed that they had never used a copy and a pencil before.
Then there were some boys who used to sell maps etc in the market. these boys are quite smart and had some exposure to education...some of them had also done their 10th. i felt that more than studies, this group needs guidance and so i thought of vocational courses for these boys and took them to various institutes....two of these boys have already started computer course...the others (who are not educated and cannot read and write properly) have decided to take the scooter repair course....as per their suggestion, before starting the course, we started a small pathshala in a park (under the shade of a tree) close to their locality...about 10 to 15 boys come regularly for 2 hours to learn to read/write english and hindi and also learn some basic mathematic skills. once these boys feel that they are ready then we will start their vocational training as well. to teach this group, we have hired a teacher (and paying him about Rs.1000). Since we didn't want to provide free education, these boys are more than willing to give Rs.20 a month to cover the expenses of notebooks and pencils. I visit the "pathshala" almost everyday and try to enourage them in every aspect. we also do some fun activities like painting or playing a friendly cricket/football match on sundays.
The other group with whom i originally started this experiment still comes to the rose garden...a total of about 10-15 children/adults come on a regular basis...it has been quite a challenge to teach this set of boys since their attention span is very very less (it started with a few seconds and now it is a few minutes :-)) so i try various ways like telling stories, making them paint, taking their pictures in digital format and exposing them to computer, encouragaing them to tell stories and also encouraging them to read and write....i have also tried to teach how to make paper bags to the younger boys so that they can sell the bags and earn a living...i have not been very successful in this endeavour as the boys are not very focussed and hard working...sometimes, the elder boys help making bags using newspaper and i give 5 bags to each boy (who beg) and ask them to sell it....they did come back for a few days saying that they got food (like paranthas ad chole/bathure) in exchange for these bags but lately, they have lost interest. my intention is to encourage (in a subtle way) these children not to beg. This i try to do in indirect ways by telling stories etc. For the other grown up boys (rickshaw pullers and boot polisher who are quite motivated to learn to read and write) - i think once they are a little focused i will encourage them to take some vocational course.
On the whole, i am having a lot of fun working with these children.
Physical Development
As for sports, these children are quite good at cricket and football (infact the boys who sell maps etc have formed their criket and foot ball teams and are always upto challenge any team in chandigarh for a match)...infact, we did do a friendly cricket match with these boys a few weeks back. Now, we are planning to meet again this sunday for some games and other fun activities.
Help Required
- The help that we need the most is that of volunteers with immense patience who can teach these children and at the same time provide guidance in a subtle way...so if any of you guys are visiting India then do plan to spend some time with us in chandigarh.
- we also need help in finding inspiring/entertaining stories that encourage these children to work hard and to stop begging and telling lies.
- apart from that, i need help in finding alternate ways of generating some income for the younger boys who beg...i cannot tell them to stop begging till i give them an alternative (which is important for them)...their parents would never send them to school and expect them to bring home some money to put food on the table. So any ideas in this regard would be welcome.
- toys, paints, story books etc are always welcome :-)
let me tell you more about this experiment. as mentioned in my blog, this started without any planning...i met a few children and i thought it would be great to connect with them and give them acceptance...teaching them to read and write was a way to connect with these children. so we started meeting in the rose garden...once a place was set, other people/children also joined us...the group dynamics really varied....there were rickshaw pullers, some children who make their living by begging or polishing shoes and a few ladies (who come randomly) who either beg or rag-pick...this group had never been to school and it seemed that they had never used a copy and a pencil before.
Then there were some boys who used to sell maps etc in the market. these boys are quite smart and had some exposure to education...some of them had also done their 10th. i felt that more than studies, this group needs guidance and so i thought of vocational courses for these boys and took them to various institutes....two of these boys have already started computer course...the others (who are not educated and cannot read and write properly) have decided to take the scooter repair course....as per their suggestion, before starting the course, we started a small pathshala in a park (under the shade of a tree) close to their locality...about 10 to 15 boys come regularly for 2 hours to learn to read/write english and hindi and also learn some basic mathematic skills. once these boys feel that they are ready then we will start their vocational training as well. to teach this group, we have hired a teacher (and paying him about Rs.1000). Since we didn't want to provide free education, these boys are more than willing to give Rs.20 a month to cover the expenses of notebooks and pencils. I visit the "pathshala" almost everyday and try to enourage them in every aspect. we also do some fun activities like painting or playing a friendly cricket/football match on sundays.
The other group with whom i originally started this experiment still comes to the rose garden...a total of about 10-15 children/adults come on a regular basis...it has been quite a challenge to teach this set of boys since their attention span is very very less (it started with a few seconds and now it is a few minutes :-)) so i try various ways like telling stories, making them paint, taking their pictures in digital format and exposing them to computer, encouragaing them to tell stories and also encouraging them to read and write....i have also tried to teach how to make paper bags to the younger boys so that they can sell the bags and earn a living...i have not been very successful in this endeavour as the boys are not very focussed and hard working...sometimes, the elder boys help making bags using newspaper and i give 5 bags to each boy (who beg) and ask them to sell it....they did come back for a few days saying that they got food (like paranthas ad chole/bathure) in exchange for these bags but lately, they have lost interest. my intention is to encourage (in a subtle way) these children not to beg. This i try to do in indirect ways by telling stories etc. For the other grown up boys (rickshaw pullers and boot polisher who are quite motivated to learn to read and write) - i think once they are a little focused i will encourage them to take some vocational course.
On the whole, i am having a lot of fun working with these children.
Physical Development
As for sports, these children are quite good at cricket and football (infact the boys who sell maps etc have formed their criket and foot ball teams and are always upto challenge any team in chandigarh for a match)...infact, we did do a friendly cricket match with these boys a few weeks back. Now, we are planning to meet again this sunday for some games and other fun activities.
Help Required
- The help that we need the most is that of volunteers with immense patience who can teach these children and at the same time provide guidance in a subtle way...so if any of you guys are visiting India then do plan to spend some time with us in chandigarh.
- we also need help in finding inspiring/entertaining stories that encourage these children to work hard and to stop begging and telling lies.
- apart from that, i need help in finding alternate ways of generating some income for the younger boys who beg...i cannot tell them to stop begging till i give them an alternative (which is important for them)...their parents would never send them to school and expect them to bring home some money to put food on the table. So any ideas in this regard would be welcome.
- toys, paints, story books etc are always welcome :-)
posted by Gagan (Liza) Chawla at 6:16 AM
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