They must have been driven by the thought ‘each one teach one’ and to meet their goal, a group of youngsters from Passionate Foundation has devised a programme that has been able to reach out to a handful of government schools in the city. And as an outcome of this, the volunteers are happy the children can differentiate between noun, pronoun, prepositions and adjectives.
When the youngsters first set out, they were shocked with the state in which students were taught English. Not only was the curriculum found lacking, the students also didn’t have any other means to learn the language except falling back on their dated text books, which taught nursery rhymes at std V. “We realised we should do something to make the students keep abreast with English. At least there was no harm in trying,” explains Chaitanya MRSK.
The initiative launched by Passionate Foundation is called Teach for Change. The idea is to create a pool of dedicated volunteers who have a passion to teach at Government Schools. As part of the Teach for Change initiative, selected volunteers will be teaching Leadership and English programmes in government schools.
Chaitanya and his friends credit their zeal to do social work to the surroundings they live and studied at. They say their stint in social work in school helped them build the momentum and “so when we got down to work, it wasn’t much of a task. The first step was in adopting a couple of government schools and planning a schedule where the free time is used productively,” explains Chaitanya who does most of the managing work for the students.
The group uses texts from the Cambridge University Press and has devised a fun-filled method of education. “None of the volunteers are paid and they work purely out of their passion to teach. We also do events and since we have adopted 10 schools, we are also looking at developing the schools which will motivate them to come to school and learn. Children are enthusiastic to learn and their dreams range from becoming scientists to sportsmen,” says Ayoob, another student who has been teaching in the school for nearly seven years.
Besides Ayoob, the others who regularly teach in different schools are Suguna Raju, Jyothi, Sirish Dharmapuri, Divya Ghanathe and Shaik.
At the Government High School, Hasmatpet, when the children were called out to recite rhymes, they were gleefully reciting ‘Twinkle twinkle little star’ in action, only that these students were studying in Std V. “This is why they lag behind in competitive exams. They might be sharp in other subjects but they lose the edge since they are unable to communicate in English,” says Chaitanya .
The teachers of the schools are happy with the progress. “We feel motivated when we see these youngsters striving to help the rest. In the process they have brought in many good changes to the schools and soon we will have a sheltered play area for the children,” says the principal of one of the schools adopted by the youngsters.
Now, Passionate Foundation is planning a routine where anyone can come and teach a subject of their preference.
“The schedule is flexible and we have a choice of subjects. Anyone from homemakers to retired people can teach the students. The only eligibility criteria being ‘passion to teach’,” says Chaitanya.
The schools
Government Primary School, Bowenpally
Government High School, Hasmatpet, Bowenpally
Government Primary School, JNTU, Kukatpally
Government High School, Filmnagar, Jubliee Hills
Government High School, Ameerpet, DK Road
Government High School, Yousufguda
Teach for change
Who can apply : Anyone with a passion to teach.
Time : The schedule will be flexible for volunteers.
Subjects : Any subject that interests volunteers.
Area : Volunteers can choose their area and school
Volunteers can apply on www.teachforchange.in
