Full Time Center in Baghwanala:

The project as a model school.

Teachers and students in Baghwanala school

Contents:

• Introduction:

• The critical importance of educational

• Background of the project

• The Full Time Center in Baghwanala

• Baghwanala slum

• The school

• Social and cultural activities

• An integrated approach: Education to promote other Child Rights

• The future of the Center in Baghwanala

 Full Time Center in Baghwanala:
The project as a model school.

Introduction:
The objective of Full Time Centers (FTC's) is to provide elementary education to
children between 6 and 14 years old in locations where Government elementary schools
are not available. On the X anniversary of the Center in Baghwanala, we would like to
present the organization and the achievements of this FTC as a model school to be
considered by official and non-governmental organizations.

The critical importance of Education

Education is one of the crucial indicators of human

development. It is not only a fundamental human right, but
a right that enables the foundations for growth,
opportunity and equality. Ending generational cycles of
poverty and disease, education has also helped reducing
some of societies’ deeply rooted inequalities. Gender
sensitive quality education is necessary for boys and girls
to adopt healthy lifestyles and to take an active role in
social, economic and political decision-making. In
addition, school attendance significantly reduces the risk
of child labour and child marriage. Moreover, educated
adults are more likely to adopt appropriate family planning
and to ensure their children start school on time and are
ready to learn.

In India, both the State and Central Governments have made immense efforts,
since Independence, to improve the dismal situation of education in the country. Even
with commendable efforts, like the passing of
the Right to Children to Free and Compulsory
Education (RTE) Act 2009, there are millions
of out-of-school boys and girls in this country.
Quality education still remains elusive for
millions more.
 Background of the project:

There are 40 villages and 9 urban slums in the district of Varanasi, where more
than half of the population live below poverty line. Most children in these locations
have either dropped out or never
enrolled in Elementary School.
Many of them work as earning
members of their family, while child
girls are commonly responsible of
taking care of their younger siblings
and are, therefore, not expected to
attend school. Understanding of the
critical importance of child
education needs to be developed
among the parents and the
community people.

Schools have their own set of problems: rigid curricula, uninteresting and
monotonous teaching not linked to daily life, demotivated teachers and lack of facilities,
among others.

The Full Time Centre in Baghwanala:

Baghwanala slum:

Baghwanala slum is situated at the bank of Varuna River at Hukulganj area in

Varanasi. Baghwanala inhabitants' main source of livelihood was weaving, but due to
gradual plight of weaving industry, people have been forced to find other occupations
such as rickshaw driving or vegetable selling. There is no accessible Government school
for the children living in Baghwanala area.

Baghwanala slum

PVCHR has been running a Full Time Centre in Baghwanala since 2000 in the
name of Raja Suheldeve Jan Mitra Shikshan Kendra to impart elementary education up
to the fifth standard to the children living in this area.
 The school:

The aim of the FTC in

Baghwanala is not only to grant
access to elementary education to
the children in this village. Quality
and gender sensitive education is
provided to the pupils in a safe and
child-friendly environment
conductive to learn and play.

• The students:
• At present, 125 pupils (academic year 2010/11) .
• Ages from 6 to 14 years.
• Timetable from 10.00 to 14.30 (including recess and lunch brake).
• Secondary education is arranged for as many students as possible through
the scholarship program supported by PVCHR.
• Drop-out rate at the Centre is zero.

• Age groups1 (academic year 2010/11):

• First grade: 36 students.
• Second grade: 34 students.
• Thrird grade: 36 students.
• Fourth grade: 13 students.
• Fifth grade: 6 students. Conductive course towards Secondary Education.

• The teachers:
• There are currently 5 qualified and trained teachers working at the school.
• Special training: the teachers and the headmaster have been given special
training supported by PVCHR to develop the required sensibility to deal
with the children due to their disadvantaged social and educational
background.
• Irregular attendance and drop-out are prevented by the teachers through
usual contact with the parents. Teachers get in touch personally with the

1 Currently, the national average is about one teacher every 34 students, even though children have the
right to have at least 1 qualified and trainned teacher for every 30 pupils.
Source: Unicef India.
 families on the second day of absence from the school (nearly 50% of the
children don´t attend the school every day).

• The class:
• Subjects: Hindi and English literacy, Math, , Science, Geography, Civics,
General Knowledge and Drawing.
• Children are motivated to participate through debates, question rounds etc. A
familiar and friendly relationship towards the teachers is encouraged by the
Centre (for instance, the pupils call the teachers brother or sister).
• Behaviour of the children:
as repeatedly expressed by
the teachers, it is highly
satisfactory. The children
are eager to learn and have
proved enormous
improvements in their
discipline and socialization
skills from the moment they
start attending the school.
Second grade class

• Building facilities:
• Sanitation: Drinking water and toilets are accessible to the children.
• Students can safely enjoy the schoolyard during recess and lunch break.

• Learning material:
• The Centre provides the students everything needed for their learning: pens,
pencils, exercise books etc.
• Library: the children at the Centre have full access to the library facility and
other means of easy learning like charts, toys etc.

• Social inclusion: the Centre works against any caste, tribe or gender based
discrimination. Boys and girls with different religious origins study together in
the school (at present, 10 students are muslims).

• Other initiatives to support the children´s learning:

• Introduction of innovative and playful methods: including charts, toys,
games and songs conductive to learn and play.
• Organization of social and cultural activities, health and sexual education
courses and Child Rights awareness: to be described below.
 Social and cultural activities:

• School Garden: under the rubric “To secure our future”, children are given
environmental education and learn gardening in a playful manner.
• Street plays: extracurricular activity where children write and rehearse plays on
child rights, increasing community awareness. The topics of the plays that have
been acted in the streets during Fundamental Rights Campaigns include: child
marriage, child labour, education, clean water assurance.
• Children Parliament: at present, 61 children participate on a regular basis. Two
chairpersons, one girl and one boy, are democratically elected. Debates on
children issues are celebrated, followed by voting. The parliament have strictly
voted against child marriage and protested to the parents of a 14 year old who
was arranged to marry (and fortunately, the marriage was finally canceled). The
children manage a chart paper and organize sign collections to pressure against
issues the parliament has opposed to (another example is the use of crackers on
the Diwali festival).

Street plays performed on Children´s Day in Varanasi

An integrated approach: Education to promote other Child Rights:

In addition to the crucial importance of education per se, it is a means of

achieving other critical goals: gender equality, promotion of child survival and
development, child protection against abuse and exploitation, assurance of clean water
and sanitation, fight against HIV and other STD’s and encouragement of individual and
social development and participation.
Several activities and workshops are carried out in the school as a way of
adopting a holistic and integrated approach to education.

• Health awareness:
• Health monitor: medical check-up of the children is done regularly every
month. Results are kept in a register in the school. 100% of the children are
vaccinated. The help and involvement of guardians and community has
significantly contributed in increasing awareness about health of the children
as well as community at large.
 • Sexual education:
• Meetings between the teachers and the parents are held to share information
and are asked to consent their child’s assistance to the sexual education
workshop.
• The Centre organizes and leads meetings between the parents and the girls
(ages 13-14) where information on sexuality and hygiene is given and
discussed.

• Empowerment of the children: children learn and discuss about their rights in
the school and in the Child Parliament. They participate in the celebrations and
campaigns on fundamental rights. They are always welcome to reach the
teachers for help or advice.

• Child protection:
• Dangerous family environment: teachers reach the families as soon as they
recognize any alarm sign. If they are not capable of managing the problem
by themselves, they will inform PVCHR.
• Child without parental care: at present, all the students enrolled live with
their families in the Baghwanala area.
• Child marriage and child labour: awareness on this issue has been
significantly increased in the community through information and
discussions involving the families and the children. In several cases,
arranged child marriages have been canceled because the child girl opposed.

The future of the school:

The aim of PVCHR has always been to promote

the construction of a Government school in Baghwanala.
PVCHR made a formal request to the Government on this
matter in 1999, but the proposal was rejected claiming
there was no structure that made possible the construction
of the building. PVCHR proposed the project of the FTC
to the donors and the school was built.

Now another request has been made to the

Government to regularise the Centre as a Government
school. This would secure the preservation of the project
and students would have full access to uniforms, learning
material, midday meals and scholarships from the
Government. The request has not been answered yet.

PVCHR will support the staff to use their experience working in another
location where the example of this Model School can be helpful.

Written by: María San Martín. Photographs by María San Martín.