Sambaram Gurukula Paathasaala
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A Quarterly Newsletter of Initiatives by Dr. Reddy’s Foundation Volume 10 Issue 3 February 2013 The Bridge to a Brighter Future Sambaram Gurukula Paathasaala Editorial Team Editorial Sameer Chandra Sumedha Goswami At DRF, we are constantly inspired by the young people Sandhya Damodar we interact with, who overcome great struggles and Madhuri Rao Dempsey obstacles to make something of their lives. This gives meaning and purpose to our work and motivates us to find better ways to reach out to them and help them move forward on their path. In this issue, we bring you an uplifting story about the Sambaram Gurukula Paathasaala, a residential school for vulnerable urban children who have been sidelined and denied their basic rights due to poverty, abuse or neglect. This Contributors heartwarming article shows the impact that a caring environment and sound education can have on the B Bhaskar Babu (Learning & Development) Cover Story lives of children who are eager to learn and improve Sambaram Gurukula Paathasaala 04 their lives, if only given the chance. B Latitendra (Loni LABS Center) Much of what we do at DRF is directed at ultimately Barbara Burder (ERC) Learning & Development Coaching for Higher Performance 07 ensuring the sustainability of our life-changing Bhuleshwar Patel (Silvassa LABS Center) programs. This is evident in a special feature on PwD LABS, which is moving towards mainstreaming C Nithya Bhavani (PNS, Nagaram) Employer Speak Vedaakshara Solutions 08 aspirants. The article traces the evolution of PwD LABS C Raghavendra Rao (Dilsukhnagar LABS Center) and salutes the dedicated facilitators and partners who Special Feature have nurtured the program and helped to transform G Raghavendra (QAE) Unleashing the Potential Within 09 many lives. The stories of aspirants with disabilities who Hemanathan (South Zone) beat the odds to achieve success in life, with help from LABS News 10 LABS, are both touching and motivating. Jagdish Saini (Jaipur LABS Center) We also present a colourful gallery of innovative K Sailaja (KARV) LABS Centers 12 ideas implemented at various LABS centers around KV Lakshminarayana (Kurnool LABS Center) the country. These range from posters and artwork Photo Feature on diverse topics to a wide variety of instructional M Madhuri (Principal, PNS, Hayathnagar) The Creative Side of LABS 16 resources, created and designed by center teams and Mahesh Vasava (Vyara LABS Center) aspirants and calculated to spread awareness and Education Spotlight accelerate the learning process. They are a true example Mayur Gujar (Solapur LABS Center) Empowering Teachers 18 of ‘best practices’ at work around the organization and a Neeraj Singh (Bachhrawan LABS Center) testament to ‘doing more with less’. Education Snippets 20 P Lakshman (MIS) This issue also features an eye-opening article on P Srinivas (PwD LABS) DRF in the News 23 teacher training, which describes the multiple ways in which the DRF’s Education Resource Center provides Pranav (East Zone) valuable continuing education and tools to teachers S Sanjeev (Pudami Neighbourhood Schools) of the Pudami Schools, so that they can excel in the classroom and stay ahead of the curve. Sabyasachi Chakraborty (East and Central Zones) We hope you enjoy reading this issue and look forward Sailesh Kumar (Bachhrawan LABS Center) Contents to your feedback and comments. You can write to us at Sinjini Ghosh (SCOPE) [email protected] T Nalini (ERC) Vikash Lal (North Zone) Cover Story >>> find themselves in difficult circumstances. It provides these With the growth of urban cities and decline of agriculture, children with residential schooling and the opportunity for families from rural areas are increasingly migrating to cities all-round development. It is a home and school for the in search of livelihood opportunities. These impoverished, most vulnerable children, such as child labourers, children displaced migrants find employment in a range of low paid from juvenile homes and construction sites and children and unskilled jobs and are clustered in slums, construction living on streets. At present, there are 121 children residing sites and labour colonies. Urban spaces for the poor are and studying at Sambaram Gurukula Paathasaala. The characterized by an acute shortage of basic amenities and school provides a Telugu medium education but those who facilities, compelling families to live in inhuman conditions. have the ability to cope with an English medium education As families struggle to make a living with limited resources are linked to Kallam Anji Reddy Vidyalaya (KARV) within the and inadequate support structures, children become the same campus. worst victims of deprivation. An urban deprived child may face multiple hardships and is highly vulnerable to abuse. Bringing the Marginalized They are robbed of a normal childhood, and many become into the Mainstream Some children never see the inside of a classroom. Radhika The Bridge to a Brighter Future almost became one of them. For one so young, Radhika (name changed) had more than her share of troubles and tragedies. Just a few years ago, she lived with her parents and Sambaram Gurukula Paathasaala sister in Indira Nagar, Hyderabad where her parents worked as daily wage earners. Her father was a violent alcoholic who was irregular at work and would often physically abuse child labourers, domestic workers, victims of trafficking her mother. He had also taken loans from money lenders, or child abuse, runaways, wards of government Juvenile plunging his family further into debt. Radhika’s mother Homes or children living on the streets. struggled to cope with managing the family, taking care of the children and paying off her husband’s loans. Finally, unable Education for these children, even today, remains a distant to bear her many burdens, Radhika’s mother committed dream. Their struggle to make a living and survive amidst suicide. A dazed Radhika and her little sister were taken by unhealthy living conditions deprives them of the opportunity her grandmother to Warangal for a brief period and later the to attend school. The shortage of schools and lack of two girls were brought to Hyderabad to work as domestic accessibility in the peripheries of the city where migrants labourers. Fortunately, they were rescued from this fate dwell takes children even further away from education. by an NGO and shifted to a juvenile home. After a month For children without parental support or the care of an clearly treasure its supportive ambience and remember the there, both the sisters were brought to Sambaram Gurukula extended family in urban areas, the situation is worse. They experience of joyful learning long after they move on to Paathasaala and admitted to KARV English medium school. may have never enrolled in school or may be more likely to other educational institutions. Currently 17 girls who are Eager to learn, they managed the transition well. Nandini is drop out if admitted. Lack of support not only makes them studying at KARV live at SGP. now in Class VII and her sister is in Class IV. Both of them live more vulnerable to all kinds of abuse but also leads to the at Sambaram Gurukula Paathasaala and are happy studying denial of their right to education and development. at KARV. Forging Links, Creating Opportunities Sambaram Gurukula Paathasaala: Sambaram Gurukula Paathasaala (SGP) has played an active From the beginning of 2010, DRF’s SCOPE project has been extending educational support to boys and girls of the Educating Vulnerable Urban Children role in providing academic support to prepare girls to be mainstreamed in government supported residential schools. Juvenile Home in Hyderabad and the Rangareddy district. Praveen is an 11-year-old boy. His family migrated from Though it originally catered to young boys at its inception, When SCOPE first started, the educational scenario in the Mahbubnagar to Hyderabad in search of work and both Juvenile Homes was rather dismal, with the only opportunity was put into a temporary Residential Bridge Course (RBC). today SGP accommodates both boys and girls. The decision became daily wage earners. He lost his father when he provided to the children being a vocational education in After completing the course, he was mainstreamed into to include girls was a response to their vulnerable situation could hardly speak a word. A few years later, he lost his tailoring and other crafts. SCOPE believes that the right Sambaram Gurukula Paathasaala, Chandanagar campus and the lack of alternative care available to them. After one mother in an accident. The loss of his mother came as place for the child is the school. In the spirit of the RTE at Madinaguda. Today Praveen is studying in Class VI and year, 34 girls studying in Sambaram Gurukula Paathasaala a great shock and Praveen dropped out of school. His Act, 2009 that makes education a fundamental right for all thriving. His troubled past no longer haunts him. He has have been mainstreamed into Kasturba Gandhi Ballika uncle took responsibility for Praveen for a while. Praveen’s children, DRF took the initiative to start adolescent training friends and enjoys studying and playing with them. For the Vidyalaya (KGBV) and AP Social Welfare hostels. The aim mother’s death had left deep scars on his mind and he and 10th standard certification education for the children of first time in his young life, Praveen has finally been able to of mainstreaming girls into such institutions is to link them began displaying violent behaviour towards other children. both Juvenile Homes. DRF believed that education would taste the simple joys of childhood. with residential schools to address their specialized needs. He was called a “troublesome child,” and his uncle became Renuka, the daughter of a bonded labourer, who had never provide the route to freedom for these children and enable increasingly uneasy about keeping him in the same house An initiative of DRF’s School-Community Partnership in been to school, was identified by SGP staff and began her them to find their place in society.