<Bhumi Logo> BHUMI Annual Report 2015- 2016 <Guide star Badge, Cred All Badge, Top related badge> Contents About us...................................................................................................................................................... 3 Our work ..................................................................................................................................................... 4 The Need .................................................................................................................................................... 5 Our People .................................................................................................................................................. 6 Ignite ........................................................................................................................................................... 7 Impact ......................................................................................................................................................... 8 Nakshatra.................................................................................................................................................... 9 Catalyse .................................................................................................................................................... 10 Ignite - Community Centres ...................................................................................................................... 11 Flood relief centre..................................................................................................................................... 12 Financials .................................................................................................................................................. 13 Help us Grow ............................................................................................................................................ 14 About us Vision: Helping build a more influential, equal and socially conscious society since 2006 Mission: Bhumi drives social change by fostering an environment where young adults & children learn, lead and thrive. One of India’s largest independent youth volunteer nonprofit organisations, Bhumi was founded in Chennai on August 15, 2006 by a group of young friends with a passion to change society as it is today and build a better tomorrow. Bhumi believes that every under-privileged child deserves quality education. We have transformed this conviction into a volunteering opportunity for India's youth, launching a snowball effect of talent nurturing talent on the path to an educated, poverty-free India. Our work Bhumi has two core areas of work – Education and Civic Projects Ignite: Transformational Education Bhumi's supplementary education programme benefits children from shelter homes, slum and village community centres. The programme is delivered during the weekends by young, trained volunteers of Bhumi. The personal growth through the programme is evident in both volunteers and children – our volunteers gain perspective and the experience to mould themselves into leaders in their communities, while academic/life skills support creates a better future for the children. Catalyse: Transforming Citizenry Bhumi’s civic projects engage volunteers in causes like animal welfare, community welfare, disability, environment, health etc. in one-off and regular volunteering activities. Volunteer opportunities are managed through Volunteers.org, which is a platform that allows people to volunteer for a cause of their choice and allows other nonprofit, corporate groups tap into Bhumi’s network of volunteers. Impact Number of learning centres: 374 Number of Children served: 13,898 Number of volunteers: 8,730 The Need Despite the advancement in the Right to Education act and primary school enrollment at nearly 100%, the quality of education received by those at the bottom of the socio-economic pyramid needs significant improvement. The children go through ineffectual schooling, resulting in them lagging behind in language, mathematics, science and other core subjects, creating a barrier for accessing higher education and further pursuing a suitable employment. Only 47% of Class 5 children can read Class 2 text Only 48% of Class 8 children can do division problems Bhumi’s supplementary education interventions improve analytical thinking, enhance creativity and provide good role models for the children. All children receive individual attention from caring young adult volunteers, explore new interests, receive educational support, develop a sense of belonging to a group and build a sense of self-esteem - reflected in better academic performance and long term aspiration. Bhumi’s Ignite volunteers receive year round support in the area of curriculum, pedagogy, and lesson planning. All volunteers leverage technology extensively to deliver high impact at low costs. Our People As an organisation started by a handful of volunteers, volunteerism is at the heart of every aspect of our work. We are passionate not only about engaging volunteers effectively within Bhumi but also about promoting volunteerism as a national habit. In 2014, we were awarded the ‘Leader in Volunteer Engagement’ at the iVolunteer Awards and in 2015 we jointly organised ‘VolCon’, India’s first national conference on volunteering. Starting off with a handful of volunteers, we have engaged close to 8,700 volunteers this year and have clocked an estimated11 lakh volunteering hours cumulatively since 2006. If one engaged volunteer can change the life trajectory for five children - the social, economic and environmental returns on our society are immense. Volunteers Year engaged 5 2006 – 2007 10 2007 – 2008 150 2008 – 2009 200 2009 – 2010 305 2010 – 2011 900 2011 – 2012 1200 2012 – 2013 5588 2013 – 2014 3,862 2014 – 2015 8,730 2015 – 2016 Ignite Mathematics o Enables children from primary school to develop a holistic and deeper understanding of key mathematical concepts in a hands-on environment. The focus is on acquisition of fundamental mathematical skills. Computers o Aimed at children with limited or no access to computers; participants receive training in basics of computers, Microsoft Office and the Internet. The curriculum has been developed in-house to provide sufficient practical exposure to computers. Science o Helps children in middle school improve practical understanding of science. Facilitated hands-on experimentation ensure improvements in conceptual understanding and application English o Integrated approach to language acquisition, which involves a combination of phonics and whole language learning for children from primary school. Facilitates peer learning, allowing time for each child to experience the learning errors of self and others, and problem solve in a collaborative fashion. Mentoring o Addresses the lack of positive role models in the lives of adolescents through one to one mentoring and an activity based model to impart life skills such as communication, team work, goal setting and creativity. Robotics o An exciting hands-on programme that helps children learn scientific concepts by building robots on their own. It helps children develop interest in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Talent Development o Helps children in middle school explore their talent in sports like football, volleyball, throw ball, badminton and arts like dance, painting, music and theatre. The refreshing fun-filled sessions provide an enriching experience outside of school. Project Number of Beneficiaries Mathematics 985 Computers 808 Science 454 English 542 Mentoring 380 Others 373 Impact Children benefiting from of our educational programme are assessed through a baseline test at the beginning of the year and another assessment at the end of the year. The children have made significant improvements in closing the educational gap. Here’s a snapshot of the skill wise improvements in English and Mathematics made by children of class 4 part of the Ignite Programme. English – Phonics Avg Mastery at Avg Mastery at Phonetic 2015 - 16 BAT EYA Class 1 12.0 34.7 Class 2 7.8 28.6 Class 3 22.2 33.9 Class 4 23.8 39.8 Class 5 37.1 52.3 English Karadi Path 2015 - Avg Mastery at Avg Mastery at 16 BAT EYA Class 1 11.0 25.7 Class 2 14.5 39.0 Class 3 26.5 37.7 Class 4 22.1 27.2 Class 5 33.6 41.9 Mathematics Avg BAT level Avg EYA level Class 1 1.1 1.2 Class 2 1.2 1.5 Class 3 1.2 1.6 Class 4 1.6 2.2 Class 5 1.9 2.5 Nakshatra Two day inter-shelter home annual talent festival to unleash the creative potential of children. Nakshatra provides a platform for our beneficiaries to showcase their extracurricular capabilities. Nakshatra by Numbers - # of Children in each city Project Number of Beneficiaries Bengaluru Arts 586 Chennai Arts 1074 Chennai Sports 1290 Delhi Arts 621 Trichy Arts 874 Reach Out 253 The events include a wide array of arts (like Clay Modelling, Face Painting, Rangoli), literary (like Adzap, Quiz, Story Writing), cultural (like Singing, Dancing, Skit) and sports (like track & field events, indoor sports, football). Catalyse Bhumi strongly believes in citizen level initiatives to address social issues that plague communities throughout India. With the aim to raise awareness about responsible citizenship and to foster civic change, Bhumi encourages citizens to volunteer for causes of their choice. Promoting volunteerism, activating citizens, and incubating