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Sahajpath – the easy learning |
Reduction of school drop out programme in West Bengal, India
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School drop outs, story of dying dreams :
Lack of funds due to global economic crises would force 56 million children across the world to drop out of schools by 2015In a "collective aid failure", rich countries continue to neglect basic education and exaggerate the amount of assistance they do deliver, according to the annual Global Monitoring Report released by Unesco here recently. "The bottom line is we are an awfully long way from achieving the universal Millennium Development Goal of primary education by 2015," said Kevin Watkins, editor of the report, entitled Reaching the Marginalised. With less than five years to the 2015 target date, the report highlighted several key areas for concern, particularly in gender discrimination. Girls still account for 54 percent of school drop-outs.
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Issue background :
India
- While 96% of India's children enroll in primary school, by the age of 10 about 40% have dropped out – HR Dept, GOI
- Of India’s 700,000 rural schools, only one in six have toilets deterring children especially girls from going to school, and if enrolled, in remaining there. – UNICEF
West Bengal
- The 2009 Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) — which has been compiled by NGO, Pratham, and was released by Union Human Resources Development Minister Kapil Sibal on January 15 in New Delhi — states that dropout per cent in West Bengal remained stagnant at 5.7 per cent, while most of the other states recorded a decrease in the number of school dropouts after the launch of SSA.
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Story of Sahajpath:
It was the story of a boy, while studying at standard XI at a reputed school in Kolkata (previously Calcutta) used to spend his time educating couple of children staying on the railway platforms. His passion was to see the destitute children getting educated.
That was historically the starting point of an education mission, which after nearly 10 years got shaped into an UNICEF supported programme for homeless and economically marginalized cross section of children. |
Years before Government of India focusing on spreading elementary education for all through Sarba Siksha Abhijan (SSA), OFFER initiated an education programme for marginalized children, with an aim to supplement government free school education programme so that school drop out gets reduced. The basic idea behind this programme has been integration of a child into a learning system that does not leave children as drop out. Inspired by Tagore’s idea of education that is an integration of education into a child’s life this programme has been named as Sahajpath – the easy learning! Sahajpath now catering to 2500 children with education, vocational training, nutrition including psycho social support
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Now Sahajpath is
- A knowledge center for education targeting marginalized children
- A center catering to 2500 children, all from highly marginalized section of society
- A resource hub on skills & methods of reducing drop out
- A successful experiment on a integrated child friendly education system
So be there to experience the success!
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