A field visit to

JeevanJyoti Trust (Deepa Academy)

A report submitted to

Prof. Vijaya Sherry Chand

Course Associate: Ms. Lakshmi Kumbhar

In partial fulfillment of the course

Socio-Cultural Environment of Business

By Group E12

Vineet Singh

Sonam Yadav

Saurabh Phelix K

Rohit Raj

Nikhil Pandey

Arun Kumar K

Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad

17th December, 2012

Contents

Executive Summary ........................................................................................................................ 3

Trip Details………………………………………………………………………………………..3

Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 4

Social exclusion .............................................................................................................................. 4

Rights Based v/s Capabilities Based Approach for Social Inclusion of Children ...................... 5

Policies for Inclusive Education of Disabled and Disadvantaged Children ............................... 9

Education Delivery Models For Disabled Children (Singal 2009) ........................................... 11

Regular and Special Schools ..................................................................................................... 11

Private and Government Schools .............................................................................................. 11

NGO Run Schools..................................................................................................................... 12

JeevanJyoti Trust (Deepa Academy) ............................................................................................ 13

Economic Linkages ................................................................................................................... 14

Social Linkages ......................................................................................................................... 14

Political Linkages ...................................................................................................................... 15

Pedagogy and Objectives .......................................................................................................... 16

Facilities for all round development ......................................................................................... 16

Achievements of Deepa Academy’s Model for Inclusive Education and Development .......... 18

Recommendations ......................................................................................................................... 19

Conclusion .................................................................................................................................... 20

References ..................................................................................................................................... 21

Executive Summary

In this report, we have documented our analysis of Deepa Academy in Indranaj village of

Gujarat. Issues of social exclusion and marginalization of children, that this organization is

trying to address, have been explored & analyzed, along with the issue of social exclusion in a

broad framework while identifying the policy measures and the role of NGOs within that

framework. The functioning of the organization, its linkages with external environment, & the

factors that have led to success of organization in implementing a model of inclusive education

have also been identified. Once the basic framework, we go on identifying the areas of

improvement that need urgent attention. We conclude by looking into our role as future business

leaders in assisting the NGOs like Deepa Academy and ensuring greater social inclusion for the

marginalized sections of the society.

Trip Details

Date: December 8th

, 2012

Time: 7 AM – 7 PM

Venue: JeevanJyoti (Deepa Academy), Indranaj village

Visitors: Group 12 members from Sections A, B, C, D and E

Special Concern: Social Integration of Physically Handicapped Dalit Children

Introduction

NGOs have formed a strong support system for the marginalized sections of the society by

bringing them and their concerns, to the notice of policymakers. Also, NGOs have been

instrumental in delivering policy benefits to the same marginalized groups, often on account of

their ability to reach out to people at the grassroots level. As a part of the SCEB course, we

visited the Deepa Academy in Indranaj village of Gujarat. In existence for past 10 years, this

academy has been successful in bringing greater integration of severely marginalized physically

challenged Dalit children. To understand the broader problem of social exclusion, its causes, and

policy responses, we need to view the social integration model.

Social exclusion

In not so recent past, social exclusion referred to the ‘physically disabled’, ‘mentally incapable’

or ‘socially maladjusted’ people. However, with the rapid advance in economy and growing

globalization there was an urgent need to push for greater social cohesion. From this need,

emerged a new definition of social exclusion which focused on the dynamics of the relationship

between the individual and society. Social exclusion is denial of participation to an individual in

any of the several aspects of socio-economic life. Although, civil rights are now guaranteed by

the constitution of almost all countries across the world, in some cases social exclusion even

takes into account the denial of basic rights by the government of a country.

The blame for social exclusion has shifted from the individual impairments to the social

structures which restrict progress of certain individuals or even groups of individuals. These

social barriers are visible across many aspects of the socio-economic environment such as in

employment, education, and community life.

Rights Based v/s Capabilities Based Approach for Social Inclusion of Children

In order to overcome social barriers, ensure equal participation of individuals in the society, and

promote progress of an individual as a citizen, there has been an increasing push towards a rights

based approach. Considering social exclusion of children as a problem for our discussion, we can

see the evidence for rights based approach in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child

(UNICEF 1989) which has been signed and ratified by almost all of the nations in the world. It

proposes rights of any child in order to allow her to participate in the society on equal terms. Any

violation of these rights is an indication of social exclusion of the child and an appropriate policy

response from the governments is mandated. (Bronheim n.d.)

However, capabilities based approach, as suggested by Amartya Sen, takes a broader view as

compared to rights based approach. While rights based approach stresses equality of opportunity

and non-discrimination, capabilities based approach focusses on removing restrictions that limit

an individual child’s access to capabilities that are essential to her growth as well as functioning

as an adolescent or an adult. The access to these capabilities is essential in cognitive

development which is the basis for human capital formation. Besides, the human capital

resources, capabilities based approach also recognizes the psychological and social resources

which underpin and individual’s progress in life. Thus in adulthood the employment

opportunities, ability to lead a normal social life, access to community networks and basic

services such as healthcare along with psychological strength of an individual would constitute

an individual’s ‘Identity Capital’. These resources provide an individual protection from social

exclusion and allow progress as a citizen. (Bronheim n.d.)

Some of the factors that define access to capabilities in childhood are

• Material factors such as family’s economic background, geographical location

• Family factors such as parental education, social background, caste etc.

• Access to services such as education, health, housing etc.

• Individual factors such as gender, disability etc.

Among all the above factors, disability has one of the most pronounced negative effects in

cognitive development of children and often leads to non-availability of opportunities for

creation of ‘Identity Capital’. This is not because of ‘impairments’ due to a biological cause as

defined under medical model, but rather because of negative social attitudes and barriers to

participation faced by an individual with impairment under the social model.

Medical model views disability primarily arising out of an individual’s impairments. The

solution to this lies in finding the appropriate medical procedure which would effectively ‘cure’

the individual. Policy response based on medical model aims primarily at increasing provision

for healthcare services.

However, the primary reason why disability leads to difficulty in participation in a society and

exercising rights to equality as a citizen are prevailing social constructs that view a person with

impairments either in a condescending or patronizing manner. These social constructs frame

attitudes of society towards a person with impairments and thereby erect social barriers to her

participation.

Figure 1: Social Integration Model (Bronheim n.d.)

To understand these limits to participation under the social model of disability we need to

explore the models under which social interaction and integration takes place. These models can

be broadly classified into the following

• Civic Integration refers to the participation under the citizenship rights and

resources accorded to an individual by the legal framework. In India for instance,

each citizen is guaranteed to possess a set of fundamental rights by the Constitution of

India. Any civic exclusion can be effectively countered by an appropriate legislation.

• Economic Integration refers to equality in employment opportunities available to

an individual. In relation to disability, several policy measures have enabled greater

integration of people with impairments. These policy measures include reservations

in government jobs, tax credits etc.

• Social and Community Integration refers to the most challenging aspect of

inclusion which requires integration into social and community networks. For

disabled individuals, participation under this model allows them to lead a normal

social and community life. However, the challenge lies in the deeply entrenched

negative attitude of society towards the disabled. Disabled people most often are

either ‘pitied’ or they are shunned. In India, disability is often associated with the sins

of past life and is seen as atonement for those sins. To enable integration under this

model there is an urgent need to instill positive self-identity within disabled people

and empowering them to increase their acceptance in the society. This would also

entail extending visibility of disabled children in the mainstream schools.

Mainstreaming is expected to prepare disabled children to have an opportunity to

develop similar capabilities as the normal children. This would increase their

competing ability of disabled children and allow them to overcome other challenges

in the future to enable positive outcomes for themselves.

Figure 2: Social Integration Models

Policies for Inclusive Education of Disabled and Disadvantaged Children

Several challenges faced by the physically challenged kids and especially the ones from

economically backward backgrounds in achieving greater social integration have led to an

enhanced policy push towards achieving inclusive education as the most significant means to a

positive outcome of achieving greater social inclusion and acceptance within the community.

Timeline of government initiatives in India are as follows (Rao 2007)

Figure 3: Government Initiatives for Children

In 1959, UN Declaration of the Rights of the Child was adopted by the UN General

Assembly. This Declaration was accepted by the Government of India and since then a

variety of plans have been proposed under five-year tenure

In 1974-75, the govt. adopted national policy for children. ICDS (integrated child

development services) funding programme was also setup.

Further, in 1985, the department of women and child development was setup in HRD

ministry. It undertakes advocacy and monitoring of the progress of several programs for

welfare of children and women.

In 1992, the department of women and child development formulated a national plan for

children, which was ratified by govt. of India on Nov. 12, 1992. The plan revalidates the

rights of children as declared in constitution and can be used as weapon to counter denial

of rights. In the same year govt. of India signed and ratified the UN Convention on the

Rights of Child

However the beginning of 1990s saw an increasing drive towards ensuring inclusive

education for the disabled. UNESCAP declared the decade 1993-2002 as decade of the

disabled followed by World conference on special needs education in 1994 helped draw

attention towards importance of education and need of empowerment of disabled. (Rao 2007)

In order to fulfill its obligation towards education for disabled, Govt. launched PIED

(Project integrated education of the disabled children) in collaboration with UNICEF in

10 blocks in 10 states and union territories in Indian in 1987.

Rehabilitation council of India Act (1992) passed for having trained teacher for education

of children with special needs.

Persons with disabilities Act (1995) meant to provide educational enlistment for all

disabled children up to 18 years of age in an appropriate environment.

National Trust Act (1999) provides for services and support for severely disabled

children.

National action plan (2005) for inclusion in education of the children and persons with

disabilities was launched by HRD ministry.

In 2006 MSJE formulated National policy for persons with disabilities.

Sarva Siksha Abhiyan (SSA) was launched in 2007 through 86th

constitutional amendment that

mandated free and compulsory education of children up to age 14 under the framework of

inclusive education. (Singal 2009)

Education Delivery Models For Disabled Children (Singal 2009)

Regular and Special Schools

• Majority of School going Disabled Children in India attend regular schools which

often have poor provisions to cater to their learning needs

• Special Schools emerging as a reaction to inadequacies of mainstream schools

• However, Special Schools are criticized for their low penetration rates because of

high inherent service delivery cost and their role in development of 'specific disability

culture'

• There is a need for greater collaboration between Special and mainstream schools to

allow the children with special needs to be able to attend the schools with normal

children.

Private and Government Schools

• Economic marginalization of most disabled children in India leading to enhanced

attractiveness of Government Schools vis-a-vis Private Schools as the latter are

expensive

• Government efforts focused primarily on increasing access, rather than quality of

education in classrooms

• There is a need for change in classroom culture which is responsive to learner diversity

and adapting teaching methods to suit specific needs of disabled/disadvantaged children

NGO Run Schools

• NGOs are the key players in delivery of special education through grants-in-aids

received from government schemes or donations from private sector

• NGOs have the capability to bridge the gap left by the Special Schools and Government

Schools in provisioning education for the disabled children. The NGOs aim at

developing special schools as resource centers to complement the mainstream education

and provide greater links for integration of disabled children with the normal children.

The NGOs also aim at ensuring greater overlap between training for the general and

special teachers to bring about development of a more inclusive and responsive

classroom culture that caters to the needs of disabled children in a mainstream setting

rather than marginalizing them

• Globally, NGOs have been successful in bringing concerns of marginalized groups into

the spotlight and bringing about greater uplifting and greater mainstream integration of

the disabled children

• NGOs are being actively sought by the government for changing the role of special

education centers and in meeting goals of mainstreaming

Figure 4: Education Delivery Models for the Disabled

JeevanJyoti Trust (Deepa Academy)

Deepa Academy is an NGO with a mission to support primary education of physically

challenged Dalit children. Deepa academy was established in the Indranaj village as a school

under the JeevanJyoti Trust. The objective of Deepa Academy is to support primary education of

physically challenged Dalit children, with the ultimate aim of enabling social integration and

achievement of individual potential.

In its journey towards driving greater social inclusion of the children who are disadvantaged

significantly by being left with a significant capability gap arising out of a complex interplay of

the precursors to the childhood such as individual disability, caste, and economic

marginalization, the Deepa Academy has developed a strong support system for itself in the form

of following

Economic Linkages

In 2002, the school was setup with support provided by various parties. Smt. Hiraben

Raisangbhai donated land for the school. Other contributing agencies were Basque government

(Spain), Haurralde Fundazioa (Spain) and Anesvad foundation (Spain).

Currently the school operates with donations primarily from Gujarati Businessmen and other

material support from the villagers. The school gets abundant food from the village and nearby

areas especially in the crop seasons.

Figure 5: Marble Stone acknowledging establishment support in 2002

Social Linkages

The primary linkage with the external world is through the support provided by the residents of

Indranaj village itself. The village also comprises primarily of Dalit families. Other than that, the

linkage is with the local businessmen who provide support and with some Spanish citizens and

organizations which support the school. These people sometimes visit the school on the way

while travelling and spend time with the kids.

Figure 6: Spanish guitarist David Russell visiting Deepa Academy in 2011

Political Linkages

The current status is of no support from any government scheme or organization in terms of

funds. The reason as provided by the founder and head is the complexity of the process. They

feel it is highly bureaucratic. Another reason for the same is availability of funding and resources

for basic requirements. The government support is limited to receipt of aids and appliances like

wheelchairs, crutches, braces etc. There are no existing linkages to any of the political parties.

Figure 7: Wheelchair at Deepa Academy bearing the name of government scheme under which

these were distributed

Pedagogy and Objectives

The school provides primary education from 1st to 4

th standard with the help to two teachers who

have completed Primary Teaching Certificate. The school also provides vocational training to the

students for handicrafts. They aim to prepare children for mainstream education in government

schools after 4th

standard and become self-sufficient.

The trust gets the students enrolment in nearby government school for further education. The

students are provided bus facility for school pickup and drop. The school also provided boarding

facilities to these students. To cater to the special needs of these children, the school provides

continuous support through tuitions and special attention to intellectually disabled students.

Beyond 8th

standard the school funds further education as per capacity. Also lifetime counseling

is provided if needed for accessing employment opportunities. The objective here is to act as a

second home and family like source of strength for orphans and other disadvantaged children.

Facilities for all round development

• Nutrition: Meals are provided in-house as a part of the boarding arrangement. As

children are predominantly vegetarian, lack of high protein non-vegetarian diet is

compensated with help of low cost vegetarian food items such as soya milk.

• Physiotherapy: Provided with the help of a full time physiotherapist, who is blind

and is from a nearby village. They leverage social and economic links to provide

financial support for surgeries and critical operative procedures in hospitals. The

physiotherapist takes the post-surgery care of the child.

Figure 8: Regularly visiting physiotherapist at Deepa Academy

• Computer education: A full time trained teacher, Bhavna Ben, oversees the

computer education program in order to enable access to innovative online education

methods and to keep pace with mainstream education. The school also has a computer

lab with 10-12 computers. This initiative in the long run may benefit the children in

getting employment.

Figure 9: Computer lab setup with an aim to keep pace with the modern education methods

• Special focus on intellectually disabled: Bhanu Bhai, is a certified trainer for

Intellectually Disabled children and provides special education support throughout

even after standard 4, when they are enrolled in a government school. He is an ideal

example of a resource teacher who facilitates mainstreaming of the disabled children

by providing them with special school facilities to bring them upto speed with their

normal peers without segregation. Bhanu Bhai, is a strong contributor towards

development of a strong sense of positive among intellectually disabled children.

.

Figure 10: Bhanu Bhai caters to the education and development needs of

intellectually disabled children at Deepa Academy

Achievements of Deepa Academy’s Model for Inclusive Education and

Development

Deepa Academy, since its foundation in 2002, has been able to deliver a proven sustainable

model for inclusive education of heavily marginalized poor physically handicapped Dalit

children from the nearby villages. Academy’s success is reflected in the following

• Breaking away from a ‘charity act’ image: Focused on providing education for

better socio-economic life opportunities and creation of identity capital rather than

delivering basic life skill activities to its students

• Improving issues of disabled identity and complex identities: Successful in

instilling positive self-identity of being 'able' thereby increasing opportunities for

greater socio-economic participation and acknowledging the complex issues of

multiple identity (gender, caste, disability)

• Greater responsiveness to wide learning diversity: The faculty members at

Deepa Academy, many of whom are handicapped, have leveraged their personal

experience in framing effective responses to the distinct learning needs of disabled

children thereby improving quality of education.

• Enabling integration with mainstream education: By encouraging students to

attend government schools after standard 4, while continuing special education

support, the academy has been successful in forging greater links with

mainstream education thereby ensuring increasing social integration of its

students.

Recommendations

Although Deepa Academy has been successful in positively affecting several physically

handicapped and disadvantaged Dalit children, yet it has faced several restrictions in its ability to

bring about greater transformation in the lives of the children. These challenges have been

primarily in the form of limited resources, lack of coordination with other NGOs and the

government, and lack of discipline in tracking outcomes. We believe that the following measures

will lead to better provision of services for the children at the academy and provide them with a

strong sense of disabled group identity in order to bring themselves onto the policy radar and

empowering themselves through active participation in the democratic framework of our society.

• Integration with Government Policies and Initiate Cooperation with

Similar NGOs: There is urgent need to embrace new government initiatives and

bring academy's children on the policy radar. Also, cooperation with other similar

NGOs in Gujarat is essential for these children to reinforce their positive identity as a

group and achieve greater representation thereby accelerating the process of identity

capital formation

• Enhancing Social Linkages: While the academy has flourished with the strong

support of local community, it needs to expand its network and establish links with

communities in order to gain from research relevant to disabled children and to adapt

new efficient models of delivering inclusive education

• Improving Discipline Through Active Monitoring of Outcomes Using

Performance Indicators: In line with its objective to increase socio-economic

participation of its children, Deepa Academy needs to establish greater discipline by

tracking learning progress, increase in social integration, and benchmarking special

education delivery methods with global standards

Conclusion

Within the capabilities based social integration model, education is the most important precursor

in a life of a child that helps in building capabilities and ensures positive outcomes for her in the

form of greater participation in the society and progress as a citizen. NGOs such as Deepa

Academy play an important role in delivering inclusive education and can offer greater benefits

if they join forces with different NGOs and also leverage the state’s support in the form of policy

measures. We identify that Deepa Academy has not only helped in better provision of education

and healthcare services but also helped in construction of positive self-identity. As these children

grow up to access opportunities for social participation, they would need to assert themselves

and claim their rights as citizen. A strong sense of individual and group identity will help them in

being independent and also building strong support system in the form of community networks.

References

Bronheim, Peter Evans with Suzanne. SOCIAL EXCLUSION AND CHILDREN – CREATING

IDENTITY CAPITAL. OECD.

Gwernan-Jones, Ruth. "Identity and disability: a review of the current state and developing

trends." Beyond Current Horizons, 2008.

Lang, Dr. Raymond. THE DEVELOPMENT AND CRITIQUE OF THE SOCIAL MODEL OF

DISABILITY. University of East Anglia, 2001.

Rao, Jyoti. "The History of Child Rights in India." Unicef India, 2007.

Singal, Dr Nidhi. Education of children with disabilities in India. UNESCO, 2009.