RITINJALI NEWSLETTER July 2014.pdf · admission and examination forms of these children have been...

The Newsletter |July 2014

RITINJALI

NEWSLETTER

JULY 2014


Learning Centre at Kusumpur Pahari The learning centre was cleaned out thoroughly with the active participation of the students.

The books were neatly arranged and classrooms were tidied up. It was ensured that the light

points and fans were all in working order. The roof of the centre was repaired.

The attendance of the students was low in the beginning of the month but it picked up

gradually. There are 28 students enrolled at level-2. The teachers visit the students’ homes

regularly to urge parents to send their children to the centre. It is heartening to note that

several children have secured admission in government schools thanks to Rintinjali’s active

intervention. 15 children from level-1 and 8 children from level-2 have been enrolled in

government schools. A few more are likely to gain admission soon.

Learning Centre at Night School The Night School functioned smoothly all through the month. Lessons in English, Hindi and

Maths were conducted to familiarize the boys with the alphabets and to help them widen

their vocabulary and strengthen grammar. In Math they were helped to enhance their

number sense.

Some of the boys had gone back to their villages during the summer. One of them, Aslam

got married. Some others who are devotees of Shiva had gone away to take part in the holy

ritual of the Kawad. Aslam talked to the class on the eve of Eid to explain the significance of

the festival and all the celebrations associated with the occasion.

Learning Centre at Artemis Gurgaon Sector 51 There are at present 18 students on the rolls. Many of the students have gone to the villages

at the peak of the summer and have not got back. The ones enrolled now are all new students

of which 12 of them are regular in their attendance. A mobilization drive was carried out

many times to encourage parents to send their children to the centre.

The day at the Learning Centre begins with morning assembly when the children sing prayer

songs and perform yoga. They are told about the importance of personal hygiene and the

cleanliness of their homes and surroundings. Their teeth, nails and hair are checked

periodically. They are encouraged to be polite and observe basic manners.

Stories are read out to children and they learn poems and recite them. Drawing and craft

activities keep them engaged and enthused besides several organized games.

Ritinjali distributed refined oil and rice to all the children. Ice- cream was also given to all of

them much to their delight. Ms. Dilreen and Ms. Renu Kaul visited the centre and held

discussions with the concerned people about the proposed new site for the centre.


Learning Centre at Nathupur Pahari The Learning Centre resumed activities in full swing after a comparative lull of the summer

vacation. As the Centre was undergoing repairs, classes were held at Pallavan for a couple of

days and a nearby church for about a week. Ms. Dilreen and Ms. Renu Kaul visited the

Centre to take stock of the situation and to expedite the repair and maintenance work.

Lessons in Math, Hindi and English were conducted at two different levels A and B

according to the academic needs of the children. In addition, the children enjoyed drawing

and colouring activities. They also learnt poems and recited them. Stories were narrated to

them. They were entertained with games like Musical chairs, Passing the parcel and Chinese

whisper. The children were spoken to about the importance of personal hygiene and the

cleanliness of their surroundings. The significance of Eid was also discussed.

All the children were taken to Mahipalpur for an art and paper workshop on 29th June. They

were taught to make toys with paper. The workshop was highly interesting and kept the

children engaged and involved in paper craft.

5 children from the Centre secured admission in government schools. Wheat flour and

refined oil was distributed to all the children. Volunteers from Sai Sewa visited the Centre

and provided lunch for the children.

Learning Centre at Dalil Ekta Camp The Centre has a strength of 40 children of which 35 attend classes regularly. The teachers

undertook a mobilization drive in the surrounding slum cluster to urge parents to send their

children regularly to the center.

The children are constantly reminded to maintain personal hygiene and keep their

surroundings clean. Their nails and hair are checked periodically. They are also encouraged

to live in harmony with others in the neighbourhood and not to engage in fights to resolve

conflict. Songs and stories are used to convey the importance of peace. At the camp they also

learn poems and recite them, draw pictures, make objects like helicopter, flying fish, frog

(using small wonder). They also enjoy songs and play organized games. On Mondays and

Wednesdays, the children are taken to Vasant Valley for academic lessons after schools

hours. Ritinjali distributed flour and refined oil to the children. Many children enjoyed

applying mehandi on their palms on the occasion of Eid.

Vocational Centre at Kusumpur Pahari There are 6 students who have been admitted to the NIOS stream of cutting and tailoring.

Students hone their skills with regular practice and are able to earn as they learn. The

admission and examination forms of these children have been submitted to the NIOS office

in Noida. The OBE time lines have been drawn up.


Vocational Centre at Mahipalpur

Cutting and Tailoring The 18th batch is now in progress. There are 12 students on the rolls. The students have

picked up the skills quite quickly and some of them earn as much as Rs. 3000 by tailoring

clothes for friends and family.

Results of the 17th batch have been declared. Neelam, a student got the highest mark of 90%.

She tailors from home and earns Rs.4500/ a month. This course is popular as it helps

students earn as they learn. 10 students have already been admitted to the latest 19th batch.

Computers There are concurrently two batches in progress- the Private and the NIOS stream. There are

5 students enrolled in the private batch while 11 students have been admitted to the NIOS

stream.

'One to Many' (Ek Se Anek) - Workshop on

Toy Design for Ritinjali teachers Teachers at Ritinjali’s Learning Centres were

introduced to the wondrous and magical world of

simple toy designs at the “One to Many” workshop,

conducted by Ms. Surabhi Khanna, a Designer from

the National Institute of Design (NID), on 29 June.

The workshop introduced the concept of toy design

by combining two features, children’s love for play

and fascination for stories.

The first part of the workshop saw Ms. Khanna

taking the participants through the process of

designing toys with paper and other simple materials. A step-by-step demonstration

unraveled for teachers how six toys can be made from one sheet of paper. Simple patterns

and cuts on a sheet of paper soon transformed into flying fish, whistles, rabbits, jumping

frogs, fans, and helicopters.


The second part of the workshop involved making a

toy based on a science principle and combining this

with a concept or story development around the toy.

Teachers fashioned a toy on a string, which had the

ability to move in an irregular motion from one end to

the other. Then, they came up with small stories about

their toys; e.g. wonderful depictions of the story of the

Thirsty Crow, where one could see a crow fly to the

other end of the string where it could drink water from

a pot.


Ms. Khanna demonstrated how simple

toys can be designed with minimal

resources. The design behind these toys

not only integrated science, art and

learning, but also introduced elements

such as learning by doing and storytelling.

Through these practical sessions, the

teachers were able to experience the joy

and simplicity of making Indian toys and

develop related stories for their students.

The teachers enjoyed themselves

thoroughly and experienced the

relationship between design and education. It is our hope that such workshops will initiate

design activities at Ritinjali’s Learning Centres and facilitate the creation of an environment

for exploration.

International Summer School - Fieldwork in

Jhalawar, Rajasthan The International Summer School (ISS) is an intensive academic programme that brings

together students from all over the world. They study and interact with one another over the

course of a summer in New Delhi, India to promote international goodwill and cultural

understanding. They also learn about India and its role in the twenty first century.

Each summer, the ISS is in session for six weeks at Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi. For two

weeks out of six, students volunteer with Ritinjali as part of their fieldwork, to build on the

knowledge gained during the first four weeks of the programme. This year, students

travelled to Jhalawar, Rajasthan from 14 July to 23 July for the fieldwork component of the

ISS.

The experience in Rajasthan aims to give students a rural perspective to the elements of

their four-week course work at Jamia Millia Islamia. While it is designed to be an extension

of courses in the classroom, the approach to learning is more hands-on and experiential.


The Journey:

Students arrived in Jhalawar,

Rajasthan on 15 July, after having

cheerfully battled the stifling

humidity along with the crowds at

the railway stations. The journey

was a series of ‘firsts’ for many:

first trip to Rajasthan, first tryst

with the Indian Railways, first

time on a double decker train to

Jaipur.

Volunteer Work:

Each day commenced with ISS students volunteering in different schools on activities or

initiatives they are passionate about. Whether it was at the Pallavan School or Government

schools, classrooms and courtyards were abuzz with myriad events: mini Olympics, classes

in basic Japanese, self-reflective painting, English vocabulary, career counselling,

motivation sessions. Learning through sports/games, theatre, and art also seemed to be

important focus areas for the volunteers.

Day 1 at the Pallavan School, Jhalawar ISS students conducting a class on learning through

games


A session on self-reflective painting An ISS student conducting a class on local

Architecture

Case Studies: Students were divided into groups of 4 or 5 and asked to conduct small case studies based on

4 themes: Identity, Gender, Aspirations of the people, and Responsible Citizenship The

Ritinjali team facilitated the process of detailed interviews with parents, teachers, students,

and other members from the community. Gathering meaningful data and insight for the case

studies were made possible through these interviews.


Visits and interactions: To add to their knowledge of the governance, industry, society, and culture of Jhalawar,

students were given the opportunity each day to visit places and people of interest, in and

around the town. An evening walk around Jhalawar was also organised to give students a

multi-sensorial experience of the town’s cultural and social life, landscape, architecture, and

people.

Interaction with Mr. Lalit Sharma, Visit to Gagron Fort – 15 July Visit to the Khadi Gram Udyog – 17 July

an eminent historian and writer – 15 July

Interaction with the Sarpanch and the Sahariya Tribe


ISS students speak about the Jhalawar experience

“We had a short meeting with the District Collector and the Superintendent of Police.

They were the most positive and energetic government officials I had met in a long time.

Young, enthusiastic leaders surrounded me regularly in schools and official visits.

Jhalawar strengthened my hopes for India as a developing nation...I realized how wrongly

the younger generation of India had been stereotyped...Jhalawar was exactly what I had

in mind when I thought of Incredible India; the town’s optimism has caught on to me.”

Betty Barkha,

Fiji

“On the very first day in Jhalawar, I observed nascent sandstones in spaces around me. I

have seen finished and carved sandstones in monuments around Delhi as well as

Jhalawar. But the unarranged piles of these unshaped stones, with the freedom to lie

around anywhere on the land fascinated me. I also came to know that these stones are

freely available to anyone for their personal use, due to its abundance in the city...The

pride that I saw in the eyes of the people while describing the universality of the stones

was remarkable. Jhalawar has given me an opportunity to cherish things close to home

and present it to the world.”

Naina Singh,

India

“I taught the Japanese language at the Pallavan school and thought that students were

very positive to new knowledge. Students actively asked me questions and at the end of

the session, they were able to understand and speak in basic Japanese. In Japan, people

usually feel that it is useless to learn a foreign language; they are secure and comfortable

in their own culture. I was happy to see a difference in attitude to foreign languages in the

students at Pallavan.”

Kenji Kurotobi,

Japan

Japan


At Ritinjali we are doing our best but we can do better with your help. Ritinjali is always

looking for helping hands to create a world where everybody gets equal opportunities. If you

wish to spare some of your valuable time in teaching someone some valuable lessons in life.

For any details or queries, please contact:

Arun Kapur: [email protected]

Benu Khanna: [email protected]

Dilreen Kaur:[email protected]

Dipika Nanjappa: [email protected]

Esha Singh : [email protected]

Janusa Sangma: [email protected]

Kavita Trehan: [email protected]

Mahtab Alam Siddiqui: [email protected]

Ritinjali welcomes contributions and volunteers for its cause. All donations will be exempt

from Income tax u/s 80G.

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