EMPOWER & IGNITE THE YOUTH FOR A BETTER NATION

Empowering Community with Digital Education improving and leading to Job prospects

 Project Location:  Khetadi Jharkhand 

Khetadi is a small village in Jharkhand. It can be connected from Dhanbad & Bokaro as well. The village is barren and even in the 21st Century there is no electricity. Both men & women are engaged in mono-cropping. In the village, there is a school  privately run by few monks. They started this in order to serve the community with education so that the next generation will be able to understand their condition and take lead to do better for the village. These monks asked Literacy India to revive the school along with vocational training centre. The community habitat are mainly  SCs, OBCs and tribal & ST community.

Literacy India started its work on E to E with children , women and youth.

 The unique purposes of Khetadi Centre:

• To educate and empower the children of rural areas.

• To involve the beneficiaries into the livelihood opportunity programs through vocational training so that they can have right to choice for selecting career and profession of their own choice.

• ICT center for ICT deprived children, youth of remote rural areas.

• Facilitate and provide livelihood options to community

• The center is located in dense forest area have limited access for beneficiaries with such opportunities, Literacy India s small initiative received overwhelming response.

 Activities undertaken during six months: 

• Survey and Identification of groups at center

• Total of 34 beneficiaries were enrolled.

• Pre- entrance discussion and assessment with beneficiaries were undertaken.

• All beneficiaries at centres had been provided with English communication classes through TVC( Software to learn spoken English) and BBC English Communication program.

• Smartboard used to impart Communication classes.

• Children have been provided classes using SKYPE as a medium as well for interact active classroom exposure, which has been unheard of in these areas.

• Computer Lessons had been prepared and implemented as per NIELIT curriculum, which is govt accredited program.

• NDLM ( Nasscom Digital Literacy )modules are also implemented and integrated with regular curriculum.Literacy India has tied up with Nasscom and its centers have been declared NDLM centers

Achievements of the program: 

1. FGD and Survey analysis had been conducted; the areas have been explored and implementation program had been addressed accordingly.

2. Out of 34 enrolled Total 32 beneficiaries completed the program and 2 are still continuing in the centre for computer training.

3. Regular English classes focus on both writing English and communication.

4. Monthly assessments with children have shown their progress in the computer operation

5. Advance concept of presentation, advance excel –Pivot table, VLOOKUP etc. taught.

6. NDLM module implemented  and beneficiaries learnt about various components.

 Overall impact on Community

 There is both direct and indirect impact of the program. On the tangible lines, the basic and advanced computer courses are adding on to both knowledge and skill development of the beneficiaries. Children worked together on collaborative approach in the classrooms an interaction have created awareness and explore different career opportunities. Thus enhancing the livelihood options available to these beneficiaries , an advantage, in the job market in the surrounding areas like schools, Medical Shops, Panchyat Offices, Block offices and forest department offices.  Spoken English and life skills training are also a part of the curriculum to makes them job- ready. Indirect impact observedis that there is increased confidence level of the beneficiaries who step out of the school academics with further opportunity to broaden their horizon. The beneficiaries are ready to compete in the job market and stand equipped to face the career challenges. A sense of dignified independence touches them as they approach toward course completition. The beneficiaries of different ages, rural areas, gender and economic backgrounds make the learning experience more diverse and rich. NDLM module E-commerce, E- Governance, internet, Social media and financial learning helped these beneficiaries.  Besides Computer education, these citizens also get trained to effectively access the various e-Governance services being offered to them by the Government and other agencies  which they find it online.

 Story of change:

 Name: Titali Rani (Name changed)  Age: 19 Location:  Jharkhand 

Titali is  by nature very calm  and very studious. Presently she is studying in Khedadih High School in class XII. They have 6 members in their family and her father is an agricultural man. They have 4 bighas of land to cultivate but her father produces one time crops due to drought condition. Titali was very shy and never could express her aspirations. Her father denied her  higher education after she cleared her Madhyamik exam. She became very morbid , and thought that her life was over, as she was pretty sure that her father would marry her soon. Computer education was luxury for her ,  and expensive education for her. Once she came to Literacy India learning center- to get sewing training and during the counselling , she informed about her background to LI officials and  they assured to convince her father to  let her continue her education. Immediately she took admission in Computer Certificate Course (CCC) and enrolled for her higher education. In Literacy India computer center she learnt lot of things apart from her computer education. She is now more confident and planning to go for BCA courses after passing HS exam.  She believes that this certificate course helped her lot and her interest for computer education has grown up.

Name: Shymali  ( Name changed)  Age: 18 Location:  Jharkhand 

Shyamali  belongs to the family of  6 brothers and sisters and all are studying in local schools. The income of the family is very poor to meet their needs. Mr. Ram kaibarta feels very tough to manage the educational cost of his children. Shyamali was a mediocre student and studied in local girl’s high school. Shyamali is very mature and she understood the family needs too. After the completion of matriculation she decided not to continue higher education due to the financial crunch in the family. But her father was encouraged her to complete her college. Once she came in LI center with her friend and wished to take admission in computer certificate courses. During this period,  we observed her tenacity towards work and passion for learning new things. She was very attentive and hard working. Within the short period she learnt the MS-office module very well and she also did the personality development classes very well which helped her to face interviews. Recently she has got a part time job in a private school and started to help her family too. Though the job is new but shyamali is very happy that she is able to support her father with her income.

Links:

• Literacy India is featured 2015 Hall of Fame of Civil Society