Neelbagh Rural Residential School

                                                                 ASHRAYA NEELBAGH SCHOOL

Quarterly Report for the month of October 2017 to December 2017

Seasons greetings and best wishes for the New Year to all 

  Providing Education, Nutrition, Healthcare & Vocational Training are the goals of Neelbagh School.

In Karnataka today, large no of children are deprived of an education as the schools located  in the rural areas are  inadequate and do not function effectively. A large no of children either do not enroll or they drop out of school early due to shortcomings - inaccessibility, lack of proper buildings, classrooms, toilets, drinking water, teaching and non teaching staff etc. 

The status of school education in Karnataka is dismal- there are regular reports of Govt. free schools closing down for lack of students, nutritional deficiencies and malnourishment among the rural and tribal children, lack of attendance , poor results etc .

 Ashraya’s Neelbagh School is an excellent example of how a  Kannada medium, rural school  located in Rayalpad, Srinivaspura Taluk, Kolar district, Karnataka State, offering education opportunities, nutrition and vocational trainings  to children from underprivileged families from North Karnataka and neighboring villages in and around  Rayalpad-Kolar has benefitted about 350 students since its inception in 1996. A majority of these have completed their college education.

In 1996  Ashraya took over the Neelbagh School  which was being   run by pioneer and educationist David Horsburgh. The school was housed in the premises built by David H.

 Ashraya  further developed and expanded the school by constructing a new school building, the construction of which was started in 1999. The school has eco friendly infrastructure, well equipped science and computer lab, sports and recreational facilities and a well set up vocational training program which includes carpentry, tailoring, embroidery, bee keeping  and craft . The school follows Kannada medium of instruction , SSLC State Board and have  classes are from Lower Kindergarten  to Class X. The school utilizes solar energy for lighting, heating and computers.

 The average total  no of students  of the school has been around 415 over the years with equal nos of boys and girls.

The total staff strength is 30 – which includes both teaching and non teaching.

October to December 2017 quarter

The students of Neelbagh School returned from the Dasera holidays on the 9th of October 2017. This year they celebrated Diwali- the festival of lights in the school. Sweets was distributed to all the children and a fancy dress competition was conducted.

In November 2017 Karnataka State Formation Day was celebrated with a cultural program and flag hoisting.

On November 14^th Children’s  Day was celebrated – this date was designated as Children’s day by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru as it is his birthday as well.

The monthly sports and cultural competitions were also conducted. 

Taluk level interschool competitions were held and Neelbagh students bagged the 1^st place in three events out of five the events -Quiz, Drawing and Spot preparation of Science model

In December 2017 GE Healthcare organised a mega medical screening and awareness program in school. Awareness on function and care of the heart, cancer myths and truths, prevention, feminine health issues, personal hygiene etc were shared. Class 1-5 children were examined for eye problems, skin problems and general health. Nutrition and growth was recorded for each child. This data will be shared with the school and another camp for the rest of the children will be organized at a later date.

A group of 30 volunteers from BOSCH Primavera  spent the day with the students of Neelbagh- taught them a few games, gave tips of choice ofcareer, aptitude and abilities to the high school students and also had a fun time dancing and singing with the students.

Library:

David M Horsburgh’s book collection  at the Neelbagh School Library  was donated to the Azim Premji Foundation. The Foundation will use this collection to further D. Horsburgh’s  pioneering work; it will also be an important resource for all teachers and scholars in education .

The Azim Premji Foundation will house and freely share all these resources with the learning community in public education through the University Library.    

The 2017 has been busy and exciting. Neelbagh students have benefited from volunteers visits, competitions, awards and all the regular sports , cultural and academic activities.

Though the calendar  year ends in December, the school year ends in April 2018. 

On behalf of the children/students of Ashraya, staff and management  wish you all a very happy new year – peace, love and happiness.

                                                                  ASHRAYA NEELBAGH RURAL SCHOOL 

                                                                RAYALPAD-KOLAR DISTRICT - KARNATAKA

Report for July, August & September - 2017 

The students have begun the academic curriculum in earnest, the class tests have begun as also sports and cultural activities.

Cultural, Sports and events:

The new students have been divided into the already existing house/groups and new work groups have been formed.  The drawing  competition was held on 17^thof  July 2017.

The monthly sports competition was organized on 15^th of July 2017. In the Kabadi competition held for boys, blue house stood first and in the Throw ball held for girls, yellow house  came first.  

On the 22nd of July cultural items  were performed by 4^h class students during the morning assembly. The songs, drama and dances were appreciated by one and all.

On the 18^th of July  the Hobli level sports competitions were held in Rayalpad where the Neelbagh students performed remarkably. In the Primary and high school level the students qualified to participate at the Taluk level in the following events: 100,200,400mts race, 400 mts relay, Shuttle cock, Cricket, basketball and Yoga.

Sports: 

On 3rd and 4^th of August 2017  the Taluk level school sports competitions were held in Srinivaspur  where the performance of the students was  remarkable. At  the Primary level they qualified to participate at the  District level in the following events: 100,200,400mts race, Kabbadi, long jump, Shuttle cock, Kho-kho and throw ball.

Taluk level High school headmasters meeting;

On the 12^th of July the State District level Education office  organized  a Taluk level high school headmasters meeting in Neelbagh School  and discussed important issues on how to motivate the students  to perform better in the exams , how to improve the no of admissions to the government schools, how to improve the level of support and assistance to  slow learners and how to prepare students for the Board  exam. The successful practices followed at Neelbagh School were shared with the group, eg. conducting regular tests  for all the  subjects;   identifying slow learners  and getting individual teachers make a note so that they can spend extra time with those students.

 53 high school headmasters and 6 subject inspectors attended this meeting.

Celebrations: 

 The month of August 2017 is a time  for Celebrations in school.

On August 15^th, the Indian  Independence Day and Sports day  was celebrated. All the students and teachers attend the programme. After the flog hoisting there were cultural programmes highlighting the importance of Indian Independence.

School Annual day celebration

Neelbagh’s  22^nd  Annual day was celebrated on the 19th of August 2017  Mr. Mahindra Patil - Principal Engineer GE Healthcare was the Chief Guest;  it was celebrated with prize distribution for best students and  sports achievers;  the school showcased their activities through an  exhibition and they also organized a delightful cultural programme. This is an Annual event and all the parents of the students and well wishers attend the function.

Spark of Joy Season-3

Primavera- the CSR wing of Bosch Company  organized  a mega  event -Spark of Joy season-3 at Christ College Auditorium, Bangalore, on the 05^th of  August 2017. This year the students from Neelbagh School were invited to perform and they did   a Karnataka folk dance “ Patakunitha “  which was appreciated by all.   Bosch- Primavera sponsored the entire arrangements for the students - travel, food and all other requirements.   

September 5^th is celebrated as Teacher’s Day in India- the students plan programs to entertain their Teachers on this day and show their appreciation and affection for the teachers.

Neelbagh School students also organized a cultural program and felicitated the teachers on this day.

On 9^th September the volunteers from GE Corporate- Bangalore Chapter organized Prabodhna the 16^th Annual Science fair at their campus and invited Neelbagh Students to participate- a total of 500 students from 29 schools participated. The topic selected was  “ health care’ and the students had to make models, posters and  participate in the skit and quiz competitions. They won the 2^nd place .

Felicitation:

The State Govt. of Karnataka- Education Department, felicitated the headmaster of Neelbagh School-Mr. Manjunath   for the school’s successive 100 % first class results in the Class X Board Exams. He was presented a trophy and a certificate  by the Department officials.

The month of September is also time for the 1^st semester exams which are followed by 10 days of  holidays to coincide with a major festival in India – Navratri also known as Dussehra.

Dussehra celebrates the Hindu god Rama's victory over the demon king Ravana and the triumph of good over evil. 

The school reopens for the 2^nd semester on the 8^th of October 2017.