QualityEducation Matters to the Most Vulnerable

A big thanks to our dear donors this quarter!!! We have been able to enroll 26 children in school through your generous support! Prabesh Utsav was a special enrollment drive and community mobilization initiative in April. Aaina joined the initiative as well to create awareness among parents of children with disability on education and facilitating children’s enrollment in school. The sensitization took place in two blocks namely Kamkhyangar and Kanknahad. It involved home visits in 60 houses and making parents realize the importance of primary education for their children, not only as their academic rights but also for their overall development. Parents of children with disability, parents of drop out children and non school going children were the main targets. <amy pf the parents did not send their children to school as they either lacked motivation or they believed that they do not have proper documents. The parents were informed that their children could join school under RTE even if they did not have any birth certificate or previous academic record.

For self esteem and retention of children with disability in school, teachers training were organized on how to treat children with severe disability and multiple disabilities in mainstream classroom. Peer group sensitization towards disabled peer groups was provided as well. Children were made understand the specific needs of their peers with disability and how they can contribute in their development and avoid using derogatory remarks towards them.Training to Block Education Officer (BEO) and Cluster Resource Center Coordinator (CRCC) were provided on

• Accessible classrooms
• Accessible play materials
• Accessible toilets
• Accessible TLM

The programs had a very positive effect and in total 26 new admissions were made in school!!! The Global Giving funds have been used towards organizing the program, home visits, trainings and for paying salary to 6 teachers for children with disability.    An effort is also being made for home based education to the parents of children with disability.

Your donations have truly helped us in reaching out to the maximum numbers of children with disability and their enrollment in schools. It’s your project now and we will be more than happy to provide you any specific information and feedback form children if you desire. More programs like these are required to maximize our potential and see every child with disability enrolled in school studying with self respect and confidence. As such we encourage you to spread the word around among your good friends and share the project through email and other social media that is feasible.  Your support is invaluable. So thanks once again.

Aaina was able to raise 445 Dollars this quarter for the project on Inclusive Education!  Special thanks to our recurring donor’s and generous donors on Dec 31!! Please keep up the festive mood going as it means a lot to the most underprivileged! Along with efforts of aaina in mainstreaming of children with disability, special focus is being given to mainstreaming and independence of children who are blind and deaf. Inability of children in both sight and hearing at the same time puts them in extreme isolation requiring special efforts to bring them into mainstream.

Aaina utilized the raised funds to identify deaf and blind children and children with multiple disability in its project area in Kamkhyanagar and start with the basic therapy required to first improve their communication skills  Arrangements were made for visits by special educator  to 2 resource Centers of Aaina  and for  home visits to 5 children with multiple disability .

Can you all imagine the state of Deaf and Blind children in remote villages where parents of the children are illiterate? Parents and relatives of many of these children are clueless on steps to take and only curse their fate.. They assume dependency of the children and not even make efforts for their development.

The special educator upon her visit interacted parents of the children to first assure that these children can improve provided the right efforts are made.  She also interacted with the teachers of the resource center and encouraged them to involve children in some activity instead of providing direct therapy to improve their mobility. For examples one of the children Karishma used to feel uneasy whenever the therapist came as she was tired of same exercises. It was advised to play with ball isteadand engage with in other activates that will automatically improve her motor skills as well.

Another 14 year old girl Bismita Barik with multiple disabilities goes to school rarely as she is mostly in lateral position. A specially designed wheel chair that ,ay be reclined  was advised by the special educator . Using that chair Karishma can go to school more frequently. Few children are not even werecapable of maintaining personal hygiene and need to be trained on that first.

The special educator maintained her patience with children and provided valuable advice to the parents of children with disability and the teachers at resource center. This is just a beginning and repeated efforts will have to be made to bring significant improvement in these children and raise their confidence to go to school.

Though the progress in these children will take time but the beginning has been made!! Every single improvement in these children not only raises moral of the child and her parents but of other parents in community who have children with similar disability.  We truly thank each and every donor who are a part of this initiative and who help us to showcase that nothing is impossible. We expect continued support and  new ideas from your side as well to make our Inclusive Education project a greeter success. Please don’t think twice before giving any suggestion towards this project and share the project with your friends who care.