School Visit - Gyanshala

The Fulbright crew was able to get a better view of life in the slum area. On July 11th, we headed to Gyanshala, an organization that aims to provide quality primary education to poor children living in the slums. It is an incredible organization, which provides 400 classes in the city to educate about 11,000 kids. Teachers come from the slum area and may only have a high school education. It is great for the kids to have role models from the community as their instructors. The school day for grades 1 to 3 is only 3 hours per day, and 4 ½ hours a day (plus Saturdays) 4th grade and beyond.

We broke up into smaller groups to observe a 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 7th grade class. Classes were held throughout the slum, in rooms rented for the school. Traveling from classroom to classroom we walked the muddied streets, passing by cows, women washing the laundry, and curious occupants. We had a group of kids following us, and so happy to say the few English phrases they knew like “hello… bye bye… photo… What’s your name?” I loved the interaction between the townspeople, teachers, and students.

The classrooms were outfitted with desks or tables, and the kids were ready to learn. In these schools instruction is 15-20 minutes (to suit the short attention span of kids) and then students work in small groups or individually. It looked like a really interesting school, and boasts a relatively high attendance rate for the kids in the community.

In the photos, the girls aged 6 and up are dressed up for a 5-day fasting ritual. The hope is to get a good husband.