The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : Mobile school, a delight for kids

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Wednesday, Feb 20, 2008
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

Mobile school, a delight for kids

‘School on wheels’, a bus promoted by a voluntary organisation, is designed to educate street children

PHOTO : NAGARA GOPAL

For the society: Foreigners and schoolchildren at the launch of ‘School on Wheels’ at Niraj Public School on Tuesday. -

HYDERABAD: A bus journey is always a delightful experience for children. But this bus journey would not just give them pleasure but also pave the way for a bright future. The bus just doesn’t carry the kids but also a black board, alphabets in English and Telugu and numbers written all over the place apart from a few pictures to sustain their interest.

The ‘School on wheels’, a bus promoted by a voluntary organisation, is designed to educate children on street corners and pavements who neither have the interest to go to school nor the avenues. “This is the first of its kind project launched in the city and will go a long way in educating the street kids,” says T.L. Reddy, president of Big Brothers Society that has launched the bus.

Non-formal teaching

While other kids go to school in the bus but for some unfortunate children the bus itself is a school.

The bus plying on the city roads would identify the slums and street corners where children do not have access to school and work as rag pickers to supplement their family income. It will have two teachers contributed by Niraj Public School. The methodology includes non-formal education and the syllabus is more in the form of an outline, where the content can be modified according to the level and interest of the group.

Mr. Reddy says emphasis would be on imparting language and mathematical skills that are a must for daily interaction.

“The end result expected is that the children should be able to read and understand a newspaper, fill in relevant forms as and when required, express themselves in writing,” Mr. Reddy explains, adding that teaching will not be restricted to textbooks and focus would be on making learning more interesting. It is not just formal education but facilities would be created to develop the children’s potential in areas such as art, craft, music and dance.

But it took the burning desire of Mr. Reddy and his friends with the support of a US based organisation called Friends of Christ in India (FOCI) to make the dream come true. Alida Ward of FOCI who dedicated the bus said she fell in love with India and that made her help this cause. Now surely the kids will fall in love with the school on wheels.

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