Widen the reach
NIMI KURIAN
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The foster school project adopted by two schools in Chennai is a success.
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It's 9.30 a.m. and the students are ready for assembly, prayer and flag hoisting. It is a distinct change from the previous year when they had disliked coming to school. Divya of Std. VIII is a group leader and her enthusiasm for schooling is shared by all her classmates. The reason for this sudden change in attitude at the Corporation Middle School on Kutty Street, Nungambakkam, Chennai is the involvement of another school — a school that has taken the CMS under its wings.
The Union Christian Association (UCA) celebrated its silver jubilee last year. The president of the association, Verghese Eapen, came up with the idea of the foster school to commemorate 25 years where the Union Christian Matriculation Higher Secondary School, Nowroji Road, would adopt a corporation school in their neighbourhood. A survey conducted by the school's teachers and members of the association revealed that the CMS on Kutty Street was in dire need of help. The school had 145 students and only four teachers, including the Headmistress. The school building itself was in a very bad state — leaky roof, cracked walls, no electricity, no furniture, no library, no laboratory and no water. The toilets were dirty and used by miscreants who trespassed into the school. And people living near the school used the playground to dry fish. "The stench of drying fish alone was a deterrent to students to come to school," says Santha Bella, the Headmistress. The UCA together with the UCS decided to step in.
Setting a target for a budget of Rs. 40 lakhs to rebuild, supply computers, organise a library and meet other needs of the school, they set to work. They were able to raise Rs. 34 lakhs from the parents of students from Union Christian School, the UCA, friends and well-wishers and M/S MRF Limited. With the help of Benny Kuriakose, an architect who specialises in low-cost housing, a school building was planned and within a period of a year there stood a new concrete building in the place of the run-down sheds. The new school building has 14 classrooms, good furniture, lights and fans.
The students of the Union Christian School are encouraged to give their instrument boxes, bags, old school uniforms, text books to the children of the foster school. There are plans for another corporation school in the neighbourhood to be merged with this one so that the teacher-student ratio can be increased. The UCA has appointed a teacher for the junior classes and it pays her salary.
Corporation schools function within the framework of the laws of the Corporation, which in a sense do not permit progress. For example, the teacher-student ratio — whereas in private institutions the teacher-student ratio is 1:15, in Corporation schools the ratio is 1:40. So the CMS School on Kutty street has only four teachers including the headmistress to teach 145 students. Another limitation is that all Corporation schools are Tamil medium and though the teachers of the Union Christian School are willing to spend time teaching at the CMS, they find it difficult to teach in Tamil. A survey conducted by the UCA of families living near the school showed that parents wanted their children to study in English medium schools as only then would they get jobs.
Lady Andal Venkatasubbarao School on Harrington Road, Chennai, has together with the Harrington Road Residence Association decided to `foster' the 7th Avenue Corporation Middle School on Harrington Road, which has a student strength of 400. Sabina Narayan, Secretary of the HRRA who has spearheaded this programme, is the energising force. She and members of the Association have availed of funds from the `MP's quota' to build a new school. The Rotary club has also pitched in with funds to provide new furniture and a fresh coat of paint.
So what prompted the Harrington Road Association to come up with this plan? "The lesser privileged people are literally in our backyard and we need to do something for them. But then we are only a Residence Association and so our reach is limited. But with the help of the school we can really make a difference," says Sabina. To combat the shortage of teachers the Association has appointed two teachers. Members of the association have volunteered to teach spoken English. "The school," says Prinicpal Vijaya Srinivasan, "helps out with educational aids and equipping the teachers with new educational methods. We also translate some of our worksheets from English to Tamil so that the children of the Corporation school can use them. We have plans for the students of the Corporation school to use the facilities of our school."
The concept of fostering a school can go a long way in bringing good education to all. With the introduction of more resources, newer teaching methods and a long term commitment from the `mothering' school the `foster' schools are sure to benefit.
But for this concept to gain momentum there needs to be more involvement and motivation from all concerned.
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