Thane Discovery Program Overview

Project Location

Four public schools in the Vikramgad and Wada talukas, Thane District, North of Mumbai, Maharastra State. Two schools are residential schools serving a tribal migrant population.

How Many Students Will Benefit?

Approximately 750 students, from eighth to tenth grade, will benefit from our efforts and your contribution.

Budget

$9,000 Total (3,000/year over three years). REAL has provided the first year grant, we still need to raise $6,000 for the next two years.

Timeframe

Project implemented August 2011 - July 2014

Summary

This project aims to provide 8th to 10th grade students with essential concepts and skills in core areas, Math, Science, Geography, English. This grant provides funds for:

1. Teacher training, through workshops and classes, on lesson planning, activity-based teaching styles, assessments, and evaluation. Overhead projectors, and magnetic boards supported by worksheets, to increase the efficiency of the lessons.

2. Direct intervention with 10 students from each school, from the eighth and ninth grades, to create a group of student leaders and tutors. The students will mentor their peers, using materials given to them. This is a pilot program, which will explore how well students learn from their peers.

3. Stronger fundamentals will be built. Traditionally, students are forced to work within a culture that is oriented towards grades, and scores, instead of learning. With interactive, and varied, activities, this will change. The quality of education will increase, students will experience joy in learning, and the high dropout rates will decrease.

4. Testing to determine current levels of competence and subsequent impact of program.

Regional Profile

Over 95% of the population is tribal.

The literacy rate for tribals is 25.84%; for women, the rate is 14.53%, while for males, it is 36.82%. The general literacy rate is 69.54%.

67 villages have no educational facility within 5 to 10 km.

84.28% of villages do not medical access.

High infant mortality

Only 12% of households have toilets.

50% are farmers, 50% of land is cultivable, but barely 0.79% of the cultivated area is irrigated. Consequently, cultivation is near impossible after the monsoons. On average, agricultural produce supports partial food needs of families for 5-6 months in a year. Land degradation, and falling yields, is a consequence of high usage of chemicals for agriculture.

65.5% of the working population do not work, which is leading to worsening poverty in the area. Entire families, or working members, migrate between November and May to meet basic livelihood needs. This results in hardships for the old, sick, children deprived of basic education, and the migrant, who is separated from his family, works in bad conditions, is exploited, becomes ill, and later, brings these illnesses into the tribal community.