In India, many children are unable to receive a good education because of financial difficulties and inconvenient locations of government schools. However, Rajesh Kumar and Laxmi Chandra are trying to change that. Around 2008, Kumar noticed children playing outside in the fields instead of attending school. Not wanting the children to end up in dead-end jobs, Kumar decided to volunteer some of his time to teach the children basic skills, such as: reading, writing, and the Pythagorean theorem. Kumar set up his classroom under a bridge. When starting the school, Kumar had difficulty getting children to attend, as the children’s parents were not too fond of the idea. Nevertheless, after seeing what Kumar and Chandra were able to do by teaching some of the children in their neighborhood, they realized the importance of education for their children and allowed them to attend.
     The school currently lies on railroad property, so when Kumar and Laxmi are asked to leave, they will have no other choice. Also, since the school is not funded by the government, Kumar and Laxmi do not have the adequate materials or volunteers to help the school be efficient. Thus, they have to make do with what they can gather from generous donors. If it were not for these generous donors, the children at the school would not have the basics, such as shoes, backpacks, paper, and pencils.

To read more please click here to access the story written in The Huffington Post.

    The Sherta School hopes to educate students in all areas, including art and science. Currently, students aren’t invested as much in the science track as they are in the commerce track of higher secondary learning. This urges the school to stress the importance of education in science, and the teachers at the school recognize that technology is the foundation for the real world, and the school is taking measures to make the school more technologically advanced.

    The Shertha School offers financial benefits to the students who top their class, namely by letting them continue their studies for free. They also offer benefits to those who win academic competitions, like the science fair. The school also seeks donors to sponsor budding students who want to pursue a higher degree, allowing them to go to college and have a successful career.

    Shertha is still in the process of making its mark on the map, but more donors have been willing to help the school and its cause. REAL has donated over $11,200, thanks to our generous donors, several of whom have ties to the area..

 REAL volunteer Anisha Adke said when visiting the school, “Compared to other schools in Gujarat, the Shertha Schools serve as an incredible learning environment. The Board of Trustees are dedicated to the students’ success and the computer lab and science labs are put to use and well-maintained. Even though the Shertha Schools have undergone immeasurable progress and serve as a paragon for other schools in rural India, there can still be improvements. The student to teacher ratios are still high, and interactive classroom activities are still minimal. However, the Shertha Schools are on a path to success.”

Like many other schools,  Shertha school has its challenges. The classrooms are much too tiny for the number of students in each class, and the classrooms are hotter than the outside temperature. And even though physical punishment is illegal in schools in India, some teachers through-out India still use it as a form of discipline.

      Despite the improvements that could be made to the school, it has come a far way. The progress that has been made over the past several years is invigorating.