[Year]

Divya Deepa Charitable Trust,

Kenchalagudu village,

Manandavadi Road,

Rayanakere post,

Mysore – 570008

divyadeepa.trust@gmail.com

www.divyadeepatrust.org

www.facebook.com/divyadeepa

A working

education model

for

‘RURAL

CHILDREN’

1

Sl. No. Description Page no. 1 National impact of Kaliyuva Mane

2

2 Challenges of educating rural kids 4

3 Who are ‘OUT OF SYSTEM/SCHOOL’ children? 6

4 Profile of children who completed 10th

standard 34

5 Comparative analysis of Kaliyuva Mane with mainstream schools 50

6 Special Features of Kaliyuva mane 55

7 Facilities at Kaliyuva Mane 64

8 Frequently asked questions 67

9 Challenges of Kaliyuva Mane 69

10 Impact of Kaliyuva Mane on Government school teachers 89

11 Remarks of Educationists & Dignitaries 92

12 Our Solution to this education impasse 94

13 Response from the media 96

14 Annexure 1 – Words from the chief patron 99

“Feel from the bottom of your heart. Take

up an issue. Find a solution. Put your hands

to the wheels of work. Money will come,

Men will come, and God’s Grace will come”.

− Swami Vivekananda

INSIDE THIS BOOK :

SOURCE OF INSPIRATION :

2

[ Kaliyuva = Learning, Mane= Home ]

Even after 68 years of political independence, India has remained a developing country.

Reasons are many - overpopulation, unemployment, corruption, political system, wrong

policies, poverty, etc. But the root cause is education or lack of it! Natural & human

resources are two vital ingredients in building a nation and India has both in abundance.

Education is the key to convert ordinary human beings into human capital.

Most of the educated people live in a highly connected world and are from developed urban

region. The ‘India’, they perceive is very utopian and is quite different from the ‘Real India’.

Educated parents send their children to ICSE / CBSE /English medium schools, monitor

children’s progress, mentor them, send them to tuition classes, and provide all facilities for

their children so that they excel.

In rural India, where 68.84% of population lives, [Census 2011] educational scenario is very

gloomy. In India, more than 13 crore children study in primary schools, class I to V. In the

next stage, from class VI to VIII, the number dramatically drops to about 5.5 crore [source,

Times of India dt. 18-04-2012] Click on the following link for the detailed report.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Study-slide-Dreams-die-

first/articleshow/16859274.cms

As per Annual Status of Education Report 2014, only 51.2% of 5th standard rural children

can read 2nd standard level text book of their mother tongue and only 26.1% can solve a 3

digit by one digit division problem.

To address this issue, the Government has taken up many initiatives such as:

Starting free schools in almost all villages

Providing free lunch

Providing free uniforms

Providing free school bags

Providing free text books

Providing bicycles

‘Bhagyalakshmi’ scheme for girl children

Promoting children to next higher standards annually, irrespective of learning

Bringing legislations such as ‘Right of children to Free and compulsory education’

(RTE)

NATIONAL IMPACT OF KALIYUVA MANE

3

The Government’s initiatives are really laudable and have resulted in higher enrolment of

children in rural schools.

But unfortunately, there are no education system for these ‘RURAL OUT OF

SYSTEM/SCHOOL’ children. RTE ensures these children schooling, but not education. For

e.g., consider the case of a 12 year old child with IQ/SQ: 100 at an academic level of 3rd

standard. As per RTE, the child has to be integrated with the age appropriate 7th standard

students. But without pre-requisites, the child will not be able to grasp the lessons. If the

child is integrated with 3rd standard children, it will be a humiliation for the child. Of course,

it is almost an impossible task for the teacher to do justice for such a heterogeneous group.

Kaliyuva Mane has successfully developed a working education model for these ‘RURAL OUT

OF SYSTEM/SCHOOL’ children, to support the efforts of the Government.

This is based on our practical working with rural children since more than 23 years. The

philosophy of this school is ‘school for CHILDREN’ rather than ‘children for SCHOOL’ ‘The

Hindu’ in its article on the success of Kaliyuva Mane children in 10th standard exams in

English medium wrote like this: “…………..But for these children who had no hope of

education and had given up all learning, it is a major milestone and hold out hopes for the

millions like them………..”

This book is only a window to Kaliyuva Mane. It explains the challenges of educating rural

kids, need for such schools, creative infrastructure, success stories of the children,

comparative analysis of Kaliyuva Mane and regular schools, special features of Kaliyuva

Mane, challenges of Kaliyuva Mane, remarks of the educationists who visited our school,

support of the media, etc. So our work will benefit millions of rural first generation school

goers, school dropouts, school going children who fail to reach the grades, child labourers,

children from broken and disturbed families for whom education is the last/lost priority. We

feel, more Kaliyuva Manes, to be precise, better models of Kaliyuva Manes functioning on

the principle ‘school for CHILDREN’, should come up throughout the length and breadth of

Indian villages and coexist with the main stream schools in the years to come. We are ready

to share our learning. These ‘RURAL OUT OF SYSTEM/SCHOOL’ children are still very much

an important part of this world. We feel every educated person with values is an asset to

his/her country in particular and to the world at large.

4

Most of the villages lack basic infrastructure and facilities, are not well connected to the

world outside (underdeveloped transportation as well as communication systems) and are

completely in the dark about the luxuries and entertainment available to the urban crowd -

shopping complexes, higher education institutes, function halls, traffic signal lights, book

shops, studio, broadband net connection, courier facilities, swimming pools, music schools,

special schools for mentally challenged & blind children, newspaper offices etc. This repels

the educated lot from settling down in villages. Consequently, bridging the ever-increasing

gap between urban and rural areas is quite a challenge in itself. Even the medicos prefer to

pay the fine instead of serving villages.

Whether it rains or shines,

minimum of 12 hours power

cut per day is a norm in

many villages of Karnataka.

Water is a big problem.

Newspapers do not reach

many villages. Many villages

lack primary health centres.

Sanitation facilities are very

poor. Majority of the

inhabitants are not educated

and belong to socially and

economically weaker sections of the society. Environment at home is not congenial for studies.

Children are disinterested in learning something, which is not relevant to their present life; many

schools lack infrastructure; rote teaching methods contribute substantially to this factor; though our

constitution guarantees EQUALITY of status and of opportunity to all Indians, this has remained a

distant dream.

Normally rural people work from dawn to dusk to earn their livelihood and don’t get time to monitor

the education of their children. Sometimes, acute poverty compels the parents to send their boys

for work. Even now, some parents tend to withdraw a girl child from the school after she attains

puberty. In many rural homes, environment is not conducive for studies. In some homes, children

witness domestic violence and in some other, they will be the victims of it! The number of broken

families is also increasing in rural areas.

Srirampura village where Divyadeepa started its work in 1992

CHALLENGES OF EDUCATING RURAL KIDS

5

Most of the rural children are first-generation school-goers. They do not get any type of academic

help from their parents. They naturally respond to activity based learning rather than rote learning.

Children have to be taught the lessons about hygiene, toilet habits and material organisation

discipline. Children normally dislike writing. Their copying skills have to be honed. They find it

difficult to withstand the pressure of competitive public examination. Teachers have to put

herculean efforts to prepare them for structured public examinations which not only test children’s

memory and writing skills but also teacher’s patience and commitment.

Education has several perspectives: child’s, parent’s/guardian’s, society’s, teacher’s and nation’s.

Child’s learning depends on several factors such as child’s interest & inherent learning ability , food

security, the emotional environment at home and school, parent’s/guardian’s education, parent’s

economic condition, neighbourhood society, facilities available in the surroundings, peer group,

infrastructure at the school, knowledge and attitude of the teachers, school’s rules and regulations

and the prevailing education system.

But children are smart

and intelligent. Their

grasping ability is

good. They ask plenty

of relevant questions.

Rural children have a

separate skill set.

Considering the

children’s

backgrounds, and

from the perspective

of children’s learning,

Kaliyuva Mane carried

out several experiments and has successfully evolved a system of education catering to the needs of

these RURAL children.

HOOL’ CHIDLREN OF ‘OUT OF SYSTEM/SCHOOL’ CHIDLREN

SYSTEM/SCHOOL’ CHIDLREN OF ‘OUT OF SYSTEM/SCHOOL’

CHIDLREN

6

We consider the following category of children as OUT OF SYSTEM/SCHOOL CHILDREN.

1. Rural first generation school goers.

2. Rural children from BPL families.

3. School dropouts.

4. Children from unstable and broken families.

5. Children studying in main stream schools with an academic lag of minimum 3 years.

6. Dyslexic children.

Here are copies of the certificates pertaining to academic level, IQ of a few of Kaliyuva Mane children

certified by clinical psychologists of reputed central government institute – AII India Institute of

Speech & Hearing. If all rural school going children are subjected to this test, we are sure more than

50% of the children will be found dyslexic or slow learners.

WHO ARE OUT OF SYSTEM/SCHOOL CHILDREN?

7

8

REMARKS : Arun is from Kollegala. He was given admission as a resident scholar at Kaliyuva Mane

on 23-05-2012. He has regained interest in studies and is evolving very well. Now he is studying in

Mythri team. He has appeared for 10th

standard public examination, this academic year. His father is

a lorry driver and his mother works in a flour mill. As per his previous school records he has passed

9th

standard from a rural private school.

9

REMARKS : The girl is from a slum on the outskirts of Mysore. Father is an alcoholic addict. Both the

parents are illiterates. The atmosphere at home is not at all congenial for studies. Father does not

stay with the family always; some days he comes home. Mother often becomes a victim of

domestic violence and the child, a silent spectator to this violence. The girl Studies in three

10

Government schools and finally bids good bye to school. She works as a child labour in Bengaluru,

first as a child care taker and secondly as a domestic help for two years. She does not like both the

jobs, comes home and starts helping her mother. Thanks to the efforts of her relative, she again

joins a free hostel run by an NGO and joins another Government school, only to drop out after a few

months. At the age of about 13 years, another NGO, ‘Spiritus International Trust’ spots her and

decides to build her future by admitting her into Kaliyuva Mane. She is evolving well in Mythri team.

She has appeared for 10th

standard examinations this academic year, 2015-16.

CASE STUDY OF A BOY:

Admission No. 39

The boy joined Kaliyuva Mane on 02-06-2008 as a day scholar. Both his parents are illiterates. Father

works as a vegetable vendor. The boy belongs to a rural BPL family. He had passed 5th

standard from

a Govt. Kannada medium rural school. He appeared suffering from malnutrition. After a month of

his joining, he was subjected to a simple informal academic assessment test at Kaliyuva Mane. He

did not have either the knowledge of Kannada alphabets nor could do single digit addition. Copy of

the answer sheet is included in the next page. We were shocked to learn about his academic level.

The boy was very irregular to Kaliyuva Mane for about a year or so. We used to call his father and

advise him. For a few days, the boy used to be regular to the school. But again he used to be

irregular. It seems, he used to get up early in the morning and help his father at home. One day, we

noticed that he had a severe problem with his eyesight. We took him to an ophthalmologist and got

him a pair of spectacles. For few months, he used to wear his spectacles. Then he informed that his

spectacles got broken. We got him one more pair of spectacles. In July 2011, he was taken to All

India Institute of Speech and Hearing for an assessment. His IQ was 100, but academic level was

between I & II grade. Now he is reasonably regular to Kaliyuva Mane. He has improved a lot. He

again developed eye pain. We recently got him a pair of new glasses.

He is in Mythri team. He has appeared for 10th

standard public examinations this academic year,

2015-16. After SSLC, he has to be given some vocational training.

11

Copy of his psychological report has been published in the next page.

Performance of the boy in

the informal academic

assessment done at

Kaliyuva Mane in July

2008.

12

13

REMARKS : The boy joined Kaliyuva Mane as a day scholar on 01-06-2013. Initially, he had

behavioural problems. Now the boy likes Kaliyuva Mane. He is evolving well. His hand skills are

slightly improving. His parents are educated. Father is a high school teacher. Mother works in a

Government higher primary school. They are very happy with the boy’s progress. Earlier to this, he

was studying in a Pvt. English medium school. Both the parents are from rural background.

14

15

REMARKS : The girl has no father. Her mother works as a peon in Andhra Pradesh. She is staying at

her maternal uncle’s home. So joined Kaliyuva Mane in June 2014 as a day scholar. She comes to

school happily. She is progressing well.

16

REMARKS : She is not a school dropout. (There is an inadvertent error in the certificate) She is

coming to the school happily. Initially she never used to sit at a single place for more than 5 minutes.

Now she is able to sit. She is progressing academically also. But her pace of progress has to be

accelerated.

17

REMARKS : His profile is available in the section, ‘Profile of children who completed 10th

standard

public examinations from Kaliyuva Mane’

18

19

REMARKS : The boy has joined Kaliyuva Mane as a day scholar on 12-06-2014. The boy likes Kaliyuva

Mane. We have noticed some behavioural problems. It is becoming difficult to teach him. But efforts

are on to find an alternative approach. He is slowly improving.

20

REMARKS : Joined Kaliyuva Mane as a day scholar on 17-04-2014. Classes commenced in June. He

is improving in academics too. He is studying in Prajna team. Parents are not educated.

21

REMARKS : He does not have both the parents. We do not know his correct age. He lives with his

grandmother who is blind and gets some pension. His sister works as a domestic help. The boy has a

heart problem. He has to undergo surgery at the age of 15. Till then, he has to take Penicillin

injection and medicines regularly. But he is very happy and academically progressing very well.

22

23

REMARKS : He joined Kaliyuva Mane as a day scholar in June 2014. He is progressing academically

also. Now he in studying in Shraddha team.

24

REMARKS : Initially he used to come as a day scholar to Kaliyuva Mane. Later he joined as a

resident scholar. He is happy. He is academically progressing well. As his IQ itself is low, it may be

difficult for him to pass 10th

standard. But he is good at Maths and weak in languages. Now he is

studying in Mythri team. He has appeared for SSLC public examination in this academic year, 2015-

16. If he is unable to pass, we have to impart him some vocational training.

25

REMARKS : The girl is a resident scholar at Kaliyuva Mane. The girl’s mother’s whereabouts not

known. In the meantime, the girl’s father has remarried. But the girl is very happy at Kaliyuva Mane.

Her academic progress is very good. She is studying in Shraddha team.

26

REMARKS : He joined Kaliyuva Mane as a day scholar on 28-04-2014. Classes began in June. He

happily comes to Kaliyuva Mane. He is slightly mentally retarded and IQ is below normal. He sings

very well. We tried to discuss the issue with the boy’s parents. It was very difficult to convince his

parents. They feel, there is no problem in their son, as he used to pass every year in the annual

examinations in the previous school. We have to make one more attempt, perhaps several more to

convince the boy’s parents!! Now we can see the improvements in his academic. He is studying in

Poorna team. We should impart him vocational skills.

27

28

REMARKS : The boy is coming to Kaliyuva Mane happily. Before that he was studying in a Private

English Medium school. He was subjected to a lot of physical & psychological harassment due to his

academic lag. At Kaliyuva Mane, he is progressing well. He answers orally. He is creative also. But

his writing skills have to be honed. He is intelligent but weak in academics. Now he is studying in

Mythri team. He has appeared for SSLC public examination, this academic year, 2015-16.

29

REMARKS : He joined Kaliyuva Mane as a day scholar on 28-04-2014. He is in Chiguru team . Initially

he never used to sit at a single place for more than 5 minutes. Now he is able to sit. He is

progressing academically also.

30

REMARKS : He joined Kaliyuva Mane as a resident scholar on 07-06-2015. He is in Poorna team. His

mother is not alive. He is academically progressing.

31

REMARKS : He joined Kaliyuva Mane as a resident scholar on 06-04-2015. He belongs to a village in

Chithradurga. According to scholastic documents, the child has passed 6th standard in English

medium school. Though he can hear properly, his speech is defective. Due to this, in his previous

school, his peer group children use to rag him and he was not emotionally comfortable with the

school. At the time of joining Kaliyuva mane, the boy was 12 years old. His parents are Bamboo

weavers. At Kaliyuva mane the boy was subjected to an informal test. His performance was dismal

and academic level was below 1st

standard. This was later corroborated by psychological report. His

IQ is below normal(72%). His parents expect the child to learn life skills and vocational skills.

32

REMARKS : He joined Kaliyuva Mane as a day scholar on 26-05-2014, then he joined as a resident

scholar on 13-06-2015. He does not have father. His mother works in a garment factory. Initially he

never used to sit at a single place for more than 5 minutes. Now he is able to sit. He is progressing

academically also. He was studying in a private Kannada medium school earlier.

33

REMARKS : The boy is attending classes regularly. He has started opening up. He is very weak in

Kannada as he had studied Kannada as a third language in his previous school. Now he is studying in

Mythri team. He is appeared for SSLC public examination in this academic year.

34

Chinmai team: [2015]

Koushik H.D. (18 years) hails from Haleyur from KR

Nagara Taluk. The boy lost his father a few months ago.

Mother is a housewife. She has studied up to 8th

standard. The boy belongs to a rural poor family.

The boy studied up to 4th standard in a mainstream

Kannada medium school. The boy was good at sports.

So, he was admitted to Sports school at Chamundi

Vihar stadium, Mysore as a resident scholar. He won

state level prizes in Athletics. Afterwards he was

admitted to Coorg Sports School as a resident scholar.

The boy could not adjust to the school. He was

academically lagging behind. He did not progress in the

field of sports also. Somehow, he managed to

complete one year there. Then he dropped out of the

school. He was staying at home for one year, refusing to join any school.

Then the boy’s mother came across an article about Kaliyuva Mane in a newspaper. The boy

was sent to Clinical Psychologist of All India Institute of Speech & Hearing, Mysore for

assessment. According to the report, he was a dyslexic boy. Though his IQ was 100, his

academic level was 4th standard. He joined Kaliyuva Mane as a day scholar in August 2012

and as a resident scholar in 2013. He regained his lost enthusiasm for studies at Kaliyuva

Mane. Now he has successfully completed SSLC examination. He did not utilize the

benefits; he was eligible for, such as exemption from studying two additional languages and

additional one hour in exams etc. He took the exams like a normal boy. He owes his success

to healthy emotional environment prevailing at Kaliyuva Mane.

Now he has passed SSLC examination in SECOND class. (56%) His educated grandfather has

taken his responsibility of his further studies. At present he is doing Industrial Training

course.

BRIEF PROFILES OF CHILDREN WHO COMPLETED 10TH STANDARD

35

Swamy S. (16 years) hails from Bogadhi. Father has

passed 7th standard. Mother has not gone any formal

school. The child belongs to rural Below Poverty Line

family. Father does gardening work in various houses

(temporary job). Mother is housewife and is maintaining

a fragile health. The boy completed 7th standard from

mainstream Kannada medium school.

Once by coincidence his father happened to work in a

house, whose owner happened to be an office bearer of

Rotary Club West. This noble hearted lady sympathized

with the child and was instrumental for the boy’s

admission into Rotary West School, Kuvempunagar. But,

due to lack of pre-requisites, the boy could not cope up

with the studies there. So, as per the advice of the same

lady, the boy’s father admitted his son to Kaliyuva Mane,

as a day scholar in 2012. In 2013, he joined Kaliyuva Mane as a resident scholar.

Now the boy has passed 10th standard in FIRST class. (65%) He has joined residential

Diploma in Rural Development) at Pune.

Sushmitha P. (15 years) The child belongs to a rural BPL

family. In 2003, the girl’s parents migrated to

Kenchalgudu village from Kollegala. The factory, where

the child’s father was working, closed down. The girl’s

father was jobless for more than 6 months. One of the

well-wishers of Divyadeepa introduced the family to

Kaliyuva Mane. Child’s father started working at

Divyadeepa. In 2005, the girl joined Kaliyuva Mane as a

day scholar. The girl has not attended any other formal

school. Currently, the girl’s father works as a cooking

assistant in BCM Hostel, Kuvempunagar. Mother works as

Anganawadi teacher.

Now the girl has passed 10th standard in FIRST class. (62%)

She has joined PUC commerce course.

Soundarya S. (15 years) hails from Mellahalli village.

Father did not go to any formal school, but learnt

reading and writing from Divyadeepa. So he knew the

importance of educating a girl child. He is a farmer.

Girl’s mother is a housewife. The girl belongs to a rural

BPL family.

The girl’s father admitted her to a rural private English

medium school in his village. The girl studied there up

to 7th standard. The school did not get permission to

start 8th standard. Urban English medium schools

demanded a huge donation for a seat in their schools.

36

So girl’s father brought his daughter to Kaliyuva Mane. She joined Kaliyuva Mane as a

resident scholar in 2013. Now she has passed 10th standard examinations securing FIRST

class. (69%) She has joined PUC Science course. She wants to become a Science teacher.

Sanjay N. (15 years) hails from Srirampura village.

Father has passed 8th standard. Boy’s mother has not

gone to any formal school. The boy belongs to rural BPL

family. Father is a mason. Mother rolls Agarbathis in a

private firm. (A temporary job) The boy completed 6th

standard from a mainstream Kannada medium school.

His father was not happy with the academic progress of

his son. So, for better education, his parents brought

him to Kaliyuva Mane in 2010. The boy joined as

resident scholar in 2013.

Now he has passed the SSLC examination in FIRST class.

(81%) He has joined PUC – Science course. He aspires to

become an Engineer.

Manju B. (16 years) hails from Dhanagalli. The boy is

motherless. The boy’s father has passed 9th standard. The

child belongs to a rural BPL family. The child’s father works

in a private factory. The boy completed 2nd standard from a

mainstream Kannada medium school. Because his friends

had joined Kaliyuva Mane, the child also expressed the

desire to join Kaliyuva Mane. So the child’s mother brought

Manju to Kaliyuva Mane in 2007 and the boy joined as a day

scholar. In 2010, the boy joined Kaliyuva Mane as a resident

scholar.

Now the boy has passed 10th standard in SECOND class.

(58%) He has joined PUC commerce course. He stays at

Kaliyuva Mane. Divyadeepa is supporting him completely

including his food, clothing, education etc. He has a good

voice. So he will learn classical music also in addition.

Chandra M. (15 years) hails from Dhanagalli. The boy’s

father has studied up to 8th standard. The boy’s mother

has not gone to any formal school. The child belongs to a

Scheduled caste Below Poverty Line family. Both the

parents work as labourers. (Temporary job) The boy had

completed 7th standard from a rural mainstream Kannada

medium school.

The boy was eager to join child centric school, Kaliyuva

Mane. So his father brought him to Kaliyuva Mane in

2012. We noticed that he had an academic lag of

minimum 3 years. In 2014, he joined as a resident scholar.

37

Now the boy has passed the 10th standard. He has got a seat in Government ITI for Fitter’s

course.

Chethan R. (15 years) belongs to Kenchalagudu village.

His father is an agriculturist. His mother is housewife.

The boy belongs to a middle class rural family. His parents

have studied up to SSLC. He had completed 6th standard

from a rural mainstream Kannada medium school. He was

finding it difficult to cope up with studies. So he

requested his father to put him at Kaliyuva Mane. So the

boy joined Kaliyuva Mane in 2010 as a day scholar. Now

he has passed SSLC. He has joined PUC commerce

course.

Sakamma C. (16 years) belongs to Kenchalagudu village. She is the

first student to join Kaliyuva Mane when Kaaliyuva Mane was

started in 2005. Her father is not alive. Her mother is an illiterate

and works as a cooli. She is the 7th child to her parents. At

present she is doing PUC arts in English medium.

Sphoorthi Team 2014 ( Appeared : 5, Passed : 5, First class : 1, Second class: 2, SC/ST children : 3)

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hemanth Kumar J. ( Age : 16+

)

Hemanth belongs to a lower middle

class family. His father works in a

private firm. Mother is a housewife.

His father has passed PUC and the

mother has studied up to SSLC.

Hemanth’s parents knew the worth of

education. So they sent him to an

English medium private reputed school.

But unfortunately, the boy could not

38

cope up with the rigid structure of the school. The constant failure in academics shattered young

boy’s confidence. Concerned father took the boy to All India Institute of Speech and Hearing, Mysore

for assessment. The boy was on the threshold of 8th

standard then, but his academic level was

found to be equivalent to that of a beginner of 3rd

standard, though his IQ was age appropriate. A

copy of the report is attached below. The boy was found to have ‘learning disability’. So, Hemanth’s

disappointed father brought Hemanth to Kaliyuva Mane.

He was educated as per the guidelines of the clinical psychologist, which were being practised at

Kaliyuva Mane already. He was exempted from studying two additional subjects. Hemanth regained

the interest in studies and started cooperating with the faculty members. Now Hemanth has cleared

10th

standard examination in second class. He is very happy. His achievement has made his family

members and teaching faculty of Kaliyuva mane happy and proud. He is practising snake catching.

He is fond of animals, wild life photography and agriculture.

Post metric studies : He joined ITI ( Draughtsman – Mechanical) course. He has scored 67% in the

first semester.

39

40

Hemanth Kumar Y. ( Age : 15+ )

Hemanth hails from a village in Andhra Pradesh. Hemanth

had a turbulent childhood, having lost his father in a vehicle

accident during his early childhood. His mother even now

works as a peon in a school in Andhra Pradesh.

After the accident, Hemanth migrated to Mysore.

Hemanth’s maternal uncle started taking care of the boy. His

maternal uncle works as an electrician. He came across an

article on Kaliyuva Mane in ‘Andolana’ paper. Two years

ago, Hemanth’s maternal uncle brought Hemanth to Kaliyuva

mane. The boy joined Kaliyuva Mane as a resident scholar.

He is studious and works hard. Having passed 10th

standard

in first class, he is very happy now.

Post metric studies : Doing Diploma in Engineering course

Manu H. (Age : 15+)

Manu is from a rural ‘below poverty line’ family. His father works as a security guard in a private

company. Both the parents are illiterates. Manu was

studying in a Government Kannada medium school.

Parents came to know about Kaliyuva Mane. So his

parents brought him to Kaliyuva Mane five years ago.

Though his academic level at the time of joining

Kaliyuva Mane was below par, he gained enthusiasm

for studies.

Now he has passed SSLC. Everyone at his home and at

Kaliyuva Mane is happy about his achievement.

Post metric status : Doing ITI course (Electrical )

Shankara : ( Age: 16+)

Shankar hails from Mellahalli village on the outskirts of Mysore city.

He too had a turbulent childhood. He lost his mother quite early in his

life. His father has remarried and lives in a separate house. His father

is an illiterate and does some odd jobs like selling vegetables, painting

etc. Shankar used to stay with his grandmother. He was going to the

Government Kannada medium school there.

Two school dropouts from his village had passed 10th

standard

examination from Kaliyuva mane earlier. So one resident of Mellahalli

village brought Shankar to Kaliyuva Mane and he became a part of

41

Kaliyuva Mane family

He instantly liked the child friendly atmosphere prevailing at Kaliyuva Mane. He started evincing

keen interest in studies. Now he has passed SSLC in second class.

Post metric studies : Doing ITI course (Electrical )

Srikrishna A. (Age : 16+)

Shrikrishna’s parents are educated. Inspired by the

ideals of Sri Aurobindo and Swami Vivekananda, they

were conducting supplementary classes for rural school

going kids mornings and evenings free of cost staying in a

village on the outskirts of Mysore since 1992.

Conceptualization of ‘Kaliyuva Mane’ took place, based

on this grassroots level experience. Due to paucity of

resources, they could not start the school and were

forced to send their son to a mainstream school. After

Kindergarten, the boy joined 1st

standard in a

mainstream school. Initially he was happy. But later on,

he developed an aversion to the school and refused to

go to the school. With no other options, parents forced him to go to the school. The boy, out of

compulsions started attending classes submissively. Eventually parents withdrew him from the

school.

He was taken for counselling. Counsellor suggested an informal school for him. There was no such

school in Mysore. Even when Kaliyuva Mane was started he refused to learn there. Gradually since

4 or 5 years, he has started attending classes regularly. He is very intelligent. But due to his

traumatic childhood, he is poor in social skills. Now he has passed 10th standard. We hope, this

result will give him enough confidence to face life. He wants to become a successful businessman.

Post metric studies : Studying 2nd PUC Commerce in English medium, learning Veena & Computers.

Chaitanya Group ( Appeared: 3, Passed : 3, First class : 2, SC/ST children : 2)

Shivakumar V.: Date of birth: 28-11-1997, Date of joining : 14-04-2007

Hails from a village. Father was not staying with the mother and children. Mother was selling fruits

and flowers on roadside. In this process, the mother could not focus on the son’s educational

activities. Shiva kumar disliked structured studies and was very irregular to the school. His mother

changed his school thrice. After seeing an article about Kaliyuva Mane in a newspaper, his mother

42

brought him to Kaliyuva Mane. Initially he was not interested in the studies. Later on, he started

showing interest and passed X standard exams, with FIRST CLASS. He is doing 2nd

PUC.

Anandaradhya :

Date of birth: 09-06-1997, Date of joining : 01-06-2010

Hails from a village in H.D. Kote taluk. His father is blind. His Mother is not alive. Father has

remarried. He studied in a free Government Kannada medium school up to 7th

standard. Later

onwards it became difficult for his father to support him. Anand passed X standard exams, from

Kaliyuva Mane with FIRST CLASS.

Post metric studies : Anand passed 2nd

PUC from Rotary West PU college scoring 83% of marks.

Currently he is studying B.com 1st

year

Kartik : Date of birth: 16-03-1997, Date of joining : 06-06-2007

Hails from a village near H.D. Kote. Both the parents belong to rural ‘Below poverty Line’ family.

Both are illiterates. He was going to a rural Government school. But he was lagging behind in

studies. He joined Kaliyuva Mane He passed X standard exams. Teachers had to put an additional

effort. Current details are not available with us.

43

Vivek Group ( Appeared : 6, Passed : 6, First class : 2, SC/ST children : 5)

Shwetha M. (DOB : 27-01-1997)

Shwetha's father works in a

mutton shop. Her mother

works as a domestic help from

dawn to dusk. Shwetha’s

illiterate father is an alcohol

addict and mother has studied

up to 4th

standard. They stay in

a small tiny rented shed in

Srirampura village, around 7

kms from Kaliyuva Mane.

Shwetha's parents have 5

children. Shwetha is the

middle one. Shwetha's mother

takes major share of the

responsibility of the family.

Father has not found time to

visit Kaliyuva Mane even once

where his daughter stays since

six years.

Shwetha was going to the main

stream rural Kannada medium school. She was going to the school once in a blue moon due to

multiple reasons such as inherent disinterest, rote teaching methods, lack of guidance at home, fear

of punishment at schools etc. She eventually dropped out. After dropping out 10 year old Shwetha

started accompanying her mother. While her mother used to work, daughter used to play at the

mother's work place.

Shwetha's mother Bhagya used to come to Kaliyuva Mane in exigent situations. While her mother

used to be busy in washing vessels, this little girl used to enjoy swing at Kaliyuva mane. One day

Bhagya had come to Kaliyuva mane with her five children. Elders used to help her mother, while

others used to play. We asked the eldest child to join the school. But Shwetha was keener. So she

became a part of Kaliyuva Mane family on 17-04-2007.

She started learning from scratch at Kaliyuva mane. i.e from Kannada alphabets and numbers. She

was happy and progressing during first 3 years. But gradually her interest declined. During the

44

summer vacation of 2011, Shwetha did not return to Kaliyuva mane. Instead she went to Bangalore

and was working in someone's home taking care of a one year young infant. That experience was an

eye opener for her! She came back to Kaliyuva Mane with a firm determination. She started

cooperating with the staff members. Then she passed X standard public examination. She is the first

girl to have passed X standard in the whole family. Current details about her not available.

Rajeshwari M. (DOB : 16th

April 1996)

Rajeshwari’s parents stay at Ashokapuram in a rented house. Her father works as a painter. Her

mother is a housewife. Father has passed SSLC and mother has passed 5th

standard. So they are

aware of the importance of education. They have 4 daughters. Rajeshwari is the youngest.

Rajeshwari was regularly attending main stream Kannada medium school.

Rajeshwari’s eldest sister Jaishri stays at Kenchalagudu. Divyadeepa has trained her and presently

she is working in Divyadeepa. Jaishri was worried about her sister’s poor academic performance. So

Jaishri brought her sister to Kaliyuva Mane. She had passed 6th

standard in the main stream school.

At Kaliyuva Mane she was subjected to a simple assessment test. The result was shocking. She could

not write a few lines properly in her mother tongue. She could not spell the word, ‘English’

She joined Kaliyuva Mane as a day scholar on 31st

May 2007. In 2009, she joined as a resident

scholar. We found her studious and hard working. She passed X standard public exams in first class.

Post metric studies :

Completed PUC Science in 2014. She is doing B.Sc. Nursing course in Govt. Medical College.

Manu Kumar K. (DOB : 27th

November 1993)

Manu hails from Mellahalli located on Bannur road. Both the parents are illiterates. Manu is the

second son. Farming is the family profession. Manu completed 1st

standard from a rural main

stream Kannada medium school. He lost interest in the studies and dropped out from the school due

to multiple reasons such as inherent disinterest, rote teaching methods, lack of guidance at home,

fear of punishment at schools etc.

Manu started helping his parents in farming and taking care of the cows. In the meantime, Manu's

uncle Shivalingu, an illiterate had learnt reading and writing attending literacy classes conducted by

Divyadeepa at Mellahali way back in 1996. His uncle having understood the importance of education

brought Manu's parents to Kaliyuva Mane. On 9th

April 2007, Manu became a part of Kaliyuva mane

family. He knew only to write his name in Kannada, but started cooperating with the staff. With his

fine attitude and hard work he could complete X standard public examination in English medium.

Then he underwent 6 months residential training at CIPET. He is working in Bangalore at private

Extruder company.

45

Renuka Swamy S.M. : ( DOB : 31st

January, 1996)

Renuka Swamy lost his father when he was quite young. His mother brought him up. His mother

works in a small eatery in a village on the outskirts of Davanagere. Her dream was to give her only

son good education. She had studied up to 9th

standard and knew the worth of education. So with

great difficulty, she made him join a private Kannada medium school.

But Renuka did not show much interest in studies. He failed in 6th

standard and stopped going to

school. Through word of mouth, Renuka’s mother came to know about Kaliyuva Mane. So Renuka

joined Kaliyuva Mane on 15-04-2008 as a resident scholar. We found him bright but not suitable for

structured studies. Even at Kaliyuva Mane, he was not interested in studies initially. But he

gradually started evincing interest in studies. Renuka passed X standard exams in English medium.

His mother has taken him home (Davanagere). He is doing Diploma in Mechanical Engineering.

Dhanush P. (27th

December 1996 )

Dhanush’s father Mr. Puttaswamy was working in a private firm at Kollegal. But unfortunately the

firm closed down. So he did not get wages for several months. Divydeepa’s wellwisher introduced

Puttaswamy to Divyadeepa in 2003. For several years, Dhanush’s father used to work at Divyadeepa

taking care of the dairy farm and the land. Kaliyuva Mane was started in June 2005. Naturally his

daughter joined Kaliyuva Mane. Dhanush who had completed 4th

standard in a Kannada medium

main stream school, joined Kaliyuva Mane in 2006 as a resident scholar.

Dhanush’s parents are educated. Lady luck smiled on Puttaswamy’s family. Puttaswamy’s wife got a

Anganwadi teacher’s job in Kenchalagudu itself. Mr. Puttaswamy got a job as a cook in a hostel.

Presently they are staying in a rented small house in Kenchalagudu. Dhanush passed X standard in

first class. Divyadeepa is supporting him completely.

Post metric studies :

Completed PUC commerce with first class. He is doing 2nd

year B.Com. course.

Shivaraj (DOB : 20th

August 1996)

Shivaraj’s parents stay at Dhanagahalli in a small house. Shivaraj’s father works in an industry. His

Mother passed away recently. Father has studied up to 9th

standard. The boy belongs to ‘Below

poverty line’ family. Shivaraj was studying in a Kannada medium main stream school. His parents

were not happy with the boy’s scholastic performance. Through word of mouth, Shivaraj’s father

came to know about Kaliyuva Mane. So they brought the boy to Kaliyuva Mane. On 04-06-2007, he

joined the school as a day scholar. In 2009, he joined as a resident scholar. He also passed X std. in

2012 in first attempt.

46

Post metric studies: After SSLC, he joined PUC course. Due to demise of his mother, he discontinued

studies. Now he is undergoing residential training course (Electrician)

Aravind Team (Appeared : 7, Passed : 6, First class : 1, SC/ST children : 5)

Prashanth (DOB 01-04-1991) was studying in a local village main

stream school. Father deserted the family and started living

separately. Compulsions of life, made Prashanth quit the school in

2003, without completing 7th standard. He left the school to work as

a child labourer at Ooty, Coimbatore and Hassan at a tender age of

12. Prashanth’s mother was working as a domestic help.. Prashant

also suffers from a rare disease, colour blindness.

During 2007, upon seeing an article on Kaliyuva Mane in “Mysooru Mithra”, one of his acquaintances

called us and enquired about job opportunity for Prashanth. Prashanth was 16 years old at that

time. Considering his age, Kaliyuva Mane encouraged him to study. Initially, there were some

behavioural issues owing to his tumultuous background. Also, he had forgotten, what he had studied

in primary schools. He soon started showing interest in studies and passed X std. in 1st

attempt.

Post metric studies: He completed ITI Electronics Mechanic course and currently working in a private

industry.

Mahesha (DOB 18-04-1995) Mahesha was studying in 6th

standard at Dhanagahalli main stream school. One day his

parents had come to Divyadeepa as construction helpers. They

shared their tale of woes with us. They were landless labours.

Father could not perform hard physical labour as he had

sustained serious head injuries earlier. The couple had 3

daughters and a son. Both the parents were illiterates.

Mahesha was on the verge of dropping out from the school. So

his parents contacted Kaliyuva Mane regarding Mahesha’s

admission. In 2006, he joined Kaliyuva Mane as a resident

scholar. In 2015 he completed BBM degree with 1st

class and

currently working as project assistant at Divya Deepa Trust.

Sachin’s (DOB 17-02-1995) Father is a mason. Mother does some

odd jobs. Father has studied up to 9th

standard and mother is an

illiterate. The boy belongs to ‘Below poverty line’ family. Sachin

47

was studying in a main stream Kannada medium higher primary school in his village. By the time he

completed 5th standard, he lost interest in studies as he was considered as a slow learner. Eventually,

his parents brought him to Kaliyuva Mane where he had to undergo learning from the scratch. We

found him to be bright but having some problems in learning languages. He passed SSLC. But

teachers had to work hard!

Post metric studies :

Joined ITI and completed Electronics mechanic course. Currently he is working at Karthavya

Technology, a software company in Bengaluru.

Nanjunda Swamy (DOB 04-10-1989) was studying in a higher

primary school at Mellahalli. Both his parents are illiterates. During

2000, when he was 11 years old, he lost interest in the school and

bid good bye to it, without completing 5th standard. He started

helping his father in farming. One of his uncles, who was a

beneficiary of our literacy programme at Mellahalli in 1996, brought

him to Kaliyuva Mane in 2007. He joined as a resident scholar. He

continued his education after a gap of nearly 7 years, because of

which he had forgotten to recognize even Kannada alphabets and

numbers. He passed X std. in 2010 in English medium. He has his

own two acres of agricultural land and practicing farming.

Narayana (DOB 10-01-1995) used to attend the local village school once in a

blue moon. Village games like marbles, top and chinni-dandu attracted him

more than the village school. He was least interested in studies. His brother,

who was a beneficiary of our supporting classes at Srirampura, brought him

to Kaliyuva Mane in the year 2005. His parents are illiterates. Father works

as a sack lifter. Mother does some odd jobs. They belong to ‘Below poverty

line’ family. Initially he was not comfortable at Kaliyuva Mane. However, he

gradually started liking the environment prevailing at Kaliyuva mane. He

completed X standard in 2010. He is working in a private firm.

Santosh (DOB 04-01-1992) was not interested in studies. He was

labelled as a slow learner. Teachers used to punish him. Dejected one

day he left the school without completing 7th

standard. He took to

grazing sheep and cows. When Kaliyuva Mane was started, his parents

48

admitted him to the school. Initially when he joined Kaliyuva Mane, he was irregular. After a year or

so in 2007 he expressed his desire to join as a resident scholar. Gradually he started learning from

scratch. He was able to pass the coveted exam. Currently he is working as a painter.

49

Regular schools : Normally admission period is June-July.

Kaliyuva Mane : Admission is open throughout the year.

Rationale : A child may fall into difficult situations at any time. In case, an ‘OUT OF SYSTEM/SCHOOL’

child is enthusiastic to join during any time of the year, Kaliyuva Mane ensures that the enthusiasm is

immediately translated into enrolment.

Regular schools: 5 to 6 years (for primary schools, i.e. to start teaching alphabets & numbers)

Kaliyuva Mane : 5 to 14 years old children are preferred for admission irrespective of their academic

level. However, Kaliyuva Mane does consider elder children as well, if they show a keen interest in

learning.

Rationale : Kaliyuva Mane has given admission to 16 and 17 year old school dropouts. They not only

regained their enthusiasm for studies at Kaliyuva Mane but went on to learn from alphabets and

numbers, pass 10th

standard exams within 3-5years.

Regular schools: In Government schools, no entrance examinations are being conducted. In many

private schools, children and parents are being interviewed.

Kaliyuva Mane : An informal talk is held with the parents/guardians/children to know whether the

child really belongs to the category, ‘OUT OF SYSTEM/SCHOOL CHIILDREN’. This helps us to know

whether the child is mentally retarded / blind / deaf & dumb etc. OUT OF SYSTEM/SCHOOL

CHILDREN are prioritised for admission, along with first generation school goers from rural BPL

families.

Rationale : Currently Kaliyuva Mane does not have any expertise to educate blind/mentally retarded

/ deaf & dumb children etc.

Regular schools: Birth certificate or Transfer certificate compulsory.

Kaliyuva Mane : Transfer certificate/ Birth certificate is required for admission. In genuine cases

exemptions are made in this regard.

Rationale : In some cases parents/guardians are able to furnish these certificates. They are too

ignorant about this aspect. Kaliyuva Mane feels that children’s future is more important. So Kaliyuva

Mane has given admission to such children. At a later stage, school is getting affidavit from the

parents/ guardians about the date of birth of the child.

AGE AT THE TIME OF ADMISSION :

ADMISSION PERIOD

ENTRANCE TEST:

Documents required

COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF KALIYUVA MANE WITH MAINSTREAM SCHOOLS

50

Regular schools: In case of Government schools, the children need not pay any type of fees. In case

of most of the private schools, the children have to pay a fee, fixed by the school management.

Kaliyuva Mane : The school does not collect any fees from the children in any form. For resident

children, food, shelter, clothing, medical care, etc. are provided free of cost. For day scholars,

uniforms, note books and other requisite stationery are provided free of cost in addition to

education. Either free transport facility or bus pass facility has been provided to the day scholar.

Rationale : For want of money, no child should be deprived of education.

d

Regular schools: The child has to start attending classes immediately.

Kaliyuva Mane : A child need not attend classes immediately after joining the school. Enough time

is given for each child to feel emotionally comfortable. This may vary from a few days to a couple of

months depending on the nature and the background of the child. Thereafter, 1:1 mentoring and

tutoring is done till the child is suitable for any one team. Teachers use this time to study the child’s

attitude.

Rationale : An uncluttered mind is a pre-requisite for learning. Love, Care and Empathy are the

ingredients for an uncluttered mind. Happy minds learn faster. For child, some time is required to

find an emotional security at a new place. At Kaliyuva Mane an emotional environment conducive

for studies has been carefully cultivated. After a few days, when the child is emotionally comfortable,

one of our teachers will informally make an academic assessment of the child. Based on this

assessment, the curriculum for the child is fixed.

Regular schools: As 1st standard, 2nd standard, 3rd standard etc.

Kaliyuva Mane : For academic purposes, children have been divided into dynamic teams such as

Chilipili, Aravinda, Chiguru, Chinmayi, Poorna, Prajna, Mythri, Shradha etc. based on children’s age,

grasping ability, knowledge and other factors such as the comfort level of the children and teachers.

More new names are being created to avoid comparing teams with the standards in the main stream

schools.

Rationale : Consider the case of a twelve year old child with normal IQ/SQ:100, with at an academic

level of 3rd

standard. If this child is integrated with 7th standard children, child will be deprived of

learning. If integrated with 1st standard children, the child feels, humiliated. But such a child finds

space at Kaliyuva Mane.

TIME REQUIRED TO ATTEND THE CLASSES :

DIVISION OF CHILDREN :

FEES TO BE PAID BY THE CHILD :

51

Regular schools: Annually from a lower standard to a higher standard, irrespective of the progress

in learning.

Kaliyuva Mane : Movement of a child from one team to another team is highly individual-centric and

depends on the progress of the child.

Rationale : A child cannot be moved from a higher standard to a lower standard in mainstream

education system A child cannot be detained in the same class for more than a year. Such a step

badly affects the morale of the child. But movement of a child from one team to another, for

example, from ‘Chinmayi’ to ‘Chaitanya’ is easier. At Kaliyuva Mane, there are instances of children

opting, on their volition for team changes, when they cannot follow a particular subject. This is being

done after taking consent of the child. At Kaliyuva Mane, we have discovered that learning is not a

time-bound activity, but a process-based activity.

Regular schools: Uniform for all children of a particular standard.

Kaliyuva Mane : It is flexible at Kaliyuva Mane depending on the academic background of children

of the team. Sometimes sub teams are formed within a team.

Rationale : Children have varied emotional/educational backgrounds.

Regular schools: 30- 60 students / class

Kaliyuva Mane : In Kaliyuva Mane it is 1:1 to 1:15 for academic subjects.

Rationale : Teacher can pay individual attention. Sometimes it is even 1:1

Regular schools: Core subjects such as Science, Mathematics and Social Science are taught through

Kannada in ‘Kannada medium’ schools, and through English in ‘English medium’ schools.

Kaliyuva Mane : This is neither Kannada medium school or English medium school in a conventional

sense.The language component of core subjects (Mathematics, Science and Social Science) is taught

similar to teaching of English language. Initially all children are taught how to read and meanings of

difficult / new words are explained in Kannada. Children are also trained in spellings.

Rationale : If core subjects are taught only in English (as in conventional English medium schools),

rural children find it difficult to digest. If taught only in Kannada medium, children will be deprived

MOVEMENT FROM ONE STANDARD TO THE NEXT STANDARD

SYLLABUS :

NUMBER OF STUDENTS IN A CLASS

MEDIUM OF INSTRUCTION

52

of an important life-skill and numerous career opportunities in their future. However, all the

children of the school appear for the milestone 10th standard examination in English medium.

Regular schools: For assessment of the children’s progress, normally first term and annual

examinations are conducted.

Kaliyuva Mane : Only oral/written informal tests are conducted at regular intervals to quantify the

change that is underway. Marks scored in such tests are not being revealed to the young and hyper

sensitive children.

Rationale : Kaliyuva Mane feels that the purpose of examination is to evaluate the child’s progress, to

review the curriculum and the teaching methods, and English medium. They are appearing for this

coveted examination as private candidates through another recognized not just to brand the child as

‘passed’ or ‘failed’. This is easily achieved by conducting informal tests at regular intervals rather

than fear-instilling, memory- testing long-duration examinations at fixed intervals.

Regular schools: Children will appear for 10th standard public examinations conducted by the

KSEEB/CBSE/ICSE etc.

Kaliyuva Mane : Normally children aged above 15 years (Or after 3-5 years of joining Kaliyuva

Mane, depending on children’s academic backgrounds.) will appear for the 10th standard public

examinations conducted by KSEEB in school. Both regular and Kaliyuva Mane children answer the

same question papers. 10th

standard results have been so far excellent, considering the background

of the children.

Rationale : Kaliyuva Mane feels that the purpose of examination is to evaluate the child’s progress, to

review the curriculum and the teaching methods, and not just to brand the child as ‘passed’ or

‘failed’. This is easily achieved by conducting informal tests at regular intervals rather than fear-

instilling, memory- testing long-duration examinations.

EXAMINATIONS AT KALIYUVA MANE:

10TH STANDARD EXAMINATIONS & CERTIFICATION:

53

Regular schools: Teachers should compulsorily possess degrees such as D.Ed., B.Ed., etc.

Kaliyuva Mane: Kaliyuva Mane needs special teachers. So Kaliyuva mane prefers persons with

necessary knowledge, passion, skill and commitment to work as teachers. Training and learning for

teachers is an eternal process at Kaliyuva Mane.

Rationale : As per our experience, it is hard to find people with formal qualifications having

necessary Knowledge, passion, skill and commitment near our village .

By the time children pass out from Kaliyuva Mane, completing 10th

standard, children will be

exposed to following life skills: Dairy, cooking, Horticulture, Material organization, spoken English,

craft work, some electrical work, basic plumbing work, Cleaning work including toilet cleaning, first

aid, Banking, dispute settlement etc.

Kaliyuva Mane : Normally children aged above 15 years (Or after 3-5 Years of joining Kaliyuva

Mane, depending on children’s academic backgrounds) are appearing for the 10th

standard public

examinations conducted by KSEEB in English medium. They are appearing for this coveted

examination as private candidates through another recognized school. Both regular and Kaliyuva

Mane children answer the same question papers. 10th

standard results have been so far excellent,

considering the background of children. But Kaliyuva Mane children are deprived of 20% marks

reserved for internal assessment. Instead, children are answering additional question for 20% marks.

Children are getting marks card and transfer certificate from the school they appeared as private

candidates. They are able pursue higher studies.

Rationale: Kaliyuva Mane is yet to get formal recognition from the Government.

Regular schools : Government decides holiday structure.

Kaliyuva Mane : Kaliyuva Mane follows its own flexible holiday structure. National holidays are

being celebrated in a significant manner. If some important person dies, biography of that person

will be explained to the children and classes will go on as usual.

Rationale: Rural children have many reasons for not coming to school. For e.g. Mari Habba,

Chamundi habba, Konti habba, children take 3-4 days of holidays, whereas Government does not

declare holidays on these festivals. In case of death or marriage of any person in the village, Children

avail holidays. It is very necessary to compensate for this. Moreover they do not get any educational

support from their parents.

TEACHERS:

Skill training

Holidays for the school:

CERTIFICATION:

54

Regular schools: Normally have recognition from state board, ICSE or CBSE etc.

Kaliyuva Mane: Before starting Kaliyuva Mane, BEO in a written communication under the subject,

‘ Non- formal learning centre’ clarified that any sixteen year old child can appear for 10th

standard

public examination through another recognized school. In 2005, Kaliyuva Mane was started with 14

children. In 2012, RTE came into force in Karnataka. Immediately proposal was sent to DDPI, seeking

recognition as ‘Educational Research Organization’ / ‘ Special category school’/’Innovative school’/

‘Alternative school’. In January 2014, The Director, Department of State Educational And Training

advised us to apply to the Commissioner of Department of Public Instructions though DDPI. Again a

fresh application was submitted to DDPI. In June 2014. DDPI forwarded our proposal to the

commissioner for granting recognition. On 26-02-2015, Hon’ble Education Minister of Karnataka has

written to the commissioner to take necessary steps for granting recognition to Kaliyuva Mane.

Rationale: As per RTE Act ‘ School’ implies, a school recognized by the Government.

The goal is to transform the lives of underprivileged children of the rural community. Children who

fail to reach the desired educational standards due to illiteracy, ignorance and poverty of parents,

children with turbulent childhoods, children battered by family with uncivilized background, first

generation school-goers and school dropouts are prioritized for admission into this ‘Home for

Learning’. Brief profiles of all the children are available on our website. Most of the day scholars

belong to nearby villages such as Kenchalagudu, Salhundi, Dhanagahalli, Gujjegowdanapura,

Arasinakere, Shivapura, Mahadevapura, Srirampura etc. Few children from urban middle class

families are also studying in this school which has brought an inclusive nature to the school. We are

nearing our optimum intake of 120 children. Resident scholars belong to distant places. Children

with very difficult family backgrounds are admitted as resident scholars and the rest as day scholars.

All children stay as resident scholars, during their preparation for the milestone X Standard exams,

i.e. 2 or 3 years prior to their exams. Kaliyuva Mane has been recognized by “Department of Women

and child welfare, Karnataka Government” as a child care centre.

At the time of admission of a new child, parents/guardians are being briefed about the functioning

of Kaliyuva Mane. School rules and regulations are being explained to them thoroughly. They are

being invited to all the functions of the school. But the response from them is not encouraging. But

it is heartening to note that their participation is improving.

TARGET CHILDREN & OUTREACH:

INVOLVEMENT OF PARENTS/GUARDIANS:

Recognition for the school :

SPECIAL FEATURES OF KALIYUVA MANE

55

Recently, in the case of school dropouts or children going to school and not reaching the grades, we

are getting a certificate from a clinical psychologist about children’s academic levels and guidance

regarding that particular child’s education.

Kaliyuva Mane includes the individual experiences of children, text books from the State and Central

Boards of Education and interactions with the outside world through volunteers, NGOs and the

community, as a part of the curriculum. As far as possible, learning is through exploration and

activities. ‘Known to Unknown’ principle is followed in fixing the curriculum.

Example : How Mathematics is taught for an ‘OUT OF SYSTEM/SCHOOL CHILDREN’

Initially basics covering the following topics are taught with practical examples : Numbers and

counting – Addition, Subtraction, Multiplication and Division – Multiplication tables up to 10 -

Concept of Fraction and Decimals – Concept of LCM and HCF – Percentage - Geometric shapes,

construction – Concept of areas and volumes – Concept of algebra – Basics of algebraic addition,

subtraction, multiplication and division.

Afterwards the teacher will start with the 10th

standard text book. For example, Set theory and

Matrices do not need much prerequisite. Children’s morale also gets a boost when they are taught

10th standard curriculum. If a child finds it difficult to follow some particular topic, then lower

standard text books containing that particular topic are referred and taught.

This way normally at Kaliyuva Mane a child learns basics of mathematics needed for life and the skills

for passing the 10th

grade Mathematics within a span of 3 to 5 years.

Rationale :

As per the ASER report - 2014, the academic level of 5th standard rural students in Karnataka state

is as below :

Children who can read second standard Kannada text book : 43.0%

Children who can perform two digit subtraction with borrowing : 27.80%

Children who can perform division of three digit number by a single digit : 23.9%

Now Karnataka State Board has revised the text books with an intention of raising its educational

standards and to bring it on par with CBSE schools. In mainstream rural schools, the teacher who is

teaching 5th

standard children has to follow 5th

standard text books, immaterial of whether the

children follow or not. But unfortunately, teacher finds it almost impossible to teach the same topic

to a heterogeneous group of 30 children within a stipulated time period of 40-45 minutes.

Controlling the children becomes his top priority.

The child is always comfortable to learn in its mother tongue. But in rural areas pronunciation of the

mother tongue (Kannada) is not up to the mark. This has a cascading effect on the reading and

writing skills of the child. So at Kaliyuva Mane, child’s Kannada pronunciation skills are being honed.

GUIDELINES FOR DIFFICULT CHILDREN:

CURRICULUM & METHODOLOGY:

LANGUAGE EDUCATION:

56

Normally, it takes 5-6 years to do this, as this involves a lot of unlearning process.

All children are exposed to listening English. They are encouraged to interact with two foreign

volunteers who stay at the campus and the visitors. Many volunteers from engineering colleges,

medical colleges and business schools interact with children. Resident children watch cricket

matches on TV. So, overall there is a sincere effort to teach English. So, children’s English level is

much better than regular free rural schools, but not on par with some reputed English medium

school children.

The school firmly believes that in order to succeed, one should have a certain degree of freedom to

fail and learn. No place is forbidden for children in Kaliyuva Mane, including the kitchen & the office.

Children are allowed to discover, explore and expand their knowledge through various learning

experiences. When children accidentally commit mistakes / break materials, they are not

admonished if they accept mistakes. All the staff members are being trained in this regard.

Learning is not restricted to class hours. Children enjoy contextual learning during off-school hours

too. For example, whenever a rainbow is seen, the children will learn the mystery behind it, i.e.

about the dispersion of light. Similarly standing in front of the rising sun, it is easier for children to

grasp the concept of directions.

The entire Kaliyuva Mane campus is a

practical laboratory for environmental

studies and this includes a good waste

disposal system. Kaliyuva Mane is a Solar

School. Children become subconsciously

eco-sensitive. The functioning and the

importance of all eco-friendly projects are

being taught to the senior kids. Children

are exposed to following environment

related projects:

Solar LED campus lighting

Solar smart classes

Solar projector

Solar inverter for kitchen

Rain water harvesting

Bore well recharging

Dairy and Gobar gas plant

Organic farming

Biomass boiler

Eco sanitation

FREEDOM TO FAIL & LEARN :

CONTEXTUAL LEARNING:

ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION:

57

Astra stove

Recycled handmade greeting cards made from tailoring waste and cardboard wastes.

Solar lights

Solar cooker

Solar pump [for pumping water from sump to OH tank]

Use of eco-chip boards (Pressed boards made from plastic wastes)

Use of asbestos-free roof sheets

Waste disposal system

Children subconsciously learn many things in life from the surroundings. Children measure the angle

between the fixed wall and the library door because the floor is painted with a picture of a compass.

The length and breadth of the blackboard at our science lab ‘Sadhana’ are marked, so that children

can easily grasp the meaning of area. Children calculate the volume of water in water tanks, as they

find the formula on the outer surface of the tank.

Children learn map reading by looking at the map

kept in front of Aravinda (multipurpose hall) and

Chilipili (dormitory) blocks. The school has a

question box to quench the knowledge thirst of

children. Children find out their height standing

near ‘Spandana,’ our office. Thought process of

transforming the entire campus into a learning area

is going on.

The “Kids Bank” is an innovative concept

developed at Kaliyuva Mane to help children

understand the benefits and limitations of money.

This also aids in enhancing children’s arithmetical

skills, work culture, and in preparing them for the

real world. At present this is functioning as a small

kiosk. This bank works like any other typical bank

but has a material section apart from cash section.

CAMPUS AS A LEARNING TOOL:

KIDS’ BANK:

58

Bank contains all the materials needed by children

such as toiletries, sweetmeats and stationery. The

school has printed special currency notes similar

to real currency.

Children are given a personalised cheque book, a

pass book, a cash box and an account book. Every

month a cheque for a certain amount depending

on the needs of the children is given. Children

deposit this ‘cheque’ by writing a challan.

Whenever necessary, children are required to

write a personal cheque and submit it to the bank

before buying any material, depending on their needs. Children also earn by working for a

maximum of two hours or by helping others. They mainly work in dairy, kitchen, office, dormitory or

farm. Each student functions as ‘Bank Manager’ on rotational basis. Teachers assist children in

running the bank. Every week a reading/writing session is held where those who read/write

properly get a special gift cheque. There is no timeframe. There is no 1st prize or 2nd prize. Gift

cheque is given to the child when a child displays positive values (by reflex and not with the intention

of getting the gift cheque) such as helping others, accepting mistakes, etc

For learning an uncluttered mind is necessary. Love & Care are essential ingredients for an

uncluttered mind. Little freedom to explore things, freedom to fail and learn - are very necessary for

the overall development of a child. But uncontrolled freedom may be detrimental to the growth of

a child. Such a child may become an anti-social element later. According to psychologists, Love and

Control are both necessary for the healthy growth of a child.

Keeping these factors in mind, ‘Parivarthane’ [Transformation] a kids' court was conceived. This was

recently inaugurated by Smt. Mudagal, Principal Justice, Mysore District court. She inaugurated the

court meaningfully by settling the dispute among two children.

KIDS’ COURT & METHODS OF TRANSFORMATION :

59

Special features of Kids’ Court :

1. This special place has been constructed by children and volunteers of Kaliyuva Mane. This

may not look beautiful, but it is the product of enthusiasm and hard labour. So it is priceless.

2. Children do quarrel. It is natural. Their disputes will be settled in this mock court. A water

proof petition box made from eco-chip board has been placed in the court. Those who seek justice

can drop the petition in this box. For the time being, teachers play the role of the judge. Gradually

children will be trained to take this role. Judge will hear views of both the parties, collect relevant

information from the witnesses and deliver the verdict. Following transformation modes are

planned:

(i) The guilty has to pay a fine in the form of a ‘fine cheque’ to the Kids Bank which is functioning

since 6 years.

(ii) The child has to take part in any physical work of the school based on its age and physical

stamina for not more than two hours per day. [Gardening, cleaning, cutting vegetables, etc.]

(iii) The guilty child will be made to sit alone in the court contemplating, skipping game sessions.

(3) Children can file a public interest litigation regarding school rules and regulations

(4) A confession box is also kept for sensitive children who would like to confess their mistakes

and feel light hearted.

Celebration of many festivals like

Deepavali, Ganesha, Christmas and

Holi have not only kept children

happy but also broadened their

views about religion. National

festivals like Independence Day and

Republic day develop the national

spirit in them. Karnataka Rajyotsava

day is also being celebrated in a

significant way. One cultural event

per month is a norm at Kaliyuva

CELEBRATIONS & FESTIVALS

60

Mane. All aspects of these functions, from the invocation to the vote of thanks, are executed by the

children themselves, even if the performance is below par. Teachers seldom come on stage, but

derive a joy from empowering the children.

Things such as a lump of clay, a heap of sand and a piece of drawing paper trigger creativity in

children. This is an important component of personality development at Kaliyuva Mane. For

Ganesha festivals, children make eco-friendly clay Ganesha and the same is being worshipped.

All children below 12 years old are getting around 60 days of holidays per year apart from

Sundays. If children are lagging behind in their studies, holidays will be suitably curtailed for

the children above 12 years old. Resident children will be allowed to go home whenever

there are important occasions at their home. Resident children will call their

parents/guardians often. This helps to keep the bonding between them intact.

School will not be closed for festivals like Mahaveera Jayanthi, Ambedkar Jayanthi, Kanaka

Jayanthi, Budha Jayanthi, Valmiki Jayanti, Basava Jayanthi etc. Instead school will remain

open and a movie/PPT will be screened regarding these great personalities. The school

remains closed on the occasion of many local village festivals like Kunti habba, Mari habba,

Jatras, etc. The school will function as usual if a leader like a minister dies. Teachers will

narrate to children, the biography of the departed person and his/her contribution to the

society.

The transformation the

school has brought in

children’s lives, the

transparency in running the

organisation and the success

stories of the experiments

carried out here are

attracting people from

different walks of life. It

wouldn't be an exaggeration

to say that volunteering for

an NGO has found a new

dimension at Kaliyuva Mane.

When there is a general

feeling that today’s youth lack

direction and motivation, it is really heartening to note that this remote school has been able to

attract hundreds of young volunteers since 2006. They have remained an integral part of the school

since then. This volunteers’ group consists of senior people, working engineers, students from

engineering colleges, medical colleges and business schools. During their free time, they help in

HOLIDAYS :

VOLUNTEERS – BACKBONE OF THE SCHOOL :

61

linking donors, teaching, building an emotional rapport with the kids, helping in administration,

designing and maintaining our website and such other services. They have given dreams to the

children of our school. They have brought out ‘T’ shirts with inspirational quotes and set up stalls at

various corporate companies to sell them and give the proceeds to the school to empower children.

They have added value to the emotional ambience of Kaliyuva Mane.

One more innovative project they have undertaken is ‘Paper Empowerment’. Week after week, they

visit homes, collect old newspapers, sell them off, and donate the proceedings to empower the kids.

This has enhanced the visibility and web presence of this remote rural school.

Since 2009, Kaliyuva Mane has been hosting foreign volunteers. Two resident German volunteers

every year stay as members of the school family and as a part of the Inter Cultural Dialogue Exchange

programme. Volunteers from USA, UK, Sweden, Finland, Tanzania and Taiwan have worked in the

school. This activity has given a broader perspective to the children of this school.

62

The home-cum-school is located

on the outskirts of Mysore city

off Manandavadi Road, around

15 kilometres from the heart of

the city. It is located in a vast

expanse of land, a plot of almost

3 acres. The school is in a rustic

area, away from the hustle and

bustle of the city, which

stimulates the children to think

freely and in tune with nature.

More than 300 trees of different

species like coconut, teak, and

silver oak sway and keep the land green, clean and cool. The land is completely fenced with barbed

wire. The school, which has adopted a very practical approach to education, is surrounded by a

cluster of villages and is located just half a kilometre from Kenchalagudu village. Most of the

inhabitants here belong to the socially, educationally and economically backward strata of society.

However due to the recent real estate boom, some RCC houses have also sprung up.

We cannot create another earth, but can save

the existing one. Facilities are innovatively

created so that the children subconsciously

develop eco-consciousness. Special spaces and

niches have been created so that children can

jump, peep and hide. Almost all buildings have

solar lights. Ramps have been constructed to

facilitate the movement of the disabled.

Following facilities have been created to develop

a learner friendly atmosphere.

Swagatha: Reception-cum-handicraft unit

where a rural disabled youth make handmade

recycled artistic greeting cards using old paper

and tailoring waste. They also make bamboo

rain tubes which produce a soothing sound of

flowing water. These products are given as

compliments to donors/volunteers/guests of

honour. They are being sold to generate some

income. Book binding is also done here.

KALIYUVA MANE CAMPUS

INFRASTRUCTURE :

FACILITIES AT KALIYUVA MANE:

63

Aravinda - 30’x50’ multi-purpose hall with UPS facility, TV, sound system and a ceiling mounted

multimedia projector. The unique painting on it by American volunteers is very attractive and blends

well with the concept of the school. This hall is used for Yoga, Prayer and all functions. This has

many in-built cupboards and is being used to store school materials. Window frames are made from

RCC instead of the usual wood. Asbestos-free roof sheets are used.

Spandana : Office

Chilipili : Separate boys & girls

dormitories with bunker cots

Kitchen & Dining space – Equipped

with Astra stove and bio gas stove

for cooking

Ganaka - Solar supported computer

laboratory

Sadhana - Science laboratory

Viveka - Library

Innovative learning areas : Vahini, Atheetha, Praphulla, Prajna

Conventional classrooms : 2 nos.

Playground : More than half an acre

Mini school bus: for bringing children from neighbouring areas & a school van for other

purposes.

Own water source: Bore-well

3 phase, 15 KVA Diesel generator

50,000 litres capacity water sump

RO drinking water system

Play area : a slide, a swing and a sand pool – for children

Residence for the founder

Volunteers’ Block : Residence of volunteers & staff members.

Enough number of bathrooms & toilets

64

65

1) Why Kaliyuva Mane is called an alternative school?

Regular education system expects all children to learn a predetermined textual content within a

stipulated period, in a certain way and at a predetermined pace. As long as children learn happily

this way, there is no problem. When this does not happen, problems crop up. When a child cannot

learn, she/he loses interest in the class, starts indulging in cross-talking. This disturbs the teacher’s

concentration. An agitated teacher fails to do justice to her/his profession. Lacking in prerequisites,

the child fails to understand subsequent lessons. This has a cascading effect. Such a child either

drops out of the school or remains in the school out of compulsions. Teachers are also pressurized to

promote such children to the next higher standards, irrespective of the children’s success in learning.

This practice, which is in vogue, has deprived such children of learning. But at Kaliyuva Mane, the

nucleus of the school is the child. We are ready to bend any rule so that each child evolves happily.

Because Kaliyuva Mane works on the alternative principle, i.e. ‘School for the CHILDREN’ rather than

‘CHILDREN for school’, it is called an alternative school.

2) Do you collect any fees from the children/parents/guardians?

The school does not collect any fees from the children, in any form. For resident children, food,

shelter, clothing and healthcare are provided free of cost. For day-scholars, uniforms, note books

and other requisite stationery are provided free of cost in addition to education. Most of the

parents/guardians are economically backward and uneducated.

3) Where is it located?

It is located at Kenchalagudu village, half a kilometer off Manandavadi High Way, near Salhundi,

Jayapura hobli, Mysore taluk. (15 km. from Mysore City Railway station).

4) How did you conceive the idea of ‘Kaliyuva Mane”?

The vision of this project evolved from the philosophy of Sri Aurobindo and Swami Vivekananda and

their ideals related to the concepts of education, human development and patriotism. Personal

experiences of the founding member and his association with Sri Aurobindo Ashram of Pondicherry

and Vivekananda Kendra of Kanyakumari helped to shape the educational thought of this school for

children, thus beginning the journey in education and self-exploration. This idea took shape in a

Government school through interactions with the children of Srirampura village, Mysore for a period

of over 12 years. The struggles of the children coming from difficult family backgrounds, the

difficulties of first generation school goers and personal interest took shape in the form of the

Kaliyuva mane. Hence this school is child-centric, innovative, eco-conscious and aims at social and

national development.

5) How did you start ‘Kaliyuva Mane”?

Settling in a village, the founder of Divyadeepa initiated free supporting classes for the benefit of

rural school-going children in 1992. This activity went on till 2004. The first public contribution came

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS: (FAQ)

66

in 1999 and the trust was registered. During this period, the founder observed that due to various

factors such as poverty & ignorance of the parents, poor infrastructure at rural schools, poor

student-to-teacher ratio, rote teaching methods, and many rural children either drop out from the

school or fail to reach the grade. This experience also taught him that there exists a sizable percent

of rural children who are mentally normal but find mainstream rural schools inadequate. The

struggles of the children coming from difficult domestic and social backgrounds and the difficulties of

first-generation school-goers inspired him to conceptualize an alternative school, ‘Kaliyuva Mane’

based on the philosophy, ‘School for Children’, rather than ‘Children for School’. So the school was

started in Kenchalagudu village in 2005.

6) How do you get funds for this school?

Initial financial help to purchase the land was provided to the founder by his ex-employer, Sri Lalit

Mohanlal Shah who is a devotee of Sri Aurobindo whose ashram is at Pondicherry. Later on, Sri

Shah founded The Grace & Gratitude Trust, a funding organization. The Grace and Gratitude Trust

has funded 60% of the infrastructure. [See Annexure]

Kaliyuva Mane solely depends on corporate, funding agencies, philanthropic individuals & volunteers

and God’s Grace for regular maintenance and running costs. But it is a big challenge.

7) In what way the Government is supporting ‘Kaliyuva Mane’?

The Government is not supporting Kaliyuva Mane in any way.

8) Have parents of the children accepted this school?

Yes. Parents/guardians are aware that Kaliyuva Mane lacks recognition from the Government. It is

mentioned in the school application form itself.

9) How do you get manpower for this school?

It is one of the big challenges Kaliyuva Mane is facing. People with knowledge, skill, and willingness

to learn innovative practices are hard to find. So, from 2012, Kaliyuva Mane has started its own on-

the-job teacher empowerment programme. .

10) When was Kaliyuva Mane started? How it has grown?

Kaliyuva Mane was started in 2005 with 14 children including 4 resident scholars, literally in a

thatched roof structure. Currently, 114 children are happily evolving here including 36 resident

scholars. We have reached the optimum number.

11) Is there any uniform for the children in this school?

On four days in a week, children wear uniform. On their birthday, children are exempted from

wearing it.

12) Is it a coeducational school?

Yes.

67

It is one of the big challenges Kaliyuva Mane is facing. People with knowledge, skill, and willingness

to learn innovative practices are hard to find in villages. If we had right type of human resource, the

impact of Kaliyuva Mane on children would have been double. This is a serious national issue too!

In villages, this problem is more serious. Most of the urban elite children pursue lucrative courses

like engineering, medicine and business management. The salary package does not attract them to

choose teaching as a career. Most of the rural children who have studied in Kannada medium in

high school continue to study PUC (higher secondary) also in Kannada medium taking ‘History,

Sociology and Economics’ as electives. Then they study D.Ed. Many will pursue B.A. and M.A.

degrees also in Kannada medium. Generally this does not equip them to teach English, Hindi,

Mathematics, Science and Social Science even for 5th standard children. This has created a scarcity

of competent teachers to teach English, Mathematics, Social Science and Science in rural areas. Very

few teachers realise that teaching is a time-based activity, whereas learning is a process-based

activity. So it is a challenge to discover service minded persons with requisite knowledge and

competency to transmit knowledge in rural areas.

The summary of the findings of the Karnataka Jnana Aayoga, a high powered commission constituted

in September 2008 by then chief minister of Karnataka under the chairmanship of renowned space

scientist Dr K. Kasturirangan about D.Ed. colleges is given below:

“The colleges where the study was undertaken had adequate infrastructure; 65% of students opted

this course were females; 47% belonged to OBC category; 26% belonged to SC category; 71.4%

belonged to low income group with an annual income of Rs.6000-Rs.12000; most of the students

belonged to social science stream. Majority of the teachers were males (63%), average age was 37

years and very few (15%) had teaching experience in primary schools. They had attended an average

of 2.5 training programmes in their entire career and showed poor readiness to implement reforms in

school education. In all the colleges lectures were dominant with more stress on written work. It was

a common feeling that curriculum was too heavy. Most of the educators felt that the time available

for content enrichment was very less”. Details are available at the following link:

http://jnanaayoga.in/index.php/resources/research-studies

More than 100 aspirants from rural areas took the teachers’ entrance exam during 2012-15.

Unfortunately none had the competency to clear the test. These candidates are not to be blamed!

These are also victims of the system! But none of them was ready to undergo training after doing

D.Ed, B.Ed. etc. But one girl accepted in 2012 and joined. But after three years of on-the-job training

at Kaliyuva Mane, she is emerging as one of the promising teachers of Kaliyuva Mane. Now slowly

more candidates are joining the course. By starting special teachers’ training college, we would like

to address this national issue also. Answer sheet of one of the aspirant is attached.

OUR CHALLENGES

ADDRESSING THIS NATIONAL ISSUE :

TEACHERS:

68

69

70

71

72

73

74

75

76

77

78

79

80

81

82

83

84

85

86

87

{Recently a team of headmasters from 6 Government schools of Tamil Nadu visited Kaliyuva to study.

Their report is published below]

___________________________________________________________________________

INDIAN COUNCIL FOR CHILD WELFARE, TAMILNADU

Project - Right to Education, Kadambathur Block, Thiruvallur Dist.

Activity:

Study trip to Kaliyuva Mane (an Alternate school run by NGO – Divya Deepa Charitable Trust located

in Mysore)

Date: 4/9/2014 to 6/9/2014

Objective:

� Visit to Kaliyuva Mane school and learn their activities and implement in selected school

Process:

During the monthly meeting with Right to Education funding partners, Caterpillar and United way of

Chennai suggested the Council to plan for the visit to “Kaliyuva Mane the alternative school run by

Divya Deepa Charitable trust located in Mysore”. After meeting

the project officer gave the letter to AEO on 6/08/2014 and asked

her to give permission to the selected school Head Masters for the

visit. The AEO advised the officer to get the permission from

DEEO. Finally the letter was given to the DEEO on 12/8/2014. The

project officer and field officer kept visiting the DEEO office and

finally got permission on 27/8/2014. Project officer got a copy of

the permission letter from DEEO and along with the request letter the permission letter was given to

the AEO. Finally she gave the permission for the visit. Then the order letter was given to the selected

school Head Masters.

On 30/08/2014 train tickets was booked for the Mysore visit. Cab was arranged for the teachers from

S.No Name Sex Age Institution

1 Ms. Vimi Rony Female 47 Years ICCW-TN

2 Ms. Norlen Anton Female 25 Years ICCW-TN

3 Ms. M. Ammu Female 27 Years ICCW-TN

4 Mr. Thejasvi Male 34 Years Caterpillar

5 Mr. T. Kadhirvelu Male 47 Years Kannima Nagar Panchayat Union

Primary School

6 Mr. M. Nagalingam Male 42 Years Venmanamputhur Panchayat

Union Middle School

7 Ms. R. Selvi Female 48 Years Kadambathur North Panchayat

Union Middle School

8 Ms. C. Malathi Female 44 Years Adhigaithur Panchayat Union

Middle School

9 Ms. T.M. Dhakshayini Female 48 Years MGR Nagar Panchayat Union

Primary School

10 Ms. K. Komala Female 47 Years Adhigaithur Kandigai Panchayat

Union Primary School

IMPACT OF KALIYUVA MANE ON GOVT. SCHOOL TEACHERS

88

Kadambathur to Chennai Central on 4/9/2014 the same day at 6.00 am we left from Chennai central

to Mysore. At 1.15 pm we reached Mysore railway station. From the railway station we took cab and

reached Kaliyuva Mane.

Kaliyuva mane:

The Founder of the School Mr Ananthu, gave an elaborate

orientation of the school and its activities and

also took us round the campus. He explained

the various methods used for teaching.

Kaliyuva Mane (“home for Learning”) is a child

care institution registered with the Department of Women and

Child Development, Government of Karnataka. Currently 36

opportunity deprived children are being provided with

accommodation, nutritious food, health care, free cost in an

atmosphere of love and empathy.

Naturals and human resources are two vital ingredients in building

a nation. Education is the key to build human resources and is the

passport to accelerated economic growth of a nation. So

Divyadeepa, initiated its services in a village conducting

supplementary classes for the benefits of rural children since 1992.

Kaliyuva Mane, was started in June 2005. Children with different

educational needs such as rural-school dropouts, first-generation

school-goers, children going to regular school but failing to reach

the grades, children from broken families are beneficiaries here.

Alternative Education System:

From the perspective of children’s receptivity, Kaliyuva Mane

functions on the philosophy, ‘school for

children; rather than ‘children for school;

even a 12 years old child with IQ/SQ:100,

but at an academic level of class III, finds

space at Kaliyuva Mane.

Some of the special features of Kaliyuva Mane are listed below:

� Children are being divided into dynamic teams such as Chilipili,

Chiiguru, Mythri, etc. This depends on several factors such as

age, child’s flair, academic need and child’s pace of learning.

(unlike as rigid standards in conventional school)

� After joining the school, enough time to given for the child to

feel at home. Then, child’s academic level is being assessed

informally & formally and the curriculum fixed according to the

need of the child. Afterwards, the child is being put into an

appropriate team.

� Movement of children from one team to another is highly

individualistic and can happen at any time of the year

depending on the progress of that particular child.

� Simple and informal tests are being conducted to assess the child, to review the curriculum

and to evolve new methods of teaching.

� This is neither a Kannada medium school nor an English

medium school in a conventional sense. This is a bilingual

school.

89

� Infrastructure includes innovative learning areas, a computer laboratory, a science

laboratory, a multipurpose hall, a library, a playground, etc.

� Children’s disputes are settled in a kids’ court.

� Unique kids’ Bank teaches them money management.

Process and impact:

� Kaliyuva Mane, which was started in 2005 with 14 children, is

reaching out to 114 children today.

� Children are taking 10th

standard public examination as

private candidates in English medium. The results are

remarkable considering their backgrounds. Children are

continuing their higher studies or getting employed.

� The eco-conscious school received the special jury award

instituted by Wonderla Amusement Park for conserving

Energy & Environment in 2013.

Eco friendly environment is well appreciable like rain water

harvesting, Eco toilet, solar light and pump, gobar gas plant,

bio mass boiler & Astra cooking stove.

Feed back of the Visit:

� The concept was very good “ school for children”

� Good to see the children with warm and friendly nature. We

could not see any child fighting with each other. They were

enjoying their daily work.

� Mathematics and Science laboratories are very good

� Personal hygiene and environmental hygiene was well maintained

� 10th

standard morning class was very nice (6.00 am to 8.00 am)

� Even small children was able to talk in English. This was very amazing.

� Kids bank and child court was a new concept and it was very nice

� The school not only giving knowledge based

education to the children and also giving them self

confident and self support.

� Good to see that each and every child wishing each

other as well as the visitors with their traditional way.

� Children do not feel that their teachers are teachers.

They felt teachers are their friends. And they calling

them brother and sister.

� As head masters point of view they suggested to

select the teachers with qualified in teacher training it

could be good for the children.

� The residential home for children was very nice

� The material used for the windows and cupboard it was made by paper and low quality

plastic, it was eventually showing the eco friendly environment of the school.

Conclusion: This trip had lots of difficulties like getting the permission from Government

officers. But for the continuous effort the trip was successfully organized. This was an

unforgettable experience. All the teachers informed that whatever they learned in Kaliyuva

Mane they will try to implement in their school also. This trip made them have a positive

attitude towards implementing a child friendly school.

90

Sl.

No

.

Name Designati

on

Date of

visit

Guest book Remarks of the

dignitaries

Occasion of the

visit

1 Dr. APJ Abdul

Kalam

Former

President

of India

24-08-2008 “Greetings, Knowledge

makes you Great”

Divyadeepa kids

and volunteers met

APJ Abdul Kalam,

India’s former

president at Lalit

Mahal Palace,

Mysore

2 Nagendra Kumar DDPI 12-01-2011 The school premises were

very pleasant.

As guest of honour

on the occasion of

Vivekananda

Jayanthi

3 N.R. Narayana

Murthy

Founder,

Infosys

16-01-2011 I am so happy to see the

wonderful work being done

by Mr. Ananth and team to

empower the ‘forgotten

India’ More power to you!

Best wishes!

He spent around

90 minutes at

Kaliyuva Mane.

4 R. Ramaradhya BEO

(Rural)

29-12-2012 GvÀÛªÀÄ PÀ°PÁ ªÁvÁªÀgÀt«zÉ. ªÀAiÉÆêÀiÁ£À«®èzÉ PÉêÀ® PÀ°PÁ £ÀÆå£ÀvÉ DzsÀj¹ PÀ°¸ÀĪÀ E°è£À «zsÁ£ÀªÉà ¤dPÀÆÌ «±ÉõÀvɬÄAzÀ PÀÆrzÉ.

After our

application for

registration was

sent.

5 Ms. T.K. S.

Lakshmi

Member,

National

Curriculu

m

Framewor

k 2005

15-06-2013 Well done. Keep it up! She spent half a

day at Kaliyuva

Mane and

interacted with the

teachers.

6 Mr. P.N. Srinath Chairman,

Text book

Committe

e

(English)

27-02-2014 Had the privilege of visiting

the institution founded on

lofty ideals, run meticulously

and catering to deprived

section. It deserves all aid

and help from the

Government & other

agencies. A model where

the ideals spelt out in

National Curriculum

Framework are being

realized

Senior faculty of a

reputed school

accompanied him.

7 M.V. Jayaram District

Child

Protectio

n Officer,

Mysore

Govt. of

06-03-2014 PÀ°AiÀÄĪÀ ªÀģɔ ÀA ÉÜUÉ sÉÃn ¤ÃrgÀÄvÉÛãÉ. PÀ°PɬÄAzÀ ªÀAavÀ ªÀÄPÀ̼ÀÄ ºÁUÀÆ «±ÉõÀ ªÀÄPÀ̽UÉ «zÁå sÁå À MzÀV ÀĪÀÅzÀÄ GvÀÛªÀĪÁzÀ zsÉåÃAiÀĪÁVzÉ. ÀA ÉÜ E£ÀÆß ºÉaÑ£À ¥ÀæUÀw ¸Á¢ü À°

REMARKS OF THE EDUCATIONISTS & DIGNITARIES

91

Karnataka JAzÀÄ ºÁgÉÊ ÀÄvÉÛãÉ.

8 Swami

Nithyasthanandaji

President,

Sri

Ramakris

hna

Ashrama

26-11-2007 In “Kaliyuva Mane”, the real

home atmosphere is built

up. Swami Vivekananda’s

teachings are brought to

practice in this noble

venture.

In connection with

the inauguration of

Kids’bank and

Kids’ court.

9 G.S. Jayadev Founder,

Deenaban

dhu Trust

22-07-2012

Kaliyuva Mane is a Kaliyuva

Mane (Home for learning)

for the visitors also. There is

more to take from here than

to give

92

DDPI has forwarded our proposal seeking recognition for ‘Kaliyuva Mane’ to The

Commissioner, Department of Public Instruction, Bangalore, recommending recognition as a

‘Special school’. Hon’ble Education Minister has also instructed the Commissioner,

Department of Public Instruction to take action to grant recognition to Kaliyuva Mane. Now-

a-days, even middle class people are coming to Kaliyuva Mane seeking admission to their

wards. There is a need for schools like ‘Kaliyuva Mane’. Kaliyuva Mane is also evolving as a

practical research centre.

Divyadeepa needs funds for strengthening the internal processes, to open an office in city

area where 24 hours of power supply and broadband connection is available. This will

attract talented manpower for administrative work.

We have understood the need for quality teachers. Technology cannot be a substitute for

good teachers. Human touch is needed. We have noticed that the biggest reason for this

educational impasse is non-availability of persons with requisite knowledge, passion and skill

to work as TEACHERS. At Kaliyuva Mane, on-the-job teachers’ training is quite successful. If

funds are available, Divya Deepa charitable Trust would like to start a SPECIAL TEACHERS’

TRAINING COLLEGE at the premises of Kaliyuva Mane itself. As all medical colleges are

attached to hospitals, our SPECIAL TEACHERS’ TRAINING COLLEGE will be attached to

Kaliyuva Mane. This will immensely benefit children and teachers. Our Teachers’ Training

College will produce quality teachers, which will help other organizations to start more

schools like, ‘Kaliyuva Mane’ for ‘OUT OF SYSTEM/SCHOOL CHILDREN’. The broad

curriculum framework for the SPECIAL TEACHERS’ TRAINING COURSE WILL BE:

� Revision of academic subjects up to 10th

standard

� Improving the Kannada pronunciation of teachers - Inculcating in them

reading habits

� Child psychology - Interactions with children and clinical psychologists apart

from the books

� Material organisation skills

� Newspaper reading and TV viewing – Inculcating in them a quest for general

knowledge

� Mental faculty training – through Board games like Chess, Brain teasers and

quiz programmes

� Sense of time

� Hygiene training skills

� First Aid

� Child care

� Computer skills

OUR SOLUTION TO THIS EDUCATIONAL IMPASSE:

93

� Physical education including Yoga

� Educational games

� English – Listening, Understanding, speaking, reading and writing

� Arts and crafts

� Soft skills

� Activity-based teaching

� Office administration

� Attitude building – training in perfection

� Work culture

94

Sl.

No

.

Name of the

media

Date Title of the

article

/program

Link

1 Times of India 14-11-2006 Deprived kids

find a future

at ‘Kaliyuva

Mane’

28 – 03- 2013 Volunteers

make a

splash at

kaliyuva

mane

https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/1070384309364

92856909/albums/5917787144284534465

07-05-2013 This kaliyuva

mane

changed

their lives

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/topic/%22This-

Kaliyuva-Mane-Changed-Their-Lives%22

30-08-2013 Kaliyuva

mane

students to

get free bus

facility

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mysore/Stude

nts-of-Kaliyuva-Mane-get-bus-

facility/articleshow/22146638.cms

2 The Hindu 11-05-2010 Success

against all

odds

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-

national/tp-karnataka/success-against-all-

odds/article765021.ece

18-05-2012 They stand

out as an

example

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/a

rticle3429720.ece

12-12-2012 Right place to

learn the

right things

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-

features/tp-districtplus/the-right-place-to-learn-the-

right-things/article4176201.ece

3 Indian Express 13-05-2014 Braving all

odds, they

excel exams

http://www.newindianexpress.com/states/karnataka/

Braving-All-Odds-They-Excel-

Exams/2014/05/13/article2222221.ece

3 The Deccan

Herald

04-05-2007 Mysooru

Unplugged-

Transforming

lives

http://www.divyadeepatrust.org/docs/Deccan%20Her

ald-4-05-2007.jpg

RESPONSE FROM THE MEDIA

95

09-12-2007 A home for

learning

http://www.divyadeepatrust.org/docs/DH%20city%20

Herald%209-12-2007.jpg

26-05-2012 The learning

house

teaches how

to face future

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/252182/learni

ng-house-teaches-face-future.html

4 All India Radio,

Mysore

(Prasara

Bharati)

July 2013 Kirana –

Introducing

Kaliyuva

Mane

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRhKUjKHf-4

15-09-2013 Makkala

Mantapa

By elder

children

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CINqmVHnQU4

22-09-2013 Keli Giligale-

By younger

children of

Kaliyuva

Mane

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wOLYqwkJNLw

27-07-2014 Keli Giligale-

By younger

children of

Kaliyuva

Mane

03-08-2014 Makkala

Mantapa

By elder

children

5 “Balavani”

Published by

Labour

Department,

Govt. Of

Karnataka

Page No.

9, 10, 11, 12

PÀ°AiÀÄĪÀ ªÀÄ£É: ±Á ÉUÁV ªÀÄPÀ̼À®è; EzÀÄ ªÀÄPÀ̽UÁV ±Á É

http://www.divyadeepatrust.org/docs/Baalavani3

-Kannada.pdf

6 TV -9 22-01-2013 PÀ°AiÀÄĪÀ ªÀÄ£É http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_Z_WyVKZNU

29-07-2014 Nimagondu

Salam

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_4dtJU_HS8

96

IMPORTANT WEBLINKS :

1 Paper Empower – Project for Change https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cqjsk1xn_zs

2 Alternative Education System

Kaliyuva Mane – Feature film

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqebJCAus40

3 Youth involved in Divyadeepa, Mysore http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnqkOmnmNoo

97

Sri L.M. Shah

Without his support, Kaliyuva Mane would have remained a dream only.

His brief profile and his contribution to Kaliyuva Mane has been published below:

ANNEXURE – WORDS OF THE CHIEF PATRON

98

99

100

101

KALIYUVA MANE [Home for learning] A free quasi-residential, eco-friendly, alternative school

Divya Deepa Charitable Trust, Kenchalagudu village, Manandavadi Raad, Rayanakere post,

Jayapura hobli, Mysore – 570008, Karnataka, India,

Phone : 91- 821-3202249, 09341369901

Email : divyadeepa.trust@gmail.com, Website : www.divyadeepatrust.org

Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/divyadeepa

Children for SCHOOL

School for CHILDREN