Regions: Africa   Asia   Latin America


Name of Organization: Deepalaya

Country: India

Project Title: "Innovative methodology for education of children at risk"

Project Timeframe: 14 months (Starting in June 2005)

Location of Project: Shalimar Bagh, North-West Delhi

Budget Amount: $10,000

NGO contact and website:
46, Institutional Area, D-block, Janakpuri
New Delhi, India, 110058
Phone/Fax Number: 91-11-25548263, 25590347, 25590348
Email: info@deepalaya.org

Project's Primary Objective: Strengthen formal and transitional education systems that encourage working children and those at risk of working to attend school.

Description of Organization: Deepalaya is a Delhi based not-for-profit, non-governmental organization founded in 1979, with a primary focus on educating children from socially and economically backward sections of society. Over the years, Deepalaya has educated over 40,000 children from underprivileged families. As a result, Deepalaya has not only gained experience in mobilizing communities, identifying, motivating and educating disadvantaged children and developing their latent talents, but has also evolved time-tested concepts, approaches and procedures which are useful for any NGO to educate the disadvantaged. Some of these concepts are Social Entrepreneurs, Planning and Micro Realization, Crusaders, and Phase-in & Phase-out Strategies. During the last 15 years Deepalaya has identified and facilitated the admission of 7,636 children (4,537 boys and 3,099 girls) into schools. Deepalaya has also formed and trained 37 community-based organizations in West and South Delhi: most of these organizations are continuing the task of educating disadvantaged. Deepalaya is an accredited agency of Open Basic Education (OBE) Scheme, a certification scheme sponsored by the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) that specifically aims to reach out-of-school children. Deepalaya has successfully conducted OBE exams for children studying in its schools.

Description of Project funded by CIRCLE: Deepalaya believes that true learning will occur only if the methodology imparted for teaching is truly participatory. The curriculum must not be divorced from the life situation of the child. On this principle, the proposed CIRCLE project has been designed. The NGO's CIRCLE project aims to:
  • Design contextually relevant curriculum for educating children at risk of child labour
  • Identify innovative methodology for imparting curriculum in an enjoyable manner
  • Educate children at risk under the above curriculum and methodology
To meet the above objectives, the project will adopt the following strategies:
  • Community mobilization tools, including street plays
  • Learning centres established, with multi-grade teaching
  • Interaction with parents on one-to-one or group basis about children at risk; audio and video used
  • Methodology developed for classes III and IV standards, meeting at least the minimum levels of learning prescribed by the government
  • Teaching manual containing what is to be taught and how to use lyrics of songs, scripts of skits, innovative games, etc.
The project foresees the following outcomes:
  • Methodology for standards III & V
  • Audio and video recordings of songs, skits, and plays prepared by children
  • Pieces of creative expression of the children
  • At least 80 out-of -school children achieve MLL of their age levels
  • Four manuals each for classes III & V for Hindi, science, mathematics and social sciences

Project Targets (Common Indicators):
Enrollment:100 children
Persistence: 80%
Transition: 60%
Completion: 40%