Effect of the Children committee in schools:

Tiffin committee member distributing biscuits & sweets

Swanirvar runs four Primary schools in the following four villages- Chandalati(I-IV), Fatullapur (I-IV), Andharmanik(I-IV) and Matia (I-II) . There are more than 450 students in these four schools. We have at least 8 types of children committees in our schools. These students committees with responsibility for 1) cleanliness, 2) sports, 3) water, 4) library, 5) notice, 6) Sahitya Sabha , 7) mid day meal , 8) seed bank etc. The evaluation committee (also a kind of children committee) looks after the activities of all the committees. In the monthly assessment meeting (hold on last Saturday of each month) the president and the secretary of evaluation committee sit down together with the secretaries and assistant secretaries of all the committees to discuss the works done by every committee. The other students of all classes present there. Secretaries of all the committees read out the observations and monthly assessment report made by the committee. They point out various information, success, failure and opinion based on their learning. The students of other committee do not always agree with the secretaries. So sometime they are in debate among themselves and many suggestions and different opinions come out. The secretary of evaluation committee takes notes and later resolutions are being taken. A sense of co-operation, leadership, decision making skill, judgment skill, democracy and reporting skill develop among students are being seen. We have been able to introduce such children’s committees in 19 govt. primary schools (14 Primary and 5 SSK centre).

        The effects of these committees on students are being seen. Many of our children are now studying in High schools and they are doing many remarkable works beside their regular study. They are not only showing their group activities in schools but also in their localities. Some of them have became natural leaders in their societies. Here are some examples…
        Safiul Hassan an ex –student of Chandalati Swanirvar Primary school. At present he is in class-V at Mandra High School. Now he has given the responsibilities to control and manages daily prayer of all students.

Library committee in book distribution

        Rittika Biswas, ex student of Magurkhali and now studying in class IX at Rudrapur Radha Ballav High School. She had an active role in the children committee. She found that all the washrooms of her present school are dirty and not being cleaned regularly. She persuaded some of her classmates to form a cleaning committee. After that, they met their principal and asked for some detergents and some utensils also requested him to introduce dustbin for each room. The principal immediately accepted them and had purchased dustbins for the entire schools.

Reported by,
Prosanto Mondal
Mob: +91 9732829202

SWANIRVAR IN EDUCATION: Dedicated English Class room in our Primary school...

SWANIRVAR IN EDUCATION: Dedicated English Class room in our Primary school...: "From 2005, Margarate Flanagan, a retired British school teacher was working with us. Her main role was to improve English teaching in our pr..."

Dedicated English Class room in our Primary schools:

From 2005, Margarate Flanagan, a retired British school teacher was working with us. Her main role was to improve English teaching in our primary schools as well as with our network Govt. Primary schools. She and our teachers had done many experiments in these schools on improvement of pedagogy on English teaching. We had developed TLM based teachings, used more pictures, chart posters and also audio visual study materials.

Based on these experiences and learning, 6 small booklets had been published. These booklets have been found most effective and now are being used in our schools and also in some other NGO schools and Govt. primary schools. Swanirvar teachers and 10 local Govt primary teachers were engaged with Margarate in this educational research project.
In 2010, we felt the need of a separate English class room in schools. This was experimentally started in our 3 primary schools. The object of this was as follows:
1. Display of pictures drawing by the children in the Art & craft class
2. Display of Work Cards made by Teachers in big letters, Class-I-IV
3. Pictures chart hanging on the wall-Fruits chart, Animals chart, Birds chart, Flowers Chart, Vegetables Chart, Number Chart, colour chart, Human body chart, etc
4. Display of first letter of a word with various items made from this letter.
5. Different pictures drawn by children and paste on the wall
6. TV,VCD, Box for audio-visual program
7. Numerous numbers of TLMs for class I-IV and worksheet, so that any student can work at any time.

Effects:

On Children:

1. An environment has been developed in that room. The colourful decoration has attracted the children. English learning is now joyful learning.

2. Self learning: student are now coming by their own wishes, playing and learning with use of TLMs

3. This has been found more effective for the weak and medium children. They are spending more times in this room. Colouring the cards, doing hand on activities and gradually getting out from the phobia of English as a foreign language.

4. As the students of I-IV are coming in that room for learning and they are spending times with learning materials. Students also developing new ideas and prospective.

On Teacher:

Our teacher, Shyama in Magurkhali School

1. Here teacher is just a facilitator. More group activities.

2. He has many choices with huge TLMs and other study materials.
3. Continuously getting new ideas and more interactions with students.
4. Better Class room management.

Reported by:
Gopal & Prosanto