A school for all seasons - Indian Express

A school for all seasons - Indian Express:

A school with no bell, no designated periods, no specific curriculum and open all 365 days. A government primary school at Kardelwadi village in Shirur taluka of Pune district stands out for its unique model. Kardelwadi has a population of 1,200 and is around 50 km away from Pune. Teachers Dattatrey Sakat and his wife Bebinanda, who run this four-room school with 95 students, travel five km every day to reach the school from Shirur to be with their “children”. For the past 11 years, the school has stayed open every single day, and at least one of them has been present.

“We have never gone on leave together. Even if one of us has some work, the other remains at school. And if I have to go out, I go late in the evening only to be back the next day,” says Dattatrey. And fortunately, they didn’t even have to take long leaves for ailments all these years. “We wanted to bring about change by being part of the system”, says Dattatrey about their initiative. Dattatrey teaches English and other subjects, while Bebinanda teaches Math. Between them, they manage all the subjects.

The beginning was tough. The Sakats had to start from scratch when they shifted here from another government school in 2001. “This was a dilapidated place with rats, no blackboards, no benches and no toilets,” says Bebinanda. The entire place had to be done up for which they got some money from the village committee. They also used a part of their savings. “It is like our own house—painting walls, cleaning up, cooking for the kids and teaching them,” says Dattatrey, who realised that the children could complete their primary education only if both of them put in a lot of extra effort. That’s when they decided to work round the week. “Our efforts got us a good response from the villagers who then entrusted their children to us,” he says. They also put their own son in this school.

The school opens at 8 a.m. and closes at 6 p.m. The children who come in early in the morning clean the rooms and water the plants before attending their classes. “We do not have any planned periods. We also decide the subjects ourselves. We use audio-visual aids too,” says Bebinanda. During the lunch break, children play and help fellow students with lessons. However, it’s not all work and no play all 365 days. Though the school observes the customary state holidays and summer and Diwali vacations, the children come to school during holidays too for extra-curricular activities like singing, dancing, theatre and elocution. The Sakats say their aim is not merely to teach but also develop the children’s personalities.

When the children started excelling in exams, this unique experiment got noticed and brought in various awards for the Sakats, including the state Quality Improvement Award in 2010. The school then caught the attention of neighbouring villages. Soon, parents from other villages started sending their children to the school. Baban Shelke even shifted to Kardelwadi so that his son could study here. Balasaheb Nanoor took his son out of a private school to put him into this school. Dr Sharad Thombe, a doctor who practices at Shirur, enrolled his daughter, Gauri, here. “Today Gauri, who is in the fourth class, manages her studies and extra-curricular activities very well and has won laurels for her school in dance competitions,” Thombe says.

Various welfare organisations have donated audio-visual aids to the school. Local MLA Ashok Pawar too has donated generously. The school today, has a television with cable connection, an LCD monitor and computers. “Whether it is simple multiplication, division or even saying the numbers backwards, the children are adept at it. We run slide shows on the LCD monitor almost the entire day which helps students learn the concepts better,” Bebinanda says. “And until the entire class has learnt a concept, we do not proceed further.” The Sakats believe that good education doesn’t really come from grand infrastructure but from teachers who are willing to go that extra mile.

Gauri Thombe, who has excelled in both dance and studies, enjoys coming to school all year round. “It’s more like my second home. We are taught a whole lot of subjects and the teachers simplify them for us,” she says. All the children have excellent handwriting. Teachers from more than 7,000 schools in the state have visited the school to witness this unique experiment. Even the British Council has an annual exchange programme with the school. The Sakats also prepare mid-day meals for the children, to ensure they get the right diet. Six-year-old Sachin, who was earlier diagnosed as malnourished, is now a healthy child, thanks to the meals at school.

Since the school is under great pressure to take in more children, the Sakats are now looking for land for expansion. Students of their first batch are now in college and often come back to meet them. They also offer their services to help the school develop further. “We just want to continue our work, and we would be happy to have more teachers help us in our work,” the Sakats say.

Zila Parishad education officer Dattarey Sendkar says that for 80 students they have an allotment of two permanent teachers. “Now that the number has increased, we have put up a proposal for a total of three teachers. It should happen soon,” he says. Zila Parishad CEO Anil Kawade says the school has shown that state government-run schools can also excel, and students have proved this with their results. And setting an example for others is what motivates the Sakats.