Rs. 12 - 15,000 per year includes my students' monthly fees, term fees, computer lab fees, exam fees, textbooks, notebooks and workbooks. Imagine what that is for slum children whose parents work as daily labourers, house help, dhobis, etc.
In the first 2 weeks of school, I saw children unable to buy books for class because their "father had not got his salary yet". In my estimation, these parents spend around 10-30% of their income on their kids' education. That's a huge number!
The good part is that they are willing to give their children an education. However, reading our (absolutely dry and sometimes even factually incorrect) SSC textbooks is not enough education for these students. The difference between us and them is exposure to different objects, places, stories, languages, cultures. I want to be able to expose my classroom to the world that they don't see around them (e.g. they hadn't even heard of Bandra Kurla Complex).
And I need your help. I have begun compiling a list of what I want my students to have access to. I would love to have your inputs on these, and more importantly, I would love it if you could donate for this cause as well. This is one of my first calls for help and there will be more of these calls as I increase exposure by starting field trips as well.
You can donate by going to http://teachforindia.org/donate/give-instantly.
Please ensure that for the question "Would you like to designate this for a particular region or fellow?", you select "Specific Fellow" and write Alpana Mandal below that because otherwise the donation goes to TFI as an organization and does not hit my classroom at all.
Here's my preliminary list:
In the first 2 weeks of school, I saw children unable to buy books for class because their "father had not got his salary yet". In my estimation, these parents spend around 10-30% of their income on their kids' education. That's a huge number!
The good part is that they are willing to give their children an education. However, reading our (absolutely dry and sometimes even factually incorrect) SSC textbooks is not enough education for these students. The difference between us and them is exposure to different objects, places, stories, languages, cultures. I want to be able to expose my classroom to the world that they don't see around them (e.g. they hadn't even heard of Bandra Kurla Complex).
And I need your help. I have begun compiling a list of what I want my students to have access to. I would love to have your inputs on these, and more importantly, I would love it if you could donate for this cause as well. This is one of my first calls for help and there will be more of these calls as I increase exposure by starting field trips as well.
You can donate by going to http://teachforindia.org/donate/give-instantly.
Please ensure that for the question "Would you like to designate this for a particular region or fellow?", you select "Specific Fellow" and write Alpana Mandal below that because otherwise the donation goes to TFI as an organization and does not hit my classroom at all.
Here's my preliminary list:
- 5 pocket dictionaries (1 per group in class) - Rs. 100 x 5 = Rs. 500
- 35 (students) x 4 (subjects) x 2 (terms) = 280 200-page notebooks - Rs. 20 x 280 =Rs. 5600
- 35 ball point pens - Rs. 350
- 35 pencil boxes - Rs. 130 x 35 = Rs. 4550
- *35 compass sets (for geometry) - Rs. 150 x 35 = Rs. 5250* - TAKEN!! Chosen byAnurag Khanna
- 35 crayon sets - Rs. 30 x 35 = Rs. 1050
- 10 school bags (for students who achieve academic and/ or behavioral targets) - Rs. 600 x 10 = Rs. 6000
- *Books - http://www.flipkart.com/wishlist/alpanamandal-7653 - Rs. 2573* - TAKEN!! Chosen by Anurag Khanna :)
- Any sports trainer/ coach near Kandivali (we have a public playground close to school) - Priceless
Total - Rs. 25,873.
Your inputs, both in terms of ideas as well as moolah, are most welcome! If you want to donate for a specific item in a list, let me know and I will check it off the list after you've shown interest in the item.
Thank you. It means a lot.
