Background
In India millions of children are excluded from their right to basic education, and particularly to primary education. Access to primary education is still hampered by many factors, such as poverty, geographical remoteness, income-differentiations and social status. Although, the Government of India and the State Governments are striving to provide free education to children in the age-group of 6-14 years under the broader Education For All (EFA) framework, the percentages of out-of-school children and school drop-outs have not been reduced drastically.
SANKALP has been focusing efforts to provide free, need-based and child-friendly non-formal primary education to the hard-to-reach groups of adolescents and children, particularly the girls to break the cycle of low education.
The broad objective is to provide access to quality primary education to the unreached groups. The Organisation is guided by the International thinking and perspective of rights, equity and relevance in primary education.
The Organisation has been emphasizing on the importance of the right to education as a fundamental human right as well as a central component in human rights, as education is essential and indispensable for the exercise of all other human rights and for acceleration of the process of development. As an empowerment right, primary education is the primary vehicle by which economically and socially marginalized adults and children can break the pangs of poverty, and participate for the fullest development of their potentials as the future parents and citizens of the country.
The equality of access has to be assured as analyses confirm that poverty, rural residence and gender inequality persist as the strongest inverse correlates of school attendance and performance.
The relevance of the curricula has been emphasized by the Organisation. The curricula, developed and used by the Organisation, have been accommodating the needs and priorities of the learners as well as their families and communities; rather than indiscriminately adhering to imported or inherited curricula, that have often been insufficiently sensitive to the local context and to learners’ socio-cultural milieu.
Target Groups
The marginalized and excluded children and adolescents beneficiaries covered by SANKALP are from the most disadvantaged groups of Indian society. These groups include;
- scheduled castes;
- scheduled tribes;
- other backward castes;
- pregnant adolescents and young mothers;
- migrants;
- indigenous populations;
- street children;
- working children;
- minorities; and
- girls and boys with different capacities.
Geographical spread-out
The programmes cover 14 States of India. These States are;
- Andhra Pradesh
- Chhattisgarh
- Delhi(NCT)
- Haryana
- Himachal Pradesh
- Jammu & Kashmir
- Jharkhand
- Madhya Pradesh
- Orissa
- Punjab
- Rajasthan
- Uttar Pradesh
- Uttaranchal
- West Bengal
Programme Actions
As these deprived and underprivileged groups of children and adolescents continue to face discrimination with regards to access to primary education and school; SANKALP has been promoting access, retention and achievement in primary education through alternative and innovative non-formal approaches. The Organisation has been focusing on gender parity in primary education, by making special efforts in ensuring full participation of girls and adolescent mothers therein. A multi-pronged strategy is being adopted to optimize the impact of primary education. The programme actions include;
- community-based innovative and alternative non-formal education centres within an easy-to-reach distance;
- information campaigns;
- advocacy; and
- capacity buildings.
Learning Materials and Methods
The Organisation has been adopting appropriate and child-friendly learning materials and methods, which suit the needs of the targeted children and adolescents the most.
These content and approaches include;
- adopting appropriate non-formal approaches to learning through establishing child- friendly and community-based learning centres;
- developing curricula tailored to the specific needs of these unreached and vulnerable adolescents and children;
- making educational content relevant to the local cultural and social contexts, so that parents and communities will have the feeling and impact of primary education improving the quality of life; and
- regular reviewing the curricula to reflect the socio-economic and cultural changes as well as to adequately prepare pupils to respond to their environment and its challenges.
The curriculum, besides emphasizing on pedagogical learning, attempts to improve the quality of life of the learners by putting the learning in a broader societal context. These elements include;
- citizenship education;
- understanding cultural plurality and regional diversity;
- culture of peace; and
- learning to live together with other groups and communities.