A one stop 'Q & A' about us
Where do we work?
We work in the areas of Lower Shivalik range housing "Rajaji National Park & Tiger Reserve' where two forest communities - Van Gujjar and Taungyas live (Bordering Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and Himachal).
Pre COVID times
Forest School
Community
COVID times
Schools are closed, support Community based learning centre run by youth for continual education for children
Community
Support MHM relief for women
Successfully organised 260 mothers into Women Education Groups with regular meetings and conversations as part of Community engagement in Education
Why do we work?
The per capita reach for an individual is low, simply looking at the average square kms for population habitation and forest topography. This challenges the existing norms of schools and distance from habitation for primary, middle and senior schools (Government). In these regions Forest Schools/NRSTs(Non Resident Supplemental Tuitions) have been the norm which are starkly different from the Govt. schools.
The issues at Forest Schools and Public Schools in and around are similar yet stark. The challenges (as per our experience) are -
Forest Schools
Resources
Regular Teaching
Enrolment and Attendance
Learning outcomes
Context based learning and literature
Public Schools
Learning outcomes
Teacher absenteeism
Lesson Planning & TLMs
Context based learning and literature
What have we done?
We started working in the Forest School full time in 2018. Supported continual learning through Youth in learning centres in the community during COVID times.
Increased Enrolment and Attendance (when schools were functioning)
Community interest in Education (Develop youth participation) - Project Based Learning@LearningSpaces, Jungle Libraries
Create Contextual content and Learning tools
Ongoing & Plan
The plan ahead is to consolidate our work by -
MoU for Whole School Transformation of Schools (Forest & Govt - 3)
Teacher Learning Materials, Lesson Plans, Training, Contextual Content
Youth Development (Local youth as problem solvers)
For any more questions email us at samantaconnect@gmail.com or call on 9910654474
PRASHANT