Language:

• Popularizing the methods among children.
• Children to observe, listen, read and write with concentration.
• Every child in Std 1 & 2 should identify the letters, words and read a simple Sentence.
• Every child in STD 3-5 should read paragraphs and story fluently.
• Every child should speak fluently and write correctly.

Computer Education

• I & II STD child should draw the pictures in paint. and here we also learn students, how to pronounce the vowels in Telugu.

• STD 3-5 child should draw the pictures and type letters in M.S.WORD. 

English:

• Letter recognition with sounds
• To converse in simple sentences

In p.a.pally mandal (all villages) every student and other people will must and should learn COMPUTER EDUCATION.

Background:

Computer Education program goals was implemented in 1 district in one mandal of the 4 villages.Pratham in P.A.Pallyis currently working with communities and schools at the mandal level where ever supported by respective Mandal Education officersand SSA . This year MEP Program has been implemented in P.A.Pally through a volunteer-based approach.

   The PRATHAM MUMBAI EDUCATION INITIATIVE will start at in OCT-14.Here; first we are publishing the purpose of the PRATHAM FOUNDATION. For publishing, we are using PAMPLENTS, and also we are meeting some students and told about PRATHAM FOUNDATION, and lastly we are visit some schools and explain the purpose of PRATHAM FOUNDATION.

   After publishing all of the people know about PRATHAM FOUNDATION. so, many students will come to the institute and finish their course. here, we are giving the prizes to the talented students.

Partnerships:

P.A.Pally was implemented through a volunteer-based approach. However partnerships were informally made at the Mandal level to run classes in school where the Mandal Education Officers of SSA and Head teachers gave permission to PRATHAM team to implement the program.

   Nalgonda region volunteers have been mobilized from several government departments like the youth clubs, self help groups and also from the existing para teacher cadre of the primary school system (known as Vidya volunteers).

   PRATHAM team also took out rallies and conducted exams and give the prizes to the talented childs.

Team

In P.A.PAllly the PRATHAM MUMBAI EDUCATION INITIATIVE will based on team work. Here, three members are work in the Institute. they are co-operate with each other, and they are sharing the work. The team work will give the successful results.

A. Trainings:

In the month of Oct-14 on MEP training was imparted to mandal and village coordinators. Subsequently the team started Pilot classes. Entire team was put in 4 divisions of one mandal each where the team conducted classes for the children during day time and reviewed the day’s program.All the 3employees were given two phases training. First phase was 3days and second phase was 4days on Computer and English. Training was on material usage at the mandal  After training these volunteers gathered about 20 above children and on the basis of their learning levels started a daily class with them.  

B. Materials

The System is the main important material, every student stand before of the system, and learn how to operate the system. After finishing of learnging,they wrote on the notebook.

C. Monitoring

Mandal and Village teams monitored classes at regular intervals. The team plans their schedule at the beginning of each month and based on this plan visit the different villages. During visits they observe the teaching method, usage of teaching learning material, children’s participation in the learning process, etc. They also assess the operating level of a few children in each class and compare notes with the volunteer, who separately makes his or her own assessment of each child.

E. Assessment:

PRATHAM MUMBAI EDUCATION INITIATIVE Computer Education baseline data was collected based on sample given by State (ASER Center).And final test also will be conducted end of the course.

Highlights

• At the first time in village, the PRATHAM MUMBAI EDUCATION INITIATIVEIS STARTED.
• Here, the institute was running successfully, by the co-operation of the students & elders.
•  PRATHAM has implemented Read Andhra Pradesh (AP) through a volunteer-based program during this period. 
• Across government schools, there is an increased focus on Computer education.
• The main highlight is every student must be having knowledge about COMPUTER.

Objective

The objective of this program is to strengthen parent –teacher engagement.  It will do so with the following activities:
1. Organize regular meetings of the School Management Committees (SMC)
2. Encourage parents to address important school related issues such as drop-out rates
3. Preparation of school development plans to ensure regular and link expenditures with school needs

Activities

To achieve this objective, the following activities are underway:
1. Organizing regular monthly meetings to encourage greater interaction between SMC members and teachers, Headmasters and councilors
2. Share information with the SMC members on key areas of SMC responsibility including details on drop-out rates, school grants and so on
3. Build SMC capacity to make school development plans as mandated by the Right to Education Act.

Why is this important and how can it benefit the school?

Under the Right to Education Act (RTE), SMC are mandated by law to perform certain key functions including addressing problems of drop-out rates, learning quality and making school development plans. This activity implemented by Pratham in partnership with district SSA is an effort to help schools implement this key provision of the RTE. Strengthening the SMC can also help strengthen the school and assist the HMs in their day to day work in the following ways:

1. Improve parent involvement in addressing key problems faced by teachers such as ensuring child attendance, and child involvement in school activities. In this way, parent can be encouraged to create a learning environment in the home which can help improve learning outcomes significantly.

2. Improve the quality of expenditures. At present schools struggle with many problems related to effective fund utilization. In fact in the current financial year there is a large amount of unspent money. Involving the SMC in decision making and school planning can go a long way in assisting the HMs to facilitate expenditures. SMCs can also take responsibility for community contributions which can help address the many infrastructure problems that the schools face. Involving the SMC can also help the HMs in monitoring expenditures and ensuring that school needs are resolved effectively.

3. Improve the implementation of the RTE. Given that the RTE mandates strong community involvement this activity can help the schools implement RTE

Structure:

School Management Committee (SMC) has been constituted in every school, other than an unaided school, within its jurisdiction, within six months of the commencement of the Act and reconstituted every two years. In this committee 27 members are present, out of them 24 members are mother/father or guardian of the children enrolled in the school. One member shall be elected representative one member may be nominee of the mahila samakhyas of the village concerned. The head teacher or the in charge head teacher of the school shall be convener of the committee.

Methodology

Hyderabad has 16 mandals and Pratham has selected 265 schools that are located in 8 mandals. The mandals are Kharithabad, Ameerpet, Amberpet, Charminar, Nampally, Himaythnagar, Musheerabad, Saidabad. To coordinate this program in 8 mandals, community school monitors (CSM) were selected based on the requirements. Each CSM needs to monitor 12 schools.

Activities:

SMC meetings were conducted in all the schools in the mandals every month.  
CSM of the allotted Mandal plan the meeting schedule with DyIOs of selected mandal in the beginning of the month and conduct the SMC accordingly by covering two schools per day. The duration of the Meeting will be for two hours approximately.

• Community Coordinators worked as a bridge between the local government schools and parents. Community Coordinators campaigned to meet the parents, interacted with them, given them TLM and conducted mother’s literacy classes in the selected communities where Pratham undertook schools are close by .The coordinators visited the communities door to door to spread the message of the importance of education, thereby increasing the enrollment of non school goers and drop outs in the local government schools. They also promoted the concept of parent and teachers meetings.
• Community coordinators are also helped in Making SMC members understand their role in making school development plans.
• Ensuring that school development plans reflect school needs
• Linking plans to RTE norms and not just day to day school needs
• Ensuring that SMC’s monitor school expenditure Building awareness of RTE norms at the SMC level
• Linking RTE norms with the School planning process
• Identifying levels of decision making for school needs vis a vis RTE norms
• Building awareness of school grant availability
• Identifying recurring school needs
• Linking school needs with available funds
• Linking school needs, available funds with decision making processes (what decisions can be take Facilitating the Role of the SMC in Monitoring of School Activities and Expenditure
• Display of posters explaining RTE norms for infrastructure in every school
• Display of posters explaining RTE grant norms in every school
• Display the status of infrastructure facilities to enable the SMC’s to track the school’s progress
• Display of all Plans passed by the SMC on the school display board

To achieve above mentioned activities, meetings with SMC members were organized to discuss:

• Assisting the SMC in recording of the above decisions in the standardized format, which included the following:

• Grant receipt and expenditure & Activity wise priorities for expenditure
• Framework for translating plans into practice. ( Enclosure 1- Status of Funds & Activities proposed)
• Over a period of 25 days,  School Development Plans were made by a total of 245 schools
• All plans were signed by the Head master after they were approved by the other members.

The activity details selected for conducting during the SMC meet both for the Children and the Committee members are briefed below as follows:

AWARENESS PROGRAMME CONDUCTED

Training and Monitoring:

      A. Community School Monitors Training:

CSMs are trained on the following

1. Objectives and strategy of the program
2. Concept of community participation
3. Assessment methods
4. Orientation of different approaches in community participation
5. Role of a CSM  (a facilitator, a recorder, motivator etc )
6. A motivational talk to the CSMs : we cannot spell S … C C E S S with out U!

      B. Govt. School Teachers’ Orientation: Pratham CSMs (Community School Monitors) conducted orientation programs and Right Education Act for school teachers during school complex meetings.

MONTHWISE SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES CSMs CONDUCTED BESIDES CONDUCTING MEETINGS

The main aim of this meeting is to increase the enrollment in the schools and also involve parents and SMC members in attending the meeting.
In the first week of every month CSM coordinator need to meet Deputy Inspector of the school, DEOs and HM in order to decide the dates of SMC meetings in the school. Based on this dates CSM coordinator inform the SMC members regarding the meeting and they also go to homes of selected parent and convince them to attend the meeting on that day during respective time.
In that meeting they discuss the agenda of the SMC meeting that prepared by Pratham and that will be discussed with Head Master and all SMC members and CSM will need to write the minutes of the meeting and need to be recorded and filed.
During the regular meetings CSMs facilitate members and teachers to make sure that the points of SMC (Teacher Attendance, Children Attendance, Mid day meals, School Grants and other local issues) agenda are covered well. 
 
The SMC meeting was started in the Hyderabad with the help of Pratham in the month of June.

June & July: Recruitment of CSMs, their trainings happened. The team also participated in SSA’s enrollment drive. Team contacted each and every school that was allotted to them and collected SMC members list. As per the list the team went to their houses to identify them and motivate them to attend the meetings.

August: Workshop on Right to Education Act has been conducted.

September: In the month of September data was collected in some areas such as children enrollment, number of teachers, number of class rooms in the school, availability of school infrastructure etc.

October & November: In the month of November the coordinators conducted quality learning test for primary (5) and upper primary (3) children in Telugu, English and Math.

December: In the month of December the coordinators collected information on the grants that school gets.

January: In the month the coordinator tracked information on civil works and also the issues that schools are facing.

February:  In the month annual work plan was developed based on the RTE norms.

March:  In this month the coordinators collected information on the grants that school gets and discussed on utilization of the amount and suggested the schools to utilize the balance amount.

Conclusion: Strengthening of SMC program was a successful model where the members participated in full strength to discuss various issues on the school. Many issues were solved at the local level and members took valuable decisions with regard to improvement of school development plans and quality issues.
The committees also became active and started taking responsibilities in improving the school facilities. The attendance rate of teachers and children improved when compared to last year.