Sunday, April 13, 2014

L for Literacy - TEACH Program of Rotary

Continuing on my theme for a better world, today, I would like to discuss about basic literacy for them who need it most and the T-E-A-C-H program undertaken by Rotary for the south-east Asia.

I am a Rotarian and grateful for the opportunities this world’s largest non-profit platform provides to get involved in some projects for the society at large. After relentless fight to eradicate  Polio from world starting in 1985 and recently reaching the significant milestone of success in India along with Government of India in 2013-14,Rotary has taken up the TEACH program the similar manner in collaboration with Government.

Before we go to the details of the program, below are some statistics about where we stand today as a country.   



With definition of literacy considered here is more than being able to read and write names, national average of India around 74% is much lower when compared to other countries. This shows a very contrasting picture India being now the de-facto powerhouse of knowledge industry of the world.

Inside India, while Kerala, Mizoram are far ahead of the average, there are much to be done in the hinterland of central and northern India and here Rotary has decided to join hands with Government of India as per Kathmandu resolution during December, 2013.The TEACH program will complement government initiatives starting from Blackboard program in the year 1987 and continued with other missions like National literacy mission, Sarva Siksha Abhiyan, Mid Day Meals and Right to Education.
TEACH program will focus on the following areas at the Rotary district and club levels. All clubs are to raise funds for adopting few government schools for underprivileged children to drive down following programs. There are modules of E-Pathsale being rolled out with TCS and other corporates at a nominal price with basic infrastructure being arranged.

For teacher support, Rotary is in discussion with Azim Premji Foundation who focus on teacher support programs across many states in India. I already spoke about E-learning focus above. While Adult Literacy will focus on vocational training along with basic mathematics and business fundamentals, child development program will aim for inclusive education from migrant labourer, differently abled children, children of sex workers and prisoners and other risk categories. Happy schools are making the school look beautiful with the basic hygiene things taken care of.
We, at Rotary, have given ourselves three years’ time at this stage for this uphill task across all states of India through the individual clubs at the grass root levels. We will need your best wishes and support.

More details can be found here. Anyone wanting to get involved at individual capacity can feel free to contact me. It will be a privilege for me to work with you.


Thank You.

26 comments:

  1. Very informative, you should talk to Beloo about this.. She writes a lot about education too!

    ~S(t)ri
    Participant|AtoZ Challenge 2014
    Smile, it makes (y)our day!

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    1. Thanks. But this is for basic literacy :-).

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  2. I am coming to like you a lot, Jayanta! Not only is your heart in the right place but, you are taking concrete steps to make a positive difference in the lives of others. The Rotary Club has a strong presence here in my hometown of Cobourg, Ontario, Canada, as well as, all across the country. Rotarians do fine work for good, all around the world.

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    1. Thanks , Tom for your encouraging comments and time to visit my pages. With all your wishes, hope something happens.

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  3. Teach program does sound great. I am sorry I dnt have much knowledge about it but your post helped me to.understand a little.

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  4. Excellent post!

    I am convinced that illiteracy and hunger are the two issues that we must tackle simultaneously and immediately. I will visit the Rotary Teach site and go through it in detail.

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  5. That's amazing Jayanta! Supporting education is in my mind the best investment you can do, and a very very noble thing to others. Supporting them in improving their life! Rotary does a lot of good things in many countries.

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    1. Thanks, Eli, for your kind comments. Just Trying to make effective use of time available :-).

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  6. am part of the Rotary Eclub and we have some programmes running as wel

    PhenoMenon
    http://throodalookingglass.com/2014/04/lamp-light/

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    1. Hi, Good to know like minded people. Thanks.

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  7. I'm a proud Keralite, but let me tell you, even here we have kids who are deprived of primary education, though far far less in number when compared to other states. Nice initiative by the Rotary Club. All the best !

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    1. Thanks, Ma'm for stopping by. I did not know this detail about Kerala though.. Thanks for sharing.

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  8. Literacy is a must for all in the society! They say, Literacy is a bridge from misery to hope and Rotary Club is doing a fantastic job! Kudos to all of you! :)

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  9. Jayant I am very happy that I visited your site. Illiteracy is a very big issue in our country. It is not new, but has been in the priority list of educationists since long. There have been many policies like 'each one teach one', and "bring the school to the taught'. But there was never a visible change, even though statistics were always very optimistic. It is very very heartening that Rotarians are taking up this project. I would have been very happy to be associated with this project,but due to my age(I will be 80 in two months) and health, I can not participate in such programmes.

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    1. Yes, there have been many initiatives and let's see if involvement of Rotary can make a change.. Thanks for your willingness. You can at least spread the word so that we get more hands in Rotary for this humongous task :-). Thanks for stopping by today. Wish this is for every day.

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  10. This program sounds great! Everyone should be able to enjoy the adventures books provide! ♥

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  11. This sounds like a very good initiative. Thanks for sharing valuable information about this program. And good luck for your efforts. I used to volunteer for adult literacy program many many years ago. I know how difficult the work can be. All the very best.

    Beauty Interprets, Expresses, Manifests the Eternal

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    1. Hi , Thanks for your kind comments and your best wishes.. Yes, this is going to be difficult but we together hope that we are part of a big family named "Rotary" :-).

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  12. Thats great Jayanta, v good post and u r doing great work. Basic literacy is what we require along with population control. All the best :)

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  13. Lot of information on literacy, thanks for sharing and also good luck for your work.. I used to be part of the literacy programme in a slum in my college days, very important and required for our country !

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