SES School Vidyanagar, Hyderabad Site Visit Report Kiran Date of Visit: March, 2011 Courtesy: Madhu

Overview Overview Date of Visit - March, 2011 School located in urban locality - Vidyanagar, Hyderabad Started with objective for providing quality education for marginalized, underprivileged sections of society Dysfunctional govt school in vicinity with 0% pass rate in 10 th Classes from KG to 10th, 256 students in total

Infrastructure Infrastructure Two-story building with about 10 rooms One small room (more like a storage space) for library Very limited books and lab equipment Classrooms seemed a bit cramped, but just adequate for the existing number of students School has no bandwidth to take in more students with the existing infrastructure Not much play area except small courtyard in front of the building, located in dense residential area No computer(s)

Teachers Teachers 16 teachers in total including the art, music etc.; of which 6 are very experienced 3 helpers, support staff Committed set of teachers Mix of senior and junior level teachers A few very experienced and passionate teachers working on voluntary basis are backbone of the project along with principal, support staff and other teachers Principal also part of teaching staff and takes interest in looking for ways to improve

Teachers Teachers Senior Teachers A.Vasudev Rao B.Sc S.V.B. Narayana Sharma B.A., B.Ed C. Gundu Rao Bsc., B.Ed M. Rani Prameela B.Sc.,M.A,M.Ed., P. Meenakshi B.Sc, M.A(Eng) Dr. Padma M.A(M.Phill) P.H.D

Students Students Students range from KG to 10 th From economically weaker sections of society About 70% or so students in lower classes Students active and quite responsive Lower KG kids quite shy, understandably so Kids in lower and intermediate classes seemed more outspoken as compared to the ones in classes IX or X Most of them seemed interested and enthusiastic about attending school Limited after-school support seems to be a drawback Parents committed to sending kids to school

Learning Levels Learning Levels Learning levels were average to above average Students showed willingness to learn Reasonably comfortable in speaking English Classes had some very good science charts made by students, although some showed a lack of understanding of what was depicted mostly because teacher encouraged kids to make the charts before they taught the concepts Math, science skills need some improvement Most students got it wrong on first attempts – had necessary math skills but grasp of concepts needs improvement.

Challenges Retention of senior teachers vital to quality of education imparted at school Lack of resources for hands-on learning – Science Laboratory, Library & Computer Lab No computers Lack of after-school support structure to complement learning at school Limited play time at school, lacking infrastructure Teacher trainings on ABL etc may be useful Longer-term sustainability

Improvements Improvements Need to leverage proximity to high-tech companies Engage with companies for support Pursue mentorship programs Books, computers donations No computers – need to follow up on a prior commitment for donation of computer(s) from Synopsys Bangalore Need to encourage hands-on learning Engage with nearby schools Attend science fairs at nearby schools Parent reluctant to send kids Transportation, logistics issues

Summary Summary Although school seems to create a parallel structure … There definitely exists a wide gap between good private schools for those who can afford, and dysfunctional government schools for those who can’t. SES school doing a good job in bridging this gap as a school for the marginalized with focus on quality Commitment of senior teachers, principal and Mr Kanakaraju is vital to the functioning of school AshaSV should continue to support SES while encouraging them to also look for other sources of funding

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