Deccan Herald, Thursday, March 25, 2004

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Integrated learning for kids - Children's Lovecastle Trust adopts government schools and helps students to get a hands on experience of technology.

MARIANNE FURTADO DE NAZARETH
Bhagya Rangachar has lived in the US and worked as a Software Professional. Like all Indians after 'making good' in a foreign country, like other NRIs, she also had an overwhelming desire to return to Mother India and use the technology acquired to help our own.

Bhagya has created the Children's Lovecastle's Trust (CLT) "to build conducive,interactive and creative environments in education through community awareness, nutrition aids, and alternative educative means to support children's education. She is committed to her vision of combining the power of technology and the convenience of the school system to make community education more effective and efficient.

She began the organization six years ago. Fresh faced little ones crowd a room where they are allowed to compose their own digital music and burn CD's of the tunes. Slowly we begin to realise that CLT is not a school, it is a programme which includes mid-day meals, home work labs, health awareness camps, youth empowerment programmes, creative learning centres, Woman 2 Woman, among others. "CLT adopts government schools and builds a support system for the children," explains Bhagya. "Once that is complete, we organize a local volunteer core group to oversee the programme. We also work closely with the school betterment committee and the parent community. CLT builds incentives to encourage school attendance and helps create an environment that is conducive to learning."

The whole system had been very clearly thought out by Bhagya. "Every programme at CLT is based on a dream or a vision," she says. The little ones from the surrounding schools have a hands on experience on state-of-the-art computers. It was an astonishing sight to see so many under-privileged children using professional software to create computer based projects inspired by their own ideas. "This is a community of young people, mentors and staff using technology as tools for learning," explained Bhagya. "Our approach to learning is the tree house model, where we make education fun.This is done very simply by a change in the overall approach and we take learning outside of textbooks and delete the ponderous label - "school."

The Tree House Model of learning is a fine example of integrated learning.This method initiates a 'chain of learning' wherein all fields of knowledge are linked to one another harmoniously." Bhagya has an interesting Woman 2 Woman programme too. She realises that in order to bring any change in the community, women are the most effective agents of change. By this activity she empowers women with information and training on early childhood care which is vital for "the holistic development of the community.." Parenting skills and values are imparted to women bringing awareness about parenting children of all ages, the family and thereby the community. This aims to make women self reliant to run their families more effectively. The land is on a 30 year lease from the government and the place is run with five per cent employees and ninety five per cent volunteers. "We have asked the Karnataka Government for help as well," she reveals.

Along with a group of trustees who are alumnus of IIT's and who live in the US, CLT has grown from a seed in her mind in 1997 to a flower in 2004. "It's not just the students who are excited by this project but the teachers of these government school too are excited by the whole process," says Bhagya.


Deccan Herald Article - Integrated Learning for Kids:
http://www.deccanherald.com/deccanherald/mar252004/edu10.asp/