Tribal concept leaves UNICEF awe-struck

Started in 1997-98, the very concept of these schools is awe-inspiring. Aware of the drawbacks of a tribal setting, these schools have been customised accordingly.

They do not boast massive concrete structures. The learning process unfolds with felicity in the huts constructed by the local tribal community. Teachers are also drawn from the same community — those who know fully well what constitutes a tribe. Unlike the mainstream schools, where back-breaking school-bags are a norm, the Janasala children learn only for four hours a day in the forenoon so that they have the rest of the day free to work with their parents at home or in farms.

‘‘This helped in warding off opposition from parents as their children learn and with domestic work,’’ said Sarva Siksha Abhiyan assistant project director D.N. Murthy.

Apart from teaching the basics, the Janashalas also serve as pre-schools to prepare the students for a more formal schooling system. The success of this concept speaks for itself. The number of formal schools in the nine Agency mandals and one sub-plan mandal of East Godavari has gone up from 341 in 1997-98 to 713 now. The Janashalas have grown in strength from 65 to 205 during the same period. Taking a leaf out of the East Godavari experiment, the Janashalas have since been introduced in eight states, including Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Karnataka. ‘‘We have established habitation core committees and trained the members of these committees to monitor the functioning of these schools,’’ Murthy said.