Talk on Ekal Vidyalaya

A mass-movement to bring the light of education to India’s deprived

A Talk on Ekal Vidyalaya

Place: L-15

Date: October 11, 2022

Time: 6.15 PM

ABOUT EKAL VIDYALAYA AND THE TALK

All are cordially welcome to hear the story of The Ekal Vidyalaya Movement which is bringing the light of education to 77,000+ villages located in all parts of India. The Movement provides five years of free, non-formal education to children from the age group 6–14 years. Around half of the students and teachers are females, and about a fifth of the students go on to pursue higher education, some of which return to serve the Ekal Foundation. A typical school has 30 to 40 students taught by a local youth who has been specifically trained for teaching. A local organizer looks after a “sub-cluster” of 10 schools. Local people are also involved in the operations. The entire organizational structure is designed to keep operational costs as low as possible. Classes can be held under a tree, or in a hut. Informal modes of teaching are also used. These include storytelling, folk dramas, folk songs, and discourses on self-improvement. Along with literacy, Ekal Vidyalaya schools also impart education in values, hygiene, responding to common diseases, importance of maternal and child care, and sustainable farming. The single-teacher school model as run by Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation has been praised by several state governments and social organizations in India for its contribution towards literacy and empowerment in rural and tribal India. Today, the Foundation runs more than 77,000 schools, teachers 21 lakh students. Till so far, it has positively impacted the lives of over 10 crore children, The presenter about the movement will be Dr. A. S. Prasad, Kanpur’s foremost orthopedist, a social entrepreneur, and President of Ekal Kanpur.