In Nia Nangla, an education revolution is enriching many students’ lives, as well as preventing girls from being prematurely married off. Nia Nangla, with a population of 1,500, has various schooling options to cater to the needs of children and youth in 35 nearby villages. One of these options is The Universal Academy School, located in a Muslim-dominated village, which provides approximately 200 students the opportunity to become fluent in English and participate in many other education-based programs.
Universal Academy is a venture of Educomp Solutions, an education company, with the mission of empowering education in rural villages. When it first began, the school was housed in rented accommodation and faced much hostility from local villagers, but today it has transformed into a beautiful center for learning including a library, science laboratories, a playground and band rehearsal classes for students.
By employing innovative methods, Universal Academy is helping all students learn, even those who may initially struggle, through use of peer teaching which enhances the knowledge of students and makes classes more interactive, said G.R. Patil, principal of Universal Academy.
The teachers undergo training in workshops to enhance their teaching skills, as well as interacting with teaching experts who visiting the school bi-monthly to provide training and support.
To promote motivation, students are taken to school meets where they interact with peers from other city-based schools to help them assess their own knowledge. “Students from our schools participate in cluster school exhibitions, seminars. All this adds to their knowledge,” said Patil.
Saija Afridi, a student who is now fluent in English, comments, “After seeing the level of education in our school, many students from the government and private schools have joined Universal Academy.”
Another student Eshan confesses, “Whatever I have learned here in Class 6 was never taught in the government school where I studied earlier. I find the education system of this school poles apart from that in other schools.”
The project head of Universal Academy of Schools Anuradha Sinha states, “We were aware of the poor quality of education in such interior areas. It is shameful that despite there being so many schools in the village, youth were uneducated and had to struggle to earn a living when they went out to seek work.”
“We aim to bring out changes in the way education is being provided in the rural areas,” she added.
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Written by Ashleigh Brown