Against the odds

Imagine a world where the ideals of John Lennon’s classic ‘Imagine’ become more than just lyrics – where inclusion stands as the foundation of our collective existence. Amidst the resounding declarations found in documents, manifestos, and policies worldwide, acknowledging the indispensable role of inclusion in shaping an equitable and peaceful world, an important question that seeks our attention is: How inclusive are we actually in our everyday lives?

In this section, let us look at how organizations across the country are thriving to make quality ECCE available to those who are easily excluded. These organizations are rising above the challenges to ensure equal access and opportunities for children who are often overlooked owing to the difficult circumstances that they have to endure including socioeconomic disadvantages, language or cultural barriers, physical or cognitive impairments, as well as challenging geographical and weather conditions.

Illuminating futures

Established in 2017, Vision Empower (VE) is a charitable trust that was started to make senior grade-level science and mathematics education available to children with visual impairments. Vidhya, one of the co-founders of VE is the first blind student to study math at the higher secondary level in Karnataka and the first blind student to pursue a computer science major at the university level. However, upon graduating, Vidhya faced difficulties in securing an appropriate job due to lack of STEM (Science, Technology Engineering, and Mathematics) knowledge. VE was thus founded by like minded individuals who felt strongly about the lack of equitable access to STEM education for the visually impaired, and about the use of technology for designing inclusive solutions. This was also backed by the findings of the thorough problem-analysis research conducted by the team, which pointed at the lack of accessible content, lack of adequately trained teachers, and lack of affordable assistive technologies available to children with disabilities, especially, visual impairment.

Over the years, VE has placed a strong emphasis on developing effective solutions to help blind students grasp math and science concepts. As a first step, tactile diagrams and 3D models which are well known effective approaches used to teach children with visual impairments were developed. Next, since most of the teachers of the visually impaired also have similar impairment and find themselves in difficult positions of overcoming twice the challenge, the organization focused on the capacity building of the teachers. Then, VE began to create games and play tools that teach computational thinking skills to students.

Eventually, VE stepped into the digital literacy realm and started conducting research on assistive technologies for education. All of these approaches taken by the organization are research-backed and are planned and implemented with the support of various experts.

Initially, VE began working with children attending grades 4 – 6 across nine schools in Karnataka. However, eventually it was realized that children were finding it difficult to grasp even simple concepts. A root cause analysis of this led to the revelation that more often than not, parents of visually impaired children lack awareness on how to help their children appropriately, especially in the early years. Parents focus more on getting their children treated than on their other developmental requirements, which leads to a lack of school-readiness with foundational skills development among the children. Moreover, the programs and services available in the ECE space also are not very inclusive towards children with disabilities. These programs do not pay heed to the lack of incidental learning and are only suited for children with sight.

So even if the parents are aware, they lack resources that are required for their child’s appropriate and equitable development. The delay in the desired cognitive capabilities, lack of motor skills, and the time lost in cluelessness puts the children in a place of disadvantage and the lag keeps on increasing as they progress through grades. In fact, learning of Braille also starts late due to the lack of a strong foundation, which is one of the most important sources of learning and accessibility for visually impaired people.

Realizing these and understanding the need for filling these gaps, VE has created an accessible ECE program to help children to be at par with their sighted peers in the school going age group. Supriya, co-founder and managing trustee, VE, shares that it is important to start working with visually impaired children from the time of birth. She says that, “As a strategy, we focus on replacing visual learning with other sensory means of learning such as touch, hearing, and smell.”

Currently, the ECE program of VE is in the pilot phase where activities are being designed for the 3-6 age group in the following areas of development: fine motor and gross motor skills, cognitive, language, socialization, vision, compensatory, and self-help. Just like the other focus areas and solutions designed by VE, the ECE program too is aligned with various national and international best practices and recommendations such as the Pratham Balwadi Manual, the Expanded Core Curriculum, and the Oregon Project Guidelines.

Supriya shares that, “To overcome the challenges of lack of incidental learning, children are deliberately introduced to the contextual information in which they reside through verbal descriptions.” Pictures and diagrams are also replaced with tactile versions along with pre-created alternative texts to describe the visual representation at the comprehension level of the child. Through these effective strategies, VE hopes to strengthen the foundational skills that will be required by the visually impaired children to grasp higher grade knowledge with ease, so that their future opportunities are at par with their sighted peers.

It is VE’s belief that children with visual impairment or other disabilities, have equal potential but need accommodations, accessible teaching methods, and artifacts. For this, the educator must also be empowered to understand a child’s specific disability and to use multi-sensory teaching methods and materials that are accessible specifically to the child.

With its ground-breaking yet viable solutions, VE is trying to change the education landscape for visually impaired children one step at a time. The team at VE urges various actors including the government, the schools, and other educational organizations to create educational content and program design which is inherently inclusive. For this, they suggest that efforts should be made to include children with disabilities in mainstream education, providing necessary support, while raising awareness about their capabilities and ensuring equal opportunities in subject choices. Emphasizing empowerment through knowledge and experiential learning rather than solely meeting basic needs will further enhance inclusive education efforts.

Similar to how Vision Empower was created with support from Vidhya, it would be beneficial to also include people with disabilities in the dialogues related to providing services for them. It is only after understanding their experiences and needs comprehensively that solutions can be made inherently and impactfully inclusive!

Revolution through innovation

Using the technical expertise of its team, and that with the support of other experts, Vision Empower has jointly built a technological solution called Hexis-Antara which combines an electronic Braille book reader called Hexis with an accessible content management platform called Antara.

This innovative solution converts content in any vernacular language to Braille instantly, allowing for on-demand accessibility. Whether it’s books, school notes, or multiple-choicequestion assessments, Hexis-Antara aims to foster a love for learning in the reader while eliminating the expensive and time-consuming process of printing Braille books. Hexis, specifically designed for students, operates on battery power, and can be used for 5-6 days without needing to be recharged.

By utilizing the Antara platform, caregivers can easily generate and share content with the Hexis reader, making educational resources more accessible to students. Additionally, they can monitor their child’s progress through the analytics provided by the Antara Platform, thus democratizing access to educational content.

Of resilience and hope

In the early 2000s, a group of social work students formed the Jammu & Kashmir Association of Social Workers (JKASW) to bring positive change into the lives of marginalized communities in Jammu & Kashmir (J&K). They aimed to utilize their professional skills and involve young individuals in public institutions to create a better future for vulnerable communities. JKASW was officially registered as a public charitable trust in 2006, symbolizing their belief in the power of collective efforts and professionalism through their logo, which represents the core idea of “Together We Can.”

JKASW adopts a multi-pronged approach to address the multidimensional issues faced by children. They work in areas such as Child Education, Child Protection, Advocacy, and Adolescent Engagement, and Health & Hygiene. By engaging with various stakeholders, including grassroots communities, government, and nongovernment organizations, JKASW fosters linkages and advocates for policy changes. In their education program, they focus on Early Childhood Education (ECE), Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN), Out of School Children (OoSC), Supplementary Learning and School Transformation. Their reach extends across the entire union territory (UT) of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), with direct outreach to over 105,000 children in 11 districts and systemic-level interventions benefiting over 6 lakh children across the UT.

Working in the Jammu & Kashmir region poses significant challenges due to recurring instability caused by politics, conflict, and unfavourable weather conditions. These disruptions in schools result in learning loss, knowledge gaps, and hindered academic progress, especially for children aged 3-6. Disruptions during this critical stage affects lifelong development, including social and emotional growth. Consequently, there is a concerning rate of dropouts, with over 93,000 children between 6 to 18 years found out of school in 2022, according to the ongoing ‘Talaash’ survey conducted by the Department of Education, Jammu & Kashmir. Research highlights that weak foundational skills and a lack of relatability with learning content contribute to these dropouts.

Moreover, educators also face persistent challenges that lead to demotivation, as they constantly need to adapt teaching methods, navigate disruptions, and address the emotional well-being of students amidst chaotic circumstances. Additionally, inadequate infrastructure, textbook shortages, limited internet connectivity, and restricted access to technology further hamper the availability of educational resources, impacting the overall learning experience for both teachers and students.

The team at JKASW works tirelessly to address these challenges in a holistic and sustainable manner. For this, a very strong focus is laid upon strengthening the ECCE program, such that the foundational level is fortified for the children, and they are able to retain their interests, and learning levels through the higher grades. The work in the ECCE program is done at both the ground level as well as the systemic level.

JKASW has been actively providing technical expertise and support to the ICDS department. They have reviewed and aligned the ‘Nanhe Kadam’ ECCE curriculum with NEP 2020, ensuring its compliance and effectiveness at the UT level. Alongside this, JKASW has conducted capacity building programs for master trainers, equipping them with the necessary skills to effectively implement the curriculum and address learning gaps resulting from regional instability. The training goes beyond curriculum orientation, focusing on drawing solutions from policy recommendations and frameworks.

Trainers receive hands-on, experiential training to enhance their understanding of how to deliver the curriculum in the field. In addition to these initiatives, JKASW has developed age appropriate activity books to complement the curriculum and has provided support for the launch and implementation of UNICEF’s UniLearn ECCE E-learning course. These comprehensive efforts by JKASW benefit both the enrolled children and the functionaries involved in early childhood education in Jammu and Kashmir, aiming to improve the overall quality of education and bridge learning gaps in the region.

Working intensively with 1,252 AWCs and 25 Government preprimary schools for ECCE, JKASW has witnessed a remarkable shift in the educational landscape. Ambreen Bashir, State Resource Person – ECCE, JKASW, highlights the transformation, stating, “Earlier, AWCs operated for just an hour each day for nutrition purposes, lacking any form of educational activities. But now, even when nutritional supply is unavailable, parents send their children with tiffins from home to ensure consistent learning.” This attitudinal shift among parents showcases the positive impact of JKASW’s intervention, fostering increased parental engagement and support for their children’s education.

However, the situation before the beginning of JKASW’s ECCE intervention was extremely daunting. The first challenge faced by the organization was to bring the AWCs to a better shape to inspire learning. These centres had long been neglected and the infrastructure was deteriorating by the day. The next step was to inspire caregivers, including Anganwadi Workers (AWWs) and parents, about the importance of early childhood development and the consequences of neglecting it. To achieve this, the organization formed Anganwadi Support Groups with participation from the local communities. These groups were trained to mobilize the entire community, ensure regular attendance of all children in classes, and raise awareness about the significance of ECCE. AWWs received comprehensive training to enhance their technical and soft skills, enabling them to meet children’s needs effectively. The organization also prioritizes regular resource development to maintain a diverse and up-to-date repertoire of teaching materials and tools.

JKASW has dedicated itself towards providing a semblance of stability in the domain of education. For instance, following the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019, the state witnessed a wave of protests, which led to the shutdown of schools and colleges. This situation worsened once the COVID-19 pandemic hit the country and lockdown was imposed. To ensure continuity in learning during the lockdown, JKASW developed a digital home-based learning package that prioritized children’s social and emotional development. These activities incorporated local songs and rhymes and could be done using materials readily available at home. Home visits were conducted to address the challenge posed by the lack of smartphones in many households, providing demonstrations and engaging children in play-based activities. These visits not only engaged the children socially and emotionally, but also acted as demonstrations for parents.

Another initiative, the Anganshala HomeBased Learning Program, delivered tailored learning packages to preprimary children through Education Fellows recruited from local communities. The program reached over 11,000 children across 1,050 focus areas. Additionally, as AWCs reopened, playbased transitional learning was provided for children coming to AWCs for the first time ever, and a three-month school readiness program, Vidya Pravesh – under the aegis of the NIPUN Bharat Mission, was implemented for children directly entering schools, without any AWC-learning. By adapting activities to home environments, conducting home visits, and implementing specialized programs, JKASW has demonstrated a strong commitment to sustaining learning and supporting the holistic development of children. The organization has not just been successful in mobilizing the AWWs to perform better but has also done the same with parents. Even after the AWCs’ reopening, the parents are interested in being included in the developmental process for their children and are requesting resources for the same.

In a region fraught with challenges, where it would be all too easy to overlook the needs of children amidst the myriad difficulties, JKASW stands tall as a champion for their cause. With unwavering commitment, they choose to fight for these children, recognizing their worth and including them in a vision for a better future. By focusing on ECCE, they set the stage for lifelong learning, empowering children with the skills, knowledge, and confidence they need to succeed academically and personally. JKASW’s perseverance, adaptability, and determination proves that education not only survives but thrives even in the most adverse circumstances.

To breathe freely

‘To breathe freely’ is the meaning of the word ‘Avaniti’, also the name of an organization based in the Dhamtari district of the Chhattisgarh state, working towards enabling the meaning of this word for the people they are working for. The organization is engaging with the government’s early education system, with an aim of making quality early learning available to children, especially those coming from the disadvantaged sections and tribal communities. The organization defines its vision as – “A society where every child’s voice and ways of learning are respected”.

Avaniti is currently working with a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG), the Kamar tribe who are nestled along the foothills and deep forests of southern Chhattisgarh. The Kamar people have a rich cultural heritage and are known for their distinct traditions, shifting cultivation practices and basketry work. However, despite being the original inhabitants of the region, in recent years, the Kamar tribe has faced various socioeconomic challenges, including access to basic fundamental rights, such as healthcare, education, and sustainable livelihood opportunities.

When Avaniti began working in 2018, there were no Anganwadi Centres (AWCs) in any of the Kamar dominated villages, and any form of government or private ECCE services had been missing for generations. In fact, to date there are no AWCs in these villages. As for primary schools, the access is also very limited especially for the children from Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. Naturally, the dropout rate among children from the Kamar community is as high as >90% and happens as early as in the 6th grade.

To address these issues, Avaniti initiated work with the Kamar community with an approach that involves children in their learning, and to provide a supportive environment for them to freely express themselves. The organization’s first step was to build a comfort zone and trust with the community, given that the general treatment that they get from society is more often than not, quite hostile. Krishna and Ashwini, Co-founders of Avaniti share, “It was of the utmost importance for us to build a relationship of trust, and we did so by respecting them and their cultures, by having curiosity to know about their practices… We partake in their cultural activities and celebrations, we normalize their food habits – things that they are looked down upon for by the outside world.”

In terms of the programs, the first program started by Avaniti is called ‘Phoolbati’, which focuses on the issue of access. It is named so after the first and the only girl from the community who managed to study up to the 12th standard. This program is implemented in collaboration with various important stakeholders including the community, the primary school, the gram panchayats, etc. to empower the community and make them aware about the need, and importance of education, through community based interventions.

For this, Avaniti has established community-owned learning centres in villages that are deprived of any kind of preschool, including government anganwadis. Through such an intervention, the community is eventually empowered to take charge and advocate for their own rights – to ask for AWCs and schools to be set up in their villages to start with. In just three-four years, the Phoolbati Program has ignited a spark, and an AWC has already been sanctioned for one of the villages while conversations on others have started between the stakeholders.

The second program is called ‘Ujood’, which means – a new ray in the Kamari language – one which is unfortunately on the verge of extinction. The focus of this program is to strengthen the existing AWCs since even till day, the orientation of many AWWs about an AWC is it being limited to a nutrition centre, and the ECCE component is almost completely missing. This means that the children do not have the desired cognitive, social, and emotional and physical developmental skills. This was highlighted in the ASER 2019 ‘Early Years’ report which stated that >30% children within the early age group lack these skills. In order to change this environment, the Ujood Program focuses on the capacity building of ICDS functionaries, wherein the first and most important step is to work on changing the perceptions of the teacher towards a child – how they look at a child, and their thoughts on a child’s capabilities. This is done with the belief that it’s only once the perception improves that the pedagogy improves too.

All of Avaniti’s efforts, as stated above, are built around the child-led idea of learning, and therefore, all the projects follow context-based and child-led learning (CBCL) approach. This means that all curriculum and pedagogy is designed by asking the children what they want to learn. The TLMs are also made in a contextual manner, using locally available materials, which are often made by the children themselves. Another guiding factor for all the projects is to bring in the contexts of each of the various communities within the tribe. Unfortunately, there do not exist many books or reference materials aligned to these contexts, and therefore, Avaniti has taken up the mammoth task of recording these experiences in the form of stories to create books out of them.

Krishna and Ashwini explain, “If TLMs and reference materials are not contextually relevant, the Anganwadi teachers mostly do not understand what to do with them, and the children are also unable to respond to them, which defeats the purpose of learning. It is noteworthy that the lives and experience of these tribes vary across the settlements, and so even a Chhattisgarh-based general context also does not have much relevance.”

This approach has also helped Avaniti mobilize the entire community and create a momentum wherein everyone participates in identifying and creating learning resources for children, making learning more contextual and fun for children. Such an approach of taking each community’s unique experience and context into account not only makes learning relevant but can also help create an archive of sorts which would help generations of learners as well as prevent extinction of a unique and rich culture.

It is interesting to understand how Avaniti came up with their action plan. The idea for the organization was to first conduct a unique participatory needs-analysis where children themselves are interviewed thoroughly, among other stakeholders. These were primary-level children, ones who had missed out completely on AWC-level learning and went straight into schools but had dropped out very early.

When asked about the reason for dropping out, the most common responses were about the kind of ill-treatment they received from their peers and sometimes teachers on the pretext of their cultural habits and practices, the long distances they had to travel to get to schools, and the fact that they would not really understand what was being taught. Following this, the children were asked what kind of schooling they want, for which the responses were around wanting to learn through play, and to have centres of learning closer to their homes. In fact, some children also expressed their longing to visit an anganwadi and play, as they have never had the opportunity to do so due to the absence of anganwadis in their village. Taking these into account, Avaniti designed the Phoolbati and Ujood programs.

When the first batch of children from the two community-owned learning centres located in two villages supported by Avaniti went to primary school, they met the teachers to understand if they could see any difference, given that the children prior to this batch had not received any formal ECE training. While the teacher could not pinpoint it, they said that these children were ‘different’ in comparison with the previous batches.

The team at Avaniti has noticed changes among the children in terms of their confidence levels, the children talk confidently, they ask questions, they ask questions to their school teacher, and especially, the dramatic improvement of the socio-emotional skills, which has been much beyond their expectations.

Avaniti encounters a multitude of challenges despite their remarkable impact on the ground. Firs, due to the community’s heavy reliance on forests, children often accompany their families for days in search of resources. This disrupts their learning and hampers the momentum that is created after months of effort.

Second, the absence of full-fledged AWCs in the region results in inadequate nutrition, directly impeding the children’s developmental progress. Then, as mentioned previously, due to the dearth of resources available in the Kamari language, the outreach of the organization becomes limited. It is also difficult for the organization to find people from within the local community to join their programs. Since the Kamar population is quite dispersed geographically without any mobile network coverage and the AWCs are too far off, it becomes difficult to access the centres frequently, especially during the months experiencing heavy monsoon.

Moreover, the government’s disproportionate emphasis on the nutrition aspect of the AWCs, rather than ECCE, presents a hurdle for organizations like Avaniti to sustain their efforts, and benefit from any systemiclevel inputs and efforts towards improving the quality of early learning. And most importantly, the biggest challenge the organization faces is towards shifting the perception of the teachers, to make them think beyond the traditional methods of teaching where punishment is seen as key toward making children learn. Avaniti believes that in order for any organization to achieve significant progress, regardless of their field or location, it is crucial to avoid a standardized approach and instead prioritize understanding the unique context and seeking alternative solutions. Krishna and Ashwini emphasize the importance of patience, recognizing that meaningful changes require time, and staying committed to one’s philosophy and chosen path without frequent deviations.

Avaniti’s work with the Kamar tribe is a beacon of hope and inclusion. By respecting the tribe’s cultural heritage and empowering children to express themselves, Avaniti is creating an environment where every voice is valued. Their child-led approach provides quality education while fostering a sense of belonging. Avaniti inspires us to imagine a future where all children have equal opportunities to thrive and breathe freely.

Conclusion

In this exploration, we have witnessed the unwavering commitment of organizations across the country striving to provide quality Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) to marginalized children who often face numerous obstacles. By overcoming various challenges and barriers, these organizations are striving to ensure equal access and opportunities for all children, regardless of their background or circumstances.

Their tireless efforts serve as an inspiration and a call to action for us to prioritize inclusion in our society. By embracing diversity, breaking down barriers, and fostering equitable educational opportunities, we can create a future where every individual is valued and empowered. Let us join hands in championing inclusive education and building a world where the ideals of inclusivity and equal access to education become a tangible reality for all children, regardless of their background or circumstances.

End Notes