NGO ಗಳ ಸಹಯೋಗದೊಂದಿಗೆ ಪ್ರಾರಂಭಿಸಲಾದ ಕಾರ್ಯಕ್ರಮಗಳು

 'My Library for a Better Me' Key Skills for every Child - by Children’s Movement for Civic Awareness (CMCA)

As a part of the Oduva Belaku Programme, CMCA started My Library for a Better Me - a citizenship and life skill programme for children in 55 Panchayat libraries in Tumkur and Ramanagara. Children in the age group of 11 to 17 years, enrol into the 3-year programme and visit libraries where trained CMCA mentors are available once a week to guide and inspire children. Children get to select from a range of activities on citizenship and life skills which they can take home and do. Adequate choice, flexibility, agency & autonomy is available to the child even as mentors guide them to select activities across the key outcomes and set goals for completion. In addition to individual reflective activities, children will form “Together for Change” project-action groups and learn about their community and in turn the issues that concern them, doing surveys, talking to local experts, conducting interviews etc creating awareness and seeking solutions. Mentor ensures parental consent and safety. Children will also attend periodic talks, interactions with resource persons like CEOs, Forest Officer, police department, panchayat heads, business owners, social entrepreneurs, etc. - to deepen their learning journey. Talks / workshops to support parents, and involvement of other stakeholders have also been woven into the design.

Read Aloud Programme - by Adhyayan Foundation

Adhyayan Foundation, in collaboration with the Karnataka Panchayat Raj Commissionerate, launched its Read-Aloud Training Programme, Level 1 for library supervisors in Kodagu and Bengaluru Urban districts in May 2022. The purpose of the programme is to train the library supervisors to conduct read-aloud sessions in their libraries to attract children to the Gram Panchayat libraries and infuse them with the joy of reading. Twelve library supervisors from each of the two districts have been designated as Master Facilitators. They, in turn, will train the other library supervisors in their district to conduct read-aloud sessions. Each of these Master Facilitators will go through 3 levels of training.

Adhyayan Foundation has been running a similar programme in Goa as well. After seeing a tweet by Adhyayan about the Goa programme, ACS Smt.Uma Mahadevan-Dasgupta,IAS who is passionate about reading and libraries, was inspired to introduce the same in Karnataka.

Being read aloud to is one of the most important activities for young children. There is much evidence that children who are read to regularly show greater sophistication in the usage of language. Books also contribute to higher levels of cognition as stories teach children about sequencing, visualisation, problem-solving, cause and effect and prediction. Stories also help children reflect on moral values and teach them valuable life lessons. The NEP 2020 and the Nipun Bharat Mission both endorse this practice wholeheartedly.

The library supervisors have received strong support from the Zilla Panchayat officials and have enthusiastically started conducting sessions in the Gram Panchayat libraries on Saturdays. The WhatsApp groups that have been created to support the library supervisors in this endeavour are abuzz with photos and videos of these sessions. The happy smiling faces of the children in these photos are testimony to the success of this programme. As news of this programme spreads, we hope to see more children benefit from this programme.

Panchayat Libraries as Learning (Kalika) Centers - by India Literacy Project.

The project focussed on empowerment of rural youth is implemented in 10 Gram Panchayats of Gubbi Taluk, Tumkuru district.

Project Goals

1. Child Friendly Libraries for children of classes 4-10
1. Enable children in government schools attain improved reading levels and practices that in turn would enable them with skills for subject reading and comprehension.
2. This will be achieved through a collaborative initiative with the Panchayat Libraries for the benefit of children in the communities and those attending government schools.
2. Career Guidance Program for Students of Classes 9-12
1. Enable high school children in government schools to make informed choices of their careers and create career paths.

Under the programme, 350+ child friendly colour coded books, in English, Kannada & bi-lingual and Career Guidance kits with charts and career planners, attendance registers for tracking children, have been added to the Gram Panchayat Libraries. On a regular basis 470 children are attending the 10 Libraries.

Empowering rural youth through Career Exposure, through Gram Panchayat Libraries- India Literacy Project

India Literacy Project has, in collaboration with Kalyan Karnataka Region, Office of the Addl. CPI and DELL Technologies is implementing the Skilling Project for rural high school students in 1200+ HPS and HS of the 7 districts of Bidar, Kalaburagi, Yadgir, Raichur, Koppal, Ballari and Vijayanagara, through Computer education (ICT), digital smart classes (Digital content in TALP Schools) and Career exposure and guidance for enabling them make informed career choices.

Owing to closure of schools and colleges during Covid pandemic there has been very limited or no access to online classes and learning for rural children, adolescents and specifically rural youth. Given this situation, to support the students who are pursuing higher education, it was decided that initiatives will be taken to the community through the Gram Panchayat Libraries. In consultation with RDPR, KKR and DELL it was decided that the Career Exposure program will be introduced in all the 1200+ Gram Panchayat Libraries in the 7 said districts.

The Career Kit developed by India Literacy project and approved by the Education Department (presently Teachers and students in over 2000+ schools in KN have been oriented on the Career program) is now being made available to 1200+ GP libraries and training to all the Librarians. As on date Yadgir and Koppal districts have been covered under this program and this month the supply and Training will be completed in all the other 5 districts – Taluk Wise.

In the Career Exposure session the Librarians focus on the various career options available and what it takes to get there. This will be done using ILP’s career chart and career book. Beyond explaining careers available, the librarians would bring groups of students/adolescents so that they can use the career book and additional details to understand more about the careers they have chosen. Students discuss among themselves, ask questions, and get clarity on their top 3 career choices and how to get there.

The Career kit comprises of the following:

1. Career chart – a 6’x4’ cloth chart that is mounted on the wall of the Library with details of academic courses, NGO Vocational training etc, the eligibility, duration and other such important information.
2. Career book/Planner – This book in Kannada and English provides details of 100+ various occupations/vocations, the aptitude required, description of the work environment etc.
3. Chatbot No: 9384880336 that is interactive in over 6 languages including Kannada for students to get more information about the Career of their choice!

STE (A) M Education in GP Libraries in Partner with Yuva Chintana Foundation (YCF) funded by RDPR Dept.

The emphasis of this programme is hands-on, activity-based learning that helps students build a 21st century mind-set, have access to technology and digital tools that make them a part of the developing world and learn computational thinking methods to enable them to become creative problem solvers. This process is underway in 70 GPLs across Yadgir and Koppal district in the Kalyan Karnataka region for a duration of six months as part of a pilot programme titled STE (A)M-Ed. The programme is built around the dissemination of a curriculum, which seeks to meaningfully connect the sciences, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STEAM) in a manner that encourages students and facilitators to:

1) Engage with libraries,

2) Experience activity/ project-based-learning,

3) Develop a 21st century mindset and creative problem solving skills, and

4) Learn how to use digital tools

The curriculum is being evaluated along three core domains:

Activities conducted

GMeet session on SCRATCH coding

Artefact made by library supervisors and teachers during the Yadgir orientation workshop

Artefact made by Library supervisor during the Koppal orientation workshop using electronics kit to

Artefacts made by students from Anapur GPL in Gurmitkal block of Yadgir district from the Arts module of the STE(A)M-Ed handbook

Sharanamma, Library Supervisor and Rajyamma, Govt. school teacher, Kalbelagundi Gram Panchayat Library, Yadgir taluk, often work together on the curriculum to give their students a hands-on understanding of computers, they went on a field trip. “Their library does not have a computer, nor does their local school. So the teachers took students to a computer training institute in their library proximity to show them the different parts of a computer,” says Chandra Kala, Block Officer, YCF, Yadgir taluk.

Facebook community for library supervisors and government school teachers.

Two orientation workshops have been conducted for 140 library supervisors and government school teachers in both Yadgir and Koppal district in the months of January and April, 2022, respectively. 6,150 students have been onboarded to the programme from both districts. Library supervisors and teachers attend weekly hand-holding sessions in which they are given activities that they have to share with their students. Library supervisors are encouraged to simultaneously share their own experiences in print form for a monthly wall magazine and a Facebook Community Group and in audio form as podcasts on Google. This exercise is meant to give them exposure to some of the several digital tools available to them online through their smart devices. The intention is to empower teachers and library supervisors with the content and pedagogical tools they need to act as true media experts and guides so that they are equipped to support student ingenuity in all its varied forms.

First issue of the STE (A)M-Ed wall magazine

Long-term Objectives

The curriculum has been visualised in three stages over a period of seven years as part of a long-term, consistent engagement with students from government schools in some of Karnataka’s most backward districts.

The first stage focuses on play and an exploration of how technology works through play. This stage focuses on inculcating a sense of enjoyment of the whole process of learning. It consists of activities, worksheets, theatre exercises and project-based explorations of technology that solve specific problems that are identified by the students themselves, among other things.

The second stage focuses on helping students become passionate about a subject of their choice  by honing skills that have been developed in the first phase. This stage consists of giving students a more in-depth understanding of the hardware that makes electronic devices work and offering them a chance to design their own hardware. It introduces them on how codes for computer and phone applications are done, among other things, culminating in a number of projects for which students are required to create working prototypes of their ideas.

The third and final stage help students develop a sense of purpose by helping them organise portfolios in preparation for their applications to colleges and universities. This is an important stage as it gives direction to all the rigor and dedication that these students display in the classroom and it will help them achieve the best possible outcome in their efforts to study further. This segment will help students communicate their ideas with clarity and precision. If they have been a part of this seven-year vertical growth cycle from the start then it is at this stage that their ideas will reflect their sophisticated grasp of higher-order thinking and problem-solving skills. 

This entire seven year process is meant to help prepare students for 21st century careers and help build their interest and awareness of STEAM careers and opportunities within their regions. It is also meant to develop library spaces into community-centric hubs of learning, experimentation and discourse on a range of topics that are important for them as a whole be it environmental problems, migration, issues surrounding child rights and labour, among other things.