Paathshala work updation-7 Oct, 2010 [2nd October celebration]

We celebrated Mahatma Gandhi Jayanti and Lal Bahudar Shastri Jayanti in our Paathshala with our students.

We made teams and organized a contest between them for making different things out of "Mould coloured clay". Students shown their full creativity and we all enjoyed a lot.
Check out some of the pics of 2nd October Celebration at Paatshala.

Welcome Speech-For telling the imp.of the day

One team- Kajal, Laxmi and Shekhar

Teachers involved with students

Clay made things

Its a house- fan, chair, table, bed

Different kitchen stuff

Temple- Flowers, Shivling, etc.

Shekhar made Star

Winners of the clay competition

School bag as prize

 It was really a different kind of experience and we all enjoyed a lot.

Paathshala work updation-17 Aug, 2010 [Independence Day celebration]

We celebrated Independence Day in our Paathshala with lots of fun and both , students and Koshish team members, enjoyed a lot.

A drawing competetion was organized and students were asked to draw our National flag as well any other thing of their choice. Small prizes were also distributed to the winners. Some motivating videos were also displayed to them. Then , there was a small snack party also. Check the pics!

Drawing competetion

Paathshala teacher guiding them

Paathshala students- Chandni and Shivani

Teacher guidance

Chandni''s little brother

Consoling her brother

Students showing their drawings

Students displaying their drawings

Prize distribution-Winner Shivani

Prize distribution-Winner Nanu

 

Winner Chandni

Winner Sonam

Our teacher stitiching Flag to student

Paathshala student- Neha

Students watching motivating videos

Jai Hind

Our group-(from left)Sumit, Vishu, Swati Agg., Swati, Amit and Sukriti

Cheers to our Koshish team members- Vishu, Swati, Amit, Sumit, Sanjeev bhatt, Swati Diwebedi and Sukriti. Keep it up guys...:)

PROUD TO BE AN INDIAN

Paathshala work updation-13 Aug, 2010 [Previous released date]

This weekend, try to do something useful that will help others to make a difference in their's life. Or you can join us to celebrate Independence Day in  Paathshala.

This Sunday, we plan to celebrate the Independence Day in our Paathshala. We will show some motivating videos and organize some sort of drawing competition there.

Our Paatshala is going good and we have 8-9 students there of different age. We now started teaching them Maths along with Hindi. Students are now getting interested in studying with time. Some construction work got started in our previous Paathshala place so ,we have shifted our Paathshala from that place to a nearby park. Check the recent pics of Paathshala.

Our teacher- Vikas Verma

  

Our teacher- Vishu and Swati

Paathshala

                                                           

Each teacher of Paathshala teach 2-3 students individually. As level of students varies and also in absence of proper infrastructure (like class room and black board etc.), it is the best way of teaching the students as of now.

 

15 edition- 28 July, 2010 [released date]

Big Problems, Simple Solutions

One of the major problems prevailing in India is “Water Scarcity”. Many a times in our childhood some or all of us must have made posters on water conservation. “Jal Ji Jeevan Hai”, “Save Water For A Better Tomorrow”, slogans like these are very common among children. But at Koshish we always look forward for a solution oriented attempt. So this time we have come up with an attempt which can, although little, be a solution to this problem.

“Save water from your Air-conditioner”

Brief description:

R Viswanathan, a retired mechanical engineer with Hindustan Teleprinters, has identified air conditioner as a vital appliance for water conservation.

 “In airconditioning units, the cooling coils not only cool the air passing around them, but also cause moisture in the air to condense. The condensate (water) is collected in a tray and channelled out through a drain or allowed to drop on the ground. This water is usually wasted. This can be collected and reused,” says Viswanathan.

People may not be open to drinking such water, but when he tested this water in his lab and it was found to be on a par with distilled water,”

A one-tonne air-conditioner produces two litres of water every hour, which means 16 litres over eight hours. That’s enough to wash your utensils, if you don’t have a garden to boast of.

Personal Experience:

One cognizant associate read this news and he brought this to the notice of Cognizant administration. Cognizant administration and the guy worked on this and now it is successfully implemented in one of the building of CTS in which there are AHU units producing 161 litres of water every day. Cognizant set up the infrastructure by spending just  ` 9000 to use this water for gardening.

What can be done:

When water scarcity is prevalent across the country, collection and reuse of water from air conditioners can help conserve thousands of litres of water in every neighbourhood.

A senior Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (CMWSSB) official said that the idea could be implemented in individual houses. “In big apartments and commercial complexes, it may involve some cost to lay pipes.

You can also work with your admin departments to utilize the water produced by the ACs in your company for some useful purpose. The cost required to set up infrastructure would be very less and soon there will be Return on Investment. :)

This idea was shared by one of our readers, Priyanka Arora who is working in Cognizant, Pune.

Thanks Priyanka for sharing such a nice idea with us.

Please share your viewpoint with us.

NOTE: Our "Paathshala" is going good and will update you soon in next edition.

Thanks

Regards

The News Mug Group

 
                               DON'T BE A SPECTATOR, BE AN ACTOR

Paathshala work updation-28 May, 2010 [Birthday celebration]

Updation on "Koshish- a solution oriented attempts" activities: Our Paathshala is  doing well and the number of students has increased to 9 . Last to last weekend we also celebrated one of our friend, who teaches at the Paathshala, Naren Mehra's birthday with the children. We all enjoyed a lot and had a great time. So I am sharing some pics of that occasion

Birthday party- serving cake

 

 

Naren Mehra- cake ceremony

Paathshala class- study

Paathshala students

Paathshala group- teachers and students

You too can make a difference in some one 's life and that too without having to go somewhere far. You can just start by teaching your house maid's children or children living in the jhuggis near your home.

                DON'T BE A SPECTATOR, BE AN ACTOR

(its really enjoyable and make you feel proud ...)

14th edition- 13th May, 2010 [released date]

Big Problems, Simple Solutions

Fighting with the problem of “Illiteracy”, we came out with a new solution and i.e. Our own “Paathshala”.

 

Problem:

There are many girl children whose parents don’t allow them to go school because of many reasons. One reason that is somewhat valid too, is that the girl has to take care of her infant brother or sister at home as there is no one else to look after them as both mother and father has to go to work. In those cases, no point of ours is able to convince them to send their daughter to school. But these girls are really very much interested in studying but they have no means to fulfill their dreams.

Possible Solution:

We started our “Paathshala” in their area itself. Their parents got ready to send them there, as here they can come along with their little brother and sister and that too for just 1 or 2 hours.  We give toys or chocolates to those little children, so that they won’t disturb us much.

What’s all about this Paathshala.

Motive of this Paatshala: At the first step, the motive is to make these children at least capable enough to read and write basic things so that it helps them in their daily life. In the long run, if things work fine, then we can teach them some advanced stuffs which will help them in pursue some vocational or any education training  courses to enhance their means of earning.

What, when and how it does work:

We are trying to teach in a very simple manner. We bought some “writing books having dots” so that it helps them to connect and form the letters easily. We provided them basic study material. We are currently using a  flip chart as “Blackboard”.

This Paathshala was started three weeks back in a slum area of Sec-53, Noida by four people- Swati Khordia, Swati Aggarwal, Chittaranjan Nayak and Monika Bindal.

We teach them on weekend’s only for around 1-2  hour. At present we have six students in our Paathshala. Check out some of the attached pictures of our Paathshala.

Paathshala students

Swati- our teacher

Paathshala students

Chittaranjan- our teacher

 NOTE: In our Paathshala, we strictly teach only those children who don’t have any chance of going to the school. We refuse to teach those children who can go to school as our paathshala is no where an alternative for schools.

It’s just a “Koshish” to fulfill dreams (up to some level) of these children who don’t have other alternative.

How can you help?

Apart from joining us for this noble act, we need your help in carrying it forward in a better way.

As we are facing some problems, like how to teach them in a proper and efficient way, as they don’t know anything and have to be taught from scratch. As we will be creating the base of their education so we want to take utmost care so that nothing is taught in an unconventional and ad-hoc manner.

So it will be really helpful if someone could guide us on how to teach them in such a manner which is both easy and correct way to teach.

So if you know any person who is teaching in primary schools who can guide us or any useful article that could help us with the same then please come forward and share.

Updation on our regular activity: It’s just to inform you that these days’ exams are going in government schools and after that there will be summer vacations. So, probably in July, the school resumes again.

Please share your viewpoint with us.

Your one reply is very motivating and helpful for us.

Come forward to make a difference in somebody’s life.

Thanks

Regards

The News Mug Group

 

                                              DON'T BE A SPECTATOR, BE AN ACTOR

11th edition- 29th July, 2009

Big Problem, Simple Solutions

Continuing with one of the big problem of India, “Illiteracy”, we come up with some simple solutions to tackle with it:

Our experience:

After the summer vacations, we started visiting the government schools and the slum area or poor localities. In two weeks, we visited three government schools and two localities. Our analysis up to this point:

1. Most of the government school staffs are overloaded with work. They are assigned extra duties time to time, like these days they are assigned the duty of “Bal Jan Ganna” (Census of children).
2. They have to finish these duties within school hours.
Result: They are not able to take their classes regularly and properly.
3. Plus, they are not answerable to anybody for their teaching duties, so they don’t try to make much effort and they are not enthusiastic towards children education.

Result is that the very impression of government schools is made in the minds of the poor people and that is right up to good extent.

Moreover, they compare the government school with private school in terms of studies, discipline and status even.

Many children have their name registered in the schools but they are not going school as they parents don’t force them to go.

What’s the need of the time?
We have to improve the standards of the government schools and try to remove their bad impression from the minds of the people.

What’s the possible ways?

As we can’t change the government rules of assigning extra duties or can’t force the school staff to do their teaching duties well, we can do only what is in our hand.

Simple Solutions:
1. Try to give your little time (say 1-2 hr) during weekends to government school. Go and have a lecture their. Your one weekly lecture proves to be very helpful and motivated to the children.
2. Motivate your mother or wife, if they stay at home, to give their time to school, as per their convenience. If one lady of a colony starts doing this, it will surely motivate other ladies to follow the same steps.

We are not saying that NGOs are not doing anything or they are not helpful but their number is very less as compare to government schools. Almost in each and every sector or locality, there is a government school and most of the poor children are going there.


Try to locate a government school in your nearby locality and we also help you in doing this. Three government schools that we visited in Noida are:
1. Sec-53 , “Gijhor”
2. Sec-26, Behind Vinayak Hospital
3. Sec-27, beside Indra Market.

Will tell you about the location of other government schools soon.

Timings are: 7 am to 12 pm

If you have any doubt (small or big even), please clear it with us.

If we are able to improve the status of government school up to some extent, then believe us, “we surely make a big difference”

Thanks...

Regards,
The News Mug Group
DON'T BE A SPECTATOR, BE AN ACTOR

Koshish work updation- 13 Nov, 2009

In "Koshish-a solution oriented attempt", few more friends came forward and we, seven friends , went to the govt. school and taught there this time. We took three classes, 2nd, 3rd and 5th standard and taught them English and maths and discussed their problems.

It was a nice experience for all of us. This time , we are planning to expand our activities so that more kids benefit from it.

We request you all to give small time of yours to these activities and try to make a difference in some body's life.

If you have any query or doubt , you can ask us any time by mail or on phone.

12th edition- 29th Oct, 2009 [released date]

Big Problems, Simple Solutions

Continuing with the problem of “Illiteracy”, we came to know about one of the reasons for it, i.e. “Lack of Motivation”

Neither parents nor teachers of govt. school force or motivate students to study hard or to take study seriously.

Parents are usually busy in earning their livings and even they don’t know the importance of study. They don’t care whether the child is attending the full day class or he/she bunked the class after having free lunch there.

Result: Mainly students of class up to 3rd and 4th don’t attend the class regularly and properly and don’t give much concentration in class even.


Possible Solution:
"Interact with them and try to motivate them and make them feel the importance of study."

Last Saturday, we, three friends , Balakrishnan, Pran and myself (Monika) went to a govt. school of Sec-27, near Indra Market and conducted a test there to motivate the students. This is what we did:

1. We asked students to write down their introduction (say, their name, father’s name and what they want to be and why).

2. After this written round, we shortlisted few students and conducted the second round.

3. In second round, we conducted an oral quiz of General knowledge questions (say, what’s our national bird, etc.). We also check their reading and speaking capabilities.

We kept on correcting them and tell them the right way of doing and tried to motivate them to study well and to attend the class regularly.

At the end, we chose one girl as the winner and awarded her with a pair of shoes. We also gave prize to the most disciplined student during the conduct of test.

This whole test just took 1-1.5 hours time and we all (including students) enjoyed a lot. Check out the attached pics.

Priyanka- First Prize 

 

Pinki- Second Prize

Anshu-3rd prize

Balram- Most active child

Kusum- Most disciplined child   

Pran Krishna- Friend

Balakrishnan- Friend

                                        

Request: Just try to take out a small time from your busy schedule and spend it with these students. Your interaction with them also motivates them to study to become like you.

Even this weekend, we will go to the school and conduct another test. If anybody is interested in coming, then please inform us soon so that we can plan it effectively.

Share your viewpoint with us....

Your small effort can make a big difference in somebody’s life.

Regards,
The News Mug Group
DON'T BE A SPECTATOR, BE AN ACTOR

11th edition- 29th July, 2009 [released date]

Big Problem, Simple Solutions

Continuing with one of the big problem of India, “Illiteracy”, we come up with some simple solutions to tackle with it:

Our experience:

After the summer vacations, we started visiting the government schools and the slum area or poor localities. In two weeks, we visited three government schools and two localities. Our analysis up to this point:

1. Most of the government school staffs are overloaded with work. They are assigned extra duties time to time, like these days they are assigned the duty of “Bal Jan Ganna” (Census of children).

2. They have to finish these duties within school hours.
Result: They are not able to take their classes regularly and properly.

3. Plus, they are not answerable to anybody for their teaching duties, so they don’t try to make much effort and they are not enthusiastic towards children education.

Result is that the very impression of government schools is made in the minds of the poor people and that is right up to good extent.

Moreover, they compare the government school with private school in terms of studies, discipline and status even.

Many children have their name registered in the schools but they are not going school as they parents don’t force them to go.

What’s the need of the time?
We have to improve the standards of the government schools and try to remove their bad impression from the minds of the people.

What’s the possible ways?

As we can’t change the government rules of assigning extra duties or can’t force the school staff to do their teaching duties well, we can do only what is in our hand.

Simple Solutions:
1. Try to give your little time (say 1-2 hr) during weekends to government school. Go and have a lecture their. Your one weekly lecture proves to be very helpful and motivated to the children.

2.Motivate your mother or wife, if they stay at home, to give their time to school, as per their convenience. If one lady of a colony starts doing this, it will surely motivate other ladies to follow the same steps.

We are not saying that NGOs are not doing anything or they are not helpful but their number is very less as compare to government schools. Almost in each and every sector or locality, there is a government school and most of the poor children are going there.


Try to locate a government school in your nearby locality and we also help you in doing this. Three government schools that we visited in Noida are:
1. Sec-53 , “Gijhor”
2. Sec-26, Behind Vinayak Hospital
3. Sec-27, beside Indra Market.

Will tell you about the location of other government schools soon.

Timings are: 7 am to 12 pm

If you have any doubt (small or big even), please clear it with us.

If we are able to improve the status of government school up to some extent, then believe us, “we surely make a big difference”

Thanks...

Regards,
The News Mug Group
DON'T BE A SPECTATOR, BE AN ACTOR

10th edition- 4th June, 2009 [released date]

Big Problems, Simple Solutions

This week we have come up with a nw problem which needs to solved:: “Cyberspace for Children

What's the problem:

As we all know that in this competitive and progressive time, children need to be internet literate.But cyberspace for children brings some unwanted results as well.

1. Child pornography, dating violence and harassment, violent feeds to mind, child black-mailing etc to name a few. Recently the worst face of Internet flashed on Indian news channels when teenager Adnan Patrawala of Mumbai was reported to be murdered by some unknown Orkut friends of his (Ref: Orkut_murder ).

2. Moreover, studies have shown that over 60% of the websites have explicit sexual content. The worst affected by these sites are children who not only become addicted to such sites but are also easily vulnerable to Internet stalkers and pedophiles. In 2003, the NSPCC reported that for the six weeks that its researchers monitored the Internet, 20 children were estimated to have been abused for the first time, and more than 1000 of each child created. They also found about half were aged between nine and 12, and the rest were younger.

Due to liberty and facility of hiding own identity on social community building websites, kids and teenagers tend to be rude, aggressive and sometimes even vulgar while communicating with an unknown person on the cyberspace. This unknown person can be a dangerous person who may track down the person annoying him to “teach him/her a lesson”.


Proposed and Possible solution:
1. Monitor the websites which your kid or younger sibling accesses. You can do it by viewing browser history or Internet cookies.

2. Casually talk to your kids about their new friends which they have got through Internet. Be cautious if the age difference of your kid and his friend is more than 3 years.

3. Educate your kids for not telling their personal details like phone number, age, home/school address etc to anyone on Internet without your consent. Tell them to use different dummy names on different social interaction websites.

4.Tell your kids to immediately inform you if someone on Internet asks them the questions like:
• “Are you alone at home?”
• “How about meeting somewhere?”
•“Tell me where can I send a gift for you?”
•“Would you like to see some real ‘stuff’ on web cam?” etc.

5. Time to time tell your kid about different educational websites and after few days ask him if he found that website useful and what new he got from it.


This problem was shared by one of our reader, Sandeep Jana.

Please share your viewpoint with us so that we can tackle with this problem effectively.

Your viewpoint is very much important for all of us.

Thanks.
Regards,
HeadlinesToday
DON'T BE A SPECTATOR, BE AN ACTOR

9th edition- 21 April, 2010 [released date]

BIG PROBLEMS, SIMPLE SOLUTIONS

As we all know that "Voting" is the most important right of a citizen of a country or rather, we can say it is our first duty towards our country.

Therefore, to help you and to guide you in doing voting in the proper manner and to the right candidate, we will draw some points:

1. There is an initiative from GOOGLE.

Get the latest election news, MP profiles, constituency statistics, candidate quotes, polling booth locations and more, all personalized to your location. Just specify your city or town, and get election information relevant to you.Just click on http://www.google.co.in/intl/en/landing/loksabha2009/

2. There is another one website dedicated with information about the candidates and their criminal profiles: http://www.nocriminals.org/home.php

3. This time, many of us got to know about 49-O Voting right.
The Conduct of Election Rules, 1961 has a rule 49-O which describes the procedure to be followed when an elector decides not to vote and wish to convey his/her decision to election commission officially and get it noted.

This provision does allow to express 'No Vote' but has no affect on the elections and by no means can result in re polling or the cancellation of candidature of the contestant.

It's a hoax that if the '49-O' votes are more than those of the winning candidate, then that polling will be cancelled and will have to be re-polled. This has no basis and there is no reference to this anywhere in the constitution.

The very purpose of an election is that the representatives should be chosen by the people. Conducting an election again would result in much waste of public funds spent to conduct polls.

So, better to vote the lesser criminal than not vote at all....

Check the websites for criminal records or for the profiles of the candidates, before deciding to vote them.

Their capability and experience must be the only basis for choosing them, neither their religion nor their party background should be the basis.

BE AN INFORMED VOTER and A PROUD INDIAN.....Help us build a strong nation

Thanks...
Regards,
Headlines Today Group

DON'T BE A SPECTATOR, BE AN ACTOR.

8th edition- 14th April, 2010 [released date]

Big Problems, Simple Solutions

First of all, I am sorry for not sending the Koshish-a solution oriented attempt" editions from last two week as I was very busy with the office work and had to travel onsite.

Anyway, dealing with same problem of "Illiteracy”, we got some new facts by visiting one of the area of Sec-21 behind Vinayak Hospital and the nearby Govt. School. We, three, IndeerPreet, Swati Khordia and Monika (me) went to that area last to last week.

Facts came into sight, by interacting with the people there and the school staff:
1. People are very less aware of the importance of the education of their children. Children are going to school but neither they nor their parents are serious about education. Children just go for taking lunch and their parents go once in a year to school for taking their (children’s) scholarship money in the school.

2. School staff is not bad but they don't have much enthu or very serious about the student's study. Even this is not totally their fault. They have to do many other duties some times like these days election duties.

Proposed Solution:

We, the youth of India, have to come forward. School principle and few teachers were very much happy to see us there doing these things. They said that they (school staff as well as poor people) need our support. When, they came to know that we are not from any NGO, or any organization, they felt good.
You needn't to give much time to these activities. Just give 1-2 hr and try to do small things:
1. Visit a school once or twice in a month (whenever you feel comfortable) and interact with the students. Your small lecture is very much important for the students and even very helpful.

2. Try to interact with the poor people (like your sabjiwala, press wala, auto-rickshaw wala, maid, or any), ask them about the education of their children and even their locality children's education and try to help them in any way. Make them aware about the education of their children.

As elections are very near and it is very important for us to cast our vote positively and properly and to the right person. In next edition of Koshish- a solution oriented attempt edition, we try to cover some important part of elections and help you to cast your vote properly.

I can make this "Koshish" really successful, only with the help of my readers. So, please share any information or view point regarding election.

Your participation is very very important for all of us.

We, together, can make a difference one day...

Thanks.
Regards,
Monika
Headlines Today group
DON'T BE A SPECTATOR, BE AN ACTOR

7th edition- 24th March, 2009 [released date]

Dealing with the problem of "Illiteracy", we start getting success to some extent....:)

We got one more simple way to help and motivate poor children to study:

Give your old books, notes or study material in govt. schools so that a library will be formed there and the needy students can take from there.

Its far better to give your books to needy students than to sell your books to "Kabidawala" ...

This idea was shared by one of our reader and friend, Ankita yadav, working in HCL.

Our success till now:
1. Last week, we got the admission for six more children and in total , we got the admission for 20 children.

2. We gave notebooks, pencils, erasers and sharpers to the needy students along with their fees.

Now, in total, six people ( Swati, Charu, Monika, Praney, Indeerpreet and Swati Khordia) go to govt schools on Saturday and take classes there of 1-2 hrs.

You can't believe that students of govt. school were so happy and feel motivated by our visit that they gave a small gift ( i.e. a small clay elephant toy) to Swati Khordia. Check the pic.

This week plan:
1. We move to some other slum for getting admission for children as most of the children of that slum area of Sec-53 are going school now.
2. Swati, Charu and Swati Khordia will take classes in the govt. school of Sec-21.

I request you to make a small attempt this week
“Try to locate a govt. school in your nearby area and try to talk with the school principle".

NOTE: 1. All the expenses are made by the people only who are involved physically ( means , six at this time)

2. We are giving only 1-2 hr during weekend.

Please give us your support so that we can make a difference.

Your small attempt can make a big difference in some body's life.

For any query, you can contact me any time.

Thanks..

Regards,
Monika Bindal

DON'T BE A SPECTATOR, BE AN ACTOR