Teach for India
“Be the change you wish to see” Mahatma Gandhi
India has more than 50% of its population below the age of 25 and more than 65% below the age of 35. It is expected that, in 2020, the average age of an Indian will be 29 years and it is set to become the world’s youngest country with 64% of its population in the working age group, India today stands at a turning point: where we go from here depends in large part on our ability to provide equal opportunities for all children.
With nearly 1 in 4 people below the age of 14 years, An excellent education equips children and youth with the knowledge, skills, values and mind-sets needed to be empowered individuals and responsible citizens.
There is a severe deficit of people at all levels of the education system who are committed to working together to improve the capacity and quality of our nation’s schools. The fact is that teachers alone cannot solve this crisis. The root cause of this crisis in education is because of the leadership. It is very hard to digest that the land of the Vedas is one of the countries with the highest illiteracy levels. Poor education can bring down even the most powerful nations down, so if we are to become a developed nation, we must spread the lamp of education. Our motto should be “each one teach one”. If we are to become a developed nation one of the initiatives is “Teach for India”, whose aim is to provide a platform to educated Indians to provide assistance in basic education to the unprivileged children.
In 2014, I got an opportunity to go to a BMC School in Borivali. I went there as a part of my organisation’s active involvement in Teach for India. I arrived at the school which was in decent condition in terms of structure and very good condition in terms of upkeep. I was guided to the designated class by a fellow of TFI who was supposed to interact with me. I had prepared a quiz on recycling of natural resources. I had thought that whatever I would be talking would be something very unique and enriching experience for the children and they would learn something new. To my utter surprise and amazement, each and every child was already aware about recycling, the types of waste, and the segregation of dry and wet waste. I suddenly realised that I had nothing to talk about with them.
These kids came from a humble background and their parents were auto rickshaw drivers, tailor, mason etc. but their English was such that it would put some English medium students to shame.
Before I left the school, I interacted with the fellows of TFI and realised the kind of efforts they are putting in. In order to build a growing community of leaders, Teach for India has developed a two-part theory of change.
In the short-term, through their Fellowship program, they provide an opportunity to India’s brightest and most promising individuals, from the nation’s best universities and workplaces, to serve as full-time teachers to children from low-income communities in some of the nation’s most under-resourced schools. The Fellows commit two years full-time, to provide the students with the opportunities that can put them on a different life path.
In the long-term, they engage these leaders, their Alumni, and support this growing community to advocate for change.
My question to all of you is that is it the responsibility of a single organisation or few of their fellows to bring about transformation in education sector. The problem of educational inequity cannot be solved alone. Each one of us has to contribute towards in this movement in whatever capacity they can. Everyone cannot be teacher, but we can definitely visit the institutes to motivate the students and fellows. During the last three years I have visited at least three schools and met underprivileged students. I am also a mentor of one of the Fellows of TFI and I am helping her draw her career after she completes her fellowship journey with TFI. Together, we can redraw India to be the country we want it to be.
In the words of Barack Obama “Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.”. The time for the change is now, I am ready for it, are you? And if you are, then take this oath with me.
OATH
I AM FULLY COMITTED TO THE GREAT MISSION OF TEACHING.
BY BEING A TEACHER, I KNOW I WILL MAKE AN IMPORTANT CONTRIBUTION TO THE EFFORTS FOR IMPROVING THE LITERACY RATES OF OUR COUNTRY THEREBY HELPING IN NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT.
