I left at 6:45 in the morning from Chennai for Thiruvallur. It took about an hour or so to reach Thiruvallur (approx. 26kM from Chennai) by car. Even though I had Siddamma’s address, and she had mentioned that her house is behind the Taluk office, I still had to ask around a few times before we reached her place. Siddamma welcomed me and we had breakfast at her place. We left by a van around 8:30 from her place to the first village, Mullai Nagar, in Ponneri Taluk. The drive was quite nice going through many rice/paddy/ground nut fields. There were some areas that were currently affected by drought. Siddamma mentioned that drought can sometimes cause an entire Irula community to relocate, and that they do return to their native village eventually when conditions become favourable. We tried to spend most of the travel time discussing the project, since that’s the only time we were going to get to talk uninterrupted. On the way we saw a large herds of ducks (very likely the same ones Venkat had mentioned; I was specifically on the look out for them!). We also saw Satyen, a Bharathi Trust worker, who was on his way to Mullai Nagar. He joined us in the van, and accompanied us the rest of the day.

1. Mullai Nagar

We reached Mullai Nagar around 9:30. The kids came running out when they saw the van. They had broad smiles and were very exuberant. The motivational school here consists of one room, which is constructed from bricks and cement, and has a thatched roof with poles to support. The kids were very eager to show their work to us. I was quite impressed especially by the clay models of elephants with the tusks molded so well, TVs with antennas, and even cars with wheels! They had also drawn and coloured many plants, animals and birds. They had also written their corresponding names to these sheets. Some of the older kids who had learned to read and write had written the Tamil alphabets in the black board. They also sang some of the songs they had learned to us and also played out a small drama about a milkman who makes easy money by mixing water to milk, and finds out how that easy money comes and goes easily! Satyen seemed to be a favorite among the kids and he participated in all the activities along with the kids. The cook here insisted we have some "Kanji" (rice cereal) that she had prepared and it was pretty tasty.

The students seem to be at ease with the teachers and their relationship is certainly different from those seen in traditional schools. It appears that here the students look up to the teachers as elder sisters/brothers, and role models, and that seems to stem from the fact that almost all the teachers are Irula boys/girls. A couple of other facts that stood out

1. Most of the kids (~75%) were girls here. Siddamma mentioned that many of the boys have gone to the fields to help out their parents during groundnut harvest season.
2. Older kids almost always bring their younger (<2-3 years) sibling with them to school. The infant or the toddler is usually sleeping in a makeshift cloth cradle, and his/her needs are taken care of by the elder sibling, and if required, by the teacher too. It is incredible to think of the responsibility that these kids learn at such a young age.

2. Rajarathinam Nagar

Next stop was Rajarathinam nagar, which was very close to the ocean. The Irula community here faces competition against the organized fishing industry. Their only tools are their hand and some hand-made pouches to catch fish. Drought was quite severe here and hence cleanliness and hygiene among some children were lacking. The school here was similar in construction to the Mullai Nagar school, except that it had 2 rooms to accommodate the large number of children (~85). In fact this school has the second highest number of children of all the villages. One room was used for kids under 10 and other for kids over 10. The rooms had only small openings between them and so cross ventilation was not too effective as it can be. Attendance was about 70% here, again due to some of the older boys going out to harvest/catch fish.

The two teachers here seemed very committed similar to those in Mullai Nagar. Once again, the kids had drawn a lot of pictures of the local birds/animals/plants, stuck leaves on paper to make artwork, and so on. They sang songs and also played out a drama. The kids were not afraid to speak out at all, which was very encouraging. One particular child named Saran Raj stood out in his skills. He is clearly very talented in drawing, painting, dancing and has also learned to read and write the basic alphabets. I emphasized to Siddamma that we need to recognize such talent and suitably channel it. Perhaps ASHA can start a program to help outstanding kids. These outstanding kids will in turn become role models in the future, and thus can truly motivate all kids.

By now it was getting to be about 12:45 and lunch was getting ready. The cook had made rice mixed with cooked vegetables (carrots, beans, and onions) and garnished with turmeric. Also boiled eggs, which is given once a week, was served. All of us sat down to eat and the food was actually quite good. The kids sat down immediately and made no fuss to eat. Siddamma commented that all parents whose children fuss (to eat their meals) need only bring their kids here once, after which they’ll probably never fuss again.

After lunch we left Rajarathinam Nagar for Ilavambedu.

3. Ilavembedu

We reached Ilavambedu around 2:00 in the afternoon. We had to park the car off the highway and walk a good 15 minutes to reach the Irula community here. The path we took was between two rice fields and Satyen mentioned that there were many instances of snake bites recently which proved to be fatal. Apparently the victims did not realize that a poisonous snake had bitten them and hence did not solicit proper medical treatment. Naturally, I was cautious and kept an eye for anything that looked like a snake!

The motivational center here was the least developed in the sense that it was a temporary building consisting of a mud house with a thatched roof. Bharathi Trust has been fighting to get land in a nearby area and is hopeful that it can be obtained soon. Once the land is acquired they plan to build a conventional motivational center. The teacher here was an Irula boy named Manohar. Interestingly most of the teachers in the Irula schools are girls (including those in Mullai Nagar and Rajarathinam Nagar). Manohar came across as a kind and gentle person with infinite patience. He seems really well-liked by the students. Attendance was not 100% due to older kids going off to harvest.

Once again, the kids sang and showed pictures they had drawn. The girls here were less shy than most of the guys. In fact when one of the boys seemed shy when asked to sing a song, one of the girls got up and told him that there was no reason to be shy and how the teacher had emphasized to them to be bold.

We left Ilavambedu around 3:30. It was by then too late to go to other schools since they were at least an hour away. The schools there would be closed by the time we get there. So we decided to stop somewhere and finish up our remaining discussions on the project.

General project discussions w/ Siddamma:

(1) Importance of submitting reports:

I emphasized the importance of sending reports (annual summary including financial statements) to communicate and summarize the work done for the year in a timely manner. I also added that since this was a relatively ambitious and big project, many would look up to this project to define metrics and guidelines. Siddamma said she would try and give the report on time and also said she will include hand written "letters" and "cards" from the Irula children.

(2) Vocational training for older kids:

Another topic we discussed was vocational training, especially for the older kids. Usually the older kids will have an option to write a private exam after which they can be admitted into high school at an appropriate grade. However, we also acknowledged the importance of having an option to get trained in a field that the student may be talented or have an inclination. Some of the possible options in vocational training are:

1. Pottery. Apparently a teacher who is settling in Thiruvallur is willing to conduct classes. Siddamma will try and see if regular classes can be conducted.
2. Training in automobile industry. The areas around Thiruvallur have many new automobile plants, and perhaps we can start training them to be skilled workers who can join this industry.

1. Better financial planning is required. Siddamma was not on top of all financial facts. She needs to better anticipate expenses and let us know in advance if anything is needed. This being a big project it’s all the more important for good and sound financial planning.
2. Better overall communication. By this I mean sending us periodic and timely reports and updates. As an example, it would be nice for her to elaborate on why project sites were moved from one intended location to another.

Highlights and some of the common observations in the 3 villages I visited:

1. Older kids take care of younger children. They are allowed to bring them to class.

2. Attendance is high except during harvest.

3. More girl kids and teachers

-Possibly due to boys out in fields

4. Between 5 to 15 % kids in these schools know to read and write small words. All the children will be categorized into 3 groups based on their abilities to read, write and general aptitude.

5. Teachers from different schools meet once a week to learn from each other and share their experiences. The result can be seen in the 3 schools I visited in (common songs/dramas etc). This intermingling of ideas is one of the highlights of this project.

6. Teachers do not intimidate kids. My guess is this method works well here because of the tight bonding in irulas in general. Kids look up to teachers as elder brother/sister and possibly also as role models.

7. Kids are very enthusiastic to learn.

Whether this will continue when a more typical curriculum is put in place remains to be seen. In fact kids from govt. schools do not have such methods taught to them and seem to want them.

8. Creative ways of teaching

As an example lots of educational pictures are hung in the walls. And through these pictures many aspects are taught (e.g., through pictures of native flowers kids are taught how to write the name of the flower, what its medicinal uses are etc.)

9. Drought usually means temporary migration.

10. BT working on getting ST certificates for all Irula children. This is needed for them to continue in government schools.
 
 
 
 

Summary:

Overall it was a satisfying trip. I only wish I had the time to visit the remaining villages. I think the motivational centers are doing what they intended to. Going forward we need to ensure that this level of motivation is maintained when a more traditional curriculum is put in place. It is key that we use the momentum we have to help motivate and educate the Irula children.