Today has been the highlight of the trip so far. We visited the Rishi Valley Institute, an organization that is improving the way primary education is delivered to rural communities. To get there, we had to drive 4 hours south of Bangalore, but it was worth it. The bus ride was “interesting” to say the least with a more than a few zero gravity moments. I guess that’s what happens when you combine bad back country roads with bad bus suspension.
Despite the horrific journey, there weren’t any accidents or overly nauseated passengers, so once we arrived we were excited and rearing to go (albeit a little shaken.) Two Indian educators who believed the traditional education system had structural and cultural barriers that inhibited rural traditions from receiving an education started the Rishi Valley Institute in the early Eighties. The program focuses on a self-paced, moderated program with simple activities to promote self-learning. It also incorporates cultural elements by bringing in family and community members into the school and eliminates textbooks. This is especially important in India, where a textbook that comes from only a few hundred miles away may be written by a non-native language speaker who is completely segregated from the cultural norms of the area.
After getting a short introduction, we visited a math competition that invites the community to try their hand at events moderated by the students. We each received scorecards and were to go visit the various stations. They ranged from guessing ones height or weight to playing with tannengrams. Most of the kids had a rudimentary knowledge of English and we also had a few helpers to assist (they wore sashes that said, “May I help you?”). Our welcome was amazing and the group was extremely friendly.
After the fair, we went to visit another school site to see the system in action. The students there were enthusiastic, if shy at first, for our visit. Without speaking a common language we still managed to have a few laughs as they tried to teach us to "read" their composition books. It turns out that I learned how to say "I want to learn", appropriate for the setting. Afterwards, they did a small puppet show for us, demonstrating an important aspect of incorporating culture into the lessons.
India Trekkers with the Rishi Valley founders
A couple of excited kids at the Math Competition
Reading aloud (I didn't take this picture, I gave my camera to one of the students. Pretty good job!)
My grades after the math camp... a couple of Bs, not bad! (Considering everything was in metric measurements and another language)
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