A wish upon a star
Poor children find rays of hope at a Varnasi school.
Mail this page to a friend How you can help this school
Sometimes, the small decisions make all the difference. Although government run schools in Varanasi are free to all children, there is often a cost in attending them. Only the education itself is free, the uniforms and school supplies needed to avail of the education cost money, and desperately poor families are often forced to forego educating their children for want of such meagre resources. Asha Pandey decided that as a first step, she would remove this obstacle, and provide the necessary supplies herself.

Young minds pose for a class photo atop Asha Pandey's roof (Asha Pandey front center)

Many other institutions, indeed even the government, could make that choice. Regrettably, the reality of a poor person's life remains far from the corridors of education policy, and it is left to enthusiastic and innovative persons like Asha Pandey to fill the breach. The Little Stars School was founded by Mrs.Pandey in July 1996. After teaching for many years in over-crowded government schools, she became frustrated with the schools' strict and unimaginative curriculum. She saw that children were not learning effectively, whereas some measure of its obligation was being performed by governments in setting up these schools, it wasn't clear that they were serving the ultimate purpose - imparting an education - successfully.

The reasons were plain enough. Government-run schools are not integrated into the communities where they are located, and for the most part, instructors and administrators experience a terrible disconnect with their students. Mrs.Pandey resolved she would rise above that; she would teach those who wanted to learn, and she would teach them in ways that accommodated their economic and social constraints.

Mrs. Pandey approached the children who lived in her own neighborhood and asked them if they wanted to learn. The children were eager, but their parents were hesitant; most of the parents were not educated themselves, and did not see education as a priority for their children. Even more importantly, the families needed the money the children made at their afternoon jobs. After some discussion, she discovered that the parents did not object if the school did not interfere with the children's jobs.

Mrs. Pandey tailored the school's format and teaching methods to the needs of these unschooled children She realized that these children needed to learn more than the basic survival skills. They knew how to live from day to day, and they needed to be taught that a better life existed beyond their immediate surroundings. They had fallen through the enormous cracks in the conventional education system, the way to remedy that, Asha Pandey discovered, is to design alternate structures tailored to their own special and specific needs.

Praying children: children begin the school day indoors during the hot summer.

The children's parents typically drive cycle rickshaws, wash dishes, clean clothes, cook or clean for others, or sweep the street. Most of these families came to Varanasi from West Bengal, Bihar, or from nearby villages in Uttar Pradesh itself, penniless and searching for work. Like most poor and migrant workers, they settled in the undeveloped areas of town. The children themselves work from a very early age, picking up trash in front of stores, begging, working at road side stalls selling tea or tobacco, pushing food carts, and working as domestic servants in wealthier homes - cleaning and washing clothes. Every member of these families is expected to contribute to the family resources, even if only a few rupees a day. When each day is a struggle for survival, schooling is not the priority we would wish it to be for these children, but if a few families could be won over, Mrs.Pandey realized, others would follow.

The school began small, with the financial help of a Swiss lady who knew of Mrs.Pandey's dream school for the poor kids in her neighborhood. Simple school supplies were purchased, and on July 1st, 1996. 15 children came to Asha Pandey's home, and their learning began on Mrs.Pandey's rooftop. The aim was simple, and in its simplicity profound as well. She would teach those who could not afford to go to school because they were too poor, and she would show them a better life than their parents had experienced.

Slowly, word of Little Stars spread among the denizens of Varnasi's poor neighborhoods. And each day, more children showed up, asking her to open doors into the better world she promised them. When the school year ended in May'97 there were 70 children attending, and the rooftop of the Pandey home could no longer fit them all in. At this crucial stage, ASHA, which is dedicated to supporting alternative education in India, stepped in with money to move to a larger space, to begin paying teachers who had previously been volunteering, to purchase more school supplies, and significantly, to provide nutritious food for the children on a daily basis.

The rest, as they say, is history. One woman's resolve, and her willingness to educate children according to their needs has made all the difference. Two and a half years since its founding, Little Stars now teaches 120 children in seven classes, and the number is still growing! The children are between 4-14 years of age and impressively, almost half are girls. Many of the same children who were with Mrs. Pandey at the school's founding are still enrolled. These children come mostly from three impoverished neighborhoods in Varanasi - Assi, Nagwa, and Dasashwamedh. The first two of these are near the school, children from Dasashwamedh are brought to school by rickshaw.

The school day begins at 8:30 with physical training, songs, prayers, and attendance. The children then break up into their classes which are divided not by age, but by aptitude. Currently their are seven classes: preschool, and beginning and intermediate 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grades. Reading, writing and math are the main subjects taught, although the teachers integrate geography, history, and science into the curriculum. At the end of the day a nutritious meal, usually of chana masala (chick peas with onion and chilis) and/or a piece of seasonal fruit is served to ensure that the children receive at least one good meal a day.

A remarkable contribution this school makes to the children is resources. The school provides uniforms for the children for both hot and colder seasons, so that the children have new clothes twice a year. What's more, if a child becomes sick, money from the ASHA grant can pay for doctor's visits and medicine so that children do not miss school or become more seriously ill due to lack of resources.

The methods of teaching have been developed by competent and compassionate people. The teachers combine one-on-one and teaching the class as a group. Children are not scolded or beaten for worn clothes or dirty fingernails as they may be in government schools; instead they are educated on how to sew up holes and on the importance of hygiene. The teachers at the school were hand-picked by Mrs. Pandey. She wanted educators who understood the special needs and circumstances of the students while appreciating their strengths and talents. There are seven teachers now employed at the school. Both during the school year and during breaks, the teachers take turns visiting the students' neighborhoods so that they can interact with parents who are unable to come to the school personally. The parents and children are thus networked with the teachers, everyone feels a sense of belonging to a responsible and progressive community.

Last year Asha Pandey was able to purchase land through a donation from a non-profit organization in Sonoma County, California. The building process was funded by a collective of ASHA chapters across the United States, and by a successful fund raiser by Reema Datta. Unfortunately, apart from abdicating its responsibility, the government continues to impede such progress. The school's plan to move into the partially completed building was postponed from November to January and is currently held up by bureaucratic snags relating to the exchange of foreign currency.

The Little Stars School is not the only non-profit institution which has faced the challenge of gaining this FCRA clearance. This is a requirement by the government of India in order to receive foreign donation to an organization. It is not an easy process, and Mrs.Pandey has had to make many long trips to New Delhi in order to have involved discussions with government officials. Because the Little Stars School does not yet have this clearance, the last two checks sent to the school from the ASHA organization cannot be cashed. In the search for finding a solution to this issue, the ASHA organization, in conjunction with the Little Stars School, has begun to gather information to develop a system so that future projects do not have the same difficulties obtaining the clearance.

Currently a chapter of ASHA in India is working closely with the school so that funds can become available to the school as soon as possible, and the plans for the future can come to fruition. The potential of this amazing project is immeasurable. In the fall, Mrs. Pandey plans to incorporate vocational training into the curriculum so that in addition to basic education, her students will graduate with a marketable skill such as tailoring and basket weaving. In addition she wants to keep the school open year round so that the children do not regress during breaks. During the breaks she plans to conduct review sessions, impart vocational training, and focus on more fine and applied art. She also plans to add grade levels to keep up with the developing minds of the students.

The Little Stars School is a wonderful example of successful non-formal education. It was developed to suit the needs of its students and is evolving with them. The lives of a growing number of children are improved each day as they achieve a greater sense of self-confidence and acquire the skills needed to interact with the world around them. They feel the pride of their learning. It is their choice to come to school and become educated; and come they do. Mrs.Pandey and her fellow-teachers bring an unstoppable and contagious combination of energy and enthusiasm to the school every day, and give their very best to children who would otherwise know no education. And as they do, their little stars shine bright.

Ingrid Jacobson