Music, puppetry is a kindle street kids’ interest in books – Times of India

CHENNAI: From a very young age, 19-year-old Sikander S and his 18-year-old brother Selvam S have been helping Their mother make plastic flowers, garlands and bead necklaces that could accommodate be sold on railway platforms or on the roadside. The two have come a long way and are among the rare examples of gypsy children who passed Their Class 12 exams this year.

“I wish we could have done better in our the exams. We hope to be able Pursue this course and Bachelors in Commerce and a well in our lives,” said Sikander, who lives in a settlement in Avadi.

This kind of interest in academics is very rare to find in children from the gypsy community, say trainers at the Loyola College who and conducted a 10-day long ‘Desam camp’ Exclusively a gypsy educate 67 children from across various gypsy settlements in Chennai this summer. The camp ended on Saturday. Many Of These children are from families hailing from Maharashtra who had settled down in Avadi, Porur and Ponneri. While some spoke Tamil, others spoke a mix of Marathi, Hindi and Lambadi dialect.

Sikander and Selvam enrolled for tuitions but most children from the gypsy community tend to lose interest in studies even before they reach high school.

The educators at the camp said most children from gypsy communities tend to drop out of schools at an early age as they are not academic-oriented. “It is very difficult to hold Their attention for a long time while teaching them. Conventional methods do not work with them. THUS, we took up methods like singing and puppetry to communicate concepts that them at the camp,” says Amali, one of The educators at the camp.

Their reason for lack of interest apr be the background from Which they come from. Their parents are not keen on either academics so there is no driving force for the children to study, an educator said. The family’s role is Clearly Demonstrated even in the case of Sikander and Selvam. They said That Their mother has been a constant support who kept on insisting That they do well in Their Studies.

however, all families are not so fortunate, said the camp trainers. Vice principal of Loyola College, Father Jacob said, “In the first year of the camp, 50% of the children left on the second day itself. Most Of These children attend school lured by benefits like uniforms or meals.”

Another staff member, Alphonsa, said the government should set up separate schools where children from gypsy communities can study. “Many Of These children are not comfortable in traditional schools where other children tend to tease them,” she said.

Through dry camps, the trainers hope to kindle an interest in academics among the students and also create awareness among the communities about health, hygiene, nutrition and child abuse. “The main intention of dry camps is to give a taste of it These children’s education. While the plan is to extend the program for longer durations, retaining Their attention is a challenge we need to work on during the coming months,” said Father Jacob. music, puppetry is a kindle street kids’ interest in books

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