The extrodinary students of Adharshila continue taking initiative...
The students at Adharshila help keep the school running. The younger kids keep the classrooms and school grounds clean. The older kids maintain the library, handle electrical problems, run small shops and a school bank, and even treat their sick or injured classmates. Check out these amazing notes for more details of the chores they have done this year.
The Adharshila youth take care of the trees and grow food, planting and cultivating grains and rice, fruits and vegetables. Some take even more initiative; one student, Sohan Singh, planted thirteen varieties of indigenous tomatoes and is maintaining them. Another boy, Ramlal, planted over a thousand trees on his family's farm. The students take shifts to guard the greenery from the cattle that roam the village. They pump their own water and make dinner on Sundays when the cooks are on vacation.
The students are even starting to take over the teachers' jobs. The Learning Teacher Program was born this year after Diwali vacation when three teachers left the school for other work. Some of the fifth year students started teaching the younger students regularly. Their peers--even eight and nine year olds--assisted them. Suresh, Kamal, and Radhesh are especially good teachers. Their classes run smoothly; since they are not much older than their students, their classroom environments remain tension-free.
The students have taken their energies outside the school as well. Some students have formed a theater troupe, which they named the Naatak India Company. These young performers write plays to portray the issues affecting their communities and the world. They has gone on tours to other towns to share their visions and raise money for the school. Check out this year's reports of the Naatak India Company. ("naatak" means "play")
The students continue to inspire and be inspired.
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