Written by Dana Kornberg
A friend of BSS based in New York sent an alphabet book made by her students, who drew scenes of their city for each letter. Ice cream trucks, Jamaica (Queens), and ‘Yes We Can’ were just some of these beautiful drawings.
Thank you for sending these! Our students are so excited to learn about new places and want to share their world with you.
Written by Dana Kornberg
Written by Dana Kornberg
I am sending the middle school photos and report and I hope you will be so surprise to see these students,they have so completely changed and looks intelligent and smart. This makes me feel proud and gives me hope of my hard work.
I really wish to make them stand and see them independent. One day they will be.
In one of the photo you can see two girls Mamta and Puja with Sukhdev, they were wearing sweater in a opposite way, Sukhdev asked them why your sweater is in opposite way they explained that it will get dirty because we have to wear same in the morning for school that is why we are wearing in wrong way. They are now much responsible.
In few photos you will see the girls are making the models of Computers. We helped them to complete them due to short time because they have to submit next day.
I would like to send the more pictures, but I hope you will all love them to see.
Now a days few boys are busy to carry road lights on Indian marriages at night time because now the marriage season is going on.
Now in this session there are 15 students to go to middles school. this is worrying matter for me…….
Again Thank you all so much!!
Rajan
Written by Dana Kornberg
‘The higher-caste students tell us that we smell bad,’ one girl said. Another added: ‘The ridicule we face prevents us from coming to school and sitting with higher-caste children.’ These girls from the hamlet of Khalispur, near the city of Varanasi, belong to the Mushara or ‘rat catcher’ community of eastern Uttar Pradesh, India.
Despite an entitlement to receive a stipend, midday meals and uniforms, few Mushara girls attend Khalispur’s government primary school. ‘We are forced to sit on the floor,’ one girl said. ‘The desks and benches in the classroom are meant for the children from the higher castes.’
Source: Global March against Child Labour
Written by Dana Kornberg
Education systems in many of the world’s poorest countries are now experiencing the aftershock of the global economic downturn.
The 2010 Education for All Global Monitoring Report, released on 19 January, argues that the crisis could create a lost generation of children whose life chances will have been irreparably damaged by a failure to protect their right to education.
Written by Dana Kornberg
BSS couldn’t exist without it’s many supporters from all over the world. So often, it starts with a person visiting Sarnath and meeting Rajan at BSS. And that’s exactly what happened with Geir Davidsen from Etne in Norway. He decided to help and created a fund-raising wonder by inspiring people in his community, especially the schools, to become involved.
He tirelessly visits school classes in his town and talks to the students and teachers about India, Sarnath and BSS. Obviously, he does so with a lot of heart and conviction, because it has resulted in amazing funds being raised in Etne.
Last year, they raised enough money to buy BSS a school bus and this year they will contribute half the cost of the daily meals BSS provides to its 220 students.
Geir makes sure the school children in Etne understand the huge impact their support is having on the Indian students’ lives. He will visit BSS again in March to report back on the progress being made and how his community can continue to help.
BSS sends the teachers, school children and other supporters in Etne a very big and heartfelt Thank You.
Written by Dana Kornberg
Reuters AlertNet written by Nita Bhalla
NEW DELHI (AlertNet) – South Asian nations must promote breastfeeding and focus on better nutrition for under two-year-olds in order to reverse the worst rates of chronically undernourished children in the world, the U.N. said on Wednesday.
According to a new report by the U.N. Children’s Fund (UNICEF), more than half of the world’s 155 million chronically undernourished under fives are in South Asia.
The report, “Improving Child and Maternal Nutrition”, said Afghanistan, India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan topped the list with 83 million children being fed enough or poorly fed in those five countries.
Daniel Toole, regional director for UNICEF South Asia, said in an interview traditional beliefs and practices as well as the shortage of protein-rich food for infants were mostly to blame.
“Low birth weight babies from young mothers who are forced into early marriages, women who do not exclusively breastfeed and a poor choice of food given to children from the age of six months are all factors,” said Toole by phone from Kathmandu. Continue reading…
Written by Dana Kornberg
The Hindu: India still has the largest number of illiterate adults in the world, but has made “rapid advances” in cutting down the numbers of school drop outs, a new UN report on education has said.
The Education For All-Global Monitoring Report, released here on Wednesday finds that out of the total 759 million illiterate adults in the world, India still has the highest number.
“Over half of the illiterate adults live in just four countries: Bangladesh, China, India and Pakistan,” the report said, adding the progress has been “painfully slow” and threatens to obstruct the Millennium Development Goals.
It said about 72 million primary school age children and another 71 million adolescents are not at school, and on current trends, 56 million primary school age children will still be out of school in 2015, it said.
UNESCO’s top official Irina Bokova said the world body was apprehensive that the financial crisis would cause governments to scale back funding on education.
“With the world’s largest illiterate population, India has been making progress,” the report said. Continue reading…
Written by Dana Kornberg
Lisa and Phillip, thank you for supporting our art classes, Pankaj’s Dream! Without you, we would not have been able to continue them. Your gift was a godsend to us, and we are grateful for it!
To our angel Donna Peter, our most heartfelt thank you for your recent extra support that provided blankets to our students and their families. This winter has been especially cold, and your blankets helped to keep the children warm. Thank you for your ongoing support from the bottom of our hearts!
Dear Debbie, thank you for your kind contribution that allowed us to buy warm clothes for Munna, a boy we love dearly, and who desperately needed them. You can see he is so happy to have his warm clothes! Your donation will also allow us to fix Munna’s family’s water pump, bringing water back to their house.
