Background:

In our 18+ years of work in this field, we have recognized that children from socio-economically marginalized communities (be in government schools or a locally run private school) lack opportunities to access quality education & other forms of learning environment which result in a drop out from the education system. These children are often first-generation learners and require confidence, motivation, and the capacity to remain in school and achieve their learning outcomes. There is a pressing need to alter the teaching and learning methodology in government schools to suit the children from the underprivileged and marginalized communities. General lack of motivation, additional administrative work for teachers, coupled with a societal bias towards government schools has prevented innovations in teaching and learning methods that can provide a holistic learning experience to children. It is with this perspective, that children need to be provided with a holistic, inclusive approach to education that is joyful and allows space for creative expressions for development in order to build a life of dignity and respect, Makkala Jagriti has developed a contextualized approach to provide a holistic learning experience to underprivileged children in urban as well as in rural areas. Providing unprecedented opportunities for all round development of children in government schools through Holistic Development Learning Centres (HDLC) is one of Makkala Jagriti’s flagship programs. The program features our unique SPICE model that caters to the Social, Physical, Intellectual, Creative, and Emotional development of children. Over the years of our journey, we have been able to influence and facilitate transformational changes for children, teachers, and parents through a variety of interventions that were appealing for them to easily learn and grow. Some of the key outcomes we have seen in the program are: 

• The child-friendly learning environment created in the school helped children overcome the fear of learning and enjoy learning
• A non-threatening atmosphere made children take risks, experiment, explore, and become curious to learn and understand
• Holistic Developmental Learning through different methodologies has helped children to become confident and aware of their own strengths and potential Teachers of Government Schools
• Government school teachers are recognizing and accepting the importance of the Holistic developmental form of learning
• Teachers are motivated to apply a variety of methodologies in the classrooms and gradually move towards being a facilitator than a teacher
• The schools have seamlessly integrated Holistic Learning and Development as a part of their everyday schedule Parents
• Parents have become aware of the importance of their role as parents
• They have gained self-awareness about their behavior and the impact it has on their children (abuse, violence, not-listening/communicating)
• Parents have gained new knowledge about stages of child development, emotional development, interpersonal relationships, and building trust with their children.

• Focus on Holistic development in line with the new National Education Policy- 2020
• Institutionalizing the Holistic Development Learning center as part of the school system
• The ecosystem approach involves all stakeholders thus making the intervention sustainable beyond the project period.