The Tiswomen of West Bokaro who run the school

Only a few months ago, the desire to engage themselves in social work brought together several ladies of the West Bokaro Collieries. Many of them wished to teach. Well aware that the children of domestic help found it difficult to cope with school work and could not seek the help of their parents as they were illiterate, the idea of tuition classes for these children was mooted in July 2003. On the request of the ladies the Lions’ Club of West Bokaro agreed to let the classes be run at the premises of their “Tiny Tots School”.

Guided and encouraged by Mrs Deepa Mishra, a core group of ten Tiswomen began working on creating the school. All of them worked very hard, preparing class routines, schedules for teachers, during admissions, placing children in the appropriate learning groups and classes and even enlisting more volunteers. It was the zest and enthusiasm of Mrs Yasmin Hussain and Mrs Mamta Kishore which ensured that their energy never flagged.

Mrs Deepa Mishra

The ladies had planned to take on 50 students but a month later when time came to open the doors for registration, over 250 children turned up, and more still keep coming every day. Children from kindergarten to standard V, from both Hindi and English medium schools needed to be tutored. Therefore, a plethora of textbooks had to be organised. Mamta and Yasmin worked hard to collect textbooks, even buying some when necessary, going through them and then preparing the syllabus for the teachers to follow.

This extraordinary effort soon caught the attention of people across West Bokaro with assistance coming in from several quarters. The Coal Beneficiation Group JDC, a consistent supporter of the cause chipped in with all the stationery for the children. The JDC also provided attendance registers, support during school functions and sweets, which the teachers used to induce the children to come to school. When the need was felt to hire an attendant for the little ones, a good samaritan offered to pay the wages. Tata Steel helped as well with a cupboard, a board and a duree for children who have to sit in the verandah due to the “overflow”. The Interact Club of Holy Cross Convent provided stationery and books for the children.

The children look forward to greater understanding of their schoolwork

The fact that only four of 32 ladies have undergone formal Montessori training did not deter them from putting their heart and soul into making this effort a success. Most of the students needed intensive coaching in subjects such as Science, Math and English. So teaching became as much a priority as homework.

Upon admission, the children had to be put through a simple test to gauge their ability before placing them in suitable grades. Each day a new student walks in though the doors of the school and the teachers have a new challenge on their hands.

Mrs Yasmin Hussain and Mrs Mamata Kishore

Today, improving the learning abilities of the children is the foremost priority for the Tiswomen, who have given up their afternoons to empower these children through education. Their overwhelming commitment makes the ladies take on more and more responsibilities. They now plan to train to equip themselves better to teach the children. The teachers of this five-month old school have already celebrated Bal Diwas, its Annual Sports Day and collected woolen garments to keep the children warm during winter. It is an endeavour Tisco News hopes will be recognised company-wide and further.

In what is now seen as an ideal opportunity for each state to