Posted: 17/12/2011
With the final exams for class XII students approaching in March, the students from the slums can struggle with exam stress. To help them through this, Asha recently organised workshops on time management and study preparation at our centres in the slums.
In these sessions students were told how to manage their time according to their subjects, difficulty levels and their own skill set. The staff also encouraged them to practice meditation and breathing exercises to handle stress.
When asked about the problems they face, the children say that the biggest problem is finding a peaceful environment in which to study. It is difficult especially for girls as many parents do not approve of their higher education and they also have to help their mothers in household chores. Throughout, Asha staff is present, supporting the students and counselling their parents.
Above: Asha staff motivates children to study better for their exams
Asha does everything possible to help these children. We provide supplementary books for studies along with sample exam papers. They are also welcome to study at our resource centres in the slums. After the students finish their exams in March, we help them find decide on a course of higher education and provide education scholarships for the poorest students.
But in the past 9 months, Asha has had to cut its budgets dramatically after losing around half its funding, when two of our major funding organizations who supported our work to the tune of €340,000 annually, suddenly ceased funding us.
At this difficult time, we are asking for the help of our supporters so that we can meet the needs of all these Class XII children. It costs £450/$700 per year to send one student to college. Asha has a goal of sending 5,000 children to University within the next 5 years. We really need your assistance to be able to achieve our target and have the joy of seeing these children go on to higher education.
Click here to donate for our children.
Click here to read stories and view pictures of Asha students already attending college.
Girls don't get the same opportunities in school as boys - we are hardly allowed to touch the computers - but thanks to Asha I get the chance to use computers too and have learnt a lot.
Rajnandin, Ekta Vihar
