Pardada Pardadi Girls Vocational School was established in 2000 in Anupshahr, a small area of villages in Uttar Pradesh, India. This area of India is one of the poorest and infamous for its crime-ridden environment. Moreover, it is noted as one of the least educated and literate sections of the country.

Why girls?

In order to improve the future of rural community, PPES aims to educate girls. Following the ideals of women's empowerment, PPES believes that once girls are holistically educated, they will impart their knowledge to their family as an enlightened mother. The family in turn affects the quality of life of the community, the state, and ultimately the nation. PPES takes the distinctive approach of providing students with teachers who also impart value-based education by spending part of each class discussing life skills and values.

Because these girls are economically disadvantaged, their parents are resistant to letting their daughters leave home during the day when they are usually obligated to contribute to the family's livelihood through chores and other work such as goat herding and wood collecting. PPES has set up a unique system, where by parents are encouraged to allow their girls to attend the Pardada Pardadi Girls vocational School (PPGVS). There are various incentives built in the progarmme, which facilitate the education of the girls.

Incentives

PPES provides free education, uniform, books, shoes, three meals and bicycles to the students. In the PPGVS mornings are spent with girls taking academic classes in subjects such as Math, Science, English, and Social Studies, Music, Dance General knowledge, Sports and Computers. Afternoons consist of vocational training in home furnishing textile work. By the time PPGVS students graduate, they have developed highly marketable skills in textile work and produce high-end home furnishings that are sold everywhere from Central Cottage Industries Corporation of India to Milan, Italy. Products are also sold on online catalogue and two stores of PPES. Moreover, once the girls have graduated, they have a guaranteed job at the school's marketing department.

Money for future security

PPES opens up a bank account for each student. For every day a student attends school, 10 rupees (US$0.30) are deposited into her bank account. By the time a girl graduates after (class tenth), she should have approximately 30000 rupees (US$666), assuming she has attended most days of the school year. Ideally, the products produced by the students bring back Rs.35 (US$0.90) per day. Of that, 10 rupees go in their account and 25 rupees go back into sustaining the school. The only way a girl can access her bank account after her graduation is on the day of her marriage or 21st birthday (whichever comes first).

Marriage

In Anupshahr, many girls are entered into an arranged marriage at the age of 13 or 14. PPES hopes that education of girls will help in fighting this menace. After Students graduation from PPGVS, PPES can also help the family of the girl in finding a suitable boy. PPES also offers to host a marriage party of the graduates in the school.

Ultimately, at the end of the program, these girls leave with:

• A high-school diploma
• A highly marketable skill in textile work
• A sum of approximately 30000 rupees (US$666)
• Skills that are both academic and empowerment based, including health, hygiene, food preparation, and legal skills
• The knowledge of self-sustainable systems (supporting themselves through textile work)

The school also guarantees a job for the graduate in any one of the following ways:

• She can continue working full time at the school and get paid for the quantity of work she has done.
• She can produce products from home and gets paid weekly for the work she has done.
• She can open a "Mini-PPES" of 4-6 girls at her home, train them, and get paid for their work on weekly basis.
• She can be selected as a teacher for the ever-expanding PPES concept of education.

Education in the school

PPES believes that all children should be able to enjoy the school. Hence it is trying to develop a child-centered methodology for teaching and learning. PPES is striving for total development of a girl through it’s model of education.

PPGVS is registered under UP board. School is from class three to class ten. Along with regular studies girls get training in leadership skills, general knowledge/ current affairs, dance, theater, music, sports, health/hygiene and family life issues, gender, money management, rural development, production and management etc.

Leadership and volunteers programme

Every day a group of thirteen girls volunteer to do the various jobs in the school like cooking, cleaning, taking care of the plants, attending to the visitors etc. Whole idea behind this concept is that students appreciate the dignity of work. It is a process of self-learning and confidence building. It helps in breaking the caste barriers amongst students. This programme helps in developing a team spirit in the students. They learn about various aspects of management, cooking and meal planning.

Leaders are identified amongst each class and they are trained to take care of younger kids. They are responsible for discipline in the school. They help teachers in the training of younger students in cleanliness, cultural programmes, educational and vocational skills etc. Whole idea behind this leadership initiative is that they can become teachers in PPGVS after passing class tenth. Students also develop leadership qualities through this process.

Annual Functions and other co curricular activities in the school

The Pardada Pardadi School comes together four times a year to celebrate different occasions.

New Admission Day- is celebrated on the first Sunday of the first week of June. The newly admitted students are given a warm welcome by the staff and the students of the senior classes of the school. A welcome speech by the Principal followed by some performances by student’s sets up the atmosphere. The presence of the parents of the new students is a must on this day.

Independence day and republic day- school also celebrates The Independence Day on 15th August and The Republic Day on 26th January. Other than flag hoisting the staff and students take the extra step to interact with the villagers and discuss their problems and exchange views on different issues. Parents of all the students are also invited to be part of this function.

Annual day- students wait all through the year for the month of November when The Annual Day is celebrated in the school on the 3rd or the 4th Sunday of the month. It is a big event for all the students. Competitions and performances are the major attractions if the day. Guests from India and abroad regularly keep visiting the students and encourage them to stay focused in their goals and thereby turning Sam’s dream into a reality.

Saturday activities

Cultural programmes are regular part of school timetable and are held on every second Saturday. In rotation every child gets an opportunity to perform on the stage on that day.

Competitions are held to develop confidence in students. Competitions are held in the following area- Drawing painting, Handwriting, Sports, and Debate, General knowledge. PPES plans to introduce many more of such activities on regular basis.

Exposure visits

Form time to time students are taken for exposure trips to places like Delhi, Agra, and nearby areas of Anupshahr. These are fun and learning activities for the students.

They are also encouraged to participate in the programmes organized by other organizations. Students have also visited places like Andaman Islands, Nainital, (for further info. Click here)

Trainings

Guests from different walks of life are invited to school and they are encouraged to train the students in various aspects like health, hygiene, legal rights, gender, village development, leadership, adolescent health, finances, money management, production planning, rangoli (traditional system of making designs on floor and walls) making, cooking etc.

New staff is oriented and trained into the system of child-centered methodology of teaching.  Older staff is also helped to upgrade their skills in various subjects. Graduates  (who will work with school) of the school are put under training during their probation period. These trainings are aimed towards developing efficiency in these teachers. 

Computer center

The school received a grant from the Public affairs Office of the US Embassy in 2004 to set up a Computer lab to provide computer education. The Computer lab, named after Helen Keller, an American icon for the physically challenged, is equipped with 20 computers and two printers. The lab is run on diesel generators because the area experiences erratic power supply in the region. Girls are taught the basics such as Microsoft Word, Excel and Power point.

School is very proud of the lab. In beginning of year 2004, students were asked if any one of them had seen a computer only one child raised her hand. Today they all are very comfortable in working on computers. Younger ones enjoy playing games and painting with paint-brush programme a lot.

Hiteck Peripherals Pvt. Ltd trained three teachers for working with students in computer lab. Twice a week each child gets a chance to sit on the machine. Plan is that all teachers will be trained to work on the computers, in order to make teaching methodology more interesting and innovative.

Computer lab is equipped with various soft wares like Encarta, Britannica, school management, HIV &AIDS, money management, health hygiene and many more. PPGVS is trying to make computers an integral part of communicating, learning, teaching, planning and management.