Against all odds

Updated on: Monday, February 20, 2012

An economically weak background with few opportunities did not daunt Vandana (17), the daughter of a parking attendant at Nehru Place who dreams to become a teacher and is working towards fulfilling her dream.

She has already taken the first step by joining English classes at ILSC-Education Group in Malviya Nagar. "The first day I came to ILSC, I was nervous being around foreigners. Everyone here was speaking in English," says Vandana.

Six months later, she can speak fairly well English and is developing into a confident young woman.

The ILSC 'Learn to Earn' programme for girls fosters English communication skills and developing self-confidence, it aims to provide inclusion in the society and give girls a job placement with local businesses for free.

Integrating skills

"For us, this is more than just teaching English and equipping them with language skills. We want the girls to have a holistic development and make them aware of the world. We take in girls who are between 16 -25 years old with a minimum educational level of class VIII," says Jason Flaming, director, ILSC, New Delhi. The school supplies the stationary and textbooks for free.

The Learn to Earn programme is sponsored by donations from the ILSC schools in San Francisco, Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal, as well as private donations from individuals and corporations in Canada.

On their way of teaching English, Flaming informs that they do not follow the teacher-centric, chalk and talk system, but involve students in a creative and student-centered way.

Flexible teaching

"Our teachers are trained to find ways to help students discover language in a deeply personal and contextual way - this means not just using the classical textbook approach, but rather learning through the use of puzzles, pictures, role-plays, and music. We are also looking to empower our students and help them develop confidence so that they can explore an ever-increasing world of possibilities. We lay emphasis on speaking and listening but students also learn basic things like grammar, reading, writing, and pronunciation. We also conduct a progress check every four weeks, which helps us provide feedback on the student's progress" he says.

Internship

Besides learning English, students are also given a 15 hour employment skills training that includes personality development, interview and business workplace preparation including writing e-mails and using social networking sites; as well as 20 hours of financial and life skills training.

"We train the girls on how to open a bank account, use of credit and debit cards, learn about interest rates and the importance of saving and assistance in getting government identification cards. The students are given Rs 500 every month to cover their daily expenses, such as transportation and lunch," informs Flaming.

The students are also paired with international students through a 'buddy programme.'

At the end of the programme, the girls are placed in one-month internships in the service or hospitality sector. Here half of the participant's salary is paid by ILSC, while the other half by the business owner.

"We are looking for more partnerships in different sectors and seeking to bring on small businesses that would be interested in hiring on the girls with their newly minted language and interpersonal skills," he concludes.

Times of India

Against all odds

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