Pratham in the Rain

Although I have always had a positive impression of Pratham as an institution, I have always imagined a Pratham class as something out of a dystopia. In my mind’s eye, I pictured a group of identical children listening to the monotonous droning of their teacher. This was certainly what I experienced in my schooling in the US, and it seemed only fair to expect nothing more from Pratham. As far as I was concerned, a Pratham school would have no ways to provide anything beyond the basics: the teachers would not have the resources that even the least pleasant of my teachers had at hand.

But when my mother, sister, and I actually visited the Pratham school (run from within a municipal school in Islampur, near New Delhi), I found that I had misled myself—in more than one way. First, in terms of the students themselves. I was surprised at how similar they were to my classmates: every one of them was different (as one would expect from any group of people) but none were foreign; it was easy to see similarities between each of them and someone I knew.

The style of education was perhaps the most shocking and inspiring. While the school itself was probably less comfortable than the American equivalent, I learned that amenities are neither vital nor necessarily conducive to a great education.

One of the two classes I visited was in a room with no furniture but a lot of student art on the walls. The power went out and the room became quite dark. The second class was out in an open hall, not far from the pouring rain but better lit than the first. In both classes, the students sat on the floor, bubbling with enthusiasm. Every once in a while, their teacher would call upon them to carry out some activity, and the students would jump up and participate. For example, a student would jump up and sing a small jingle naming a letter of the (Hindi) alphabet; another child would hop into the circle and pick out the letter the first one named. Later, the teacher asked the students to group themselves by some number, and the children would run around and hug each other to make a group. Those without a group would be out for this round, but back in the next.

It was one thing after another nonstop—I am not sure if the children even realised they were learning, but they certainly were! The way the Pratham teachers maintained a fast pace of skits and songs was impressive; it is clear they take their jobs seriously. It was telling that when the lunch bell rang, neither the teachers nor the students wanted to stop. I wish I could see such enthusiasm for education at my school.

Without air conditioning, tables, chairs, or even four walls, Pratham has given these youth an educational experience so great that I wish I could have attended their school instead of mine.

By Amitoj Singh