ASH at Pratham

The American School of The Hague visits Pratham

By Pia Brar

An ASH student drawing a crocodile for the students.

A group of ten international class eleven students from the American School of The Hague (ASH) arrived in Delhi last week to work with Pratham’s Urban Learning Center in Usmanpur, Old Delhi. ASH annually collaborates with Pratham to send a group of students to work in an Urban Learning Center in India.

The high schoolers worked with Pratham from February 18^th to the 21^st, during a four-day program where they taught the children singing, dancing and art to which they responded extremely enthusiastically. The halls and colourful classrooms echoed with the sound of children learning the words to ‘The Wheels on The Bus’ or the stomping of their feel as they practiced the ‘Shake Shake Dance.’

Ligia, an ASH student, helping students present drawings.

On the fourth day, the students gathered together to present what they had learned. The first group, ‘Art’, presented pictures of policemen, doctors, and lawyers that they had drawn in answer to the question, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” For this assignment, the ASH students emphasized the lesson that with constant hard work and dedication, a child can become whatever he/she wants to be.

The singing group then sang ‘Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes’ on the top of their lungs to show that they had learned the English words for each body part.

When the dance group came on, they impressed the audience by opening with their impressive breakdancing moves. They then pumped up the energy in the room by showing how skilfully they could twist and shake their bodies to the music.

ASH and Pratham students dancing.

Though the interaction between the two groups of students was for a limited amount of time, they became extremely attached and no body wanted to say goodbye. The Pratham students begged the high schoolers to stay by reasoning, “If you stay for one month we’ll become fluent in English!” Then when the time came for the ASH students to finally leave, tears streamed down each of their faces as thank you cards and hugs were exchanged. Little hands and Colourful sleeves stuck out of every window to wave them goodbye as they walked to their bus.

The ASH students then travelled to the Delhi Headquarters to meet Pratham’s CEO and Co-Founder, Dr. Madhav Chavan, and reflected on their experience while in India. They shared with him how privileged they now felt after have seen this 'other world' where education is not taken for granted and how being involved in Pratham’s work had been a life-changing experience.