Constituency Served

rural children, mainly children of landless farmers

Details of Work

Vikasana is a free school for about 20 rural children, mainly children of landless farmers. It is inspired by the principles of educationist David Horsburgh's Neelbagh School in Rayalpadu, Karnataka, and is run by the Neelbagh Trust. The school has a vertical grouping of children and emphasises student-teacher relationships. Each child enters school with a sapling that they nurture through their time at school, thus developing a sensitivity towards nature. Children take responsibility for looking after the school, raising vegetables and cooking lunch. Apart from academic subjects, the curriculum includes craft such as pottery, carpentry, origami, drawing and painting. There is yoga and singing everyday in many different languages. There is no formal certificate at the end of schooling, but students who choose to are prepared for the Std 7 and Std 10 examinations.