About Door Step School

Door Step School is a non-profit organization with a mission to educate children living in the streets and slum areas and children from the most marginalized communities. The NGO began its journey in 1989 and has provided primary education to underprivileged children in Mumbai and Pune. DSS has enriched the lives of over 1 million children with a holistic approach through many innovative programs.  DSS has a passionate team of teachers and staff who began the journey of fetching children from their homes and began teaching them basic calculations and how to read and write.

Chance Foundation and Door Step School –

COVID-19 rocked the world with unfathomable challenges. The pandemic has further added to this by disrupting education in these communities. Children were the most affected of all. Along with disrupting their school life, it also impacted their emotional well-being. This lead to an educational gap which is the most significant risk to education with an immediate need to address the following challenges:

• Non-Enrollment: Since schools were closed for more than 18 months, children in the age group of 6-7 years are not enrolled in school. It was also observed that over the years school enrollment is reducing in government schools. These are foundation years and children who miss out on these are going to face a different set of challenges. This required a more focused approach with them, their parents and teachers for streamlining their future education
• Drop out from school:  Since children have not been in school, there was a high risk of school dropouts. Children were engaged in other activities to help parents either at home or outside. This would have led to low learning levels even prompting older children towards child employment
• Low learning levels: For children who have been in school and come from a less privileged background, online learning has been an uphill task. With no one to guide them at home, children’s learning levels have dropped below than ever
• Loss of learning: According to the Azim Premji University Report published last year, more than 80% of children have lost at least one specific language or mathematical ability

Effects of this, if it would not have catered to right away, would affect an entire generation in the days to come.

Hence there was an immediate need to work at two levels in these less privileged communities through a hybrid model of online and offline intervention:

1. Teaching fundamental literacy and numeracy skills to children
2. Increasing parental involvement towards continued education of their children

Chance Foundation and DSS partnered to bridge the education gap due to COVID-19. The partnered engagement ensures that required study material and experienced teachers for in-person lessons for  available to the children

Highlights:

• 127 children reached out in April.
• Class category & activities conducted

Class Groups	Activities conducted	No. of children covered
School readiness Program -5+	Fun & creative activities to build rapport	27
Bridge Classes 6 to 8 yrs	Learning Levels (DSS 120 days program), Topics based projects to enhance language, Art and Craft activities	80
Reading class (9 -14)	Reading enhancement activities, Environmental knowledge,	20
Parents Interaction	Interactions through home visits	70

• Children in reading class were given the additional activities of writing practice, aloud reading, and storytelling activities.
• 70 parents reached out to build rapport with them.
• Learning tracking is taken by the teacher every week

Positive changes as observed on the ground –

• Some of the parents voluntarily drop their children at the center.
• Children are liking the activities and willing to come to the center.
• DSS teaching materials are helpful for children. They are liking it and also taking home to revise and practice.
• Children of study class love to read aloud (in-group) printed charts and tables up to 10