Project Report
| Aug 19, 2020
Update on reopening of schools
By Venkat Ramakrishnan | Project Leader
Dear Patrons,
We would like to update you on the
timelines and possibilities of the
reopening of the Isha Vidhya schools
post Covid-19 pandemic.
We have got information that it is
unlikely that the schools will open
until December 2020 in Tamilnadu.
We are assessing the situation for
our one school in Andhra Pradesh.
Meanwhile, online classes are going
on the students who are attending them.
As the students live in the rural
areas, it has been very difficult to
make them use the smartphones, as
many of them don’t have smartphones,
and the Internet connection is poor in
the rural areas. We are trying our best
to keep the children engaged by
constantly communicating with the
parents.
At the same time, our operational
expenses stay high, as we have to
pay salaries for the teachers, and
partial salaries for other staff. We
will be uploading our 2020-21
operational budget in our project
documentation at GlobalGiving.
We thank you for all the help and
support at this juncture. We will
continue to update you on the status
of schools reopening.
Thanks & Best Regards.
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Jun 23, 2020
Sharing by Isha Vidhya Nagercoil Principal
By Venkat Ramakrishnan | Project Leader
![Betsey-Nagercoil-IV-18062020-Report]()
Betsey-Nagercoil-IV-18062020-Report
This is a sharing by Isha Vidhya Nagercoil
Principal, Mrs. Betsey:
Namaskaram,
I joined Isha Vidhya in 2011 when I relocated
to Nagercoil to take care of my ailing parents.
It took me a while to adjust to Isha Vidhya as
I had earlier worked in conventional schools.
I even contemplated quitting three months into
the job, but I gradually began liking the place
and the children.
I started by teaching Class 2 and Class 3 children.
One incident is etched in my memory – during a
casual interaction, I asked my class to name their
favorite food. They named various food items but
one child said that he could only like the food but
not have it. That's when I realized the importance
of the nourishing noon meal served at the school.
We have students from different backgrounds
and many of them study with a 100% scholarship.
Their struggles naturally impact me and I strive to
help in transforming their lives. The students have
taught me to be more humble than any other
person ever did.
Pranam.
Notes:
‘Namaskaram’ is a Tamil language greeting,
and ‘Pranam’ is a Hindi language greeting
used extensively in India.
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Jun 5, 2020
Creative Topics & Learning From Experts
By Venkat Ramakrishnan | Project Leader
![Creative Topics - Lockdown - June 2020]()
Creative Topics - Lockdown - June 2020
Dear Patrons,
In continuation with the last
week's report, we would like
to update you on some more
activities that we have taken
up as part of education during
lockdown.
Getting the creative juices flowing
From the comfort of their homes,
students of classes 9 and 10 are now
able to be part of fun–filled activities
which range from learning about
robotics, solving puzzles, being part
of surveys on education, social and
psychological issues. The students
also learn how to design projects
with the help of scratch program –
a blog-based visual programming
language.
Atul Pant, founder of Timeless
Lifeskills (TLS), a London–based
educational charity, is now helping
Isha Vidhya students upgrade their
knowledge base on a variety of
subjects. Pant interacts with our
students daily through WhatsApp.
Learning from Experts
It proved to be a rare treat for our
senior students when they received
an introductory video on basics of
Chemistry made by Ryan, a scientist
from Max Planc Institute.
The students reciprocated with a
number of questions for Ryan who
replied to each query in detail. This
is just the beginning as we plan to
continue this online interaction
between our students and experts
like scientists, economists and
entrepreneurs.
With all these initiatives, we hope
that the students will shine as ever!
We thank you for your attention,
and look forward for your continued
support.
Best Regards.
![Learning From Experts - Lockdown - June 2020]()
Learning From Experts - Lockdown - June 2020
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