These TFI fellows are trying to raise funds to help students bridge the learning gap. Will they raise enough?

Education is still a privilege in India and the pandemic has forced a huge chunk of young learners out of school. The Ja'fari English High School in Mumbai's Govandi area is a private school that caters to children from low-income households — mostly Muslim — in the neighbourhood. The kids have been away from classrooms for almost two years and this has not only hampered their education but also affected their childhood.

A few Teach For India fellows who are teaching Class 3 students at the school want to fill the gap that has been created by the pandemic and help the kids continue their education by supporting them wherever they need help — be it shortfall in school fees, stationary or ration and most definitely their education. They have started a fundraising campaign to raise funds for this endeavour.

Adrijja Saha, one of the fellows, said that they plan to rent a space where they can provide remedial sessions to the students and also spread awareness about the need for education and its importance. "Even though we distributed tabs to the kids, it is near to impossible for them to attend classes on those or finish their assignments without help and unlike kids from privileged families, their parents are not about to help them with even these seemingly basic issues. We decided to start a fundraiser so that we can rent a space where we can teach these kids to interact with them but while following COVID protocols," said Adrijja, a mass communication graduate from The Heritage Academy, Kolkata and a Teach for India fellow.

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But Adrijja and the other fellows have only found eight people who have been willing to donate and have acquired Rs 2,200 in around a month. Their target of Rs 1,00,000 is far away. But why aren't people donating? "I think it's because people have donated so much over the past year that now they can't anymore. We planned to not just rent a space, but also help some of the children whose parents aren't able to pay the fees so that they aren't forced to drop out. The plan was to even provide basic ration and stationaries for the kids," said Adrijja. A trained dancer and thespian herself, she wants to teach her students the importance of music and art in one's life. The classes might start in Maharashtra from December 1, but the education loss will not be bridged if the students are not handheld back to where they were when the pandemic hit the world.