“My success lies in the fact that my students are flourishing in the field of sports as well as education, even after coming from much less resourceful place,” Shweta Rawat said proudly, as she walked the remaining distance of half an hour to the school she transformed during her three years of service there.
The government’s elementary school in Pali village of Narayanbagad village in Chamoli district has a single teacher for a total of 14 students. Shweta, a science and mathematics teacher, teaches everything there is for those students to learn. She travels two hours every single day to teach in the school, which she has turned into a concept-based education institute. Every initiative that she has taken to mold the fate of her students, whether it is the buddy system or taking science outside the classroom, she has managed to bring out the best in her students.
When asked about what inspired her to relocate from the state’s capital, Dehradun, to Narayanbagad, she gave credit to her parents, who never stopped her from aiming for the moon. The resources allocated to government schools in Uttarakhand are so scarce that giving children an all-round education is a mere dream.
To equip her students with knowledge, she introduced a buddy system, which encourages college students from nearby villages to devote their time to mentor the students. The concept of the parent-teacher meet has been lost in the middle of its formalities, but Shweta keeps in mind the essence of keeping the parents updated on the growth of their children while asking for their continuous involvement in their children’s education.
Many teachers like Shweta are striving every day to transform the education system, even as they face adversities of the system. Her aspiration of teaching her students, the bagpiper, is visible in the letters and requests that she has been sending out to authorities for quite some time.
Sewa International acknowledges the work of teachers like Shweta Rawat, who are going #backtoroots and advocating for their students amidst systemic constraints. We are giving her a platform to voice her opinion and suggestions for the betterment of education in Uttarakhand on Fyunli Kauthig this year, on the occasion of International Women’s Day, 2020.
Attend Fyunli Kauthig that is happening in the seven clusters of Chamoli and Rudraprayag districts of Uttarakhand this Sunday, and become part of the conversation.