“I have a doubt!” Doubt-clearing Didi-Bhaiyya Mentor Network

Being promoted to the next class without having to attend the dreaded final exam sounds awesome, doesn’t it? While this may be relieving & gives one extra time to relax, what happens to learning? Will one be equipped to handle the curriculum from the next year without strengthening their basics?

“In India, over 1.5 million (15 lakh) schools have been closed due to the pandemic affecting 286 million (28.6 crore) children from pre-primary to secondary levels, (of which 49 per cent girls) This adds to the 6 million (60 lakh) girls and boys who were already out of school prior to the COVID-19,” mentioned a latest UNICEF report.

The ongoing crisis has pushed many schools to go digital (impart their classes online). And with just over 24 per cent of Indian households having internet connections to access e-education, there is now a larger rural-urban and gender divide that is likely to widen the learning gap across high, middle and low-income families – according to the report. Because of the ongoing pandemic, schools have been asked to promote their students to the next grade without evaluation. For those who have always aced their classes, adapting to this new form of learning wasn’t too much trouble. As for the “back-benchers”, well, adapting to a digitally-imparted new curriculum was harder than usual.

Of course, one can always look back to their teachers for doubts but “What were you doing when the class was going on?” is a question that no child wants to answer. So are informal tutoring sessions the new go-to for those lagging in classes? Tribes for GOOD says YES through ‘I have a Doubt -Didi-Bhaiyya Mentor Network’ !

 The Remote Learning Reachability report, issued by UNICEF, expressed concerns over quality education content often not being available in vernacular languages. With a cohort of high-performing individuals from the grades 10-12, Tribes For GOOD’s Young Changemakers are currently imparting  NCERT-based curriculum in Hindi, Telugu & Marathi. The age group of Tribes For Good’s Young Changemakers allows for an informal setting where the ice is easy to break & communication is a lot more easier with the students.

Who are these Bhaiyyas and Didis?

The mentor network comprises high performing students from grade 10-12  who believe in giving and deepening their knowledge about social impact space. The pan India network comprises – Anavi K, Abhishek R, Dhruv H, Mudit G, Rishi R, Priyanka and Ved Nair. 

The student mentors are allocated topics to be covered over a zoom session. Post allocation, they start researching content that is available on Youtube or sources like Khan Academy or Agastya Academy.  The brief given to the students is to look for practical examples which can be easily explained using a remote learning platform. A doubt clearing session is divided into 2 parts – 1) Deepening knowledge about the concept 2) Questions to be solved by each student during the class. Each week a single topic is repeated twice or more to ensure better learning outcomes for first generation learners!

Tribes for Good is always looking to partner with non-profits who want to run this program for their students. We are also looking for young, talented individuals to help impart the curriculum.