Bright Sparks School was started by two women, one from the UK and one from Chandigarh. They noticed that the children of cleaners in middle-class homes were not going to school. In fact, many were working kids. They decided to employ a teacher to
teach them literacy. That teacher was Rita Mohan, who is now our Head.

One class grew into two, and over time the school expanded to its current size serving
105 students each year. It is registered as a school with the Punjab Department of
Education and offers the Punjab Board of Education curriculum.
The two women who began the school keep a watching eye. And their original vision still
informs the day-to-day work of the school.

Sheetal, one of the earliest Bright Sparks students, with her daughters. They will definitely go to school!

Bright Sparks School is in Mohali, a large town close to Chandigarh in Punjab, north India. It is located in Phase 11, in a residential area. It serves a nearby shanty-town or
colony, where many migrant workers come to live when they arrive in the city.

Almost all students graduate from Class five and go on to secondary education in local
government schools. Some are sponsored to attend a local NGO school where they can
opt to learn in the medium of English or Hindi. Over the last 20 years, about 500
students have successfully transferred from Bright Sparks into secondary education.

When Students leave, that is not the end of the story. Bright Sparks runs a homework
club so secondary students have a place to do homework with teacher support. Many
students call back simply to touch base with a supportive ‘family’. Help is given to guide
students towards suitable colleges, courses or work opprtunities as they come to the
end of their secondary schooling. Some are supported into tertiary education.

Well over 1000 children have gained an education at Bright Sparks School. This often
benefits their family members too, who are offered guidance in areas such as health
care, family planning, diet or dealing with official issues.

The children’s families largely lack literacy skills and many have not registered their
children’s births. Bright Sparks teachers reach out into the community, find these
children, help get them papers, and get them started in school. It is a huge practical
intervention that completely changes lives.

RAJU

“Bright Sparks has been everything to me. It changed my life and gave me a future.”
Raju was the first Bright Sparks pupil, now in his thirties, working in a publishing and print business.

In the past, Bright Sparks did not have the resources to track all our alumni. (Hopefully,
this is improving.) What we do know is that a few students went on to tertiary education
and graduated with diplomas or degrees. Others have done technical training and now
work in professional careers. Yet others offer tutoring or teach small groups of nursery
age children. Some run successful sewing or tailoring businesses, or a local shop. At
least one is aiming to enter the Civil Service, and is working towards entrance exams. All
are able to live and contribute to society at a more accomplished level than their
parents.

If you talk with the young adults now who began their education at Bright Sparks, one
thing is common – their own children go to school. For them, the cycle of illiteracy is broken.

Jyoti, now aiming for a civil service job, returns to Bright Sparks to speak about her experiences

Bright Sparks hopes to go on intervening in young lives, offering the simple gift of
education. We hope for greater financial security and are working towards this. We are
fortunate in our current premises but we could hope at some stage to have the benefit
of a school building. We may even hope that changes in policy or society will make our
work less necessary.

Our most important hope perhaps, is that all the people who make Bright Sparks what it
is, continue to be a part of it and go on helping to grow the amazing network of Friends,
volunteers, donors, and Community Partners who keep our small project working and
changing lives, year after year. Thank you all so very much. And if you are just about to
join us – welcome!