BRIGHT SPARKS SCHOOL & SOCIETY

Bright Sparks School

Bright Sparks School has five primary classes and a kindergarten. It is open six days a week. Students follow the full Punjab State Education Board curriculum, with lessons in Maths, Punjabi, Hindi, English, Science, Computer skills and General Studies. Craft activities, dance, yoga and sports are popular additions to the timetable. Lessons are taught in a mix of Punjabi, Hindi and English. The school celebrates many festivals, drawing on different religions and ecological themes, such as Earth Day.

A small area of land is tended by the students and is a garden, classroom, festival field and sportsground all rolled into one. The NGO school is currently based in rented accommodation: five simple rooms on the ground floor of a building. It’s a small space so every room gets reorganised for a different use several times a day. The main school day runs from 8.30am to 2pm.

When the younger kids leave, an afternoon ‘homework club’ provides computer skills and academic support for the older students and importantly, for ex-students who are at secondary school. This is a valuable space for students, away from their cramped living conditions, and giving help which is not available to them at home

Bright Sparks Registered Society

Bright Sparks School is part of Bright Sparks Society, registered in Punjab, which has seven local Indian Trustees. All are volunteers, interested in education and working for a fairer world. The Society is responsible both for the school and for the progress and betterment of its students. This requires work beyond the school timetable. The Trustees are involved in local fundraising, including a campaign to ‘Sponsor a child’s place’ at Bright Sparks School.

As students move into secondary education, they are supported with homework classes and sometimes secondary school fees. The Society finds sponsors for gifted students moving into tertiary education,and helps where necessary by providing equipment such as mobile phones, laptops and sewing machines. Tutor support is also organised for older learners, to help them gain entry to courses.

Training

One of the Society’s priorities is to help ex-students make the most of their educational achievements. We want to see them succeed on their journey through secondary school, higher education, training and work. At intervals, workshops are organised to teach specific skills to older students. In the past these have included embroidery and tailoring projects. The society is keen to do more such workshops with community partners to provide practical skills-training in different fields.

Outreach

The children’s parents have mostly missed out on the opportunity to gain literacy and numeracy skills. This has had a profound effect on their ability to engage with the world and to flourish. Many of our students live in a shanty-town area on wasteland. Their houses range from tarpaulin-covered shacks to a two-roomed mud-brick house with attached toilet. Many do not have birth certificates.

Outreach work begins when teachers go out into the community to find children who would not otherwise set foot in school. Once a child is enrolled at Bright Sparks, team members work with the families to keep the child in education. This is especially true for girls.

The team, including volunteers with professional skills, organises a programme of talks and clinics offering information and help in many forms. Examples include:

– information-sharing sessions with parents and adults on health care, diet, contraception, hygiene, and the importance of continued education for girls
-dental ‘boot camps’ at the school where all students have their dental and oral health checked, teeth cleaned, and fillings done
-advice, support and occasional financial help for students’ families who are experiencing difficulties such as illness or loss of earning power