Adolescent girls and women’s groups
 

 

Bodh’s intervention with the community made it realize that the community was not a homogeneous group. The principles of universal participation can be endeared to only when conditions for the same will be ensured. The status of women and adolescent girls in the community did not provide them with opportunity to equally participate in the educational affairs. Besides it also has experiences of certain slums in Jaipur where women from the community had spearheaded and aligned with the organization in its educational endeavors.
 
As a result of entrenched community beliefs about women's education, the early age of marriage and the fact that so much of the adolescent girls' time was spent in taking care of siblings, the educational profile of the adolescent girls was poorer than that of the younger girls’. Thus, in keeping with both their willingness to be educated and their need for support to complement their role as the primary care givers in families, alternative learning centers were organized in 1993. The program sought to provide them basic literacy skills, build up their own sense of competence and worth and also provide some skills related to better childcare. There is a recent trend to include a certain degree of vocational education in the program.
 
Mobilization of Women through the creation of the Mahila Samoohs has been an integral part of the program. The centers/group has been acting as the platform for providing girls and women with educational opportunities. It also creates for them environment for exploring their aspirations and guidance in keeping with issues that confront them in their development stage. These groups also discuss their own or their children’s problems along with health and nutrition based inputs in the centers.
 
They sing, dance, study, discuss and actively engage in other pursuits with the teacher in the learning centers. Across the program, centers have over 600 girls/women.
 
Bodh’s has been looking at the broadening of its perspective and approach of work with the women. The efforts will be towards developing a holistic and sustainable support system for the women and girls alike.