Founder/Trustee: Sita Nayar
Work Experience:
She began her teaching experience at Capital School, a multi-national elementary school in Nigeria, where she spent a total of six years.
In America, she worked as a volunteer at Friend’s Seminary, an independent Quaker school in New York City, and at The Forest Hills Nursery and Kindergarten in the city.
From 1983 till 1987 she worked at the Kodaikanal International school, Kodaikanal, where she co-ordinated the Elementary Department during the last six months of her tenure there.
After fourteen years in the field of education this was a period of reflection. Her experiences until that time had led to a certain amount of uneasiness about the educational system and what was happening to children in the name of education. The cumulative impact of these years led to the search for the meaning of “education” and, finally, to the setting up of Bhavya, in Kochi in 1994.
In 1994, she set up Bhavya, in Kochi, Kerala. Bhavya was a non-graded and totally child-centred space, based on the practice of total respect for all children. It was a place where the children were free to learn and grow, each at his own pace. In the four years spent at Bhavya, she was able to refine her ideas further, and in application, discovered the true potential of such an approach to education. This was a deeply satisfying experience with regard to both the children and their parents who, having been part of the whole experience, were enthusiastic about the ideas practised at Bhavya.
Worked as a consultant to the TVS schools in Aviyur, Tumkur and Hosur.
Set up and ran for three years, the Early Learning Program for children between the ages of 3 and 9 at Poorna Learning Centre in Bangalore.
Publications:
· Whoever Said Childhood is Carefree? The Hindu, November 24, 1991
· A Second Look at Discipline, The Hindu, June 2, 2000
· Lessons Through Play, The Hindu, November 12, 2000
Educational Qualifications:
· B.A. (Hons) in Economics (Delhi University)
· MST (Master of Science in Teaching) – Elementary Education (Fordham University at Lincoln Center, New York)
Founder/Trustee: Vineeta Sood
Work Experience:
· Worked for a brief spell (against a leave vacancy) at M.M. Modi College, Patiala, as a lecturer in Zoology (1987).
· She worked with a special educator to set up a learning program for a group of mentally and physically challenged children and their families (1991-1993).
· Worked as a volunteer in Bhavya, Kochi, for four years (1993 -1997).
· Holding the firm conviction that every child is beautiful and sensitive, and that the responsibility of the parents and teachers is to preserve that beauty and sensitivity, while helping the child to grow and learn, she home-schooled her children for a period of four years (1997-2000) while in Assam. During this time, the approach adopted was the same as that adopted in Bhavya.
· In Delhi, she worked with “Mirambika” as a volunteer for two years, helping with their teacher-training program.
· Spent one year with Scholastic Publications as an educational co-ordinator, helping establish reading programmes in the schools of South Delhi which included the setting up of Reading Clubs in these schools. This really helped her see how, on an average, children are regarded in some of the most prestigious schools.
· Spent six months working with Katha, an NGO involved in educating the “under- privileged” children.
· Associated with Shikshantar, Udaipur, an NGO which is committed to the propagation of informal learning through living (since December 2002).
· Worked from 2002-2003 with Prof. Poonam Batra from Central Institute of Education, Delhi University, on a project, “Teaching English as a Second Language to Hindi Speaking Children.”
· Worked during the year 2003-2004 with Shikshantar, an upcoming alternative school in Gurgaon, Delhi, as a curriculum co-ordinator, where one of her major responsibilities was training the teachers.
· Worked as a volunteer at Poorna Learning Centre, Bangalore from June 2004 till February, 2005. During this time, she helped to develop a Bhavya-based program for 9-11 year-olds at Poorna.
Publications:
· The Journey Named Hope. Published in the journal, Vimukta Shiksha – Paths of Unlearning, a bulletin of Shikshantar, Udaipur, February, 2003.
· Mcdonaldization versus Humanization – Resisting the Culture of Schooling, series 5. Published in the Journal, McEducation For All? Opening a Dialogue Around UNESCO’S Vision For Commoditizing Learning, Published by Shikshantar, Udaipur, August, 2003.
· Aasman Se Gire, Khajoor Me Atke – Schooli Mansikta Ka Pratirodh. An article in Hindi published in the Journal, Shram ke Bina, Shiksha Kaisi? Published by Shikshantar, Udaipur, December, 2003
Educational Qualifications:
· B.Sc. (Medical), Government College, Gurdaspur
· M.Sc. in Zoology at Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana
· M.Phil. in Zoology at Punjabi University, Patiala
· B.Ed, Punjab University, Chandigarh
· M.Ed, Annamalai University, Tamil Nadu
· Two-month Volunteer Training course at Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, during which time she was placed at the Child Guidance Clinic at Wadia Hospital
Trustee: Asha Joseph
Experience:
Was one of the first parents of Bhavya. She has two children, Amit, aged 14 and Ajay, aged 12. It was when she was seeking admission for her sons to pre-school, that she first happened upon Bhavya and met Sita Nayar. She feels that being a part of Bhavya, Kochi, had been a significant experience for her. It helped her to discover a better way to help her children learn and grow. She feels that her experience with Bhavya helped her to become a better mother. Today, she is confident that her children will strive to always be the best that they can be.
Educational Qualifications:
· B.Sc. in Mathematics from Union Christian College.
Sunitha M.R.
Work Experience:
· Has a Masters’ Degree in Social Work from Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai.
· Worked with the Akshara Foundation as a program co-ordinator in 2000. Was in charge of reworking and running a program that would encourage young dropouts to go back to school.
· Joined Poorna Learning Center in 2001. Worked with the Bhavya Program at Poorna Learning Centre from June 2002 till March 2005. For Sunitha, “Bhavya has not been about becoming a teacher. It has been a struggle to become a human being in touch with herself. In its essence the Bhavya philosophy has been about love, compassion and change...” She feels that this has made her, ”a little more patient with and aware of the world outside. I am, today, more keenly interested and involved in what happens with and around me than I ever was before.”
· Has a background in dance, music and theatre and continues to pursue these interests actively, today.
Educational Qualifications:
· Bachelor of Arts from Mount Carmel College, Bangalore
· Masters in Social work at Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai
Mamatha S.
Work Experience:
· Worked in Rohit Computer Industry, Bangalore, from 1995 – 1997.
· Worked in Bharath Electronics, Bangalore, from 1997 -1998.
· Came to Poorna Learning Centre seeking admission for her son. Intrigued by the Bhavya program and the principle behind it, she decided to explore it as a volunteer for a period of 2 months before joining as a full-time staff member. She worked in the Bhavya Program at Poorna Learning Centre, Bangalore, from 2003 – 2005.
Educational Qualifications:
· B.E. in Electronics and Communication.
K. Mamata Krishna
Work Experience:
· Spent two years in rural Jharkhand, organising rural women’s micro-credit groups as a member of PRADAN. Wrote a manual on promoting rural women’s self-help groups for PRADAN’s resource centre. (The Manual has, since, been translated into Hindi.)
· Worked for three years as an independent consultant to MYRADA (Mysore Rehabilitation and Development Agency) in Bangalore, PRADAN (Professional Assistance for Development Action) in Delhi and the NEF (New Economics Foundation) in London. In this period, she co-authored a book on the promotion of rural livelihoods and authored a manual on the training of micro-credit group members.
· Worked as a Mathematics and English teacher at the Poorna Learning Centre, Bangalore, for three years - teaching children at the 4th, 8th, 9th and 10th grade levels. Organised a program based on the Bhavya philosophy for 9-11 year olds at the school.
Publications:
· Krishna, Mamata. The Savings and Credit Manual. Research and Resource Centre, PRADAN, 1996.
· Datta, Sankar; Fisher, Thomas; and Krishna, Mamata K. A Resource Book for Livelihood Promotion, 2001.
Educational Qualifications:
· B.Sc Hons, Mathematics (St. Stephens College, Delhi University)
· Post Graduate Diploma in Rural Management (Institute of Rural Management, Anand, Gujarat)
Selena George
Work Experience:
· Worked as Copy Editor for Femina (a women’s magazine) for two-and-a-half years. Her work involved writing, editing, sourcing material and writers, and assisting in production.
· Worked with Shikshantar, Udaipur for six months. The activities included bringing out a newsletter, holding two workshops with NGOs and urban youth, writing policy papers and working with children and their families in a local basti as part of a project called ‘Udaipur as a Learning City’.
· Worked with village women as part of Prakriti, Mussoorie. Her work included exploring livelihood options with a Mahila Sanghatan of women from 20 villages, advocacy for environment sustainability by networking, writing papers and working with children from Woodstock school on exposure trips.
· Did a three-month orientation course in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry as part of the Psychiatric Social Work Department of NIMHANS. This was followed by voluntary work as part of a team conceptualising a curriculum for intervention in schools in an organisation called Urban India Ministries.
· Underwent a six-month orientation-cum-training experience with the Bhavya program at Poorna Learning Centre. Officially joined the Bhavya team in October 2005 and worked there for the rest of the academic year. In Bhavya, she has found, “…a programme that nurtures every individual that comes in contact with it, be it adult or child... An environment rooted in intimate, trusting and secure relationships between adults and children, that provides a space of unconditional acceptance.”
Educational Qualifications:
· B.A. from Osmania University, Hyderabad
· Post-Graduate Diploma in Journalism and Mass Communication (Symbiosis, Pune)
· Masters’ Degree in Social Work (Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai)