AeA's Intervention

Aide et Action started a project named 'Community Owned and Promoted Education (COPE)' in Harda district of Madhya Pradesh in June 2002.The goal of the project is to emphasise and augment community's strength in critical analysis and collective actions to become self reliant.

Location and Coverage

State	District(s)	Blocks/ mandals	Number of villages covered
Madhya Pradesh	Harda	Timarni	25 (20 forest and 5 revenue villages)

Objectives

• To develop shared understanding with the community on their own educational needs

• To facilitate communities to evolve education process in tune with their needs

• To network with different actors and promote collective action for universalisation of quality elementary education

• To promote development of the community through strength building and self-initiatives

Major Accomplishments

• Formation of Village Education Development Committee forum in 25 villages and motivation for cause of education

• Formation of Balpanchayats in 15 schools for leadership development

• Increase in the attendance in schools by 70%

• Community involved in the management and monitoring of schools

• Regular meetings of Village Education Development Committees

• Development of self-learning materials

Specific to 2005 

• Strengthening of Village Education Development Committee forum 

• Capacity building of teachers

• Development of contextual learning materials

• Building capacities of newly elected PRI members

Main Activities for 2006

Quality Education

• Developing contextual learning materials

• Organise training programmes for capacity building of teachers

• Developing a teachers' activity handbook to facilitate children's minimum levels of learning

• Developing a multi-grade teaching package

• Strengthening Village Education Development Committees through training and exposure visits

• Developing low cost and no cost learning materials for quality education

• Developing and strengthening Village Education Development Committees forums who coordinate with Government departments for providing teachers and other facilities to school

• Developing an education report for the area

• Develop children's forums such as Bal panchayats, Bal melas for leadership development

Livelihoods Education

• Survey of existing income sources and potential sources that may explored

• Developing multiple livelihoods based on farm, off farm and forests activities and conduct pilots with 3 women Self Help Groups

• Link Self Help Groups with Banks/Micro Finance Institutions for livelihoods

Inclusive Education

• Capacity building of project team in inclusive education

• Identification of children with disabilities and developing child specific rehabilitation plans

• Workshop with teachers and parents on developing skills in handling children with disabilities

• Ensure that all the children with disabilities are provided with disability certificates

• Workshop with Bal panchayats to sensitize them on disability issues

Women's Empowerment and Education

• Formation and strengthening of 75 Self Help Groups

• Linkage development with Banks / Micro Finance Institutions (MFIs)

• Developing village health team along with ANM, Anganwadi workers and members of Self Help Groups

• Organize trainings and workshops for leadership development among women

• Training programmes for record keeping of Self Help Groups

• Health awareness camps organised for women awareness on health issues

• Develop activities on life skills and vocation for education of adolescent girls dropped out of school

Resource Mobilisation

• Partnership will be made with other sources for funding such as other donor agencies, private donors etc

• Linking of all Self Help Groups to Banks or MFIs to raise revolving funds that may be used for income generating activities

• Developing village health plan and child specific action plans for CWD to raise funds on issues of health from government departments and other sources