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BABAR ALI

ANANDA SIKSHA NIKETAN, INDIA

“Everybody has the right to the light of knowledge. I bring it to the underpriviledged, and so can you.”

At age 9, Babar started teaching younger peers that could not afford to attend school by teaching them what he’d learned in the morning. By age 16 he had 500 students and became famous as “the world’s youngest headmaster”. 

Babar's story

Babar’s story in school textbooks reaches 100 million school students in India, Europe and the Americas, but we think there is so much more to do. We want to

(a) help him realize his dream to bring this free school model to more children,

(b) help him make his school more awesome (since he operates under difficult conditions in a rural setting) with international school partnerships, peer to peer learning, student-led projects, youth leadership in their community and

(c) pay a visit as school class, for work visits, youth exchange, as volunteer or ecosocial tourist,

which is the dream come true for education on global issues and SDGs. Are you joining?

TOPICS

childhood in rural low income regions of non-industrial societies

education for all

youth-led school

peer-2-peer learning

PREPARATION

View Babar’s videos and enjoy the impressions in the YL Babar poster set that you can also put up as an exhibit to memorize the story and share it with others … to involve them in follow-up activities 😉 

ACTIONS

Converse and collect all knowledge and practical skills that you have in your group and are able to share with others that don’t have this knowledge or practical skill. Wow, it is going to be a huge list, you’ll be surprised. What’s ordinary to you is unknown and unachieved by others – YET, but of course one can teach them. 

View Babar’s Action Guide … we suggest taking the teacher’s role teaching younger or underpriviledged peers near or far what you have learned, also practical skills. This can be through creative play sessions that boost cognitive skills like Alisha does for children in homeless shelters. Also, activities in support of his school are very precious and a great start for exciting follow-up.

 

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FOLLOW-UP

How about a school partnership with Babar’s school that is open to student self-organization via social media. His school currently providesw the scientific syllabus, but Babar would love that students launch and realize projects. An outside impulse and partner can be a strong asset to get this started and continue and then also document and share progress, which is a lovely positive news media exercise … for sure, you can think of many other media activities that they can do in their region because you are curious and will be stunned by what they report on 🙂 You can also pay visits and coach your knowledge. And learn from them. Go go go!

Connects great with

PETER REICHENBACH

PETER REICHENBACH

Master artist, sevengardens UNESCO, ESD, RCE-Ruhr UNU, Germany, Global