Background
The TDAc is in Birendra Singh’s home village of Sikandarpur in rural North East India. We began the project in 2018 with the purchase of a plot of land and a small building programme – initially one large classroom, with a partition to create a smaller space at one end. Since then we have registered the Tetara Debi Education Charity in the UK and set up a Trust in India to help support and grow the school.
In the last two or three years we have been able to expand the school building so it now has an additional classroom and a school office, as well as an outside play space and toilet facilities for staff and pupils. A key development going forward will be the construction of a school library, something almost unheard of in this part of India, in order to help introduce children to the joys of reading.
Update
The school serves a mixed community of Muslims and Hindus and aims to provide a fully inclusive education to children in the locality, regardless of their gender, class, caste or religion. There are now over 80 pupils on roll, in three classes, mostly ages 4 to 7 with one or two a little older.
The school is increasing in popularity in the area and the children definitely seem to enjoy their time there. Visits from parents during school time are welcome and they are able to see how their children are doing.
The curriculum and CASTME awards
The curriculum includes science, maths, reading and writing in Hindi and local languages, and English, mainly spoken with a little reading and writing.
The science includes learning about the solar system and plant growth and we are introducing some study of local plants and plant life-cycles. We have been fortunate to receive support from The Commonwealth Association of Science, Technology & Mathematics Educators (CASTME), which links science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) educators across the Commonwealth.
CASTME partners with Findel International Education Resources to sponsor annual awards, and in both 2022 and 2023 the TDEC was awarded prizes in the Community (2022) and Education (2023) categories. The prizes have provided £200 worth of science equipment, including hand held magnifiers and magnets, and measuring equipment – jugs, weighing scales, a trundle wheel and a window thermometer – plus some lovely posters showing the life cycle of a plant, and an ‘Intro to Structures Bridges Set’. All of this has all been taken to the school (March 2024) to develop and support the emphasis on practical work – using the equipment, growing seeds, and looking at gravity, magnetism etc. in the context of play. This kind of approach to teaching science is new in terms of education in this part of India, where rote learning is the default in both private and state schools.
In addition, we have taken half a dozen donated and refurbished laptops to the school and the children are beginning to have some experience of using these to learn keyboard skills.
All of this equipment is really supporting our approach and helping the teachers to develop their own understanding too, as they work with the children
Maths is based on the English National Curriculum with a focus on counting, place value, number bonds and relationships, and e.g. understanding commutativity and associativity for addition and multiplication.
On his extended visit to the school in March 2024, Birendra worked with and supported the teachers on all of these things, running after-school training sessions which the teachers welcomed and enjoyed!
Join us
This Academy is a school which has the potential to change the lives of young people by giving them hope and opportunity. If you would like to support the TDEC charity, donations can be made
- via PayPal – https://www.paypal.com/GB/fundraiser/charity/4228712 , or
- the TDEC Just Giving charity page https://www.justgiving.com/tetaradebi-educharity
https://checkout.justgiving.com/c/3341225 , or - directly to the Charity Co-op Bank Account, sort code 08-92-99, acc. no 67191363, or
email carolsingh@aol.com for further details and a Gift Aid form if appropriate.
We thank you for your interest.
With best wishes,
Carol and Birendra Singh,
On behalf of the TDEC Trustees, December 2024
Dedicated Staff
Our faculty are passionate about the subjects they teach and bring this enthusiasm into their lessons.
Creativity First
We put an emphasis on creativity within a structure that has been proven to have a positive impact on learning.
Extra Curriculars
We aim to offer a wide variety of extracurricular activities, ranging from music lessons and team sports, to art classes.
Our Mission
We believe in inclusive education, giving equal access to all. Children have unlimited potential so we reject learning theories based on IQ and intelligence. Instead we focus on high expectations, encouragement and care. We support all children to achieve their full potential. We focus on knowledge and learning and assess learning using ‘Enabling Assessment’ – a theory of assessment aimed at enabling both teachers and learners to achieve their best.
About Us
T. Debi Academy is in Sikandarpur, Maharajganj, Siwan, Bihar. It is a mixed primary school and welcomes all children irrespective of gender, caste, class or religion.
Reg. Ch. no: 1191287
Contact Us
Sikandarpur, Maharajganj, Siwan, Bihar
+916204498491
