In a tribal village near Asansol, ‘Raster Master’ Deepnarayan Nayak started an outdoor school in 2014. He transformed mud walls into classrooms with blackboards, aiming to provide education to underprivileged children. His 3G model involved three generations of learners, fostering a sense of community and shared knowledge.
The COVID-19 pandemic thrust Nayak’s work into the spotlight, and he expanded his projects to other villages while maintaining social distancing protocols. Today, his model thrives, with nearly 50 centers, 150 teachers, and 10,000 students benefitting. Deepnarayan Nayak’s vision offers hope in underprivileged communities, providing education and a brighter future. His model, if replicated, could pave the way for a brighter future, ensuring every child’s right to education is realised, even in the most challenging circumstances.
India’s free and mandatory elementary education system serves 131 million students, but the schools fall short of the required standard in many localities. The children are often neglected by the teachers who are overworked and understaffed. The crumbling infrastructure in rural schools often skips on toilets and other amenities which contributes to a significant amount of female learner dropout rates. The situation often worsens tenfold in tribal and underdeveloped areas where proper awareness from parents is missing from the equation and dropout rates are sky-high. According to the UNESCO Gem Report 2023, half a billion underprivileged students could not access digital classrooms during the COVID-19 months. Nayak hopes his model, when replicated properly, significantly alters the situation and ensures schooling to underprivileged children so that every child gets a chance at education.
Two children study in an outdoor study centre in Namo Jamdoba village of Asansol West Bengal
Deepnarayan Nayek aged 37 teaches in an open-air classroom located in a remote village in West Burdwan district West Bengal
Children enjoy an afternoon snack of Bread Milk and apples in the street study centre of Alinagar Adivasi village West Burdwan The children from the region often suffer from malnutrition and such meals are highly welcomed by the children
Punam Murmu a visually challenged indigenous student of class 4 poses for a portrait in front of painted walls
Children practice basic alphabets and numbers in a street school in Alinagar village West Burdwan India
Deepnarayan Nayak is teaching in a study centre in West Bengal
10 Deepnarayan teaches young indigenous learners to use microscopes and introduces scientific concepts such as germs to counter superstitions
In Namo Jamdoba village three generations of female learners learn together in an open-air classroom
A child writes on a painted blackboard on a village wall in West Bengal India
A local youth teaching voluntarily at a local study center managed by Deep Narayan