Please note that all the children are sponsored!
Kamla Foundation working with some of the world's poorest children to move from a life of poverty to a future with opportunity
You could support India's next generation of teachers, engineers, civil servants, lawyers and doctors...
The Foundation has developed a sponsorship programme to support 30 children from rural areas of Tamil Nadu who are living in extreme poverty, (many with a widowed or abandoned parent) and in need of assistance in order to be able to continue their education and improve their life chances.
The Context
In India today, millions of children live in desperate need of the very things we often take for granted - shelter, food, safe drinking water, medicine and education. Without these basics, they are often denied the chance they need to ever realise their full potential. Children that come from a widowed family are in an even more difficult situation. Widows are amongst the most stigmatised and deprived people in India today, because once their husbands have died or abandoned them, they are left totally without resources. In order to sustain themselves and their children they must look for whatever work is available. With insufficient wages, they frequently rely on their children to make up the shortfall.
Beneficiary Families
The beneficiaries that have been identified live across three rural areas in Tamil Nadu and were initially selected by local women's groups as being the neediest in the community. All the families that were identified have been visited; their situation assessed and detailed profiles completed.
India's Schooling System
The schooling system in India is very similar to the UK system. The table below shows how the English 'school years' compare to India's 'standards'. In England children move from primary to secondary school between Year 6 and Year 7. In India, children will either move schools between 5th Standard and 6th Standard or between 8th Standard and 9th Standard depending on the size of their first school. Children will take exams in 10th Standard and 12th Standard and these will determine their options for further education.
| Age | England | India |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | Year 1 | 1st Standard |
| 7 | Year 2 | 2nd Standard |
| 8 | Year 3 | 3rd Standard |
| 9 | Year 4 | 4th Standard |
| 10 | Year 5 | 5th Standard |
| 11 | Year 6 | 6th Standard |
| 12 | Year 7 | 7th Standard |
| 13 | Year 8 | 8th Standard |
| 14 | Year 9 | 9th Standard |
| 15 | Year 10 | 10th Standard |
| 16 | Year 11 | 11th Standard |
| 17 | Year 12 | 12th Standard |