Our study place

It is an initiative to stop the barriers that stop children from continuing going to school. School is 2-hours daily walk. And, there is no one available at home and surrounding to get help and get ideas to manage their study. Their parents are illiterate and don't value education. A girl after the menstrual cycle is motivated for marriage. Or, they are forced to go urban for housework. While children go to school they do a lot, they take care of livestock, collect grass and woods and work in the field. 

In this situation, for success, whatever struggles they face, they must concentrate on their education and continue going to school. Though learning is harder in upper grade and their parents have no savings for their education for college. Our Study Place (OSP) will encourage and give hope. They will learn in peer and develop life-skills lessons.

Illiteracy is the root cause linked to social issues like underage marriage. child labor and the human trafficking. But, early marriage after the first menstrual period, especially for girls, has been the practice from the past that is taken as much as sensitive as culture. May be parents fear their daughter who had the first menstrual cycle to send school afar walks crossing rivers, hills and jungles interact with boys and bring shame. 

In this situation that is linked to culture, children have the right to speak up for their rights and are capable of making the right choice on their own. But, there are none who could afford to speak up. Even the elected chairman attends marriage when in another time attending awareness about child rights programs. Even the volunteers linked with the initiative/project do not easily communicate about the issues. 

Children, as they go to upper grade, find learning harder and the fact that their parents are incapable of managing college fees, they better stop going to school. Even if they get snacks at school and the educational materials as a donation, when they can not complete assignments and fail their exams that deeply hurts them.  

Children from illiterate families often fail their examination. That puts them in a place where they are immovable. But, if they get guidance, and achieve success that will motivate them to learn. They will get the opportunity to learn by watching movies and documentaries. At Our Study Place, books will be available for them to develop knowledge on their own because self-study and peer group study will be used as tools. Moreover, the availability of computers will upgrade their technological knowledge. Every day they gather together with little guidance for learning. Interaction with people from outside of their community on particular subjects like the importance of the environment, Information Technology will expand their views to see widely to the world. And, that also helps them to select the right career. 

The initiative will give value to participating parents and the local stakeholders. The parents will learn the importance of education not only for earning but for quality life. Information will be available at Our Study Place related to agriculture, Government laws and opportunities.

Nepal is divided geographically into Plane, Hill and Mountain. The underage marriage and the importance of marriage for girls other than anything exists all over the country even in the neighboring countries of Nepal. It needs to strengthen its foundation. The initiative started growing and the impact study reflects that the beneficiaries are highly impacted that brought positive changes and achievements. There are more villages because in one area suppose in one ward it has more than 9 villages settled into 15 or more households. First, this initiative needs to reach each village. The targeted area is known as Choughare where 1 OSP is started. It is 39.8 kilometer away where there are no hospitals and colleges. The majority of people is indigenous tribal people who live separated based on their surname. They speak their own language and they do not value education. They depend on growing vegetables for food like maize. And, they sell milk and goats. The population of Choughare is 1884 (Nepal Census, 2011). Based on caste, there are Tamang (the indigenous) 1722, Brahman 118, Chettri 22 and other 22. The area of Choughare is 7.74 square kilometer. The total population of age 5 and above is 1732, 911 female and 821 male. The literacy rate is 52.24, 45.12 female and 60.17 are literate. There are none who completed Post Graduate or equivalent. Only 3, 1 female and 2 male have Graduated from college. Out of 457 female and 389 male 191 and 117 respectively not attending school in between age 5 - 25. 

The initiative to break the cycle of illiteracy through educational coaching will help parents of the direct beneficiary find solutions to the existing issues related to health, human rights and development. Moreover the educational coaching by Peer Group Study will increase the interest for education and hope for career development by getting educational scholarships. 

Parents will participate and will be requested to contribute funds for the educational coaching that will help them to learn that saving money for their children's needs is their responsibility. Besides academics, beneficiaries will learn life skills lessons by involving multiple activities.

The growth of the initiative is the main cause. Because, in 2018 Our Study Place was started in one village but now there are more at 10 villages in 3-different districts. It is happening with very less intervention or assistance from the outside of the community. It is spreading more as a concept. After empowering locals with knowledge to start, they shared it to the locals for their participation. During lockdown, telephone communication helped start at 6 places. Schools were closed but children involved in education and their parents came together to find solutions to the issues. The local school's teacher visited OSP and met their students together in one place. It was acknowledged by giving a permission letter by the local government. Volunteers requested necessary resources and planning to apply for funds for books and computers that come under the plan of the initiative.

Education is valuable but it must go with time otherwise when the world faces challenges like COVID-19 or more recently in 2015 when earthquake hit the area, preventive measures were not in place and people suffered. It is possible when something is initiated depending those who are benefited. This initiative rely on the local. And, targets the local Government to manage the resources and invest in the strengthening capacities. There are possibilities that this initiative will be a place to bring changes in the village community.

1. The current number of people: 432 
2. Communities: 11
3. Districts: 3
4. Total number who will be served in 1 year (new): 180
5. Total number who will be served in 5 years (news): 3850 
6. Districts of Nepal: 77
7. No. of village/community (new): 231
8. No. of volunteers: 231

• Regular attendance of the primary Beneficiaries
• Participants of the secondary Beneficiaries

• 3 full-time staff
• 4 part-time staff
• 3 monitoring volunteers
• 12 local volunteers

1. The initiative is in the growth stage. 
2. It intends to address the issue that is creating barriers for the sustainable development of the country. Every small communities together is a whole one country.
3. And, the major task is to to share the knowledge by developing mobile application that help to reach the 3 geographical areas of the targeted country quickly. The volunteer will be interacted through internet mediums. 
4. Currently and every monsoon, children either for a week or a month cannot go to school because of the landslide, flood and cold. In this situation, parents must be looking for the solution.
5. In a politically unstable country, creating something locally together is relevant.