Melas to inculcate reading skills among schoolkids

The Delhi government, under its ambitious ‘Every Child Can Read’ plan, has decided that on every Sunday till November 14, School Management Committee (SMC) members will organise 'Reading Melas’ in community spaces or schools to boost children's reading ability.

The Education department aims to ensure that each child from Class 6 to 8 will be able to read grade-level textbooks by Children’s Day, which falls on November 14 – a target set by the Deputy Chief Minister and Education Minister Manish Sisodia early last month.

The Deputy CM said: “Our efforts to transform education require active support from members of the community that the children are from. If an environment of academic rigour and learning is created, children will be encouraged to pursue educational prowess. Reading Melas will bring together schools, parents, children and the community in non-classroom spaces for the first time.”

Volunteers identified by SMC members will conduct the melas and use various government-provided tools through which reading can be encouraged in a fun way.

Various activities and games involving children and their parents will be organised to improve their ability to read letters, words, sentences and paragraphs. The first few Melas were conducted on Sunday on a pilot basis, and beginning next Sunday there will be more than 250 such ‘Reading Melas’ across the city.

A government spokesperson said: “This initiative is aimed at closely integrating the community in the educational pursuits of children, so as to create an environment of learning. It is also an attempt at increasing parent awareness about their children's learning levels and involvement in their academic progress.

“The Delhi government has outlined an innovative and effective strategy to enhance the learning levels of children studying in Delhi’s government schools. Since the beginning of the year, the government's 'Chunauti 2018’ Academic Plan has energised teachers, children and even parents,” the spokesperson added.