Army Navy Air Force Wives Activity Trust (ANAWA)

Supported by: Wipro Cares

About ANAWA Trust

ANAWA, the Army, Navy, Air Force Wives Activity Trust has been functioning in NOIDA since 1989. In the initial years, the vision was limited to providing health cover to the women and children of the construction workers and reaching out to flood and quake victims with clothes and provisions. Health camps, vaccination camps, and cancer detection camps were organized. With this captive audience, it was natural to expand the vision to include education and to provide these children with basic education.

ANKUR School, a Flagship Educational Project of the Army Navy Air Force Wives Activity Trust (ANAWA Trust) was started in 1994 by the wives of these retired Defence officers, to serve the cause of EWS children, upliftment of the Girl Child being the main objective; the vision being that with education, the chances of an early marriage get shelved and an educated mother, will ensure a healthy and educated family in the future.

Today the mission is more focused on ensuring children from this financially challenged background obtain school leaving certificates of Class X and XII level, acquire skills, and get equipped to meet the world at its terms, with the ability and confidence to procure any job they may choose to apply for. The sky is the limit and the students of ANKUR are encouraged to reach for the sky.

ANKUR follows the CBSE syllabus and is affiliated with the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS). It runs basic computer classes for students from Class V to Class VIII, and strives to adopt the Govt floated NEP program. Skill development is now the priority, with information technology at the heart of the program. Tablets have been acquired and will be integrated into classroom learning, with effect from the forthcoming academic session. 

Teachers will attend a Training Workshop end of May to help them navigate this route in the teaching process. With this strategy, the first step is being taken to achieve NEP goals. Wipro funds the Teacher’s salaries, NIOS registration, school excursions, and teacher’s training.

Location of work: ANAWA re-registered in 2008 as ANAWA Trust in Uttar Pradesh since our project operated in NOIDA and acquired a new NIOS number. It also started a vocational center for girls called Jagriti for girls above the age of 14 years, who missed out on education in their formative years.

ANAWA caters to children belonging to JJ colonies in Sectors 8, 9, and 10 in Noida and in Nithari Village, all of which are located in the vicinity of Sectors 21 and 25 (Jal Vayu Vihar) Noida, where the office is located. It operates out of 10 classrooms in Somerville School in Sector 22 NOIDA, which are provided free of cost to ANKUR ANAWA School. Somerville also generously provides two buses free of cost for transportation of students to school.

Partner updates: Essentially, Financial Assistance and guidance extended by WIPRO have provided an environment for the healthy growth of ANKUR School. Good Teachers are at the heart of good education. ANKUR has 15 Trained and dedicated Teachers involved in preparing a broad and balanced curriculum along with NEP guidelines for 2020. ANKUR school functions from 3:30 to 6:30 pm from Sommerville School, Sector 22, NOIDA after its regular School Hours. 

Besides 10 classrooms, we have provided two School Buses to transport Children to School and back thereby ensuring their safety on busy roads. Besides the Teacher’s Salaries, WIPRO also provides support towards, NIOS Registration of Class VIII students, annual School excursions to places of interest to different age groups and to facilitate bus travel and Teachers’ Training. Most Teachers work in Day schools and are exposed to NIOS and CBSE-organized training sessions. That leaves us to opt for relevant classroom-related training of our choice.

Our primary aim continues to be quality Education through Remedial Literacy Classes. Children are admitted to LKG and progress up to Class VIII. The CBSE Syllabus is followed, and Examinations are conducted through NIOS at the Class VIII level. Thereafter students are encouraged to join government schools in the vicinity of NOIDA. Apart from academics, students are encouraged to participate in sports, arts and crafts, debates and elocution, dance and drama, to broaden their horizons and build confidence. A holistic approach to education is ensured.

Challenges: The biggest challenge faced was in the establishment of classroom discipline post initiating Offline classes in April and July of 2022. School routine, discipline, and mindset had to be reinstated which took considerable time and effort, particularly in the case of older students. During counselling sessions with students of Class VI, it was discovered that they found it difficult to concentrate on what was being taught. 

However, a bit of personalized attention was appreciated and expected to have positive results. These sessions will be continued through the next academic session. We firmly believe that Students can face life challenges if they are in control of core Academic Skills and Knowledge. Subjects such as math, Hindi, science, and English are given importance at the primary level to help them understand complex topics in Higher Classes. The importance of education for their future has been explained and understood and behavioral changes are looked forward to.

It had been our learning experience that Trustee involvement in classroom teaching and supervision was the key to Teachers’ alertness and following the system. Post COVID and due to the passing of some Trustees, close classroom supervision had taken a back seat. With the induction of a new team of trustees, this will be re-introduced in the next academic session. It is hoped that this will improve teaching methodology to the benefit of the students.

Plan of action: We plan to adopt the NEP 2020 in phases through various academic and co-curricular activities to create a platform covering all domains of learning. To encourage our students to develop Skills that will help them adjust to the outside world motivate and prepare them for the future and instil in them a sense of self-belief and confidence to discover the potential within them. To this end, tabs are being introduced as a teaching tool from April 2023, and teachers are being trained to incorporate the same regularly. We will still be scouting to pinpoint other skills, which can be amalgamated into the limited time frame of 3 hrs that ANKUR has at its disposal.

The Trust has inducted additional Trustees to join the core group and is still scouting for a few more dedicated persons to add to its fold. As a second line, a team of 3 Trustees will take over the supervision of school academics from the forthcoming session beginning April 2023. In the next three years, we hope the baton will be passed on.