-Preethi Govindarajan & Shivangi Tiwary

Caste-based discrimination is a deeply rooted problem in Tamil Nadu, affecting education outcomes, especially for marginalised groups leading to high drop-out rates amongst children. In addition to an inclusive environment and holistic curriculum, the school needed to build more avenues for student engagement. This led to the initiation of the ‘House System’ by Vidhya Vidhai.

District Education Empowerment Programme is being implemented in Nagapattinam under the leadership of the District Collector with a vision to transform the educational landscape in district, where every child regardless of their socio-economic background thrives to their fullest potential.

House System initiative, using the micro-improvement approach, has been piloted for 26 schools in Nagapattinam. It aims to improve student attendance, engagement, participation, and create a community under a house banner. School Leaders have contextualised this solution to address a significant problem in their respective schools.

Even the most tedious tasks can become engaging when gamified. With this principle in mind, the House System encourages students to enjoy learning and perform better in their day-to-day school activities.

Step 1: The Announcements

Students are gathered in the morning assembly to brief about House System and selection process.

Step 2: The Selection 1.0

Based on the roll numbers, the selection of houses for students is carried out.

Step 3: The Selection 2.0

The House leaders and Assistant House leaders for respective houses are elected.

Step 4: The Ceremony

The School honors and hands over the leadership role to the respective student leaders.

Step 5: The Game Begins

The School Leader scores the best performing houses in various domains like attendance, cleanliness, academics and community activities.

Overall Impact of House System

One of the schools implementing House System has seen an increase in student attendance, resulting in 95.67% of students regularly attending school.

“Since we started giving points for attendance, students are keeping each other accountable for their house members and don’t allow them to take leave without valid reasons”
-Red House Head Teacher Leader,
PUMS Venmanachery

“As we gather more evidence of House System, we believe micro improvements like these pave way to meet every schools’ contextual needs and challenges. By fostering a sense of community within each school, this initiative has ensured child-centered learning environment in schools of Nagapattinam.”
-Vidhya Vidhai

To know more, visit: https://vidhyavidhai.org/