“We’re surrounded by air pollution, and it’s as much as us to take motion and defend the environment earlier than it’s too late,” says 17-year-old Swastika Ghorai, a Class 11 scholar at Narayanpur Excessive Faculty. Her phrases embody the exceptional transformation on the faculty, as soon as indifferent from organic considerations, however now a mannequin of sustainability.
Nestled within the lush East Kolkata Wetlands of Bhangar, Narayanpur Excessive Faculty has grow to be a beacon of environmental duty, with a number of initiatives geared toward fostering ecological consciousness and sustainable practices amongst its college students.
On the forefront of this variation is Avijit Dasgupta, the 48-year-old headmaster whose dedication to sensible, socially-conscious training has been the driving pressure behind the varsity’s shift. With a grasp’s diploma in English and an MPhil in Schooling, he combines educational experience with a way of goal. His purpose will not be solely to revitalise the tutorial atmosphere at Narayanpur Excessive Faculty, but in addition to domesticate the idea of social duty amongst his college students.
When Avijit assumed management in 2019, the varsity was caught within the conventional cycle of textbooks and exams, with little connection to the real-world challenges round them. College students have been unaware of the urgent social and environmental points that impacted their group.
For Avijit, training is not only about memorising info. “It’s about getting ready college students for all times, serving to them perceive the world round them, and equipping them with the data to make a distinction,” he tells The Higher India.
“I would like my college students to be extra than simply passive learners,” he says. “They should perceive the world, interact with its challenges, and acquire the experience to deal with them.”
Recognising the gravity of native points like little one trafficking, early marriages, and drug abuse, Avijit knew his college students needed to be ready to confront these realities. He envisioned a curriculum that prolonged past conventional educational studying to deal with sensible issues, particularly these impacting their very own group.
Shifting training from textbooks to motion
Narayanpur Excessive Faculty’s journey in the direction of sustainability started with initiatives geared toward making conservation-related training extra impactful. One of many faculty’s earliest initiatives was partnering with Youngsters for Tigers, a programme targeted on the conservation of the Sundarbans, positioned simply 70 km from the varsity.
Via this partnership, college students have been launched to the area’s wealthy biodiversity, with a specific emphasis on the endangered Bengal tiger. “This initiative supplied college students with a considerable, firsthand understanding of the ecological challenges that encompass them, instilling a way of urgency and duty in the direction of defending their native and world ecosystems,” says Avijit.
The varsity additionally joined the Namami Gange Programme, a nationwide initiative targeted on cleansing and conserving the Ganges River. Avijit views this as a vital a part of fostering environmental duty amongst his college students. “Educating them in regards to the Ganges is instructing them about their very own duty to the atmosphere,” he explains. “College students are planning to have interaction with individuals who dwell alongside the ghats, and educate them on the impression of river air pollution.”
As well as, the varsity partnered with ‘Disappearing Dialogues’, a gaggle targeted on sensible sustainable training. This collaboration allowed the scholars to participate in experiential initiatives associated to water conservation, waste administration, and biodiversity preservation.
“As an illustration, they realized about water utilization patterns and devised methods to scale back consumption throughout the faculty. These initiatives inspired college students to witness how their actions may make a tangible impression on the atmosphere,” Avijit explains.
Working in the direction of a plastic-free faculty
One of the notable outcomes of those initiatives was the varsity’s push towards turning into a plastic-free zone. “Once I joined as a headmaster, college students have been careless with plastic,” says Avijit. “However now, they know higher. They perceive the impression of their actions on the atmosphere.”
Although the varsity has reached about 70% of its aim to remove plastic waste, the achievement was a significant milestone, contemplating the resistance and lack of knowledge that existed when the initiative started.
“I was careless with plastic, however now I be sure that it goes into the dustbin. I’ve additionally began instructing my household and associates to do the identical. It’s about altering habits, one step at a time,” Anjali Das, a Class 11 scholar, says.
In 2023, Narayanpur Excessive Faculty obtained the WIPRO Earthian Award for its excellent contributions to environmental training. This recognition bolstered the varsity’s status and ignited larger enthusiasm amongst college students. The award not solely affirmed the success of the varsity’s initiatives but in addition opened the door to extra partnerships with native and nationwide organisations.
Avijit proudly states, “We’ve turned your entire faculty right into a residing lab.” College students now participate in actions like naming and cataloguing timber, which permits them to have interaction with nature in significant methods.
Riya Ghosh, a Class 11 scholar, shares, “Via the assorted programmes, I’ve learnt that slicing down timber will not be an choice. I’ve seen these vegetation and animals in actual life, and now I need to present future generations how vital they’re.”
“We additionally encourage our college students to take part in pottery making, the place they craft gadgets from waste supplies that may be bought out there. Via this, we’re serving to them perceive that training can generate employment alternatives,” says Avijit.
He explains, “We maintain waste administration workshops to equip college students with sensible expertise.” Because of this, college students have begun actively segregating waste into three separate bins within the faculty.
From considerations to accolades
Regardless of the progress, the reformation didn’t come with out challenges. Initially, many guardians have been skeptical of the emphasis on environmental training, fearing it will detract from conventional educational studying.
“Initially, the guardians weren’t very supportive after they noticed their kids taking part in cleansing actions,” Avijit remembers. “They have been frightened that environmental initiatives would disrupt common educational progress.” However Avijit remained steadfast in his imaginative and prescient.
He recognised that participating college students with sensible, community-focused points would empower them in methods conventional textbooks couldn’t. “Textbook studying is one-dimensional,” he opines.
Over time, as college students started to point out the actual impression of their efforts, the group’s perspective started to shift. “Now, guardians aren’t simply supportive, they’re actively concerned,” says Avijit. What started as a cautious response reworked into wholehearted participation.
The varsity’s environmental initiatives have garnered vital recognition. In 2024, Narayanpur Excessive Faculty was awarded the Swachhta Hero 2024: Guardians of Our Rivers award for its contributions to environmental conservation. This prestigious honour, together with the WIPRO Earthian 2023 award, bolstered the significance of the varsity’s environmental efforts and inspired college students to proceed advocating for change.
It’s not nearly studying info in textbooks anymore
Trying forward, Avijit has formidable plans for the longer term. He envisions creating an exhibition to showcase the varsity’s waste administration initiatives, the place merchandise comprised of recycled supplies shall be bought. This venture is not going to solely elevate funds for the varsity’s improvement but in addition display to college students how sustainability can result in financial progress.
“I additionally plan to increase the varsity’s environmental programmes by involving native faculties and NGOs in workshops on waste administration and water conservation,” he provides.
Avijit’s management is impressed by his father, a devoted educator who believed that training ought to make the world a greater place. “That’s the legacy I need to proceed, instructing college students not solely to achieve life, however to make a optimistic impression on the world.”
Via his efforts, Narayanpur Excessive Faculty has grow to be a mannequin of how training can drive social and environmental change. The ripple impact of those efforts is seen in the neighborhood, the place college students, dad and mom, and native organisations collaborate to construct a sustainable future.
As Avijit Dasgupta aptly places it, “It’s not nearly studying info in textbooks anymore; it’s about taking motion.”
Edited by Arunava Banerjee; All pictures courtesy Avijit Dasgupta
