Let's be the Voice for the World of Silence

Less than 1% of the universities/colleges in India are accessed by the differently-abled population. In simple terms, a hearing-impaired student misses out on a higher education opportunity, since there's an absence of sign language in the regular education system.

Of the total differently-abled population, only 8.5% are able to graduate and the rest 91.5% opt out of higher education due to inaccessibility.

Due to limited sign language in school, the students aren't able to cope with clearly understanding the academic subjects. With the absence of communication, they are inclined more towards vocational subjects than mainstream subjects like English and Math. This makes it difficult for students to undertake mainstream subjects in higher education. With no proper academic exposure, the students do not make a prospective candidate for corporate job opportunities.

Out of the nearly 19 lakh hearing impaired children in India, 12 lakhs children attend basic schooling and rest 7 lakhs either drop out or cannot access the facility. In Mumbai, every year approx. 250 deaf students pass out of SSC, out of which ~160-170 drop out/or are not able to pursue higher education. The students usually end-up taking up jobs in the hospitality/facility sectors or small and medium industries.

To have the students ‘Graduation-ready’, TEACH has designed two programs – Higher Education & School Transformation Project.

College for Deaf: TEACH is a pioneer in setting up a higher education platform for children with hearing disabilities in Mumbai. The In-House program is spread across Junior & Degree College. Three years of Junior College covers Preparatory Year followed by F.Y.J.C & S.Y.J.C. In P.Y, students are taught in-built content for English & Math covering intermediate level for these subjects. Post P.Y, they study the Maharashtra Board syllabus and appear for H.S.C Boards.

This year onward, TEACH is introducing basic computers, general knowledge, and Tally. Few more projects are in the pipeline for a better learning experience.

“School Transformation Project” is a supplement to TEACH’s Higher Education program. In the In-School program, students are taught English covering the academic syllabus across modules starting from alphabets, words, sentences, to the class textbooks. This, in turn, would help students learn and understand English in the school itself and create a stronger foundation for mainstream Higher Education. This program enables children in ‘Schools for Deaf’ which are vernacular medium, to be eligible & competent in pursuing higher education in English.

The academic curriculum & self-development program for the students is created in a manner to cater to their overall development.

In the context of education, it is very difficult to get results quickly. When systemic, large scale changes are considered for educational improvement & growth; a horizon of 7 to 10 years is to be taken into consideration. With focus shifted to Higher Education opportunities for Hearing impaired, there is an urgent requirement to address the missing English Language in schools.

Under School Transformation Project (STP), the hearing-impaired students are taught English as a subject covering the academic syllabus across modules starting from alphabets, words, sentences, to the class textbooks. This, in turn, would help students learn and understand English in the school itself & create a stronger foundation for mainstream Higher Education. Teaching English would also help in preparing them for their SSC Board Exams.

The entire in-house and in-school programs are structured to address the challenges faced by students in their primitive years of academic that lacked English learning. After the program concludes, students can commence their graduation journey in mainstream education and prepare themselves for better employment opportunities in government and private sectors.