INTERNET-ENABLED

Mayel Lyang Academy is the first school - and currently the only school - to have internet access in Dzongu, North Sikkim. Thanks to donors from Australia the school has two laptop computers and in February 2010 became wired to the world. Teachers and students will be able to learn computer and internet skills, ensuring they have the same opportunities as students in the cities.

Winter Coaching Classes

In January 2009 many students attended winter coaching classes during the school holidays at Mayel Lyang Academy. They benefitted from special classes in english and mathmatics taught in the three new classrooms in the new school.

The new school is already making an enormous difference to the students and teachers who are enjoying the superior facilities. There are plans to extend it further by building another story, and a children's play area at the front of the school. The old school has been transformed into hostel rooms for visiting teachers and the old kindergarten classroom is now a modern kitchen.

Two scholars working in Lepcha studies - Jenny Bentley from Switzerland, and Kerry Little from Australia - visited the school and spent time with the students assisting their english conversation practice, supplementing the work of teachers from Darjeeling in West Bengal and nearby Lingthem village in Upper Dzongu.

Progress on new school

There has been great progress made on the new school with some classrooms completed and a concrete pathway build from the road to the school. Classes from nursery school to class 2 are now being held in the new school room. Classes 3 and 4 are still in the old school, looking forward to moving to the new school once the classrooms are completed.

Congratulations to everyone who helped to get the school to this advanced stage - a really great achievement.

Volunteer teaching at Mayel Lyang Academy

In March 2008, Gabriele Reifenberg and Ruth Melling from the UK, spent two weeks at the Lepcha school, teaching the children. Gabriele reports:

After several days of bureaucratic hassle in Gangtok to get our innerline permit, my friend, Ruth Melling, and I were finally off to Dzongu on Saturday, 1st March. The jeep ride took us along a typical Sikkimese road: the Tista River down below and tree or fern-lined mountainsides on the other side. We crossed and re-crossed the river on sometimes rather dodgy-looking bridges. However, after about four hours we reached Passingdang and received a warm welcome into Loden Lepcha’s house. Here we were amazed to be given a room each, and enjoyed our first meal in the separate kitchen (subsequently it seemed easier all round for us to eat in one of the rooms). The toilet facilities were also in a separate building a few steps away and we could wash there if we didn’t want to join everyone else at the hose in the yard.

Our teaching duties started on Monday. As we were the first volunteers to come to the school, setting the timetable was somewhat experimental. We soon decided that nursery, KG and Class 1 were a bit tricky without mother tongue and so we concentrated on Classes II, III and IV. The small numbers (40 altogether at the time) made it easy to get to know the children quickly and to learn their names. We had both brought some teaching materials such as flash cards and soon got down to using our interactive style of teaching, which the children really seemed to enjoy. The afternoons generally developed into periods for teaching games, such as “What’s the time Mr Bear?” (there are no wolves in Sikkim apparently!) and singing songs such as “Appa Tashi (Old McDonald) had a Farm”, “Here we go round the Mulberry Bush” (which they knew already), “The wheels on the bus”. Ruth had brought a tape containing these songs, so we hoped they would continue to be sung after we left. The children were very quick to learn.

The three main classrooms of the old school were showing signs of wear and tear, but a new school building was being constructed. Already now in July one of the new classrooms is in use. It was wonderful to meet the teachers, the children and some of the villagers and experience a little of their daily lives. The only frustration was the restriction on permits which meant we could have just five days’ stay at a time. One can only hope that this will change soon.

Gabriele Reifenberg
July 2008

CHILDREN OF MAYEL LYANG ACADEMY

THE CHILDREN OF MAYEL LYANG ACADEMY

The Lepcha school in Passingdang in Upper Dzongu, North Sikkim has 50 students. Once the new school is built the capacity will double. Here are some photos of the students at Mayel Lyang Academy taken on a glorious Dzongu morning in April 2008.

Young Artists from Mayel Lyang Academy

The children of Mayel Lyang Academy range in age from age three (who attend nursery school) to age 11 (who attend class 4). Most of the children live in the village of Passingdang in Upper Dzongu where they are surrounded by nature. These drawings are by the school children and depict their landscape and its inhabitants.

THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE NEW SCHOOL

Great progress has been made on the new school, with the hole in the ground that was there in January, transformed to a near to completion first story. The slab is set, the foundations built and once the concrete has settled, the new school will be well on the way to complete.

These photos are of the work in progress, as at April 2008 The new school is located right behind the existing school and once finished, the existing school will be reconfigured as volunteer teacher rooms including a new bathroom.

Loden is also building a pathway from the village road to the school to enable better access for the children, plus a children's playground on the land in front of the school. The Mayel Lyang Academy will be a wonderful community school in one of the most striking locations in Sikkim.