Though girls still face numerous obstacles when pursuing an education in India, the country’s number of female students is on the rise. One school in Phangane (just outside of Mumbai) targets a demographic that was denied many of the opportunities young people in India have today. At Aajibaichi Shala, older women, many of whom are grandmothers, take part in a one-year program to receive the education they missed out on as kids.
Classes include basic literacy lessons like learning the alphabet and signing names. “As long as I’m alive, I want to learn,” 65-year-old student Sunanda Datatri tells Great Big Story. “When a girl is educated, we all benefit. So every grandmother should also pursue her dreams and get her education.” You can check out the full story in the video above.
[h/t Great Big Story]
Header/banner images: Manan Vatsyayana/Getty
February 23, 2017 – 9:00am