Training of Anganwadi Workers in ICDS program

Scope of improvement in pre-school education training for Anganwadi Workers (ICDS) Social Development and Social Policy Project Abhishek Minz (0010/49)| Ishan Pendam (0230/49) | Maharshi Nitish Singh (0182/49) | Udit Singh (0370/49) | Ajit Singh Verma (0035/49) | Koushlendra Singh Yadav (0185/49) 7/21/2013 1 Majority of children in India have underprivileged childhoods starting from birth. immunization and educational deficiencies of children in India. ICDS was first launched in 19753 in accordance to the National Policy for Children in India. pregnant and lactating mothers. Government of India sponsored programme. all children below 6 years of age. Retrieved 22 March 2011. The present research report is based on an investigation of this component in ICDS centres of South 24 Pargana district of West Bengal state. This report aims to identify various ICT (Information and Communication Technology) based alternatives which would be beneficial for imparting training to Anganwadi workers.org/wiki/Integrated_Child_Development_Services_(India) "UNICEF . Retrieved 21 March 2011 . The gender promotion of the girl child by trying to bring her at par with the male child is a key component of the scheme.wikipedia. Considering the budget constraints for such NGOs these alternatives could work towards reducing the cost of the training. is India's primary social welfare scheme to tackle malnutrition and health problems in children below 6 years of age and their mothers. The main beneficiaries of the programme were aimed to be the girl child up to her adolescence. Government of India. Figures for India are substantially worse than the developing country average. UNICEF. ICDS Programme (Integrated Child Development Services) Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS). The research involves in-depth study of CINI Chetana Resource Center (CCRC)-a training wing of CINI India which is responsible for providing pre-school education training to AWW (Anganwadi workers).2 Given such a daunting challenge. Ministry of Women & Child Development. Over the years it has grown into one of the largest integrated family and 1 2 http://en.Abstract Non formal Preschool education is an important component of Integrated Child Development.Respecting the rights of the Indian child". 3 "Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) Scheme". The infant mortality rate of Indian children is 442 and the under-five mortality rate is 93 and 25% of newborn children are underweight among other nutritional. Objectives The predefined objectives of ICDS are: 1. is the single window for delivery of the entire package of services offered by the program4. Given its effectiveness over the last few decades. Nutrition and Health information The AWC.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=62%3Aintegrated-childdevelopment-services&catid=117%3Aicds&Itemid=128&lang=en .138. Immunization 2. malnutrition and school dropouts among Indian Children 4. Supplementary nutrition 3.community welfare schemes in the world. 5. physical and social development of children in India 3. To create a base for proper mental.21/dwcd/index. Government of India has committed towards ensuring universal availability of the programme. To reduce instances of mortality.101. an 4 http://202. managed by the Anganwadi Worker (AWW) with Anganwadi Helper (AWH). To coordinate activities of policy formulation and implementation among all departments of various ministries involved in the different government programmes and schemes aimed at child development across India. Health check-up 4. To raise the health and nutritional level of poor Indian children below 6 years of age 2. On an average. To provide health and nutritional information and education to mothers of young children to enhance child rearing capabilities of mothers in country of India Scope of Services The following services are sponsored under ICDS to help achieve its objectives: 1. Referral services 5. Pre-school non formal education 6. However. the sharing pattern has changed to 90:10 under which. a state level committee was formed with specialists in the field of education and also ICDS functionaries at various levels. 1) Administrative cost: Till the year 2008-09. During 2012-13 2 sarees will be supplied by KHDC to 121648 AWW/Mini AWW/AWH who are actually functioning. 61187 anganwadi centres and 3331 mini anganwadi centres were provided medicine kits @ Rs.respectively towards purchase of pre-school kit.for each mini anganwadi centre. To provide uniformity and to maintain quality of the pre-school kit in AWCs.AWC covers population of 1.07 lakh beneficiaries availed benefits under the scheme.500/.tender process at district level. action has been taken to supply this Model pre-school kit to all 64518 AWCs after following an e.& Rs.for each Anganwadi Centre and Rs. monitoring and evaluation.300 each year. of ICDS functionaries and AWCs are met. the entire administrative cost under ICDS was met by the Central Government. .. 3) Pre-School Kit: Under ICDS administrative cost each AWC and Mini AWC is provided Rs 1000/. 55. During 2012-13. 2) Anganwadi Workers/Helpers uniform: As per GOI guidelines Anganwadi Workers/Helpers should be provided with 2 sarees worth Rs. from 2009-10. Workshops were held to develop a Model Pre-school Kit. 300/. honoraria. 600/. 4) Medicine Kit: Under ICDS Administrative cost. PSE and medicine kits etc. It caters to children below 6 years and women in the reproductive age group (15-45 years) especially pregnant women and lactating mothers. the salaries. At present 61187 AWCs and 3331 mini anganwadi centers are functioning in 204 ICDS projects in the State. Further.000 (700 in rugged terrain and tribal tracts). covering all the 175 taluks (181 rural projects & 12 tribal & 11 urban projects). formal5 preschool education is a very crucial component of the package of services envisaged under ICDS scheme as it seeks to lay foundation for adequate physical. Since many of the women are illiterate. Good preschool education increases cognitive abilities. 6) To promote self-control and thereby discipline in children. linguistic. 1(1). and Vijayalakshmi. The presence of other private 5 Rajni Dhingra. Management Perspective of ICDS programme. The objectives of preschool education under ICDS are as below: 1) to provide a stimulating environment for intellectual. Stree Shakti activities etc). psychological. writing and numeric skills. AWWs have to assist them in filling in the correct challan and depositing the money. . “Assessment of Preschool Education Component of ICDS Scheme in Jammu District” 6 Somaioh. Since the AWWs have to spend a lot of time on various added responsibilities other than ICDS activities (assisting ANMs in administering polio drops.Literature Review Non . The unsatisfactory condition of pre-school activity was found in a substantial number of AWCs. improves classroom behaviour and decreases grade repetition among children (Barnett. Stree Shakti.(2007). 4) To encourage interaction with environment and creative problem solving among children. 3) To lay the foundation for the development of reading. The preschool activity which is to be conducted at least for two-hours a day was rarely seen in the AWCs visited by the study team. 5) To stress on providing first-hand experience to children who would ensure development of skills related to the process of learning. M. There has been a considerable demand from the parents that the AWC should provide reading and writing skills as part of the preschool activities. social emotional and physical development of child. AWWs stated to have insufficient time to concentrate on the pre-school activity. school achievements. 2) To prepare the child for primary grades. As founded in the study6. Dharama Bhavan’s Business Journal. Iesha Sharma. Preschool education through ICDS focuses on the holistic development of the child. is considered to be more important. cognitive and social development of child. which has considerable political patronage in rural Karnataka. AWWs are to assist the women of the village in bank transactions. pre-school is the weakest component in the ICDS program. 2004). V. One of the core objectives of the pre-school is to inculcate habit of schooling among children of 3-6 years. they have been partnering with central and state government.org/ .schools offering English and Kannada medium education. CINI (Child in Need India)7 CINI is an Indian non-government organisation (NGO) regarded as one of the most influential institutions working for children in India. It is recommended that all the AWCs should be located in the school building in order to provide the desirable linkages to school education. This resulted (in most cases) incomplete and inefficient performance. non-government organisations and local communities to strengthen the capacity of deprived children and women to improve their health. nutrition. is found to lack the expected coordination. fostering partnerships for local development among community actors. Mid-day meals are introduced in the primary school to check school dropout. This has encouraged the parents to demand similar services from the ICDS. If this habit is reinforced. it should result in low or no dropout in the primary school. national and international donors. who are to be recruited from the community/village. They adopt a human rights-based approach in their programmes. they seek to learn from the poor to improve our interventions in under-serviced rural and urban areas. were found to be commuting 4-12 kms to attend AWCs. service providers and elected representatives. either due to delayed arrival or being absent. Education Department. 7 http://www. Many of the AWWs. which is expected to work in coordination with ICDS especially on the pre-school education component.cini-india. Over the past four decades. provide reading and writing skills at the pre-school level. We aim at strengthening local governance processes that give marginalised communities a voice and influence national policy. Distilling international and national experience. education and protection conditions. 23 days are for institutional training with practical and mock sessions covering six major components. Training of Trainers (TOT) for internal teams as well as external partners.CINI Chetana Resource Center (CCRC) . helpers and supervisors. training of students from various academic institutions like IGNOU. Nutrition and Health Care. community-based trainings on RCH for different level of functionaries for Government and NGOs. Budget & Trainings Training of the ICDS functionaries is one of the most vital components of ICDS programme and is acknowledged as the key factor in the successful implementation of the programme. Saturdays working) with 26 working days. CINI Chetana today specialises in different aspects of training such as training needs assessment.The Training wing The training unit of CINI was set up in 1975 in response to the institutional need for training and was registered as an independent body in 1989. that is. Calcutta University and Nursing Institutes (Government and Private). organising and facilitating training and evaluation of training programmes. training package development. they have to operate 4 different types of training sessions for the workers. curriculum development. Early Childhood Care and Development. ICDS Programme. Advocacy and Community Participation and Organisation . specialised training on Behaviour Change Communication for partner NGOs in West Bengal and other states of India. The key programmes include Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) training for Anganwadi workers. General Orientation. as notified and laid down by the Government of India. According to the interactions with the CINI officials. Out of this. These are: (1) Job Training – This is the major training imparted to the workers and is spread over 32 days (six days per week. Communication. Enable them to develop skills necessary to become effective managers and implementers of ICDS programme. feedback mechanism is built into each component. The classroom teaching is to be supported by role-play.  Acquaint them with ways of eliciting community participation to maximise the reach of services of ICDS.pdf . and monetary support is provided for acquisition of resources like training material. The major objectives of job training are to:   Orient CDPOs/ ACDPOs to various components of ICDS. practical exercises and case studies.and Management. honorarium to guest speakers/trainers. there are 10 courses that are held each year as part of job training. The job training is to be conducted using participatory learning techniques. The following is the budget of the Job Training Programme: 8 http://wcd. demonstration. In order to give quality training.nic. The remaining 3 days are for Supervised Practice. Apart from this. incentives to trainees. mock sessions.  Make them aware of their roles and responsibilities and those of other ICDS and Block functionaries.in/icdstraining/cdpo_jtc_int. which to provide opportunity to the trainee Child Development Project Officers (CDPOs)/ Assistant Child Development Project Officers (ACDPOs) to learn by doing and sharpen their skills for planning and management of ICDS . Boarding and Lodging facilities etc. TAs for trainees. nic. refresher courses are organised from time to time with an objective to enhance their supervisory. Under ICDS the CDPOs/ ACDPOs are the project managers entrusted with the responsibility of managing the delivery of services effectively.Job Training of Anganwadi Workers (2) Refresher Training – This is another one of the major training given to the officers.Refresher Training of Anganwadi Workers 9 http://wcd. monitoring and liaison skills for effective coordination and convergence of services at the Anganwadi .htm .in/icdstraining/icdstrainingcurriculam. In order to share generic information as well as updates in the field of ICDS.Figure 1. The training takes place over 7 days with 5 working days with 40 participants per course. The following is the budget for refresher training: Figure 2 . in which 8 days are working with 20 participants per course.(3) Orientation Training . The budget is given below: . acquaint them with the syllabi for Anganwadi Workers (AWWs) and Helpers (AWHs). and identify the problems in effective implementation of training and evolve ways and means of handling them.Orientation training aims to orient the participants to the various components of the ICDS scheme. The following is the budget for orientation training: Figure 3 . It lasts for 11 days.Orientation Training of instructors of AWTCs (4) Induction Training – This is the one time training is given to each worker upfront to initiate him to the process and ways of ICDS. help them to understand the role and responsibilities of Heads of AWTCs in monitoring and supervision of training of AWWs/ AWHs. as laid down by the Government. a honoraria for the staff at an Anganwadi Training Centre (AWTC) is also provided to the NGO for deciding the compensation to be provided to each member of the programme on a per month basis.Induction Training of Anganwadi Workers Apart from the various training modules. The honoraria is as follows: Figure 5 .Figure 4 .Honoraria for staff of AWTCs . 750. seating arrangement being not so child-friendly.Issues Based on inspection of the financial data and our interaction with the CINI officials. 2) Low Motivational Levels – In general. with the recent revision done by the Govt. The anganwadi centres located in . 1500 as per month while the helpers were paid around Rs. due to the high rate of inflation. upon talking to the officials we found out that there were several other centres throughout the state itself where there were issues such as the weighing machines not working regularly. 3) Low and Unrealistic Unit Costs .With the prevalent unit costs for a majority of the components being low and unrealistic. which meant lack of job and social security. That apart. oil and lubricants (POL). In terms of providing support to run the centres. 4) Deficiencies in Provision of services – Though the centre that we visited had maintained all the facilities. the unit costs for petrol. these institutions are not believed to be too helpful. this problem is likely to be resolved. and information. However. in spite of their high work load. our analysis suggests that the major factors which constrain effective utilisation of funds under ICDS emanate from budgetary and institutional bottlenecks. The following issues were found to be prevalent at the basic (NGO) level: 1) Role of Panchayati Workers – The role of village/block level government bodies in supporting the Anganwadi workers was found to be wanting in several aspects. material for early learning. absence of toilet facilities etc. non-provision of recreational material to children. we found out that the motivation level of the Anganwadi workers and Anganwadi helpers was low. it is difficult for implementing officials to effectively operate and spend money under the programme. Anganwadi workers were until recently provided Rs. education and communication (IEC) also need to be upwardly revised. of India (as shown in the honorarium above). This was in account of the low honoraria paid to them and the contractual nature of their employment. A superficial analysis of the training modules provides with the idea that training has two components of theoretical and practical aspects. the costs incurred due to theoretical training have only been considered to be removed. The idea behind being that theoretical trainings can be conducted through virtual mode at different locations and thus enabling partial deduction various involved costs like those of boarding and lodging. suffered from infrastructure and communication problems indicating a need for extra funds for construction of new buildings. Cost Benefit Analysis Now we will look at the effect of virtualization on the training modules one by one. and for the maintenance of the existing buildings. electricity cost has been taken for the purpose of calculations. Here. 1) JOB TRAINING Job Training Item Hardware (per pc) Cost (INR) 25.interior regions. The benefit of virtualisation has been calculated as percentage saving of virtualisation mode over manual mode of training. training material etc.000 Period 5 years Additional Details 5 . in our cost benefit analysis of virtualisation is done with the concept that virtualisation can only remove the burden of theoretical training. Hence. The tables given below under each training type evaluate the cost of virtualisation in each training type against the cost and partial reduction in current mode. A rough and realistic value for costs like hardware cost. 52055 458345.8 Final cost including the plan Benefit 2) Refresher Training .2 21% 250404.2055 Now.Electricity Internet Maintenance Invigilator Total Cost for 5 years Total Cost for 1 year Total Cost per batch (10 batches of 35) Total Cost per batch 30 150 1000 7500 1 working day 1 month 1 Year 1 Month 10 hours per day Shared Internet Warranty for first three years 2614000 522800 45834. we look at the cost reduction possible: Cost Item Boarding & Lodging TA to WWS Honorarium Training Material Local Conveyance Incentives Cost 840000 105000 2500 35000 15000 175000 Reduction 75% 50% 50% 50% 50% 0% New cost 210000 52500 1250 17500 7500 175000 Total 1172500 463750 922095. we look at the scope of cost reduction: Cost Item Boarding & Lodging TA to WWS Honorarium Training Material Local Conveyance Incentives Total Cost 840000 105000 2500 35000 15000 175000 1172500 Reduction 90% 50% 50% 50% 50% 0% New cost 84000 52500 1250 17500 7500 175000 337750 .000 30 150 1000 7500 5 years 1 working day 1 month 1 Year 1 Month 4 10 hours per day Shared Internet Warranty for first three years 2092200 418440 36685.15068 366851.Refresher Training Item Cost (INR) Period Additional Details Hardware (per pc) Electricity Internet Maintenance Invigilator Total Cost for 5 years Total Cost for 1 year Total Cost per Training Total Cost per 10 Training 25.5068 Now. 5 3) Orientation Training Orientation Training Item Cost (INR) Period Additional Details Hardware (per pc) Electricity Internet Maintenance Invigilator Total Cost for 5 years Total Cost for 1 year Total Cost per Training Total Cost per 10 Training 25.Final cost including the plan Benefit 40% 704601.5 467898.89041 549838.9041 Now.000 30 150 1000 7500 5 years 1 working day 1 month 1 Year 1 Month 6 10 hours per day Shared Internet Warranty for first three years 3135800 627160 54983. looking at the scope of cost reduction: Cost Item Boarding & Lodging TA to WWS Honorarium Cost 840000 105000 2500 Reduction 90% 50% 50% New cost 84000 52500 1250 . looking at the scope of cost reduction: Cost Item Cost Reduction New cost .000 30 150 1000 7500 Period 5 years 1 working day 1 month 1 Year 1 Month 3135800 627160 54983.Training Material Local Conveyance Incentives Total 35000 15000 175000 1172500 50% 50% 0% 17500 7500 175000 337750 887588.9 Final cost including the plan Benefit 24% 284911.89041 549838.9041 Additional Details 6 10 hours per day Shared Internet Warranty for first three years Now.1 4) Induction Training Induction Training Item Hardware (per pc) Electricity Internet Maintenance Invigilator Total Cost for 5 years Total Cost for 1 year Total Cost per Training Total Cost per 10 Training Cost (INR) 25. T O.9 Final cost including the plan Benefit 18% 209661. we focussed on the cost cutting aspect.Boarding & Lodging TA to WWS Honorarium Training Material Local Conveyance Incentives Total 840000 105000 2500 35000 15000 175000 1172500 80% 50% 50% 75% 50% 0% 168000 52500 1250 8750 7500 175000 413000 962838. we look at the overall effectiveness of the proposed plan: Savings 45% 40% 35% 30% 25% 20% 15% 10% 5% 0% J.T R.T Recommendations and Conclusions Based on the interactions with the CINI officials and the cost benefit analysis done. whereby we decided to reduce the spending on Job Training and Refresher Training. the following recommendations can be enlisted: 1) Firstly.T I.1 So. which comprise the major part of the training . Such immersive learning (learning through projectors. we can achieve considerable savings which can then be used on securing better Information and Communication Technology (ICT) services for education of children. Sugata Mitra (Chief Scientist – NIIT). a highly acclaimed concept introduced by Dr. MIE uses children's natural curiosity and focuses on providing an enabling environment where they can learn on their own.html . The central idea behind this initiative is that groups of children can learn on their own without any direct intervention. 2) Looking at the number of training that the Anganwadi workers have to go through.module of Anganwadi workers. with minimal. intervention by a teacher. or no. TV. This was conceptually explained by Mitra as Minimally Invasive Education (MIE . we believe that some additional cost benefit can be achieved by combining the Orientation Training and the Induction Training. videos and animations etc) would provide the children with a far more enriching and informative experience and help to improve the quality of education of the ICDS programme. All of this comes at a very minimal cost as well. with highly effective results. where children can share their knowledge and in the process. which means that such an idea can be implemented in the education of the children. we can introduce better medium of education for the children by utilising the services of organizations like Bodhaguru which provide comprehensive. It is defined as a pedagogic method that uses the learning environment to generate an adequate level of motivation to induce learning in groups. 3) By achieving the above benefits. 10 http://www.com/insight. develop better group dynamics. By doing this. all in a highly natural environment. 4) We can also introduce the concept of self-driven learning and training approach.hole-in-the-wall. inexpensive and a holistic mode of learning for the school children using several ICT tools and devices. as both have near similar objectives and neither of them is as essential as Job Training or Refresher Training.