Al Kalam Junior High School

If you go down Tower Wali Gali in the Bhujpura area of Aligarh, you’ll find our school. It’s right in the middle of a busy neighborhood in Jaiganj. We’ve been here serving the local community for a long time. The lanes are narrow, and it can get quite crowded, but that’s just life in this part of Aligarh. Our school is a junior high, so we deal with kids who are just starting to grow up. It’s a lively place, especially during the lunch break. We don’t have a huge playground, but the kids find ways to stay active in the space we have. The building is older and we have to do regular maintenance to keep it in good shape. We aren't trying to be the biggest school in the city. We just want to be a reliable place for the parents nearby to send their children. Most of our teachers live in the surrounding streets, so they really understand the kids. We talk to parents at the gate every afternoon. It’s all very direct and honest. We don’t use fancy language to describe what we do. We just teach the subjects, look after the students, and try to make sure they pass their exams. It’s a lot of hard work, but seeing the kids learn to read and write makes it worth it. We are just a small part of this neighborhood.