Aajibaichi Shaala - no ordinary school

Aajibaichi Shaala - no ordinary school

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Aajibaichi Shaala is not your ordinary school in India.

The students at "grandmothers' school" in the village of Fangane are elderly women who are getting the chance to learn to read.

"I love going to school," Kamal Keshavtupange, 60, told Reuters as she washed clothes outside her home in the village, 120 km (75 miles) east of the financial capital, Mumbai.

. Fangane, INDIA. Reuters/Danish Siddiqui

India's literacy rate grew to 74 percent in the decade to 2011, according to the latest census, but female literacy continued to lag the rate for males by a wide margin.

About 65 percent of women were found to be literate, compared with 82 percent of men, according to the 2011 report.

Education experts and researchers have cited outdated attitudes toward women, including a preference for male children over females, and child marriages as main reasons for the lower female literacy rate.

At Aajibaichi, afternoon classes in the one-room school are held six days a week for two hours. The lessons are timed so the women can finish their chores, or their work in the fields, before attending class.

. Fangane, INDIA. Reuters/Danish Siddiqui

One of the few requirements is that all students are at least 60 years old.

"My knees hurt, so I can't sit on the floor for long. That's the only problem. But I still go every day," said Keshavtupange.

Clad in pink saris, their school uniform, the women walk every afternoon along dusty village paths to their lessons.

. Fangane, INDIA. Reuters/Danish Siddiqui

"First I finish all my house work, then I go to school. It's good we have this in our village,” said 70-year-old Drupada Pandurangkedar. Her eight-year-old granddaughter studies in the government primary school in Fangane.

The women begin class with a prayer and then dive into their lessons, writing on slates to practice.

. Fangane, INDIA. Reuters/Danish Siddiqui

The school uses teaching aids such as the alphabet painted on tiles which can be read by students with poor eyesight. Many of the aids are made by the students.

Sheetal Prakash More, their 30-year-old teacher, said she would like to see women in other villages get the same access to education.

. Fangane, INDIA. Reuters/Danish Siddiqui

"Every other teacher teaches children. Only I have the opportunity to teach elderly women," More said. "It's a great opportunity and I am very happy to teach them."

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Slideshow

Vanita Dhau, 65, who studies at Aajibaichi Shaala works inside her house.
. Fangane, INDIA. Reuters/Danish Siddiqui

Vanita Dhau, 65, who studies at Aajibaichi Shaala works inside her house.

Vanita stands inside her house.
. Fangane, INDIA. Reuters/Danish Siddiqui

Vanita stands inside her house.

Drupada Pandurangkedar gets ready for school inside her house.
. Fangane, INDIA. Reuters/Danish Siddiqui

Drupada Pandurangkedar gets ready for school inside her house.

Kamal Keshavtupange, 60, who studies at Aajibaichi Shaala, drinks tea inside her house.
. Fangane, INDIA. Reuters/Danish Siddiqui

Kamal Keshavtupange, 60, who studies at Aajibaichi Shaala, drinks tea inside her house.

Indu Pawar, 61, who studies at Aajibaichi Shaala watches television inside her house.
. Fangane, INDIA. Reuters/Danish Siddiqui

Indu Pawar, 61, who studies at Aajibaichi Shaala watches television inside her house.

Uma Sitaramtupange, 65, who studies at Aajibaichi Shaala,  holds a baby outside her house.
. Fangane, INDIA. Reuters/Danish Siddiqui

Uma Sitaramtupange, 65, who studies at Aajibaichi Shaala, holds a baby outside her house.

People buy vegetables.
. Fangane, INDIA. Reuters/Danish Siddiqui

People buy vegetables.