In Walled City, Rabea School breaks down some walls
Rabea deals with every stereotype in the book, and then some. In its initial years, almost every girl enrolled wanted to give classes a miss to attend a marriage or a function in the locality. Four decades on, the same school has now become a mecca for girls’ education in the Walled City. located in the heart of lal Kuan Market, Rabea Girls’ Public School has earned a name for itself and for the fact that 16 girls have secured above 90 per cent in this year’s CBSE board examination, reinstating its growing stature.
Established with only 13 Muslim girls and three teachers in 1973 by Janab Hakeem Abdul Hameed of the Hamdard Trust, the school has now become a learning hub for girls in the Walled City, irrespective of their community. It is perhaps the only English medium school in the area that offers classes from kindergarten to high school. “At present, we have 2,000 children and 85 teachers in the school. Although the school was established with the sole aim of educating Muslim girls, that is not the case now. We have students and teachers from all communities in our school,” said Dr Nahid Usmani, Principal, Rabea Girls’ Public School.
From girls having no interest in studies to parents attributing their education as the least important task, the school has evolved from an array of social constraints, apart from the lingering physical inadequacies in terms of space. Rabea girls now dream of becoming IAS officers, teachers or chartered accountants, to name a few. The school just gave wings to almost 105 girls, who passed with flying colors in this year’s board examinations, while 16 of them scored above 90 per cent marks.
“I want to pursue either Political Science or English for my graduation. I have filled the Delhi University forms and want to get into St Stephen’s College or Miranda House. If Rabea hadn’t happened, I don’t think I would have been able to get this kind of education. Our teachers aren’t just about finishing the syllabus. They are our friends, our counsellors, people we can run up to for help any time,” said Maleeha Jameel, who topped in Rabea School with all-time high marks of 96.6 per cent.
A medicine factory turned into a school, which is run by the Hamdard Education Society, the school operates despite plenty of limitations. “There is no playground in the school. They have one ground, which serves multiple purposes — morning assembly, lunch break or any other school function — including their prayers. We could have got a much bigger space somewhere else, but that would have defeated our primary goal of being here and giving the girls the opportunities they cherish and learn from,” added Usmani. Maybe it is because of space crunch that the school only lets girls play chess, carrom and table tennis.
However, as an achievement, it took a lot for the school to change the mindsets of the girls’ parents and bring the girls to sit and study, “We had to face a number of problems. Girls did not want to come and study. They preferred to go for family functions or sit at home. Attendance was a big problem. Then parents were also not so keen on teaching their girls. We took strict measures and made 80 per cent attendance mandatory for each girl. We started focusing on mothers as they can connect the most with their child and started inviting them in our school functions. Though gradually, but things have changed for the better,” said Usmani. The school not just felicitates outstanding students, but also their mothers, for encouraging them. They also participate actively is spreading awareness regarding education in the area.