Blog Post
Base English Academy: A Flagship Spoken English Project for Rural West Bengal
"Base English Academy" is an academic entity under the supervision and management of the NGO Base Foundation, which is deeply rooted in grassroots-level educational emancipation for the politically, administratively, and socio-economically neglected sections of Indian society, with a special focus on Birbhum District of West Bengal, India. It has been two full months since the academy came into existence.
The academy has designed several projects such as Personality Development, Communication and Conversation, Trainer Development, Public Speaking, and Self-Growth. At present, the Seven Month Advanced Spoken English Diploma has been conceived as the need of the hour, and the academy has now completed two months since its initiation.
The Diploma covers advanced grammar, the school syllabus, and devotes additional time to extracurricular activities such as "Do Golpo," "Dare Your Dream," "Seven Lines," "Speaking Partners," and "Analyze: Measure the Depth of the Water You're In." The first batch, consisting of more than 50 enthusiastic students, is led by Mr. Nairul SK Hudawi, who conducts classes three days a week, two hours a day. The first 40 minutes focus on grammar aligned with their school syllabi, while the remaining 80 minutes are divided into five phases of 16 minutes each, with one extracurricular activity per phase.
In "Do Golpo," students engage in a casual talk in the form of a panel discussion. "Dare Your Dream" requires them to share the dream they had the previous night. "Seven Lines" gives them a prompt topic, on which they must quickly write their thoughts. "Speaking Partners" pairs students for a phone-call style conversation, while "Analyze" focuses on developing grammar skills.
As a result, remarkable progress has been observed, and locals are now confidently speaking English.
