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Goa government has started a very unique plan for school kids. Under the new National Education Policy, which people also calls NEP, government and aided schools in Goa are getting special "urban wildlife host patches" right inside their campuses. Earlier, these schools did kitchen gardening where they grew vegetables. But now, they are moving towards making small wild forests inside the school boundary. The main idea is that schools will choose a small empty space on their campus. On this space, they will grow special host plants that can attract small birds, beautiful butterflies, insects, and small animals like squirrels. The SCERT is working with World Wildlife Fund India-Goa to make this plan successful.
No Pruning and No Trimming Allowed :
This project have a very interesting rule that sounds a bit strange at first. The selected patch of land will not be trimmed or cleaned regularly like a normal garden. Usually, gardeners cut the grass and make everything look very neat. But here, the school will let the plants grow wildly without any cutting. It will be left totally untouched and chaotic so that natural environment can build up. WWF experts says that if we do not leave such small wild spaces, we will never see beautiful dragonflies or hear sweet birds singing in our cities. To make it even better, students will put small things like broken tiles, old wooden pieces, and bird baths so creatures can hide and drink water.
Training the Teachers First :
To make sure this plan runs nicely, the government has already trained many teachers. Around 500 teachers who teach students from Class 6 to Class 8 have finished their training. Last year, these same teachers, mostly computer teachers, got training for kitchen gardening. Now, WWF India-Goa have trained them again for managing these habitat gardens. This is because under the vocational subject of NEP, students needs to learn practical things instead of just reading books. These teachers are now ready to guide students on how to identify correct host plants and how to handle the wild patch without disturbing the insects. WWF has also given a special guide book to these schools.
The Daily Work and Projects for Students :
For students, this is not going to be a boring lecture inside a closed classroom. It is going to be like a natural laboratory where they learn by seeing. Every student of Class 6, 7, and 8 will have to maintain a special diary or folio of their personal observations. They will sit near the wild patch and observe the small creatures. They will write down which insects came today, what the birds are doing, and how plants are growing. This way, children can learn about things like how dragonflies are helpful because they eat bad mosquitoes that spread diseases. Some students will also work on making a village biodiversity register under vocational education.
Why This Plan Matters for the Whole City :
This small step is going to help the urban areas of Goa in a big way. In big towns, concrete buildings are everywhere and trees are becoming very less. Because of this, bees and birds do not get place to sit, and pollination of big trees stops. These small school patches will act like green connections or bridges for wildlife to travel and live in cities. When students see these natural processes happening in front of their eyes, they will understand conservation naturally. This project show that learning can happen outside the classroom too, and it is a very simple and practical way to make the next generation love and protect nature.
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