The dice rolls, hits a ladder, you move closer to the goal — feels good. It rolls yet again, lands you foot-in-mouth a hissing snake, distancing you from the goal — you sulk. For ages, the high and lows of a typical Snakes and Ladders game, has kept us all enthralled.
Cashing in on its popularity CRY has launched an online version of the game; albeit infused with messages supporting children’s right to education. Dressed as a kid, you play against a computerised opponent. And each time you climb a ladder a positive message pops up on the screen- “My school has clean drinking water. I don’t worry about being thirsty anymore,” or “A government school functioning near my home. I can go to school now!”— all collectively implying your nearness to the goal, that of seeking education in a conducive atmosphere.
Similarly, a snake bite throws up discomforting facts through tags that read — “School is 10kms from home. It is too far to walk every day,” or “I dropped out of school to take care of my younger siblings” or more basic ones like “My school has just one toilet for boys and girls. On some days, I have to miss school” — messages that society’s high-heeled kids may find hard to reckon with.
However, through the improvised game, the attempt is to introduce the privileged lot to the reasons why their not-so-unfortunate counterparts drop out of school.
So, how did the idea to use an established and popular board game, to sensitise people on contemporary yet poignant issues like Children’s education come about?
Priya Zutshi, communications manager, CRY says that it was to move away from the typical preachy and bleeding heart support the cause type of awareness campaigns. “Instead of creating a new game we thought the format of Snakes and Ladders was just as apt to plug in our message in a fun and interactive manner,” she says.
Statistics indicate that 46% of all elementary school-going children across India drop out between standard one and eight, and over 1,48,696 government schools don't even have a building. Such discouraging figures prompted the NGO to launch the game. Given the fact that the NGO’s theme this year is Right to Education- the game was also a logical outcome.
Ankita Jain, 22, who tried her hands at the game, says she is impressed. “Each climb and the subsequent message led to instant gratification for my easy access to education. But every snake bite, also evoked empathy for those who are not as fortunate as me,” remarks Jain.
And this is precisely the kind of response the NGO aims to generate — making people internalize the issue through the game.
“There is a general tendency to externalize problems of vulnerable and under privileged children. The game puts you in their shoes, even if for a few seconds,” Zutshi says.
You can play the game online on http://bit.ly/aOZsXm
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