The more formal methods of instruction are less successful with Roma children. For them the rigid arrangement of a classical classroom, with children arranged in rows and the teacher at the front addressing the class, is more likely to inspire nervousness about being singled out for attention than a desire to learn. Instead, Lazar has adopted an unstructured approach, based on using the children's immediate environment, with which they are already familiar. The essence of the Kedves Haz is that the school and the dormitory co-operate and interact to provide an integrated social and educational environment. The dormitory has facilities for sports, games, drama, trips and cultural events.
Time spent in the classroom is kept to a minimum.
I teach in a different way to a normal school. It's a two-way process, with Lazar and the other teachers improving their educational skills, knowledge and understanding of the Roma children's home environments as well. Lazar and his colleagues, who have trained as social workers, often visit the Roma settlement on the edge of the village to visit his charges' parents. Now the parents know that if their children come to school, they will have opportunities in life. Many of them left school when they were 10 years old.