We gained insights on cultural and perceptual differences between rural and city life

The following report has been submitted by the students of Delhi Public School, Gurugram who iterate their experience of visiting Ghamroj, Sohna Road as part of their residential project. They narrate how the project has been a life changing experience for them while acknowledging the important role that the Award Programme has played in their journey.

Undertaking the Award Programme is a learning experience that enables participants to not only expand their interests by transcending classroom boundaries but also to develop new skills and gain recognition for performing extra/co-curricular activities. Moreover, a sense of responsibility and leadership quality is also developed due to the different aspects of the Programme.

As part of the residential project for the Award Programme, we visited Ghamroj, Sohna Road. This project, to begin with, helped us understand the fundamental difference between city life and rural life. Understanding these basic cultural differences is what made this project one of the most interesting opportunities for experiential learning that we’ve come across. Of the myriad activities that we engaged in, a major one was teaching the students of the village school. We taught them subjects like Social Science, Science, Mathematics, Hindi and English and our experience was enriched by their patience and discipline. Messages about hygiene and cleanliness were also spread during this project. We highlighted how lack of hygiene could unleash various diseases and how those could be prevented via proper and effective measures.

We were taken to a brick kiln to witness the making of bricks, after which we attempted the activity of brick making with the help of local people of the village. We also visited a vegetable farm where we enhanced our motor skills by plucking vegetables by their roots. We learnt what lies beyond the domains of theory by gaining practical knowledge of technical skills for agricultural development. We were then taken to the poultry farm where we understood how domestic birds such as hens, ducks and turkeys are raised. Gaining insights on the profits earned through poultry farming was another advantage associated with the visit to the poultry farm. We also interacted with members of the village council, analysing various possible issues of the village such as water supply, electricity supply, provision of education and women-centric issues. The insights that we gained through the discussions helped us scrutinize the perceptual differences between rural and urban setups.

The residential project helped us foster new skills such as time management, team work, problem-solving and building our confidence through novelty. The experience that we gained in this project will always be cherished by us. However, we acknowledge the efforts of our teachers who have been pillars of support, encouragement and guidance and those of IAYP of making our journey a truly memorable one.

One of the Most Thrilling Experiences

Ishita Roy, Bronze Award participant from Delhi Public School, Gurugram, completed her Adventurous Journey. Ishita is sharing her thrilling experience...

When one talks about a teenager’s leisure time, the first thought that comes to mind is of a kid listening to music or watching TV. However, leisure time could also come in more packages like exploring nature, helping the community and making a difference to society.

This not only helps in the betterment of society but also in helping us -- teenagers -- become more independent, learn new skills and become socially adaptable.

This has also been the objective of our school, and the IAYP programme helps to steer us towards that aim. Keeping this in mind, our school organized an exciting 4-day Adventurous Journey to Rishikesh, Uttarakhand, from the 1st to the 4th of November, 2017.

After a night’s journey by bus, we reached our resort named ‘Phool Chatti’. The morning temperature had dipped a bit, and it became pleasantly cold. Here we were assigned to groups and were allotted our tents.

After breakfast we trekked by the riverside, where we rappelled off a massive rock surface. We learnt the technicalities of this adventure sport and enjoyed every moment of it. More trekking followed, and this time it was a 6 km trek to reach the waterfalls. The urge to reach the end of the trail to witness the enchanting waterfalls was so huge, that it gave us an adrenalin rush and brought out the spirit of adventure in all of us.

After completing a long, difficult, yet challenging trek, we treated ourselves to bowls of hot ‘Maggi’ and steaming cups of coffee :) The first day came to an end with a sumptuous dinner, bonfire and music.

The next morning, thrilled by the thought of river rafting, we wasted no time in getting ready and quickly boarded our buses to reach the river.

Upon reaching the site, our team guide gave us a thorough knowledge of the conditions and procedures of rafting. Overwhelmed by the power of surging waters beneath us, we jumped into our rafts, wearing our life jackets and helmets. We rafted through the wilderness and experienced the cold water and its flow from Marine Drive to Shivpuri.

This was one of the most thrilling experiences, especially as we jumped out of the raft and dived into the spine-chilling river water, braving the rapids that came our way. After a three-hour raft, we boarded our buses to reach the campsite, where we played outdoor games like badminton and volleyball, relaxed by the bonfire with our friends, listened to soothing music, ate dinner and retired for the night .

Next day, ready to witness the sunrise, we were up and about at 5:30 am for a walk through spectacular natural surroundings. The sight of the lush, green trees, the fragrance of the crisp morning air, away from the hustle and bustle of city life and its pollution, made us feel like staying here forever.

And so ended our adventure with nature as it was time to bid goodbye to the holy town of Rishikesh, and return to our homes, having made new friends and new memories!  Click for more pictures

Reminiscing about a Memorable Journey

Riddhi Jain, Gold Award holder from Delhi Public School, Gurugram is sharing her Award Journey experience, especially the Residential Project.

I was first introduced to the Duke of Edinburgh's International Award programme when I was in the 9th grade. When I was introduced to the International Award for Young People (IAYP), I was quite curious about the programme and how it would help me in my life. Deciding to join the Bronze Award was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. It has been an amazing experience ever since. I went on to complete the Silver and Gold Awards as well.

My journey with IAYP has been one with many challenges: from managing academics and extracurriculars to meeting deadlines. Nevertheless, I enjoyed myself thoroughly. I think the most important skill I picked up from the IAYP is interpersonal and communication skills.

The Residential Project for the Gold Award was my personal favourite. It taught me how to work in a team. To step out of my comfort zone and go out in the open, meet new people, make new friends and most importantly, it taught me how to enjoy life outside home and away from my parents.

Living with strangers in a village, learning their lifestyle and language was a little scary, but at the same extremely thrilling. We visited the village head -- the Sarpanch, spoke to the Panchayat about the administration of the village, went to the village school and taught the students there, and danced with them. We interacted with them and told them about our school.

I learnt how to make round chapatis and had tea for the first time ever. The tractor ride was quite amusing. We also organised a cleanliness drive and took to the streets, after which we put up a street play on hygiene and sanitation and stressed on the importance of maintaining cleanliness.

On the third and fourth day, I went to the farm and saw a variety of vegetables that were grown. Later, we were taken to the brick kiln and made a few bricks there, which were, to be honest, quite distorted. The task was very tough and tiring, yet fun.

It is priceless memories like these that remind me of the joys of the Award. Completing the Award gives youth opportunities that one would not normally experience and moments that last a lifetime. Achieving the Awards was just as thrilling as completing the journey. Click here to see more pictures

Opportunity to do Community Service

Shiksha Kendra, a philanthropic venture of Delhi Public School Gurgaon, Sector-45, is a school for remedial teaching for students from the ‘marginalised those at risk’ section of society. It is an afternoon school (1.30 pm - 5 pm) providing quality education to 1300+ students from classes 1-12. As it is a prerequisite that all students/members have to do community service, we at DPS Gurgaon want to extend a helping hand. We wish to invite all those children desirous of doing community service in the form of teaching to come and teach at the Shiksha Kendra run by the school.

The IAYP participants of all three levels can volunteer to take classes from standard 1 to 5 on weekdays from 3 pm to 5 pm. Besides teaching academic subjects they can also conduct classes for co-curricular activities and train students in Dance, Theatre, Art, Vocal Music, Spoken English, etc.

Students interested in teaching at Shiksha Kendra should write an email to Shubra Banerjee or Darshna Dahiya at least a week in advance, informing about the dates on which they would like to take classes so as to enable us to make suitable arrangements. Click to see some pictures at Shiksha Kendra

"The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others" ~ Mahatma Gandhi

Praniti Ganjoo, Gold Award holder from Delhi Public School, Gurgaon is sharing her experience during her Bronze to Gold Award Journey

I became a part of the IAYP programme four years ago, and the Gold Award Ceremony held on the 16th of July took me down memory lane, to the past four years of my journey of getting the Bronze, Silver and Gold Awards. I remember the 14 year old girl, who had just entered into high school and was excited about the adventure camps that she would get to be a part of and enrolled for the Award. Little did I know that this would become such an important part of who I am today.

I was in the 9th grade when I received my Bronze Award. I took up dancing as a Physical Recreation, where I learnt dance forms like jazz and freestyle. For the Skills section, I took up baking, another passion of mine. However, undoubtedly, the most interesting and fun sections were the Service and the Adventurous Journey sections. I got involved with Shiksha Kendra, an initiative to teach the underprivileged children of our society subjects like English, maths and the social sciences. For the Adventurous Journey, I went to Mori, Uttarakhand, where I took part in white water river rafting, rappelling, trekking and cliff diving.

Getting the Bronze Award after months of involvement in various activities, the exhilaration, and the ability to learn, filled me with a newfound thirst to learn more and become more, and I knew one thing for sure, there was no going back!

For the Silver and Gold award, I pursued dancing and swimming under Skills and Physical Recreation respectively, with the same vigour and zest and learnt new things under the guidance of my proficient instructors. I also got a tremendous opportunity to work with Teach India -- an initiative by the Times of India and the British Council, which aimed at spreading awareness about the importance of the English language and facilitated its learning for people, in order to improve their quality of life by providing better employment opportunities. I was actively involved with this endeavour by Times of India, and got an award for Excellent Contribution and Best Volunteer.

The Duke of Edinburgh's International Award Programme made me recognize the significance of giving back to society. This inspired me to also volunteer for an organisation which dealt with children fighting with cancer and I collected funds at carnivals and also conducted bake sales. Finally, the Residential Project under the Gold Award, gave me an insight into the life of the villagers. I went to the village Ghamroj, near Sohna Road, Gurgaon, Haryana, where we saw factories where bricks were made, went to a cowshed and organic farms and also met the village head, who enlightened us about the improvement of education and sanitation facilities in the village.

The Award gave me an opportunity to engage and acquire a new set of skills. I got the liberty to design my own programme and set my own goals by challenging my boundaries. Thank you IAYP!

The Award made me a better person

Yuvraj Geet Singh Chopra, Gold Award holder from Delhi Public School, Gurgaon received his Gold Award on 16th July 2015 at the Annual Gold Award Presentation Ceremony.  Yuvraj shares his experience during the Award Journey.
The Gold Award ceremony organized by IAYP, India was held on 16th July 2015 and I was one of the Gold Award recipients.  The entire journey for the completion of the Award was an amazing experience for me. I learnt a lot from it and hope to incorporate the values learnt from it in daily life as well.
There were five parts to the Award, each of which was to be performed and recorded in order to achieve the Award. Those categories included Skill, Physical Recreation, Adventure, Community Service and a Residential Project.
My Skill was vocal music. I practiced every day, performed in a lot of events and competitions for my school and otherwise, and my vocal skill has developed a lot since Day 1. I am now a very good singer and will be pursuing music after school as a hobby too. Under Recreation, I used to go to the gym periodically, due to which I have become a healthier and fitter person. My 'Adventure' included taking a wonderful trip to some islands, where I practiced Para-Sailing, Snorkelling, and other activities. The sheer thought of doing the rides was exhilarating! I also taught the students of the DPS Shiksha Kendra as part of Community Service and I cannot describe how happy I felt teaching the challenged young minds of our society. In fact, I liked it so much that even after the completion of the Award, I still continue to teach at the Shiksha Kendra.
I, along with my friends also visited a village called Ghamroj in Sohna as part of the Residential Project. We visited the homes and farms of the villagers living there, analyzed the current facilities of the village and then had a conversation with the village Sarpanch regarding improving the facilities of the village so that the people could achieve better lives and livelihood.
In conclusion, I have had a wonderful experience and I will cherish the moments I had throughout my life.

"Experience is the teacher of all things.' -- Julius Caesar

Poorva Gupta, Gold Award holder, Delhi Public School, Gurgaon shares her experience about the Award journey.

The journey of IAYP to the Gold Award has indeed been an unforgettable experience.  I started my Award journey when I was in Grade 9, and today when I have entered college, I am a Gold Award holder. My involvement in the Award was a matter of mere chance - thanks to my Award Leader, Darshna ma'am who took the initiative to make us aware about the entire programme. There was so much I was doing and I wanted a platform where I could make use of it. The Duke of Edinburgh Award provided me with the same. Through the entire program I not only came to discover myself, but also made a bunch of great friends.

The Bronze Award journey began with an exciting and adventurous river rafting trip that provided a wonderful opportunity to enjoy the refreshing rapids of River Ganga in Rishikesh. The 50 km journey by bus with other Gold and Silver participants was filled with excitement and the anticipation of savouring nature's rich bounty. For my Service section, I taught at Shiksha Kendra, an initiative in our school to teach the underprivileged children. During that time, I had just picked up a new activity, dancing, which became my daily Physical Recreation. I adore art, and therefore took the opportunity to master painting, develop my Skill and gain confidence. From April to October, I gradually improved in all fields. And it was at the end of October that I received my Bronze Award. 

For the Silver and Gold Award, I continued with the same amount of vigour and enthusiasm. For the Service section I had the opportunity to be a part of Teach India - an initiative by the Times of India and the British Council. Under this, I taught the support staff of our school by staying back for two hours after school. The experience was enriching, one of the best I've ever had. I remember going back to my class after some work, and one of the members of the support staff greeted me with a 'Good Morning!'. Then and there I knew that my purpose at Teach India was fulfilled. I thought the Residential Project would be a tough and laborious task; however, it was absolutely thrilling and an eye-opener for me. We went to Ghamroj Village situated in Sohna Road, Gurgaon. Talking to the villagers we were made aware of the universal needs of food, shelter, clothing, being accepted by our near and dear ones and improvement of standards of living. We realized that all, whether rich or poor, have similar dreams and most of us would go all out to fulfill them. The Award gave me an opportunity to engage and acquire new skills first hand through participation in the four sections. I got the liberty to design my own programme and to set my own goals by challenging my boundaries. Thanks a bunch IAYP!