I have Witnessed a Transformational Experience

Sukanya Khan, Award Leader from Dhirubhai Ambani International School, Mumbai sharing an inspiring experience with an Award Participant.

My profession as a high school Physics teacher requires me to spend about one-third of each day with teenagers. While the process of nurturing curious young minds is intellectually very stimulating and gratifying beyond words, there have been times when looking through the one-dimensional lens of academic performance, I have felt inadequate in my understanding of a child whose world extends way beyond the confines of the classroom. So when, five years ago, the responsibility of coordinating the IAYP at my school was handed over to me, I knew that a new chapter had begun in my journey as an educator.

I had been closely associated with a number of service initiatives even before my association with IAYP began and working closely with cancer patients and their caregivers was one of them. Every week I would accompany a handful of students to the facility in the neighborhood where the volunteers would chat with the adults, play with the children and generally try and engage them with activities that would take their minds off from their illness, albeit for a brief period. In my first year as the coordinator, I witnessed a transformational experience there. A student named Aman joined this group of volunteers and after his first visit, requested me to shift him to a different service activity. He said that the sight of the patients, many of whom were amputee children, with their shaven heads was too depressing for him. His friends and my colleagues weren’t surprised by his reaction and they told me that Aman possessed neither the sensitivity nor the empathy and level of commitment required for a service activity of that kind and it was likely that the reason for his initial interest was the fact that the facility was close to his residence. I found out that in addition to being at the bottom of the pile in academics, sports and co-curricular activities, he had gotten into trouble in the past due to his irresponsible behavior. I was also made privy to the information that he had been advised to meet the counselor.

I cannot remember the reasons for my judgment on the basis of which I sat him down and requested him to visit the facility just once more with me. Once we were in the facility, I stayed next to him all the time, gently asking him to speak to the children in the local language and make an effort to make friends with them. As the afternoon came to an end, I found myself at the corner of the room opposite to where Aman was. While he was teaching Bollywood dance steps to a four year old, my eyes were welling up with pride.

Aman turned out to be the most dedicated student towards service in his entire batch. It was his idea and initiative to engage with care givers and patients in painting diyas and making greeting cards and gift pouches. The funds raised from selling those were used for purchasing sewing machines and utensils. Aman ran extensive and aggressive campaigns that in addition to cash donations, led to two computers being donated to the facility. He was one of the volunteers who taught computer skills to the inmates after school hours. Last but not the least, his painting on canvas, depicting the varied hues of life, was auctioned at the school fete and raised two lakh rupees for the patients.

It might sound like a fairy tale, but it is true that Aman’s experience at the facility through the IAYP Programme gave him the confidence that he had never experienced before. His grades began to improve and his inner turmoil found a beautiful outlet through his paintings.

Award Leader Training (YES) Workshop

The International Award for Young People, India organized an Award Leader Training workshop at Christ Church School, Mumbai on 26th and 27th August, 2016. The two-day workshop was attended by 23 participants from different institutions across India, including Jungle Lore Student Expedition, Mumbai; Euro School, Thane; P. G. Garodia School, Mumbai; Jamnabai Narsee School, Mumbai; Sanjeewan Vidyalaya, Panchgani; Naz Foundation (India) Trust, Mumbai; Adventure Edu. Tours Mumbai Pvt. Ltd, Mumbai; and Lady Khatun Marium School, Panvel. Over the span of two days, the participants were given in-depth knowledge regarding the four domains of the programme i.e. Skills, Service, Physical Recreation and Adventurous Journey and also the Residential Project. The participants were also introduced to the technical aspects of the programme, which included Risk Management, Brand Guide and Online Record Book (ORB). Other sessions included the Award Philosophy, Framework, Benefits of the Award and how a volunteer could play a crucial role in the Award programme. The workshop was delivered by Kapil Bhalla (National Director) and Bivujit Mukhoty (Programme Manager). The programme concluded with the presentation of participation certificates to the participants by Kapil Bhalla. Click for pictures

Adventurous Journey for Gold and Silver Level

Gold and Silver participants of The Cathedral & John Connon School, Mumbai completed their Adventurous Journey  at Bhimashankar and Khopoli.  A report from the Award Leader follows.

The IAYP Gold and Silver Level Adventurous Journey camp was held from 8th to 11th October, 2015 at Khopoli and Bhimashankar. Forty-nine Gold and Silver level participants, accompanied by the Award Leader, left for Khopoli. On reaching Khopoli, the participants were given sessions on rope knots, how to handle various equipment and pitch tents. These sessions were lively, informative and helped refresh everyone's memory of these vitally important skills for safety and survival.

Early morning on the 9th of October, all the participants embarked on a trek to Bhimashankar. They were all transported to Khandas village by bus and then began the ascent from there. The trek was challenging and exciting; there were several spots that seemed impossible to climb but with the correct attitude and skill, all the participants were able to manoeuvre their way through the forest. Everyone was determined to complete the trek and reach the peak of the hill. After seven hours with a lot of encouragement from the team leaders, the group finally made it to the top. The trek was exhausting but it helped improve the participants' fitness and build their communication and coordination skills.

In the evening, the participants were divided into groups and took part in different team building games. In the first game, the participants had to form a circle and pass a hoola-hoop around the circle without breaking it. The games became more difficult as they progressed; in the last game, all the team members were blindfolded and the group leaders had to help them form a square. These games enabled the participants to think on their feet and prepared them for life-threatening situations.

On the morning of the 10th of October, the participants did some light exercise and then took a bus to the Bhimashankar temple. It was a beautiful historic monument that offered an insight into Hindu religion and culture. In the evening the participants undertook a few adventure activities. Both net climbing and jhummaring were good exercise; these activities also allowed the knowledge on equipment and rope knots to be put to good use.

The morning of the 11th was spent in some light exercise followed by lectures and a feedback session, after which everyone departed for Mumbai. All in all, the camp was challenging and tiring but it was a memorable and enjoyable experience. Click here for pictures

Our Bronze Level Award Journey

Rakhi Jain and Jyoti Sagwekar (Award Leaders) from Bombay Cambridge School, Andheri West, Mumbai narrated the experience of teachers and participants at the Bronze Level of their Award Journey.

Deeksha Pal, who lead the students for the Service section, said that this was a heartwarming experience. Says Deeksha, "Every time the students accomplished something, I felt proud. While I was teaching them, I learned a lot about myself. My students were really happy and kept praising us, saying that I was a wonderful teacher. Students who used to hate Maths soon started enjoying it; those who didn't enjoy English learned to admire it. This was such a positive experience that I believe that everyone should try teaching at least once in their lifetime."

Mubasshira Shaik says, "The Cleaning drive experience didn't only leave our school and surroundings clean but also left us proud of ourselves. We cleaned the streets armed with brooms and gloves, dug compost pits and spread awareness among local people by rallying across the streets of J.B Nagar and Chakala with posters prepared by us. Apart from this we also molded ourselves for a better and cleaner future. We also hope that our initiative will motivate and leave an impact on society."

Disha Shetty said that the music sessions conducted for the Skills section served as music therapy. It made participants realize the essence of music in their life.

Parth Dand explained how the sessions that they were exposed to during Physical Recreation not only helped them to improve their skills in field events like shot putt and long jump, but also served as a stress buster.

Talking about the Adventurous Journey Shruti Mokashi said, "We, the students of BCSE, thoroughly enjoyed the three-day journey undertaken on foot. We were trained about various aspects of camping: tent pitching, route planning, navigating and map reading a week prior to our expedition. We were split into groups as soon as we reached there. We walked amidst grass, dams, mud and fields in the sun's scorching heat and sometimes rains. We did jungle cooking on the second day which turned out to be as much fun as learning. We mingled with our new group members and helped each other in various ways throughout those three days. We experienced the true sense of team spirit, responsibility and decision making during the journey."  Click  for more pictures

Diary of hope: Distant Flickers in the dark

As I sit here typing out this article on my laptop, I plug in my charger and switch on the light. I mindlessly use what is luxury to many in most parts of India- Electricity. This other side of India is almost unheard of, forgotten both intentionally and accidentally. This other side is what forms the backbone of the Indian economy. And yet any plans of development are discarded into the shredder. As a result, today many Indian villages are deprived of the most basic amenities. 

In pursuit of making a change through the International Award for Young People programme, the students of Singapore International School (Grade 11) decide to do reach out and teach ourselves the way to look at the world differently. Last year, the students from SIS had built a water pipeline for the Konda village. This time around, after much discussion and deliberation, the students decided to light up the lives of the villagers of Irshalwadi. Hence, Grade-11 students trekked to the village of Irshalwadi located near Prabalgad and Matheran to collaborate with the villagers install solar panels. Located about 3700 feet above sea level, the village of Irshalwadi faces daily challenges in terms of electricity, water and transport. In a quest to minimise these difficulties, students of SIS assisted the villagers in illuminating every home, hence bringing light to over forty families.

During the course of this visit, our interactions and conversations with these villagers gave us an insight into their lives and instilled in us respect for them thanks to their amazing resilience. As each day drew to a close, both the villagers and the students had more lights to switch off before retiring for the day. And by the end of our stay, torches were of no use, every home in the village blazed of bright white light. 

In this five-day expedition, the students were divided in three groups: cooking, solar panel installation and reservoir construction. While the solar panel installation group went around inserting solar panels atop each roof, the reservoir construction group built an embankment and lined it with bricks and stones to form a drinking water accumulation site near the fresh water spring.After a week of immense hard work, effortless collaboration and living with the most basic facilities, every home boasted of a light source and the village finally had a clean water reservoir. As the project came to a finish, both the students and villagers were filled with joy and pride at what they had finally accomplished. 

We took part in the adventure of knowing and understanding the rubric of combined efforts and hard work. Today, the village of Irshalwadi shines at the darkest of times. Now, every child can study in the dark, men can work into the night and dinner can be cooked easily.

This expedition compelled us to retrospect and analyze the sheer magnitude and importance of what we had just accomplished. The implementation of community service has the capacity to transform an entire nation. Why not my nation? Every blazing fire needs a tiny spark to begin with or to initiate. And we had done just that by lighting up portions of the village of Irshalwadi. 

All reforms begin with what seems like to be a trivial change.And we’ve got several people to thank for the opportunity to trigger this seemingly insignificant but a significant drop in the ocean. Hence, I would like to thank the Head of School Mrs. Sharonee Mullick, Project Coordinator Mr. Uday Verma and Round Square Coordinator Mrs. Shibani Das for encouraging us to tap our inner reserves and understand the joy of collaborating. Taking part as an agent of change, for that one light, in this one life and taking one abode at a time.

-Megha Thakker

Gold Award Participant

Singapore International School

Grade 11

The Award this week (TATW)

1. The first meeting of the Delhi AV Team (Award Volunteers Team) was great. Fresh faces at the Delhi University campus are surely going to make a difference to us. Three College Award Leaders appointed Mehaak at Hans Raj, Krithika at LSR and Saachi at St. Stephens. We meet again next week, and the first orientation will be at the Open Award Centre (OAC)  in August 2009. OAC Delhi will be the epicentre for the college award units, and will even assist individual participants. Thanks Devyani for the initiative and am sure with you as the Award Leader, the Open Centre will be in good hands. Malini our key resource is the mentor to many of our volunteers.

2. The South Zone will host the IS supported National Workshop at Coimbatore 9-11 October 2009. The venue is Chinmaya International School. 30 participants will attend from India alone, with an observer nominated by the NAA, to monitor quality and asses impact. The Workshop is being designed by the NAA and hosted by the SZAA. One session of this workshop will be hosted by the NZAA and will be held at New Delhi.

3. As a part of capacity building and training, NAA will also do an add-on session to the Coimbatore Workshop in Delhi and focus on "Role of Volunteers". The workshop will help draft the Volunteer Management Policy. This initiative is being chaired by Mrs. Lata Vaidyanathan and Malini will help in execution please.

4. Nominations called for RTW 2009 in November, last date is 1st Sept 2009. Only two experienced participants from each Zone. For details contact the Zonal Chairperson please.

5. Proposed AHA (Award Holders Association) Summit in December 2009, send in your suggestions to Rohit Saxena please. He is our moderator on Facebook.

6. Stage set for the APF Trustees Meeting on the 22nd of July 2009 at Mumbai.

7. Facebook and the website very active, and we now have near 275 fans and friends on Facebook.

8. South Zone to host the Annual National Workshop in Ooty in January 2009.

9. in last week of July 2009, Sandeep Dutt to attend the IC Brand Task Force meeting in London. A group of 8, meeting will be chaired by The Earl himself.

Cheers, more until next week at TATW

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