NAA TEAM VISIT TO BANGALORE / CHENNAI - 1

11th - 15th November 2013

The NAA team of Kapil Bhalla & Bivujit Mukhoty visited Bangalore and Chennai from November 11th to 15th. The team visited Podar International School, Bangalore and made a presentation to Narayana Josia (Principal) on the implementation and benefits of the Award Programme. The team also visited Chennai and made presentations at four schools of AMM Foundation, where they interacted with over 500 students. They met with the teams led by R Mahalakshi (Principal), AMM Matriculation School, Kottupuram; S Sundar (Principal), Velayan Chettiar Higher Secondary School, Thiruvottiyur; Sheela Raghavan (Principal) TI Matriculation School, Ambattur and R Sundaramvedivelu (Adviser) Sir Ramasamy Mudaliar Higher Secondary School, Ambattur.

There was a lively discussion on the benefits of the Award, the various methods and activities of the four pillars of Physical Recreation, Adventurous Journey, Service & Skill, and how these would a be a perfect fit into the existing co-curriculum of the school. Click to view pictures

ADVENTURE ORIENTATION PROGRAMME FOR ADVENTURE OPERATORS

9th November 2013 at Award Training Centre, New Delhi

The National Award Authority organised the first Adventure Orientation Programme for Adventure Operators.  This one-day programme targeted to deliver the theme and essence of the Adventurous Journey section to Adventure Operators.  The focus was on explaining the Award's requirements with respect to this section and updating the adventure operators about the new developments in the Award. Eight participants from 7 different organisations participated in the programme and discussed the various issues related to organising the Award Adventurous Journey. Kapil Bhalla (National Director) started with an ice-breaking session and introduced the philosophy of the Award.  Bivujit Mukhoty (Programme Manager) continued the session with an interactive presentation on the Expedition and Exploration Manual, in which he discussed the Technical and Integrated Skills.  He also described the basic requirements in respect to the Award at each level.  There was a Q&A session where the Operators and the NAA team discussed and resolved the various issues. The programme concluded with the presentation of certificates to participants. click for pictures

VISIT TO GENESIS GLOBAL SCHOOL, NOIDA

8th November 2013

Mr Pramod Sharma, Director

Kapil Bhalla (National Director) along with Gold Award holder Dhanurdhar visited Genesis Global School, Noida on 8th November 2013. They had a detailed and interesting interaction with the Pramod Sharma (Director), A N Dar (Chief Mentor) and Seema Hanvey (Head IB programme). 

 

 

The National Director met and had lunch with the students and discussed the benefits available through participation in the IAYP programme. Dhanurdhar shared his experience of participation in the programme and the fun he had and the benefits he gained while pursuing the programme.

REGIONAL CONFERENCE - ASIA PACIFIC REGION - DUKE OF EDINBURGH INTERNATIONAL AWARD

'Transforming the Award'

A three-day conference of the 15 NAAs of the Asia Pacific region of the IAF was held in Bangkok, Oct 26-28. There were delegates from:

• IAF -- John May, Secretary General; Steve De Wint, Chief Operating Officer; Ellie Rocks, Fundraising; Laura Thakray, Communications; Mike Heath, Head Technology
• APR -- Sue Walker, Regional Director; Rob Oliphant, Regional Manager; Kathleen Hewitt, Regional Coordinator
• India were represented by Himmat Kalsia (National Chairman), Dr Sanat Kaul (Managing Trustee), Kapil Bhalla (National Director)
• IC Youth Representative - Mr Ravichandran Balasubramaniam

The annual conference was a follow up to the conference held at Malta in Nov 2012 (coinciding with the International Forum) and the theme "Transforming the Award" was a focus of the workshop sessions and presentations.

The sessions kicked off with a presentation by Secretary General John May, laying out the focus of future directions post the Forum on "Transforming the Award", that the Award is the premier Youth Service & Development organisation in the world.

There were interactive sessions by:

• Laura Thakray -- Communications & Branding updates, with examples of India using the 'Endorsement route to branding; using the India specific Award logo and the International Logo
• Ellie Rocks -- Fund raising & Corporate Relationship avenues for raising resources; India has a successful relationship with JCB Ltd for sponsorship and with HSBC for implementing the Award in Corporate entities
• Mike Heath -- Progress of the Online Record Book, to be launched in Asia by April 2014. It is a powerful data management and operations review tool and India is keenly looking forward to its launch and implementation.
• Rob Oliphant -- Training Framework and the New Learning Hub, will ensure that all training and branding material is available online to ensure best practices are shared and available to all NAAs and Award Operators.

Under the new Licensing policy, all 15 NAAs have signed new licenses with the International Award Foundation. This meant upgrading systems and new levels of governance. The license validation process commenced in 2013 and India is one of the 5 countries in APR that have successfully concluded validation visits from the International team. The new Branding guidelines and governance structures were reinforced and welcomed by all participants as they will make the administration of the Award a stronger force in the Youth Development field.  click for pictures

AWARD LEADER ORIENTATION AT JCB-SPONSORED GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS

31st October 2013 

An orientation programme for the Award Leaders & Volunteers for JCB Sponsored Govt. Schools in Haryana was organised by the NAA Training team at Govt. Primary School, Ladiapor, Haryana on 31st October 2013.  Sixteen Award Leaders form Govt. Primary School, Ladiapor; Village Govt. Senior Secondary School, Village Jharsaintly; Govt. Secondary School, Village Deoli and Govt. Secondary School, Village Ghogola, Haryana participated in the orientation programme. The orientation was mentored by Kapil Bhalla (National Director) and Bivujit Mukhoty (Programme Manager).  The trainers detailed the philosophy and essence of the Award and explained the four pillars of the Award through different practical activities. click for pictures