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

Isha serves with affection

The work of Isha Bubna at an NGO in Kolkata known as Sneh Seva managed to find space in the prestigious newspaper The Telegraph. Isha Bubna is from La Martiniere for Girls and has completed her Bronze, Silver and Gold Award levels. Sneh Seva is an NGO that provides care for under privileged children and hence goes by it's moto 'serve with affection.' 

Olcott Memorial - Where Students Find a Second Home

CHENNAI: The first thing that strikes one at the Olcott Memorial School, apart from the vast and mostly unbuilt campus, is the teacher-student relationship. The children joke around with the teachers, who know all the students, around 500, by name. “We love the school,” says Nivedha, a Class 11 student who was busy in the tailoring room.

“We are probably the only free, private and Tamil medium school for poor children. In fact, the authorities came to ask us to include children through RTE because we are a private school and could not fathom how everyone here is studying for free,” says the director, Lakshmi Suryanarananan.

The school was started by Colonel H S Olcott in 1894, who wanted to provide education to children whom nobody was prepared to teach because of their caste, who were considered untouchables. It is supported by the Theosophical society and runs on donations

The school itself is old but the activities are constantly updated, with computers, Math labs and new learning material. Uniforms, meals and books — all are provided to the children, and there are regular volunteers who come on alternate Saturdays to conduct classes including value edu, computer training and personality development.

The children, who mostly come from the nearby slums and fishing colonies, are first generation learners. Some want to become chartered accountants, some want bank jobs. But some are grounded with the problems they face. “I will do whatever my mother decides for me,” says one young girl.

The campus is a second home for the children, after school some run around playing and some are busy — tailoring, jewellery making, screen printing, tailoring. Some of them make use of their learning and even sell the glass paintings and jewellery that they make. 

The students are encouraged to play many sports — the school even has a rugby team and the 10-year-olds were taken to Kolkata for a tournament. Frisbee, kabbadi and hockey too find a place here apart from the usual sports.

Many of the old students have come back as teachers — R Lalitha is one of them, she is now assistant headmistress. She also works as a counsellor, helping the children tackle their emotional problems and adolescence.

“We have grown up in the same background these children did so we relate to their problems, and they are also able to open up to us very easily,” Lalitha says. 

The freedom and peace here make both teachers and children get attached to the school. “There is no corporal punishment, and the children can walk into the headmistress’s room whenever they want,” says Lakshmi. “The students often come back years later to meet us, and this keeps us motivated,” she adds.

As published in The New Indian Express, Olcott Memorial School is one of International Award for Young People Award's special project.

The Doon School: The first of many

Yesterday, The Doon School has become the first school in India to start the online programme of International Award for Young People. The Doon School became the first YES Centre to officially undertake Online Record Book on July 31, 2014 and today on August 05, 2014, 52 students registered online for the Award.

First batch of 52 students (21 Bronze, 23 Silver & 8 Gold Level participants) registered for the Online Record Book. Now students can complete their Award journey by making required entries online. This will help in smooth running of the Award amongst students, Award Leaders and mentors. 

Mr. Vinay Pande, Senior Deputy Headmaster of The Doon School was the guest of honour for the event. Mr. Priyank Gupta, Head IT and ORB for IAYP India was also present on the occasion. 

Other staff members present were Mr. Skand Bali, IAYP Award Leader at the Doon School, who is also the Head of National Training Panel for IAYP India, Mr. Nitin Chauhan, Mr. Manish Pant, and Dr. Mona Khanna.

This launch has brought India in the club of a few countries doing the Online Record Book for IAYP in the world. 

Learning from the people of Ismailpur Kothey

Jodhamal Public School organized a Residential Project for Gold Award participants under International Award for Young People at village Ismailpur Kothey in Jammu & Kashmir.

The Residential Project gave the participants a shared purposeful experience with people who are not their usual companions; working towards a common goal. It was an experience that broadened participants’ outlook and horizons.

Seventeen Gold participants started the project under the guidance of Award leaders namely Ms Shallu Sharma & Ms Deepmala Sharma and also a local guide Mr Tulsi.  The participants stayed there in village with the local families and lived their life in the way locals did. They cooked food, did cleaning jobs etc as the villagers did. They visited villager’s work place that is fields, brick kiln and their dairy farms, they also visited dispensary of village and enquired about the health facilities provided by government in the village. In the free time the participants used to play different games with the village kids. During the night stay the participants used to teach adult people in village and narrated value based stories to the kids in very interesting manner.

During this project participant learnt a lot about the village life, culture and tradition and came back with unforgettable memories. This project was an enriching experience for them which they will carry forward throughout their life . The award has brought a lot of change in the attitude of the children and we can see a sea change in their attitude towards the under privileged people in the society.

Gold Award Ceremony 2014

On July 7, 2014 International Award for Young People India recognized the hard work, will and strength of

eighty Gold Award winners from across India. The Gold Award Ceremony 2014 was an event to experience and witness the excitement and happiness of youngsters from various schools and foundations who had successfully completed their Gold Award level. 

Former Chief Election Commissioner of India Dr. SY Quraishi had consented to be our chief guest for the event. The event started with our National Director Kapil Bhalla giving a brief report on what IAYP did in the past year and also explained what IAYP India stands for. Mr. Bhalla also took a moment to explain to our Gold Award winners, how this achievement is just the stepping stone for a brighter future and how the Award will help them in their journey. 

The report by our National Director was followed by speeches from our International Gold Event Seoul participants Anwesha Ghosh and Ankit Durga, they utilized their time on the stage by sharing their experience of the Award and how it has transformed their lives for a better future. This was followed by tabla performance by two students from GD Goenka World School, Gurgaon, which left the audience at India International Centre mesmerized.

Finally came the time which each of our eighty participants had been eagerly waiting for, the Annual Gold Award Felicitation Ceremony. Our chief guest Dr. Quraishi presented each participant with Gold Award certificate, badge and tie/scarf. Along with the Gold Award winners, fifteen Award Leaders were also recognized for their long term contribution towards IAYP. 

Dr. SY Quraishi then addressed the audience, where our honorable chief guest talked about his journey through the Ministry of Youth Affairs and various other topics including, Indian Youths and their role towards growth of our country. Then a vote of thanks was delivered by the Chairman of Award Programme Foundation Trust Mr. Himmat Kalsia.

The event ended with a group photograph, where each participant displayed their achievement and shared their excitement and happiness with each other. All in all it was a run away success.        

     

Music: A Glimpse into our Soul

Anjali Karunakaran (Silver and Bronze Award winner) experience of picking up singing for her Skills section can be explained by French poet Victor Hugo’s quote: 

“Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and that which cannot remain silent.”

Below you will find the experience shared by Anjali:

The soothing tunes and my instructor’s melodious voice attracted me to pursue singing as a skill. The charm

of our voice cannot diminish over time and it remains unaffected by our age. Music helps me to momentarily forget the hustle bustle of my daily routine and enter an unexplainable third dimension where I can connect to my cultural roots.

The serene environment and harmony of music is an effective stress buster and it spreads a sense of calm and composure in me. I develop a spiritual awareness and understand the love and devotion towards the Gods of Indian mythology. 

I love to sing and it gives me deep contentment to sing Carnatic music, so much so that I find time to pursue my hobby even when I am academically busy. Filling in Carnatic music as my skill for IAYP India is not out of obligation but because it has given me a platform to be recognized for the activities that I genuinely enjoy doing. 

Taking Netball to Bangladesh

While on Sunday in Australia, Melbourne Vixens beat Queensland Firebirds in ANZ championship title at Hisense Arena, Nayana Pardeshi from Naz India Goal was teaching the same sport to 70 girls in Bangladesh. Most of us are unfamiliar with Melbourne Vixens and Queensland Firebirds, they are the netball teams from Australian Netball league, as for Naz India Goal represents a programme under NGO Naz India that uses netball and life skills education to transform the lives of young underprivileged girls in India, on and off the court.

Nayana Pardeshi who along with being a Gold Award participant also holds the post of Programme Assistant and Coach for Naz India Goal in partnership with BRAC (Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee) travelled to Bangladesh to teach girls from a village near Sylhet and thereby providing them with a platform to transform their own lives like Nayana herself has done in past 4-5 years. Below is the description of her Residential Project in her own words:

First day of the project was spent introducing the sport to the participants; this was followed by teaching them the technique of chest pass. This was done through a training drill known as ‘5 point play skill of Netball.’

Before we started the second day, a quick revision of the previous day was done by asking questions related to the basics of Netball and chest passing. Later the girls were taught the techniques of two foot landing & pivot and were given enough practice time to enhance their skills. Next the girls along with cones and chalk powder made their own netball court and were then positioned at their respective position. After which they were suppose to practice the skills they had learnt till now in a real time situation and were also introduced to shoulder pass.

Day three involved shooting practice, this practice was done using newly fitted bamboo poles. After an hour of shooting practice the participants were introduced to two new forms of passes i.e. high pass and lob pass. These two passes are considered extremely important skills when it comes to winning netball matches. The day ended with a demonstration match played by the trainers from BRAC and I also captained one of the sides.

Day four was there just to revise everything we learnt in past three days and this was done by playing Kaun Banega Crorepati based on Netball rules. 

For me it was an experience that I will never forget and I am happy to say I not only brought about a change in their community but also made new friends.    

Project Intervention

Students of St. Mary’s School Safdarjung went for a Residential Project at Azadpura village in Madhya Pradesh. For the students it was nothing close to any other educational project they attended before, they call it the Intervention project. Oxford defines intervention as any interference in the affairs of others, especially by one state in the affairs of another. For the participants intervention here meant taking the beneficiary’s perspective and expectations on the idea of building an educational hub for them.

Here is the experience shared by one of the participant from the Residential Project:

First day of the project was dedicated to acclimatizing ourselves to this new environment, the acclimatization included profiling the community by knowing their culture, their daily routine all this spread across all the age group and for both sex. The motive behind profiling was to weigh the reactions of the locals towards an external entity like us. The results were quite positive as we were able to narrow down to the appropriate locality and timing for setting up our project. As for the perspective of locals towards us was warm and welcoming, this gave us a morale boost and filled us with happiness even before we started the project. 

From the above profiling it was clear that targeting children between 3-5 years and their mothers was of highest priority. 3-5 years because that is the age group where depending on our qualification we would be able to provide them with the basic training such as verbal and motor training. As for their mothers, they were also a point of focus as children learn most from and listen most to their mothers. 

After consistent effort we were able to attract the children to the school, this involved jumping over the psychological walls created by the villagers and making them feel comfortable. At the start we made sure we involved the children in simple recreational activities with prime focus on motor and language skills. There were two important lessons for us to take home, first being, reputation is an important factor when it comes to interventions. Secondly, we also learnt to be sensitive when it comes to interacting with people from different cultures as it took us time to break our barriers of limitation in order to be one of them. Hence from this day onward we decided to devote quality time in reflection, self-introspection and planning for the next day.

With high expectation we started our next day with the aim of bringing in the mothers of 3-5 years children to the school. This turned out to be a much tougher task as the women were not ready to leave their household and delay their daily chores. That is when we realized we let over-confidence cloud our thought process, which is when we decided to get into immediate discussions to solve this problem. In order to tackle this problem we decided to put in extra effort in order to convince the women to leave their houses but this too didn’t help. Once we returned back to the school all battered and drained, not because we were tired but because we didn’t manage to complete day’s objective. To our surprise at the end of the day, 8-10 women did turn up at the school. Thoughts on schooling and its importance were discussed between us and the participating women. 

In spite of all the hurdles that we faced in the day, the major achievement was the active response of women and the confidence they showed to bring more women the next day. We also managed to get volunteers from among them to help us for the next day. It was a day of realization and self-reflection. We understood the importance of planning and that we should not have adopted a laid-back attitude after a minor achievement. Remaining day was spent on preparing for the next day which was the main day of INTERVENTION.

On the D-Day we felt more confident and organized. Firstly, we had our final recreational session which was specifically focusing on children’s cognitive and social development. Meanwhile we were also doing preparing for the upcoming volleyball match. The volleyball match was played between the two teams formed among the villagers of Azadpura. This was not just a mere match for us but the result of three days of our reputation building and execution of initiatives. We finally formed an effective recreational team. This was followed by the reception of women in huge number at the educational hub.  One volunteers supported us a

lot; it was her who made that extra effort to bring 40-45 women to the new school. She proved herself and was very confident & willing. We conducted circle time with them which addressed the need of being

responsible once the children are admitted in school. We also made them self-realize the importance of time by using the medium of role play. It was good to see that it was a two-way communication process as they suggested lot of trainings and courses that can be conducted for them in the school in near future. The thought and significance of ‘empowerment’ was well conveyed. We ended the day by giving recognition to all our volunteers and the teams in the form on certificates, cash prizes and small gifts. We were very glad to see that all our beneficiaries went happy with a promise that they will always support when required. The trust in their eyes was our real achievement. 

IAYP Residential Project 2014 gave us exposure to explore ourselves and to contribute towards a change. It made us more responsible and enlightened us on our role towards the economically disadvantaged. We learnt to work under limitations and deal with different people in difficult circumstances.   

   

Magic of FIFA World Cup in India

‘Prepare for joyous, nerve-shedding, ludicrous drama as Brazil’s carnival begins’ was the heading given to an article in Telegraph UK by reputed football journalist Paul Hayward. The above mentioned feelings for FIFA World Cup 2014 are no different in India, for next one month late night television viewing is a must, football jerseys will become part of the social dress code and those kids who don’t want to become Sachin, Ganguly or Dravid would one day want to become Ronaldo or Messi when they grow up. Football is the highest growing sport in India right now, which is actually a huge thing when you realize it’s difficult for any sport to grow in our cricket worshipping country. 

While the legacy of the Award is to engage young people in meaningful activity, it is the legacy of the World Cup that brings youth of a country together and to connect. With Physical Recreation being one of the three pillars of the Award Programme and one of the most important domains for non-classroom education, it is through sports our youth can learn about leadership, team-spirit, hard-work etc. while achieving physical well being. 

India & World Cup

India is ranked 154th in the world. India almost participated in the World Cup in 1950, coincidentally also hosted by Brazil, but had to withdraw because Indian footballers were not allowed to play barefoot. The 1950s and early 60s are perhaps the golden age of Indian football: India won gold at the inaugural Asian Games in 1951, won it again in 1962, and finished fourth in 1956 Melbourne Olympics. It is in 2017 that India will be organizing FIFA U-17 World Cup.

Connecting young people

National Director Kapil Bhalla believes, “sports is one of the most important tool for transforming our youth and there by transforming out society. As the football fever grips the nation, I am sure we will see a rise in number of participants choosing football as their Physical recreation activity.”  

According to Programme Manager (International Award for Young People India) Bivujit Mukhoty, “the World Cup is a platform to make the youth understand the importance of a recreational activity in their life. There are players from very humble background who attract million eyeballs every time they step on to the football all because they chose sports to empower themselves.” 

Embracing Young Volunteers

Volunteering is an integral part of the Award Programme, it is not only an important part for our participants to complete their Awards but also an important factor for smooth running of the programme. Below is an article first published in The Guardian talking about ways to embrace young volunteers.

There has never been a better time for charities to embrace a generation of school-aged volunteers, so why do so many young people and children find it so hard to locate meaningful volunteering opportunities?

Young volunteers have a vast amount to give, and yet a lot of charities are missing out on this vital opportunity, citing a number of common myths surrounding youth volunteering. If charities don't support young volunteers, then we are not safeguarding our own futures by supporting the next generation of volunteers and, more importantly, we're missing out on all the benefits that young volunteers can bring to our organisations.

At the JLGB (Jewish Lads' & Girls' Brigade), we have worked hard to remove barriers to participation for young Jewish people in a whole host of national award schemes, most notably the Duke of Edinburgh Award. As a result, we have seen an enormous increase in participation with 50% of young Jewish people in faith schools now taking part in this award. However, 65% indicated that they required extra support in finding a suitable volunteering placement.

The same topics arise in every discussion of under-16s volunteering: insurance won't cover this age group, young people would need too much training, there's no one to supervise them, or perhaps they've had bad experiences with young volunteers before. Some of these are valid worries, many are urban myths, but more often than not, it's just been easier for many charities to stick to the status quo than tackle the (sometimes remarkably simple) changes that are needed in order to embrace young volunteers.

Of course, many charities lack vital resources and capacity so key to this initiative will be helping more charities to look at their current approaches and understanding of young volunteers. It is encouraging that, with some simple steps, a great amount can be achieved.

A short guide to embracing young volunteers

1. Think about how current voluntary roles might be adapted for a young person

Remember to take in to account commitments that young people might have, for example school work or faith barriers such as not volunteering on the Sabbath. Perhaps it isn't appropriate for young people to work one-to-one with your beneficiaries, but they could always help out under the supervision of a senior volunteer, or even as a small group of young people.

2. Use technology to create new opportunities

Almost all young people are familiar with new technology, software and social media. A huge range of volunteering opportunities can be created easily with this as a springboard, such as getting a young person to manage social media sites, blog regularly or make and edit videos, photos and publicity – all of which can even be done remotely.

3. Don't be put off by tricky stuff like insurance or youth policies

Sometimes, all it takes is a small tweak of your charity's current policy to include under-16s, and if not then perhaps they will be covered by their school or youth group's policy or award scheme. It's also worth identifying charities in your area which you know work with young volunteers and approaching them for advice – vInspired has an exhaustive list of local charities that accept young volunteers.

4. Get young people and staff prepared

By developing training sessions with young people in mind, you can easily cover lots of potential issues, such as confidentiality, what it means to be a responsible volunteer, and what to do if they have any issues. Why not approach your local voluntary youth organization, and see if they run any sort of training for young volunteers? Don't forget to prepare current staff and volunteers for working with young people – sometimes a bad experience with other volunteers can put young people off.

5. Don't forget rewards

Sounds obvious, but we all like to be appreciated. Does your organization have an awards evening in which you could include young people? Could you support a young person's participation in a nationally recognized volunteering award?

6. Shout about it

If we all shout about what we are doing to support young volunteers, it will gradually become more acceptable to include young volunteers, and we can learn from one another's experiences. Use newsletters, social media and local schools or youth groups to publicize your good work – and let's get British charities talking about how we can support a new generation of volunteers.

Visual art of writing

Calligraphy seems like a lost art these days but for Udeept Bhatnagar, Gold Award participant from Delhi Public School Gurgaon, it was all he wanted to learn and build upon. 

I first found out about calligraphy when I saw my cousin decorate a greeting card, to me that card was the single most beautiful thing I had ever be held in my life. I then became curious about calligraphy and only got an opportunity to learn this art when I became a part of the Award Programme and opted for calligraphy as my skill. I asked my parents to obtain for me a calligraphy set. This desire of mine was promptly fulfilled by my parents.

The next step was to actually learn the art of calligraphy and build my skills to a level where I would be able to use calligraphy effectively in everyday life. I sought the guidance of my uncle, who I knew held an interest in such matters. His penmanship, bolstered by the art of calligraphy, was exquisite. This led to my association with the broad tip pen and a bottle of ink. I knew that this was one journey I would like as much as my destination, which was that of being the best I could be at this unique form of visual art. In the beginning my instructions were clear, crisp and concise. The duration of lessons too, was short. I was simply asked to make different strokes on a plain white sheet, but as I progressed from a beginner to a novice, the lessons and instructions both became harder and more elaborate. The effort put into each class seemed too much in proportion to the time I was spending. It is often said that hindsight is perfect. I can completely relate to this upon looking at the results all that effort has yielded. Soon enough, I was faced with a deceptively easy decision. I use the words deceptively easy because I wasn’t aware of the various different consequences of my choice. The choice faced by me was which writing style to pursue, study and practice in order to be an expert at it. I chose to learn the ‘Gothic Style’. On my 12th birthday I received a book on calligraphy as a gesture of encouragement from my parents.

This book became my Holy Grail and nearly all of my free time was spent trying different techniques and methods that I studied in this marvelous volume.. The person who inspired me to keep on learning and practicing was my father who convinced me and motivated me no matter what. Besides helping me become more creative calligraphy has helped me increase my concentration as well as hone my creative abilities. The Award Programme has helped me get recognition in my class for the art of calligraphy, and I am forever grateful for getting the opportunity to pursue something I am passionate about and hone my skill.