Like the blood flowing through the veins of a developing fetus, nurturing the conglomeration of organs, helping them develop into one single self-sustaining life, hope flows through the narrow streets of Nithari village. A hope to one day turn all its children into independent lives with bright futures ahead of them.
Saksham Kids NGO is one such organisation that has constantly been working towards achieving this dream. Being a support to young underprivileged children, the organisation allows local kids an opportunity to complete their early childhood education and compete with students from top schools across India.
Having identified the potential behind this initiative, SSSi decided to become a small part of this gargantuan vision by extending a helping hand that would empower the students with key life skills. The objective of our social work initiative was to help these students develop useful soft skills that are relevant from both personal as well as professional points of view and could allow them to cope with the major challenges in their future.
The Planning Stage
At SSSi, our core vision is to elevate the progression of human civilisation by empowering students across the world through premium quality education. While the majority of our resources are dedicated towards achieving this dream via the virtual online medium (as we strongly believe that digital education is the future), we have appointed a dedicated team for understanding the on-ground problems faced by different student communities in India, especially the students that come from an underprivileged background. Through this team of dedicated professionals, our goal is not only to understand the core issues but also lay the necessary groundwork for eliminating these concerns altogether.
As a part of this initiative, the team organises a Social Welfare and Education (SWE) drive wherein the members plan a monthly visit to a local NGO. These NGOs are identified based on various parameters, including the strength of their association with the local student community. Having analysed the key demographics and the nature of the work put in by the NGO, our team visits the NGO, conducts an interactive workshop for the students and provides them with a platform to undertake all their future educational endeavours at modest rates through our online study platforms.
In the month of November, the organisation identified by our team was Saksham Kids NGO, located in Noida Sector - 31. Since the core audience for this workshop were to be small school students from classes 6th-10th, we started designing specific activities and games that could capture the attention and tap into the imagination of a 14-year-old child.
Mental health is a conversation that is rapidly gaining traction in the urban educated community. However, most domestic cultures in India are far from recognising this concept. Keeping this in mind, we decided that it is best to inculcate these ideas in students at a very tender age wherein their minds are impressionable and can easily comprehend the importance of understanding the different dimensions of their mind and body. Additionally, it is not only important to understand these ideas. A key part of maintaining healthy mental health is the ability to express your thoughts effectively. Therefore, it is also essential that students develop the necessary skills through which they can communicate their ideas and express themselves in the most efficient way possible.
In light of the above discussion, our team chose the theme “Effective communication and the importance of mental health among students” for the workshop. Having analysed the patterns of workshops for social work in India, we took inspiration from creative ideas that are currently being implemented by social workers across the country and improvised them to suit the needs of our target audience. All the teaching aids and pamphlets were subsequently prepared after a close consideration with the senior management.
The Execution Stage
As we reached the sector 31 market on 29th November for our social work workshop, our team of 3 members was greeted by a cheerful boy from the NGO who guided our team through the streets of Nithari and led us to our intended destination - Saksham Kids NGO.
After interacting with the students for the first time, we conducted a quick ice-breaking session that established a two-way communication pathway for the entire duration. This was essentially important as we did not want the activity to be a theoretical lecture on mental health; a workshop on effective communication is not justified if it does not provide attendees with an opportunity to be a dynamic part of the conversation. Once the children opened up to us, our team educated them on the importance of effective communication and encouraged them to participate in fun activities and interactive games. One of such games included a modified version of Chinese whisper wherein the participants observed distortion in communication when a short dance of 3 steps was inaccurately conveyed across a chain of individuals.
The second half of this social work activity revolved around mental health, wherein children spoke their hearts out and expressed their emotions in a carefully curated, emotionally friendly environment. Core ideas such as holding back and falling into the cycles of depression and addiction were discussed in detail, and some core tips on balancing educational pressure in today’s competitive environment were shared with all the ambitious students. After having a fruitful 2-hour session, attractive gifts were distributed among the students, and their active participation was encouraged.
Conclusion
Children need love, irrespective of the background they come from. However, this love shouldn’t be seen as an excuse for obliging to all their demands. We, as consensual adults, must ensure that we are feeding our children with culturally healthy information and inculcating analytical practices that can enhance their mental capabilities. Physical health is as important as mental health, and both go hand-in-hand in ensuring a successful future for a growing child.
SSSi Online Tutoring Service realises this need, and our team works relentlessly towards the cognitive development of every student in India. The need for more of such initiatives can be well understood through a comprehensive study of Social Science in India. Our class 11 Political Science and class 12 Political Science courses can help you understand the scope for societal development and social work in India while also allowing you to excel at your school exams and score optimal grades in your final examinations.
