Ketaki Jain initially joined the core team for Community Operations, but has since overseen the growth of our amazing Holistic Development Program. Read on to find out about this journey in her own words!
Holistic Development – A long, heavy term for an organization working with kids right? To be honest, this word wasn’t in my dictionary when I joined Pune Learns as a core team member. As an Associate for Community Operations, I had the task of overseeing the English classes. While we were adjusting with the online mode of education and struggling to keep virtual classes interesting and engaging, we came up with a new program – One Time Volunteering (OTV).
Remember those beginner weekend workshops we sometimes signed up for? Calligraphy, pottery, or salsa perhaps? Or that trial zumba session at the gym? Learning something new is always fun, and can be pretty inspiring at times. That’s what we decided to do. We organized one-time sessions every Sunday, with the idea of exposing our kids to different ideas, skills and experiences. The only expectation from the session, apart from being fun, was that it leaves a tiny impression on the minds of every kid attending- either a simple takeaway message, an idea, a skill or simply food for thought, anything that, at the end of the day, got them to exclaim – “Hey! I learnt this really cool thing today!”
The OTV sessions started with an astronomy talk, and the diversity of topics has grown since then. One of the volunteers suggested hosting a dance workshop. This was a challenge, since internet connections were sketchy for our audiences, and lag was expected. We devised an interesting workaround for this situation – could we dance without music? Anshita Gaur took this challenge in her stride, and put together a unique dance session-including activities like animal dance and remote dance. Moreover, we had a bunch of 4-6 year olds who tuned into the session, and had a great time!
With the response the pilot sessions were getting, and seeing the enthusiasm with which the kids enjoyed the workshops, we realized that this initiative had much more potential. We wanted our students to have the same access to soft-skill honing workshops and mentorship that we’d had the privilege to attend throughout our lives. Holistic development is very subjective. It has different connotations for different people. It isn’t just about hobby classes, or a confidence-building workshop, or a sermon on mental health. We wanted to put together an amalgamation of these, and more. We sought to help our children see more of the world, and become a better version of themselves, through a module based on 3 main pillars – interests, soft skills and mental and emotional skills.
Through “soft-skills”, we wanted to touch-base on the concepts of decision making, time management, creativity, effective communication, and many more such aspects that make life simpler, impactful and efficient. Within the “Interests” pillar, we present an opportunity to our kids to tap into their talents – singing, dancing, art, fitness, the list goes on. The OTVs did a great job of exposing students to new arts, and if someone showed a knack or an inclination to take up an activity further, we wanted to provide a platform. Who knows, with the right mentorship, it could also turn into a career opportunity. And finally, the third pillar would cover mental health basics, such as expressing emotions, identifying feelings, and coping with them.
The plan was ready. But who would execute it? Thus began our hunt for volunteers, laying the ground for our next challenge. Ever heard of a teacher for Holistic Development? Potential volunteers weren’t sure of what they were signing up for. We were looking for someone who could eventually become a mentor for their batch of kids. Someone who will help the kids understand and apply these skills in their daily life, rather than just a face they see once a week. Someone who, eventually, the kids could trust enough to discuss real life situations they encountered, as we grew into this program. We began our sessions with 3 volunteers and 8 children. The gusto with which the kids attended the classes, freely voiced their thoughts, and frolicked through the classes made it evident that the sessions were indeed having an impact.
The challenges didn’t end with volunteer choice though. The next hurdle was impact assessment. How do you measure someone’s decision making ability, or creativity? After a lot of deliberation, we zeroed in on an activity-cum-self-assessment based approach. We presented a problem that involved a certain soft skill to solve it, once before the session and once after the session. Along with that, a series of self-assessment questions for the kids. Was there some change in the way in which the child handled the activity after the sessions? The volunteers were asked to notice that. Additionally, the whole program was devised for the empowerment of our kids. Irrespective of whether you or I think the child is “creative”, or “confident”, there’s no point if the child doesn’t think so about oneself. Hence, the self-assessment questions. We hoped the questions would encourage the kids to delve into the habit of questioning themselves, or self-analysis.
The program has been generating quite a buzz, both among the kids as well as the community. The success of the pilot batch prompted us to add a new batch of tiny tots – adorable and immensely energetic 6-8 year olds who literally devour everything presented to them. Developing a structure to suit this age group was a challenge. But no challenge is too huge for a highly motivated team. We put together a basic structure based on feelings, and are developing it as we go along.
Pune Learns Holistic Development is a sphere bustling with energy. It’s a space for expression, above and beyond books. We discuss art, creativity, and communication. From codes and ciphers, literature, current affairs and sustainability, to thoughts, feelings, thumb-painting and dining etiquette, we do it all here. It’s an open canvas. Good at something? Come and share! With location being no bar in this age of Zoom and Google Meets, we’ve been fortunate to have hosted eager volunteers from across the globe, and we hope you’ll be next!