A service program was organised by school for the betterment of underprivileged children. The children were from a rural background and this program’s motive was to teach them a particular subject/sport. The activity lasted 3 weekends, 6 days in total and 2 hours each day. We were given the choice to select which subject or sport we wanted to teach and hence I chose to teach them ICT. I have a good knowledge about computers and I felt that through sharing this knowledge with those children, they will be provided with a vaster area of possibilities in their future life. I was the incharge of my batch along with another colleague, and together we had planned out a syllabus which contained, teaching them about:
– Identifying basic components such as mouse and keyboard.
– Editing word files in google docs and libre writer along with various integrated functions such as text align, font size and color etc.
– Making power point presentations, and exploring spreadsheet.
– Exploring art tools like tux paint.
– Educational games like tux typing and tux math.

Learning outcomes achieved:

LO1: Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth

Knowing what was being taught and having hands on experience on how each function or button works was a big strength for me as I was managing a team of participants from grades lower than mine and sometimes when they were confused about something, I was able to help them recognise it first and then they were able to pass it on to the children. This eliminated the sense of helplessness as I was able to clear each and everyone’s doubts and was able to sustain a healthy learning environment. However, I realised that the language barrier between me and the rural children emerged as a problem in teaching.

LO2: Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process

We had to face many difficulties during the span of the service program. Some minor problems include shortage of working computers and non working keyboards. These were tackled by occupying couple of students over one computer and teaching each student turn by turn. Furthermore, we also faced bigger problems such as the language barrier that was between us students and the rural children. They were unable to understand the terminologies that we used and most of them did not understand English. The way we tackled this was by appointing at least one person who was able to speak in Gujarati per row and hence they would move about in their rows and provide help when needed. In this way, we developed our teaching skills as we were able to convey the knowledge we gained in a language that was suitable to the children.

LO3: Demonstrate how to initiate and plan a CAS experience

Planning was an integral part of this CAS experience. Even Though It was the school which organized the service program, it was the responsibility of the team leaders to plan the syllabus and how to execute it. This planning was not easy as the age group and the level of knowledge was unknown. The syllabus was to made in such a way that it catered to all the students, whether or not they had any idea about computers. We were able to set it in such a way that we were able to give ample attention to new learners as well as teach higher level functions to those who were learning fast enough.

LO4: Show commitment to and perseverance in CAS experiences

Commitment was rather the easy part of the program as everyone in my batch shared similar sentiments. Each and everyone was willing to do the task that was given and with a lot of enthusiasm. The amount of participation by the children was tremendous and thus it further propelled us to willingly teach them. However, we did face problems from their side because each weekend there were new students coming by and thus we had to help them cope up with the others which made consistency a little bit challenging but in the end it all went good.

LO5: Demonstrate the skills and recognize the benefits of working collaboratively

Working in a group has always been my strength as I always welcome others to put forward their opinions and hence we all come together as a team to conclusions. In this program we divided ourselves among the rows in the ICT lab. 5 people per row, while my my colleague and I, who were the leaders, were involved in the planning, organizing and observing part of the program. We were also providing help whenever needed. Hence, we all were able to work collaboratively to make this a fun learning event.

LO6: Demonstrate engagement with issues of global significance

Technology has been developing by the passing days, but these children who are underprivileged do not have the facilities to learn and become familiar with such devices. Due to this the lack of knowledge emerges as a global issue because there are many such children out there. Due to technology now being a big part in people’s lives, it would become difficult to survive without its knowledge. Hence, by providing such sessions I felt the joy of sharing with others and I feel that this gained knowledge may help them in their future.

LO7: Recognize and consider the ethics of choices and actions

The children were from a very humble background. The didn’t have any high quality education and therefore, we had to create such a friendly and healthy learning environment. It was important not to show any intimidating behavior so that they would freely ask us if they needed help and not hesitate. We wanted them to feel comfortable and have a fun time with us while gaining ample amount of knowledge. So we ensured that we welcome them with full enthusiasm and behave in a polite manner with them to ensure a fun learning experience.

Overall, this was an amazing experience for me as I realized how good it feels to give joy to someone else. I realized how capable each and every child in the group was and if given the opportunity, I can surely tell that they may perform at the peak of their abilities. I look forward to more of such events where I can meet and interact with such children.