Ten years ago The Indian School undertook this new initiative to make children aware about their rights and responsibilities as future citizens of the country. Children constitute India’s most promising resource. The values these young minds imbibe will impact the choices they make, the role they play as citizens and the contribution they make to society. We try to empower young citizens with life skills which will take them beyond academic milestones and lay a foundation for inculcating compassion, commitment, respect and resourcefulness. A special Classroom Curriculum includes discussions on personality development, environmental issues, current affairs and politics. These are augmented with recorded inspirational and motivational talk shows. Prominent personalities are invited to conduct workshops to stir up young minds.
Learning to Share:
Shramdaan is an invaluable learning tool offering a little bit of one’s own time and toil for helping to alleviate the misery of another. Students handcraft items at school like soap, candles, paintings, potted plants, diyas, and herbal holi colours and from these collections offer wheelchairs to senior citizens, fund surgeries for orphans, sponsor meals for abandoned senior citizens and adopt neighbourhood markets for Cleanliness Campaigns. They stage nukkad nataks on Cleanliness and Say No to Crackers, Gender Equality and Pollution.
Learning to Protest:
On Earth Day, children wearing surgical masks and accompanied by drummers lead a protest march to protest against concerns like Yamuna pollution. It involves collecting and exhibiting samples of the contaminated water and demanding sewage to be stopped from entering the river.
Our senior children are regular visitors to the Shanti Avedana Ashram for Cancer patients. By sharing their time with the inmates, they help bring a sense of calm and peace to both the inmates and themselves. Institution for the blind, Janta Adarsh Andh Vidyalaya is class VIII and IX’s preserve, The Old Age Home, Model Town belongs to class VI to XII as it were! These visits bring sensitivity and awareness to students which we hope they will apply to their daily life situations.
School does not go in for the usual fund collection drives seeking donations for different causes, albeit very worthy. Instead we encourage children to practice Shram Daan or money earned from the “toil” of their own labour. For example, by crafting candles at School, donating the prize money won at a quiz contest, foregoing a special treat.
The Indian School has undertaken this initiative, The Citizenship Programme to engender in children through social projects, field work, and excursions, awareness about their Rights and Responsibilities as future citizens of the country.
By launching this initiative at The Indian School we hope to spread it to other schools in Delhi and around the country, the endeavour being to tap the fabulous potential and enthusiasm of children to send forth into society, responsible and caring citizens.
Environmental issues are also a part of the Citizenship Programme.
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