Page 199 - Education World Dec 2021

EW SPOTLIGHT FEATURE

THE COMMUNITY

OUTREACH

IMPERATIVE

None of us is safe till everyone is safe. ” his became
T
a war cry during the pandemic. B ut long before C ovid
“struck, the basic truth of individual interests linked to the
larger well-being of the community has remained firmly ingrained
T
as an essential ing redient in nurturing school children. his
has re ected in the various community outreach programmes
-- workshops, awareness drives, visits to old ag e homes -- that ANJALI SHARMA, H eadmistress
T
several educational institutions have desig ned over time. he G itanali D evashray, H yderabad
j
basic aim being not j ust to sensitise children to larg er societal
needs but also instill a deeper sense of empathy . T hen came the activity of reaching out to underprivileg ed
D uring the pandemic months, many schools were not able children and ex tending aid to those hit by natural calamities.
to offer online classes. I n an effort to address learning g aps, R eading about the problems is far different from insig hts g ained
students from G itanj ali D evashray School collected books for when interacting and learning about them from the victims
rural libraries. G itanj ali Senior School reached out to g overnment themselves. o spread some C hristmas cheer, children from
T
school students for one-on-one teaching sessions and helped G itanj ali D evashray stocked up on stationery supplies for the
them with their studies and ex tra-curricular activities using mobile children and invited them to the school campus for one-on-
T
phones. one interactions and festivities. he sense of eng ag ing with
T aking informed, decisive actions that impact our the community not only g ot deeper but instilled a sense of
communities need to become a habit for students, who are fast responsibility and g ratitude in children.
.
becoming the leaders of tomorrow Also, it is not j ust about the At a time when climate chang e and issues of sustainability
pandemic or addressing woes related to it. G itanj ali D evshala are also eng ag ing the mind space, ex tending a helping hand in
School built on its eng ag ement with special needs children and finding solutions instills a more enduring bond with the cause
involved special needs schools to participate in the school ag than merely being aware of the problem. F or ex ample, g rade
hoisting function aimed to sensitise and create awareness in the X I I students of G itanj ali School in collaboration with the World
.
community I n fact, this activity helped the school g ain entry into Wildlife F und for Nature took to cleaning the Ameenpur L ake.
L
the imca B ook of R ecords. T o sum up, the three main obj ectives of any well-meaning
community outreach prog ramme must be about:
1. C reating awareness on larg er societal impact issues.
2. P romoting fruitful civic eng ag ement and helping communities
function better .
3. Sensitise children to issues concerning the society and
throug h their involvement reinforce the values of sharing ,
caring , empathy and building a solution-seeking mindset.
E ach school should therefore encourag e community
outreach prog rammes that help students take their learning , build
on it and then return. After all, as Winston C hurchill, once said:
“We make a living by what we g et. We make a life by what we
g ive. ” And to this effect, the more we develop such values, the
brig hter we paint the future for our children.

(Anjali Sharma is currently the Headmistress at Gitanjali
Devashray and has been with the Gitanjali Group for over
15 years in various roles. She is an avid reader, learner and
keen listener who enjoys engaging with young minds.)

EDUCATIONWORLD DECEMBER 2021