Dialogue with boys on April 19, 2021
Shanti Ashram organized a virtual training programme on the title ‘Dialogue with Boys 2020-21’. This programme has been conducted in a series and the 18th series was conducted via online platform on 19th April 2021 from 3.30 to 5 pm.
Many adolescent boys shared their opinions on Shaping of societal values, Burden of socialization, Gender parity, Violence against girls and how they visualize their collective role in the enhancement of society. More than100 boys from Sarvam participated in this virtual training programme and learnt a lot.
Mr. Aakash, Volunteer of Shanti Ashram, Mr. Vijayaragavan, Head, Youth Leadership Programme, Dr. Jayashree Ashwath, Senior Pediatrician, Indian Academy of Pediatrics (IAP) and Dr. Kezevino Aram, President, Shanti Ashram presided over the programme and spoke on various aspects related to the role of adolescent boys in the present scenario where the society is undergoing lots of changes daily.
A question and answer session was also conducted during the programme which helped the boys to raise questions and get their doubts cleared. The session was very interactive and it was much useful for the boys to gain confidence and learn useful aspects related to gender equality and how to safeguard girls against violence that are caused to the girls. This programme was much useful for the boys during the lockdown time when students do not have schools and colleges.
PUBLIC SPEAKING AND COMMUNICATION SKILLS on April 22, 2021
An online training programme on the importance of Public Speaking and Communication Skills in the empowerment of children and young people was organized by Shanti Ashram via Zoom online platform for the students from the SARVAM village in the age group of 12 to 18 years. The programme was conducted on 22nd April 2021, Thursday in which around 100+ students from various project villages participated. During the pandemic, most of the students are idle at home and these type of programmes that are conducted virtually help the students learn a lot at the comfort of their houses.
Mr. Adarsh Sree Jagadeesh, one of the volunteers of Shanti Ashram chaired the session and spoke on the significance of communication skills. He said that communication is the backbone of any society and it allows us to connect, influence decisions, and motivate changes. The need of public speaking skills that is very much required amongst all the students were explained by the trainer. The trainer said that the art of public speaking comes into play not only in the delivery of speeches and public talks, but also in professional presentations, training events, and motivational sessions.
Ms. Saswatha Surthi, Mr. Aakash, Ms. Shandiya, Mr. Mohammed Aarish, Mr. Nithish the volunteers of Shanti Ashram spoke on the experiences in Public Speaking. The real time example helped the students understand the art of public speaking better.
Mr. Eswar Krishna, Volunteer, Shanti Ashram conducted a question and answer session and cleared the doubts of the students about Public Speaking and Communication Skills. The whole session was much useful for the students and they all learnt a useful skill which is much required in the present situation.
ART IN YOUR LIFE on April 28, 2021
A virtual programme on ‘Art in your Life’ was organized by Shanti Ashram for adolescent students on 28th April 2021 from 3.45 to 5 p.m. This virtual session was conducted in Zoom platform and around 115 students from SARVAM, the rural development wing of Sri Aurobindo Society participated in this wonderful event.
Ms. Saswatha Surthi, Volunteer, Shanti Ashram presided as the chief guest and shared to all the students about Art which is a therapy to integrative mental health and human services profession that enriches the lives of individuals, families, and communities through active art-making, creative processes, applied psychological theory, and human experience within a psychotherapeutic relationship.
All the participants were asked to attend the session with white papers, colour pencils, old newspapers, scissors, pencil and eraser with which the resource person taught to create Art. The resource person said that Art can be created with any material that is available at home and with things which are lying unused. She also said that Art instills creativity in the minds of the students and it also paves way for learning new skills.
This pandemic, has played a major role in destroying the dreams of many students because they are not allowed outside and they have not been given a chance to showcase their talents. But virtual programmes like this are helping the students in many folds as they are spending their time in a valuable manner by learning new skills and it also helps them to come out of the stress and other problems they face at home.
This initiative, has provided opportunities for children to gain both theoretical understanding of art therapy and a practical application of creating art. It has also emphasized the importance and value of ‘Art in their life’.
