Program KnowYourStar – Moving From “Who We Are” To “What We Can Contribute”
Story of program KnowYourStar will continue…
Till we ensure that every child in India has role models to look up to, be inspired from, get in touch with… and every child sets off on a path of becoming a role model, while inspiring their community to set off on theirs!
Many around us are confused on what we do. We are synonymous with school transformation, with volunteer engagement, with teacher training, with building libraries and computer labs, with English teaching- they sometimes acknowledge that we do “good” work; but isn’t it when you start judging people with their work (human “doing”), that we forget to love them for who they are and where they come from (human “being”)?
We are no messiahs or Buddha or saints to solve this big elephant-size educational crisis that our nation is facing today; we have just finished 2 years of full time operation and are probably just scratching the surface!
But I am proud that I am spending probably the most productive time of my life solving this complex social problem instead of chasing a lucrative career. I see this as an opportunity that life has presented me with, thanks to many invisible forces who are motivating me to pursue this path. I also see this as a choice I’ve made, a very conscious one, and I would probably be unhappy following any other life paths.
Self-Chosen Life Paths Can Do Magic
Choosing our own life paths! We feel this is the start of a simple solution that will solve the complex problem of educational crisis.
It can hopefully bring down the number, which currently reads that “45% of youth who are inside the age range of 22-30, regret the life path that they have chosen (or never got a chance to consciously choose)”. Not surprisingly, this number grows as the age bracket increases.
Searching to amplify existing role models, and opening doors for everyone else to become role models, so that every one gets a chance at pursuing a conscious life path with an “I Can” mindset, is what KnowYourStar is all about! And to achieve this mission, we have tried “doing” a lot of experiments, which you wholeheartedly blessed, supported, sometimes criticized, sometimes got confused about.
We tried discovering “who we are”, while not forgetting “how we can contribute”, and be in service every moment, which I feel is the most crucial value I will hold as an entrepreneur in the days to come as well.
Moving From Bengaluru to Bagpath – A New Project!
Not that our discovery phase is over, but I guess the other part of “contribution” has gotten stronger now. We are clear that we will run a 2-year student leadership program for our fellows recruited from rural high schools and these fellows will be part of our alumni program till they graduate.
We are kicking off our pilot fellowship in a month, in a village cluster called Khekra, which is in the Bagpath District in Uttar Pradesh. We are looking at working with around 1000 students and 100 fellows! So program KnowYourStar has 2 homes now- Bengaluru & Bagpath!
We recently did our first empathy mapping for the children in Khekra and were surprised to discover the tunnel vision of students wanting to get into ‘police and military’ for boys and ‘teaching’ for girls. At the same time it was interesting to hear that most of the girls wanted opportunities to learn computer, whereas sports was a unifying factor for most boys. We also noticed a diversity among students and schools with some children being very clear about what they want to do, while in some schools there is hardly any attendance and children don’t see much meaning in coming to school.
Role Models Are Central & Their Importance Cannot Be Stressed Enough
We have started the process of identifying role models within Khekra and hope to work with them. There is an international gold medalist boxer woman from Khekra, whom even older people look up to and appreciate! We hope to find more such examples and bring them to schools to inspire kids – not to become exactly like them, but to take inspiration to become whatever they want to become!
We are also developing modules and programs for kids around being a role model, which constitutes of the ‘I CAN mindset’ (motivation, responsibility), ‘Unstoppable Spirit’ (problem solving, critical thinking) and ‘Self Awareness’ (listening, empathy, mindfulness), so that students have all the necessary tools to choose and pursue a conscious life path.
So our fellowship story will finally start- thanks to 1 year incubation from TFIx- Teach for India’s growth model incubator, for entrepreneurs like us, to launch a fellowship to achieve our vision of seeing every child realise their highest potential.
Our “contribution” will hopefully get more stronger than “who we are”.
Story of program KnowYourStar will continue…
Are you with us?
Enjoyed reading about this? Then you might like to read 10 Reasons Why Social Entrepreneurship Is Failing In India
If there’s a story that needs to be told, we are ready to tell it. Write to us at contact@knowyourstar.com with your story lead, or contact us on Facebook or Twitter.
