UK
Jacob ...
I spent 6 weeks volunteering at this place before travelling around the rest of India. My aim was to experience and learn about Indian culture in a safe environment as well as share my culture and language with growing teenagers. My time there was unforgettable and exactly the experience I wanted. The staff were so welcoming and kind and gave me as much time as I needed to settle into an entirely new culture and environment. The facilities, both for the volunteers and in the school itself, are excellent and there was truly nothing I required. The rooms we stayed in gave us everything we needed and was just slightly away from the main campus allowing us to have some peace and time to ourselves. We were given autonomy to lead our own lessons as well as plenty of free time to get to know the boys, play sports, and learn about their way of life.
The entire process of contacting the school from England, arranging the dates and then organising my visit was exceptional. Urvashi, the school’s London contact who helps find and facilitate the volunteers arriving, is a true credit to the school. She allowed me to ask her any questions I may of had and made the whole experience of travelling to another continent worry and stress free. Not only that, but she also found me another volunteer of a similar age with similar interests to ensure I wasn’t by myself during my stay. This would have made my time there much lonelier and harder indeed. She provided us a safe space to talk to and discuss any problems or questions we had with the school. As she is not staff there, it was a lot easier to speak to her than one of the team at the school. Thank you so much Urvashi for all your hard work.
The teaching was a real challenge as the level of discipline was relatively low and it was very hard to control a class of 30 children who don’t speak your language. When the classes went well, and they listened, it was incredibly rewarding. When the students talked throughout, it was very difficult and extremely hard work. I think the school would gain from remodelling their approach to how the volunteers are used and how their time could be best spent to make the most impact. The boys are absolutely fantastic and easily the best part of my experience. They are so excited to share their culture with you and always let us join in with their games, sports and movie nights. During our one on one study sessions, a lot of the boys wanted my help with work but then took that as an opportunity to ask questions about who I am, where I’m from and the experiences I’ve had. I welcomed these questions with open arms because I think it’s important for them to learn about other cultures and ways of life. These sessions are where I feel I had the most impact as it was much easier to teach and discuss in a smaller group rather than in front of a whole class. I encourage the school to have more time for the volunteers to share their culture with the boys and provide them space to ask any questions they have about us and our country as won’t get that opportunity anywhere else. I absolutely love their energy and will miss seeing their smiling faces every day.
The food is brilliant and allowed us to try a whole range of Indian cuisine. It was all served by the students and we could have as much or as little as we wanted. I really am going to miss those rotis! The school also provided us with trips to neighbouring areas. We went to the city of Ahmedabad for the International Kite Festival as well as to the Statue of Unity in Kevadia. The Swami even arranged for us to stay at another temple completely free of charge as part of our visit to the statue. We went with the principal and his wife and had a fantastic time.
The cultural events held are really where the school shines. I absolutely loved taking part in the kite festival, sports days, opening of facilities, and prayer services. I felt so included in all of these celebrations and it really allowed me to appreciate what India is all about which is festivals! Every week there was some sort of celebration or event to look forward to which is something I just don’t think you would get at other Workaway locations. Gokuldham Nar is a real hub of the community and the community work they do is incredible. You can see by the amount of donors and visitors who come to the place how respected it is and the positive impact it has on some many people’s lives. I’m so glad I spent my time here and chose to volunteer at this school. I felt so prepared to tackle the rest of India after my stay as I had a good base understanding of the culture and country. Thank you for accepting me into your community and giving me a home away from home. You are a credit to your country.
The entire process of contacting the school from England, arranging the dates and then organising my visit was exceptional. Urvashi, the school’s London contact who helps find and facilitate the volunteers arriving, is a true credit to the school. She allowed me to ask her any questions I may of had and made the whole experience of travelling to another continent worry and stress free. Not only that, but she also found me another volunteer of a similar age with similar interests to ensure I wasn’t by myself during my stay. This would have made my time there much lonelier and harder indeed. She provided us a safe space to talk to and discuss any problems or questions we had with the school. As she is not staff there, it was a lot easier to speak to her than one of the team at the school. Thank you so much Urvashi for all your hard work.
The teaching was a real challenge as the level of discipline was relatively low and it was very hard to control a class of 30 children who don’t speak your language. When the classes went well, and they listened, it was incredibly rewarding. When the students talked throughout, it was very difficult and extremely hard work. I think the school would gain from remodelling their approach to how the volunteers are used and how their time could be best spent to make the most impact. The boys are absolutely fantastic and easily the best part of my experience. They are so excited to share their culture with you and always let us join in with their games, sports and movie nights. During our one on one study sessions, a lot of the boys wanted my help with work but then took that as an opportunity to ask questions about who I am, where I’m from and the experiences I’ve had. I welcomed these questions with open arms because I think it’s important for them to learn about other cultures and ways of life. These sessions are where I feel I had the most impact as it was much easier to teach and discuss in a smaller group rather than in front of a whole class. I encourage the school to have more time for the volunteers to share their culture with the boys and provide them space to ask any questions they have about us and our country as won’t get that opportunity anywhere else. I absolutely love their energy and will miss seeing their smiling faces every day.
The food is brilliant and allowed us to try a whole range of Indian cuisine. It was all served by the students and we could have as much or as little as we wanted. I really am going to miss those rotis! The school also provided us with trips to neighbouring areas. We went to the city of Ahmedabad for the International Kite Festival as well as to the Statue of Unity in Kevadia. The Swami even arranged for us to stay at another temple completely free of charge as part of our visit to the statue. We went with the principal and his wife and had a fantastic time.
The cultural events held are really where the school shines. I absolutely loved taking part in the kite festival, sports days, opening of facilities, and prayer services. I felt so included in all of these celebrations and it really allowed me to appreciate what India is all about which is festivals! Every week there was some sort of celebration or event to look forward to which is something I just don’t think you would get at other Workaway locations. Gokuldham Nar is a real hub of the community and the community work they do is incredible. You can see by the amount of donors and visitors who come to the place how respected it is and the positive impact it has on some many people’s lives. I’m so glad I spent my time here and chose to volunteer at this school. I felt so prepared to tackle the rest of India after my stay as I had a good base understanding of the culture and country. Thank you for accepting me into your community and giving me a home away from home. You are a credit to your country.