Devan was in 4th std when he began working part-time to support his mother. He would distribute newspapers and water cans to the nearby houses. This journey of Devan being a support system to his mother continues to this day. Devan studied in Government School, Begur in Bangalore and was in his 10th std when he got introduced to Dream a Dream, enrolling in the Basic Computer Course. Since then, Devan has been with Dream a Dream for five years.
Three years ago, Devan came across an older friend who was a men’s hairstylist. He was impressed and inspired by this profession and would work in this friend’s salon whenever he could. Dream a Dream supported Devan in pursuing this passion along with his regular formal education. Soon, all the skills learned led Devan to start his salon, which was his dream.
The salon did very well for three months and received much support from his family, friends, and Dream a Dream staff. Unfortunately, COVID hit around the same time, and he had to give up the salon. He was devastated. But his grit only grew stronger. He gives credit to Dream a Dream staff for this as well. He says, “It was because I was encouraged and asked to come out of my past and only think about the future that I could overcome failure. My facilitator Shiva would send me inspiring videos of people who succeeded despite failure. Seeing others overcome failure gave me the courage to overcome mine. I also believed that everything happened for a reason and good was yet to come.”
Devan did not give up hope. Learning life skills pushed him to see the good in things and built hope for a better tomorrow. He is pursuing his 2nd Year BCom and working at his friend’s salon after college hours. He returns from college by 3.30 PM and works in the salon until 10 PM. He makes sure to study after these hours or early morning hours. This way, he can earn an average of ₹ 6,000/- to ₹ 7,000/- per month, sufficient to support himself and not depend on his mother. He dreams of restarting his salon again.
The adversity with which Devan grew up is what inspired and pushed Devan to be where he is today. It was also made possible because of caring and compassionate adults who facilitated learning beyond textbooks.
Traditionally, the role of a teacher was of a mediator who passed the knowledge to students, and their main intention was to teach a specific curriculum and ensure young people learnt or consumed. Today, there is an urgency for us to relook at the role of teachers as it is becoming redundant in the 21st century as access to information can be achieved by many means, for example, technology. It’s time for us to reimagine the role of a teacher to understand the need and demands of the education system in this changing world. There should be a shift in the role of a teacher from merely teaching to facilitating the learning journey for young people. They have to re-vision their role and become learning partners who co-own and codesign learning. So, the question is, what are the competencies of a facilitator that will help them enable and empower thriving young people:
1. Emotional support system: At Dream a Dream, our facilitators are caring and compassionate adults who inspire and encourage young people, creating a safe and supportive environment for them. They are non-judgmental, kind, good listeners, and empathetic, ensuring the emotional safety and trust that builds the foundation for a relationship with young people.
2. Recognising and reinforcing thriving: Our facilitators possess a great understanding which helps them meet the child at the point where they are in life rather than where we believe they are. Facilitators recognise the strength in young people’s behaviours, whether positive or negative and
support them in navigating their lives through meaningful life choices, reinforcing thriving in young people.
3. Room to unlearn, relearn, and reflect: Unlearning is the way to facilitate learning in young people. Facilitation requires continuous practice, and our facilitators gain insights from their failures as a pathway to deep understanding. They co-partner in the process of self-reflection to keep themselves informed, thereby remain invested in the thriving journeys of young people.
4. Invest in community building and development: Investing in building a supportive community among facilitators, which in turn helps build a learning community that supports facilitators to acknowledge their vulnerabilities, understand their own conscious and unconscious biases, and invest in a lifelong learning process.
5. Facilitators encouraging value-based learning: Inculcating values of equity, inclusion, dignity, freedom, and the like, by being unbiased, fair, and just themselves.
As adults who work with young people, facilitators follow the inner tone and trust their intuitions to support young people. Moving beyond the concepts of textbooks, curriculum, and syllabus, facilitators need to be caring co-partners in the learning journey of young people, empowering them to flourish.
* Devan is a young alumnus of Dream a Dream’s Direct Impact programme in Bangalore. The name was changed to protect the privacy of the young person.
The article is written by Aiswarya Babu Shelvi – Associate Manager – Thriving School, Shwetha A R – Anchor – Direct Impact, Pavithra K L – Associate Director – Direct Impact, Prathib W – Executive – Career Connect Program