Week 1

Week one in India was filled with culture shock, making friends and tasty food! The group met in Delhi and toured around to see both new and old Delhi which presented copious opportunities to immerse ourselves amongst the Indian culture. Once we had a few days to explore it was time to journey to Dehradun where we were introduced to our homestay. Our homestay was interesting to say the least, the elderly couple that owned the house were very welcoming yet slightly intrusive. It was an adjustment trying to understand the Indian culture and understanding what is considered polite and impolite.

First day at Purkal Youth Development Society was described as organised chaos. As much as it seemed there was no structure or process the students and teachers seemed to understand what was going on. It was difficult to grasp the way they do things at the school and so the day was quite overwhelming and mentally exhausting. The day consisted of attending to various classrooms, assisting teaching and getting to know the students. I enjoyed spending time with the older students, discussing their lifestyles and sharing information about Australia. I was feeling determined to get involved with mentoring as the first day seemed to reflect more of an induction.

After the first day it became evident that the school lacked structure and that we needed to initiate our own tasks for the day. We asked to meet the mentors and so we could discuss what we could assist with in terms of mental health, anger management etc. Once meeting with the mentors we discovered that the mentors at Purkal were actually the ladies that looked after the children in the dorms and ensured they were getting up, getting to school, studying etc. I began to think we wouldn’t have much exposure to the ‘mentoring’ side of things and so I assisted with case notes, information sheets for their upcoming excursion and working with classes 1 & 2. I thoroughly enjoyed working with the students, learning from them and teaching them things about our culture.

Week two was easier in terms of understanding the process and culture at Purkal. In the beginning it was a bit of a disappointment to think we wouldn’t be working as mentors at the school as it became evident that mentors meant something else in India.

Wednesday came about and as I was sitting with the children eating lunch, I came to find out there was a school counsellor. The girls told me there was a male school counsellor who they sometimes find difficult talking to. I decided to find the counsellor and see if I could assist in anyway. I had a constructive conversation with the counsellor who was excited to have me interested in helping. He asked three children to meet with Peta, London and myself to discuss how they are progressing through school. After meeting with my student Shoobum, I gathered he was struggling to learn English, which also proved to be difficult in our discussion as I don’t understand Hindi. We were able to communicate at a basic level and he was a very kind young man. After debriefing with the counsellor, it became evident that counselling was not his strong point. He advised me that he used to be the career advisor at the school and that he is now taking on both tasks. However, the children at the school has discussed their concerns that they don’t feel comfortable talking to him about their personal issues. It was difficult for me to see this as I knew I wouldn’t be able to have much of an impact with the last three days at Purkal. The school was in desperate need of a sole school counsellor who’s background is in mental health. These children are from disadvantaged backgrounds and could use a professional adult to talk to about their struggles.

Week 2

Week two in India was smooth sailing. We had discussed with our coordinator that we struggled with little to no structure in the school as it was difficult to know where to be at what time. We also found that sometimes it would feel as if we were intruding in a class as we were never sure if we were meant to be there. Tuesday we were asked to have a meeting with the staff and they had advised they would be setting up a timetable for us so that we would be expected in certain classes. This was great! It was lovely to see the teachers took care in wanted for us to feel comfortable and useful. I did however wish I had spoke to our coordinator sooner so this plan could have been implemented from the beginning. Amongst all of this I was stuck in two worlds or being pleased that there had been a change and also feeling as though we had caused them additional work when their school and culture works on no structure. I wanted to ensure I was being culturally competent. We thanked them for their efforts to support us and on we went to our scheduled classes. I attended all different classes including e-commerce, dancing and classes 1 & 2. It was great to interact with the older students and communicate with them about cultural differences. These children are so smart and enthusiastic which was incredible to witness.

I also engaged with the teachers and had the greatest discussions over the Indian culture and lifestyle in the country side. Many couldn’t believe the life I lived in Australia and how much I pay for rent! It was important for me to share stories and teach the children things about my culture as much as I was learning about theirs.

Outside of the internship I also had a fabulous time. I immersed myself in the Indian culture, ate the most amazing food, attended an India wedding and created the greatest memories with who I felt became my family!

What an incredible experience it was and one I will never forget.

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