Newsletter | March 2020

Inside this issue

M A R C H

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2 Explore the Long-Term Impact Study (2008) in our AFS Research and learn about how AFS program alumni are different when compared to their peers 3 Experience #AFSEffect | Read the Words from the AFSers! Let's hear what our 60's Returnee have to say about their experiences 4 Read more about our Member School, SelaQui Interna onal School, Dehradun 5 AFS is collabora ng with amazing organiza ons. This month read more about Educa onWorld whose mission is to build pressure of public opinion in order to make educa on the No.1 item on the na onal agenda 6 In Schools sec on, read the experience of our Member School educator on her connec ons with France 6 In Impact of NSLI-Y Program, explore the tales of cultural immersion in Varanasi by NSLI-Y academic year students 7 In Impact of YES Program, read more about the TED Talk given by Tushil in USA and Ayush's Interna onal Rela ons Conference 8 Read more about the Na onal Level Orienta on of Asia Kakehashi Program 8 In the Impact of AFS Program where our Ajeesh shared his experience of his me in Netherland 9-10 In Joy of Volunteering, explore the #AFSEffect of see the impact of Na onal Community Service Trip 2020 that took place in Gandhinagar 11 Apply today to be part of Global Competence Champions Program

Long-Term Impact Study (2008) In 2005, following the comple on of a major study of AFS program par cipants, by Dr. Mitchell R. Hammer, we realized the need for a long-term perspec ve in understanding the impact of our programs. AFS students, in the 2005 “Educa onal Results” study, were shown to be different from their friends who did not go abroad; but might these friends later “catch up” and become just as interculturally sensi ve and comfortable around other cultures? Or did AFS par cipants have an advantage that would last over the course of their lives?

From these ques ons, a new research project was launched. We chose to return to a group we had studied before, where we had seen significant short-term impact. In 1981-82, a large-scale study of the impact of the AFS program was conducted with a group of students from the U.S., who went abroad on both year-long and summer-long programs to any of 50 countries in the world. Now, 25 years a er their return, these individuals are all more than 40 years old. Some are among our current host families and some could be parents of the next genera on of exchange students. They are typically at mid-career and may be well-established leaders in their communi es.

Nearly 2,000 AFS alumni par cipated in the survey and each person, who responded was also asked to nominate two high school friends to complete the survey as the control group. The study used biographical data and the Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI). The results demonstrated that AFS program alumni are different when compared to their peers, who did not have an intercultural exchange experience: - Interest in other cultures is passed from parents to children: As the returnees in our study looked back on their childhood, they were significantly more likely than their friends to report that their parents had encouraged them to meet people from other cultures and to study abroad. In addi on, they were more likely to travel abroad as children than the peers, who did not go on a high school exchange.

- Studying Abroad Again: It is not uncommon to hear people ask whether it is be er to study abroad at the high school level, as is typical of AFS programs, or later at the university level. For the AFS par cipants in the years 1980-81, and for their peers, university-level study abroad was not as common as it is in the early 21st century. Nevertheless, 34% of the AFS returnees also studied abroad as college or university students, compared with 22% of the control group. who studied abroad at the ter ary level.

- More Comfortable Around Other Cultures, both profession and personal: In general, we found that the 1980-86 AFS alumni feel more comfortable around other cultures than the control group of their peers.

They are less anxious, irritated, or nervous when they encounter other cultures.

- Different Preferences and Life Choices as Adults: While some of the socie es to which these individuals belong are tradi onally more homogeneous than others, we found overall among both returnees and controls that about 70% of them live in fairly homogeneous communi es, with less than 25% of the people coming from a different cultural background than the survey respondent. Yet when asked about the desirability of a mul -cultural neighborhood, 39% of returnees said that it is “very desirable” to live in a diverse neighborhood, compared with 28% of controls, who would agree.

- Fluency in more languages and family a tudes are strongest: The ability to speak and carry out conversa ons in other languages is important in every way to the AFS mission. Using these and other guidelines, 77% of all AFS alumni, and over 85% of all year program alumni, reported that they could speak at least one language in addi on to their na ve language, and over 30% could speak at least two other languages.

Page 02 | March 2020 | Newsle er | AFS India

Dr. Arvind N. Agrawal says: “I hail from a small town called Raipur, Chha sgarh. Going to the U.S. was a big leap for me! There, I stayed with a family residing in Northbrook, Chicago. The experiences I made were the most impac ul and memorable in my life. Firstly, the experience with the family: a simple thing such as the alloca on of house chores to the children was new to me. I was pleasantly surprised that the ques on pertaining to the travel des na on for Christmas remained a subject of dinner conversa on for a couple of months, with every one having the opportunity to suggest a des na on. I, actually, observed the element of democracy involved in the way parents interacted with their family.

This experience made me more pa ent as a parent too.

I liked the teaching system we were encouraged to read and understand the subject by ourselves. The class time was used to resolve difficulties we encountered.

This made me much more self-reliant.

- Arvind N Agrawal

I was also quite touched by how teachers and students took care of me in order to make me comfortable. I recall how a teacher of History went out of his way to take special classes, just for me, in order to help me overcome the difficulty I was facing with American History. I liked the teaching system - we were encouraged to read and understand the subject by ourselves. The class me was used to resolve difficul es we encountered. This made me much more self-reliant. Encouraged by this experience, I always take to selfstudy and constantly reinvent myself. The AFS program had helped me succeed later in my educa on, career and in life.”

Air Vice Marshal Retd. Dr. R.K. Ganjoo says: “The interna onal exposure that the AFS exchange program offers, to the par cipants, at the prime of their youth, is phenomenal; it includes observa on, ability to ques on, and crea vity. I embarked on an AFS program, to the U.S., in the late1960's, and I must say that it was similar to traveling in a me machine! The whole approach to life changes. It makes one more confident to face the reali es of the world, especially when one returns back to one's home country.

The exchange program gave me a definite edge over my peer group, who were not fortunate enough to get this opportunity. It helped me see the world from a new perspec ve, which translated into gains in my academic pursuits and, finally, in my career.

Today, when I look back at the over five decades that have gone by, I realize the tremendous value the AFS experience has given me.”

Dr Arvind N Agrawal (Execu ve Coach and Leadership Development Consultant based in Mumbai)

Dr RK Ganjoo (MD (Int Med), Cert.

Haemato Oncologist (Royal College of Physicians, London, UK), MNAMS, FICP, FAeMS) (AFS 1966-67)

Says: Urvashi (Vasudeva) Dhamija: “A er more than fi y years, now when I look back, I think, 1966-67 was a very decisive year that had a deep impact on my life and the way it, subsequently, panned out.

The generosity and indulgent a tude of my host parents, Lyman and Martha Lee, has been an enduring reminder about how wealth is an opportunity to make life more become meaningful for others.

The spirited discussions in Pat Costan ni's classes. on the U. S. Governmen,t in Palos Verdes High School got me started on an extended involvement with Poli cal Science. Charleston took me a while to learn, but it made me open minded about trying fun op ons.

Urvashi (Vasudeva) Dhamija (Ph.D., Former Associate Professor, Department of Poli cal Science, Miranda House, University of Delhi)

Page 03 | March 2020 | Newsle er | AFS India

SelaQui International School Chakrata Road, Dehradun-248011, India Phone No.: 72530-51000, 76690-40404 E-mail: selaqui@selaqui.org Website: www.selaqui.org Located about 20 kms from Dehradun, SelaQui Interna onal School is the best CBSE residen al school in U arakhand. It is open to boys and girls from class V onwards, irrespec ve of their religion, caste and ethnicity. Founded in the year 2000, the school believes in nurturing every child for their overall development, and views excellence, versa lity and leadership as its core values. Mr. Om Pathak, who is an ex-Indian Administra ve Service officer and a leading educa onist of the country, helped in in shaping up the school's vision to impart excellent educa on. SelaQui Interna onal School is among the top boarding schools, boas ng of the best sports facili es in Dehradun. The Arjuna (sports) programs at SelaQui are unique across various boarding schools in India.

SelaQui Interna onal School has successfully integrated Experien al Learning in the classroom. According to Senior Master (Academics and Curriculum Development), Dr. Sunil Rai, classrooms at SelaQui are no more teacher led but student driven. The teacher in the classroom acts as a facilitator. Students are taking ownership of their learning. New tools such as Circle The Sage, lab works, field projects, mind-maps, projects, the Harkness Table Method and research based assignments are few examples of experien al learning in the classroom.

We have also integrated intercultural educa on in our school for our students and teachers. The school is part of several exchange programs, including AFS; students and teachers ac vely par cipate in various exchange programs. We are successfully having an exchange program with Spain, among others. Our student, Smaksh Mahajan, has been selected as a recipient of the Asia Kakehashi Project in Japan. We have, recently, also hosted a teacher from Columbia, besides a delega on of students and teachers from Heritage School, and Jammu and Hyderabad Public School, last winter. Hos ng of region-specific food and art fes vals helps in promo ng sensi za on towards other cultures. The school has students from 25 States and 13 countries.

There are several steps taken by SelaQui Interna onal School to implement Global Ci zenship Educa on in the classroom.

Cogni ve Science Research has now shown that social and emo onal skills can be taught in the classroom, and that this learning can lead to good ci zenship. The underlying theme of global ci zenship is to promote well-being of not only the self, but also of others. The school has a very ac ve MUN club and undertakes school exchange programs with other countries as well.

Page 04 | March 2020 | Newsle er | AFS India

As a school, we strongly believe in blending the 21st century competencies i.e. the 6Cs in our curriculum. Each classroom is equipped with technology that is widely used by all teachers. Tools such as Khan Academy, Google Classroom, and Zoom are some of the 'tools' that students, as well teachers, are using in the present trying mes in order to make sure that the former con nue to learn irrespec ve of where they are.

This year, students of grade 7 collec vely completed a total of 12, 240 Math assignments as part of their Khan Academy's LearnStorm India Compe on. LearnStorm is a free, six-week learning challenge that helps students build skills and mindsets for successful learning.

Each student, on an average, completed 510 assignments.

Collabora ve willingness and effort, on behalf of the students, could be seen while they were helping each other in comple ng the tasks assigned to them by their Math teacher. As students progressed through LearnStorm, they earned limited-edi on digital badges to display on their Khan Academy virtual profiles. We were also among the first 500 classrooms to sign up and win a specially curated LearnStorm Class Kit.

EducationWorld Head Office: C 3-36, 3rd Floor, Devatha Plaza, 131, Residency Road, Bangalore-560025 Phone No.: 080-22480880 E-mail: editorial@educa onworld.in Website: www.educa onworld.in

Educa onWorld In November 1999, on the eve of the new millennium, Educa onWorld was launched with the mission statement "to build pressure of public opinion in order to make educa on the No.1 item on the na onal agenda". Two decades later, Educa onWorld has emerged as India's #1 educa on monthly magazine, with a readership of 1 million countrywide. Through insigh ul and high-impact stories, EW has propagated deep reforms across the en re educa on con nuum, from preprimary to Ph. D., firm in our belief that human capital development is an essen al prerequisite of the country's socioeconomic renaissance. The publisher and editor of Educa onWorld is Dilip Thakore, former founder editor of Business India and BusinessWorld; Summiya Yasmeen is the cofounder and managing editor.

Every month Educa onWorld spotlights: -

Educa on and human capital development challenges Excellent ins tu ons of educa on in India and abroad Career-counseling advice Educa on news from around the world (including India) Insigh ul columns from educa on experts and interviews with commi ed educa onists.

Educa onWorld is the pioneer in conduc ng credible fieldbased preschool, school and university rankings surveys. Its EW India School Rankings are the most comprehensive, indepth and extensive league tables of any school evalua on survey worldwide. Moreover, its annual EW India Early Childhood Educa on Conference, EW India School Rankings Awards, EW Budget Private School Rankings Awards and EW Higher Educa on Rankings Awards are much-an cipated events in the Indian educa on calendar.

Educa onWorld is a powerhouse of the educa on sector. Ever since it began ranking schools, measured against several parameters of educa on excellence, it has become a guide for educators, administrators and parents. Schools that are judged as the best strive to retain their posi on, while others strive to a ain higher posi ons. This has had a direct bearing on improving the quality of educa on across the country — Shomie Das, former headmaster, The Doon School, Dehradun; Mayo College, Ajmer; and Lawrence School, Sanawar.

ParentsWorld An affiliate magazine of Educa onWorld (estb.1999), ParentsWorld – Nurturing 21st Century Children is the country's premier parental advice and guidance monthly magazine offering parents valuable aid and advice to nurture and develop 21st century children.

Other divisions include Educa onWorld Events and Seminars, Educa onWorld Films, Educa onWorld Books, Educa onWorld online opera ons (www.educa onworld.in portal) and Educa onWorld Consultancy.

Educa onWorld and its several pla orms provide educators, parents and students a na onal pla orm to share best prac ces to raise teaching-learning standards to global norms. With a na onwide network of schools, preschools and colleges, it enables educators, parents and students to build bridges and collaborate to extend high-quality educa on to all children and youth across the country.

Page 05 | March 2020 | Newsle er | AFS India

NSLI-Y is a Program of the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Educa onal and Cultural Affairs

Impact of

NSLI-Y Program #NSLIY

Schools Building Longlife Connec ons with France

By Ms Sangita Malik, AFS Coordinator | Yadavindra Public School, Pa ala “Almost three years ago, I received a call from the AFS India office: 'A French school likes to visit India (in March 2018), but since it is annual examina on me, no school is ready to volunteer'. Without wai ng a second, we agreed, wholeheartedly, to receive the French delega on at our school. This was not only the beginning of a new journey, but also the forma on of a deep bond between the two schools - Lycee Clos Maire, Beaune, France and Yadavindra Public School, Pa ala, placed geographically in two different con nents," recounts Sangita Malik, Coordinator, YPS, Pa ala.

YPS Pa ala has recently hosted a teacher and her husband from Lycee Clos Maire school. Their short yet adventurous trip gave them an amazing insight into Indian culture, which they expressed as follows: “Describing India in a few lines is not an easy task. What strikes us the most is the fusion of colours: the clothes, fruits, flowers, the green fields of Punjab, the ochre of the dry lands in Rajasthan, the impeccable white of the Taj Mahal, the pink city of Jaipur, the blue and white hues of the city of Jodhpur, the golden temple in Amritsar...and the list goes on; not to men on the mul -coloured costumes of the dancers and the sounds of tradi onal music at Pa ala's The Fes val Heritage. What is also so heartening is the warm welcome extended by the Indian people: smiles and songs sung by children at the school, welcome gi s made by the pupils, the love showered by the teachers and the staff...”

Both schools had an enriching me learning more about their country's respec ve cultures, and that's what ma ers.

Page 06 | March 2020 | Newsle er | AFS India

Tales of Cultural Immersion | NSLI-Y Varanasi Excursion The NSLI-Y Academic Year Program went to Varanasi for their annual excursion and were graciously hosted by Sunbeam School, Lahartara, Varanasi. The trip was an amazing opportunity for the students to dive deeper into the culture and put their language learning to good use. The students worked on various projects including themes like Muk Bhawan and interac on with the inmates; Temples of Banaras and the story behind them ; Understanding Varanasi through its food culture; Music & Instruments in Banaras. They also had an opportunity to interact live on FM at Radio Mirchi Banaras and impress the audience with their language competencies.

Thomas Smith shares, “Our trip to Varanasi was pre y beneficial for my language learning skills, in addi on to the immense amount of cultural and historical learning I did there. One of the most interes ng aspects was how Varansi helped me improve my Hindi while interac ng with people, who speak Hindi with a different accent than the Khariboli we are used to hearing in Delhi; it was interes ng to hear the difference in everyday use. We used Hindi, each day, during our stay in Varanasi, but the moment when I felt the best about the progress in my language skills was, probably, when I was conduc ng interviews at Muk Bhavan."

Carson Bennink wrote to us sharing, “Overall, the Varanasi excursion had nothing but a posi ve impact on my Hindi language learning. Firstly, being exposed to a new spoken dialect of Hindi, found in Benares, allowed me to pick up new pronuncia ons, gree ngs, and even whole new words, which we explored, with examples, while visi ng a local radio sta on. Our host school also provided us opportuni es to travel around, and within the city, mee ng different kinds of people. By watching and listening, as we walked around different parts of the city, I felt like I was able to grasp the subtle es of communica on, between the people of Varanasi, be er; thereby, I gained a dis nctly unique perspec ve of Hindi as a whole.”

We would like to thank the NSLI-Y students, and the management and students of Sunbeam School for being very suppor ve throughout the trip, and making it a great pla orm of learning by experiencing.

The YES Program is funded by the U.S. Department of State and sponsored by the Bureau of Educa onal & Cultural Affairs (ECA)

Impact of

YES Program #TEDTalk

Did I Deliver a TED Talk!?

By Tushil Chavda, YES 2019-2020 from Gandhinagars “On 20nd February 2020, I received a significant 'souvenir'.

On that day, I was 'exco-nervous' (excited and nervous.)

The excitement was because I was about to fulfill one of my dreams, and the nervousness because I was afraid, I might ruin everything.

It was an opportunity that knocked on my door during the first week of February. The opportunity came from the TED club in my school. I was assigned to deliver a TED talk. I have always been fascinated by the prospect of delivering speeches, but to deliver a TED talk is different.

So, the first thing I did, a er accep ng the proposal of presen ng the TED talk, was to search for all possible informa on, I could get, regarding the same. Within a week of my research, I discovered that TED talks are formal speeches, through which one can inspire or acknowledge others by sharing one's experiences or knowledge about a par cular subject. Looking back at my experiences in the U.S., I then decided to talk about the best lifehack I learnt during my exchange year: “How to make the best use of one's me?” In order to draw the audience's a en on, I gave my topic the tle: 'Art of using me crea vely'.

It is a rule in life that to accomplish your goal, you must be passionate about it, giving it your hundred percent.

A er my speech, of about ten minutes, my eyes were moist with pride; the applause I received was my reward. My guidance counselor complimented me on my effort by saying that it had been the first me in the school that any kid had delivered a speech so professionally, without even looking into the paper.

I was just surprised by my own TED talk and asked myself: “Did I deliver a TED talk!?”

Understanding Secessionist Movements Around the World: Causes, Demands and Impact Ayush S. Shankar (YES '18) conceptualized the first expansive Interna onal Rela ons Conference for school students, in November 2019, at Kolkata; the conference encouraged a research-based approach, and introduced school students to the subject of Interna onal Rela ons, which is not commonly found in school curricula; the topic: Understanding Secessionist Movements Around the World: Causes, Demands and Impact.

Ayush was the President of the conference and the student working commi ee. The conference was a ended by over 10 city schools; many dis nguished professors and academicians served in the capacity of judges for the 5 different events under the purview of the conference.

The conference was largely academic in nature, wherein students learnt to present research based academic papers and received guidance from some of the leading social scien sts in the field.

The Chief Guest for the conference was Sh. Krishnan Srinivasan, Former Foreign Secretary, Government of India. The exambassador shared his experiences in foreign rela ons and interna onal diplomacy, with school students and guests, and underlined the significance of world peace and the need for interna onal coopera on.

The YES Program inculcated a deep spirit of coopera on, beyond borders, in me. The Civic Educa on Week in Washington D.C strengthened my resolve to pursue Interna onal Rela ons and introduce the subject to as many as possible.

- Ayush Page 07 | March 2020 | Newsle er | AFS India

Na onal Level

Orientation

#ASIAKakehashi

Asia Kakehashi Na onal Level Re-entry Orienta on It gives us immense pleasure to share that AFS India conducted the second Re-entry orienta on for Asia Kakehashi Project students (Indian students), of the 2019 Batch, in Delhi. The orienta on was conducted for 16 students from 09th to 11th March 2020.

Our hear elt gra tude to the Ministry of Educa on, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) for this wonderful scholarship and the opportunity given to the students. It was, indeed, another year of amazing experience to recruit students not only from India, but also from Bhutan, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Nepal.

We also want to thank AFS Japan for their con nuous support and guidance, round the clock.

The orienta on was conducted by staff that was has been helping the students to ease their adjustment process by providing them a suppor ve environment, ideas and intercultural awareness.

Our best wishes to the students for their future endeavors!

Impact of

AFS Program #AFSNetherlands

Just Go For It

By Ajeesh Varghees, From Mumbai, Currently Hosted in Netherlands As they say: “…An exchange year clearly changes one's lifestyle, way of thinking, and views towards one's life.” Some of the valuable life lessons that I have learnt are: being mature, grateful, accep ng people the way they are (not everyone is perfect), finding happiness in every part of life, and most importantly: living every day to the fullest.

The class here and the ones in India are, indeed, different: teaching methodologies, number of students per class, the rela onship between teachers and students, and so on. The teacher here knows when to act as a friend and when as a mentor; students are encouraged to think, and derive.

Yes, I would, indeed, recommend my friends this program, simply because one learns so much more about oneself, and understands one's standing with respect to the world. It not only gives you knowledge about the host country's culture, but also about one's Page 08 | March 2020 | Newsle er | AFS India

own, enabling one to grow. One gets to know more about other countries through exchanges with friends, and learns to take responsibility, besides respec ng others.

My message for future exchange students and anyone, who is looking for such an opportunity, is: "JUST GO FOR IT". This will probably be the most beau ful thing that will ever happen to you. I would also like to add: “Don't say 'NO' to opportuni es and do not spend too much me being homesick during the first few days.”

When I look back at the last few months I have spent here, I realize just how much I have changed, not only emo onally, but also in my approach towards life, and in my way of living. Being able to understand Dutch, and speak Dutch with my host family, is an achievement that I am really proud of. I would like to thank AFS India for this unique opportunity.”

Na onal Community Service Trip 2020 We are happy to announce the successful comple on of the Na onal Level Community Service Trip 2020 held in Gandhinagar (Gujarat) from 22nd to 27th February 2020. The Na onal Level Community Service 2020 was built on the idea of crea ng social impact, wherein AFS volunteers, pan-India, were invited to come together, address local challenges and bring diverse communi es together by using their skills, knowledge and understanding to execute various projects & ac vi es at a local community level.

This project was based on a self-sustaining model, wherein materials and resources needed to execute community service were donated in kind. AFS India implemented the project in schools that were selected last year, and also added 3 new schools to increase the impact.

For this year, we aimed at working with six different schools in the villages of Gandhinagar, Gujarat. We had a total of 48 par cipants from diverse backgrounds and age groups, who came forward to help these schools with different projects. We also saw the par cipa on of 3 host students from Germany, Thailand and Italy, as well as educators from Member Schools of AFS India.

The management and the students of the school were very happy with all the ac vi es that were conducted during the service program. The students were very keen to learn new things taught by the volunteers. Not only did the students learn through this program, but the volunteers too enjoyed the intercultural learning experience, as they were warmly accommodated by the host families in Gandhinagar.

Some of the volunteers have quoted their experience as under:-

Nishkam karam is the takeaway from AFS volunteers and hosts.

The secret for success lies in a smile. I learnt this from the volunteers.

- Volunteer

The Projects completed during the Service trip include: 1. Self-Development (with a focus on developing personal and interpersonal skills) 2. Personal Hygiene (with a focus on women and children hygiene) 3. Sports and Extracurricular Ac vi es 4. Educa on (with a focus on teaching English, Mathema cs & Science) 5. Medical and Health awareness camps (With a focus on medical check-up for Diabetes/Blood Pressure, Eye Care, Physiotherapist, etc. Doctors, who were experts in the fields of Ayurveda and Homeopathic, were also present) 6. Pain ng of Classrooms/School (interac ve art-work done) 7. Advancing Computer Educa on (with a focus on fixing computers and helping educators learn how to use them) 8. Art & Cra Classes (with focus on teaching pain ng, sketching, origami etc.)

I thank AFS for the wonderful experience. With the families I was with, I felt comfortable, like at home. Thank you, one and all, for making my experience a memorable one.

- Volunteer

I loved the happy smiles on the faces of the kids, when I prepared paper caps, paper flowers, puppets and portraits. I enjoyed the experience.

- Volunteer

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The first day of the medical camp was amazing: paying a visit to the villagers, helping them..the medical camp has helped me develop a sense of volunteering . The remaining three days in school were a different experience for me. Breaking the language barrier was a bit hard for me, but it was s ll a good experience. A er three days, I made lots and lots of amazing and beau ful memories of the me spent with the kids, the AFS volunteers and with the host family.

- Volunteer

For me, it was a great experience teaching the village kids arts and cra s. I learnt a lot and also experienced the north-Indian culture and village life. I had a lot of fun with the children and the AFS volunteers! Also, the host family was super nice and helpful. They taught me a lot about Gujara food; I already miss them. I really fell in love with the village (school) and would really like to come again next year, but that is definitely not possible (as I will be back in Germany); all these memories made will stay with me forever.

- Volunteer

The AFS program helped us communicate and collaborate with people from different cultures and backgrounds. I realized that children are a reservoir of hidden talents and new ideas, if only they are given a chance to express these. I helped the students develop interest for art, as I feel art can be of help for them in their daily life.

- Volunteer

At the closing ceremony at the village, volunteers were appreciated and recognized for their commitment to this service trip; the trip ended with an op onal cultural excursion that a group of volunteers undertook.

experience' provided by the volunteers, helping them experience how AFS host students feel when they are hosted by Indian families. The con nuous support provided by host families showed their mo va on and commitment towards AFS's mission.

Overall, everyone par cipated very passionately in the service and put in their level best in crea ng a social impact through this project. We are grateful to everyone: volunteers, school staff, local authori es, management, host families and others for helping us in the execu on of the community service project. Special thanks to the volunteers of AFS Gandhinagar for opening their hearts and homes to all volunteers. By hos ng costs also see reduc on. The hosted volunteers also experienced and enjoyed the 'host family

Gra tude and thanks to the donors, who contributed in kind to make this project successful. The dona on (in kind) has helped transform the lives of thousands of students, families and individuals.

Page 10 | March 2020 | Newsle er | AFS India

Thanks to all the volunteers and AFS well-wishers for believing in forwarding the AFS mission and being part of the 'AFS effect'.

Page 11 | March 2020 | Newsle er | AFS India

AFS Tree Drawn by Volunteers during Na onal Community Service 2020