INTRODUCTION OF STUDENT VOLUNTEERING PROGRAM
TO THE CURRICULUM OF GRADE 11 AND 12 IN MANIPUR
A concept project under preparation as APPROACH PAPER TO THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION, GOVERNMENT OF MANIPUR as a follow up activity of a preliminary discussion between MAC President and Hon’ble Minister of Education, Manipur in February, 2013.
SYNOPSIS:
Students in Manipur in the present education system remain largely engrossed in the text-bookish study without getting a chance to develop life skills and sense of social commitments. In the situation the products of the education system after Grade 12 turn out to be more of either bookworms or brats. It results in a weak societal system wherein the huge wealth of youth resources remain untapped and the road to become good citizens for the young generations remain unprepared. This is a big loss.
The Canadian system of engaging the youth in their higher secondary stage in volunteering and part time employment is an excellent way of educating the youth in life skills, work culture, money management and sense of social commitment. In the system, students are not allowed to graduate without a minimum of 40 hours of volunteering unpaid service at government and community workplaces. Promising students aspiring of scholarships earn more volunteer hours thereby benefitting the society. The result is a healthy generation of youth contributing their free service of huge monetary value to the society and at the same time grooming themselves for becoming good citizens with great sense of responsibility and capability.
Introducing this system in Manipur will not demand drastic budgetary and system overhauling arrangements. With some structural arrangements needed for volunteer co-ordinating at schools, education boards and service recipient institutions, registered NGOs, clubs etc. the system can be gainfully introduced with a positive vista of the future Manipur. This will wean away our energetic youth from social vices and also help change the general attitudes of the entire populace towards work