Workshop on life skills makes a difference

NEW DELHI, Aug 9: Generation Y has received censure for being what it is: Young and carefree. Juggling with difficult' parents on the on...

NEW DELHI, Aug 9: Generation Y has received censure for being what it is: Young and carefree. Juggling with difficult8217; parents on the one hand and peer pressure on the other, life has never been easy for the Indian teenager. To lend them a helping hand in dealing with emotional problems, an NGO called Prarambh held a workshop on Exploring Life Skills8217; here on Saturday.

The business of life skills was alien to both the parents as well as children who signed up for the workshop. According to some parents, the novelty was what made them bite the bait. Not too many, though, as only eight children signed up for the charge of Rs 150 per head. 8220;Well, if it helps in developing my personality, it may be good,8221;was how one boy approached the idea.

The conductors had a more serious agenda: To get the children talking on anything under the sun. As facilitators Seema and Manik Mahana put it, the exercise was to get them to open up and talk. Once the issues were on the table, they could then brainstorm on dealing with them.

The workshop area was a no-entry zone for adults and outsiders.8220;I wonder what they did behind those closed doors all day,8221;said an adult who could not wait to pick up his niece and tried peeping in through the door.

It is a difficult task holding the attention of 14 to 19-year-olds for eight hours, but when they came out, they looked as if they had had a good time.

So what did they do? The eight were divided into pairs, interchanging after frequent intervals. This was for them to get to know each other. In these pairs, they would then either have discussions or do small exercises. For instance, one of a pair was blindfolded and taken around by his/her partner. This, as one participant explained, demonstrated how much one trusted the partner. Another exercise involved role-playing, where each had to act as a person who they were intimidated by. These novel ideas challenged the participants8217; imagination, if nothing else.

Declaring it as 8220;great fun8221;, Shakya Mitra, a Class IX student of St Columba8217;s, said he plans to go for more such workshops. 8220;It make us aware that we are not isolated in our problems,8221; he said.

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Priyanka Bhattacharya, a Class X student of Loreto Convent, is not so sure if she learnt anything but, 8220;it did give me clarity of thought8221; and explained that voicing her opinion made her aware of that. She said that the workshop should have discussed the issue of relationships a bit more as they were high on their list of priorities.

8220;Why not more of such activities? My son thinks that I am from another world and we speak different languages, so anything that will bring us on the same plane is a good idea,8221;said a parent. The group plans to have one such workshop exclusively for parents and maybe, one which is combined.

There is definitely a need for much more to be done, as Priyanka said: 8220;I believe that we8217;ve grown up before time and we are facing issues which other generations before us would have never faced.8221;