I spent six days in Sankheda, Gujarat, in December of last year. During the trip, I got a taste of rural Gujarati life, learned about the customs and way of life of the people there, engaged in activities like farming and visiting milk processing plants, among other things. With the assistance of Maganbhai Ahir, the owner of Gir Organics, the next journey was planned. With the assistance of Mr. Magan, we were able to interact with the villagers on his 500-acre farm. We visited Mr. Magan’s farm on the first day of our tour, where we gathered cilantro while also showing other plants. All of this was completed during the day. It helped me understand the difficulties farmers encounter due to India’s climate, and for that, I am grateful. Together with Mr. Magan, we investigate the area flora and animals at the same time.
On their property, they had a gaushala where they took great care of the cows. They didn’t give them any medication, they utilized their excrement as fertilizer, and they fed the cow leftover buttermilk to help with digestion. They raised milk in such an ethical and healthful way that it made me understand how unhealthy city living can be and that I should alter my own diet. We visited Gir Organics’ milk processing facility to discover the method used to make milk.
The trip helped me understand the value of farmers and how, although being a potentially very profitable industry, farming is frequently disregarded by the general public. Through our interactions with the village residents, we were able to learn about their everyday struggles as well as how weather variations and events like COVID have impacted their crop and revenue. In general, we learned about their lives and the measures the government took to address their issues. In our interactions with the panchayat, we brought up issues that, in our opinion as IB students, the local officials ought to address as well.
We visited an ashram shala and spoke with the local children there. In my science class, we worked on experiments involving density, lemon volcanoes, and other topics. Along with giving them food, we engaged the kids in a number of games. Some aspired to work as police officers, some as soldiers, while still others merely wanted to farm with their parents. There was a wide range; some had grand visions, others not. We also visited a nearby town, where we looked at folk arts and learned about the challenges small businesses confront and the role played by the government. It was there that I came to understand that India’s genuine life is found in its villages, not in its cities.

LO2 – Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, Develop new skills –
I had many difficulties during the trip. Some had to do with my poor Gujarati language skills; others had to do with having to endure days without water or a place to sit; still others had to do with the lack of my school friends, which made it difficult for me to socialize; still others had to do with the accommodations that were offered. I was forced to step outside of my comfort zone by all of these challenges, which helped me grow in tolerance, patience, and gratitude.

LO5 – Demonstrate skills and benefits of working collaboratively

I chose a science project so along with my peers we had to plan different activities and different experiments which could be fun and understandable by the kids in ashramshala. This took a lot of collaboration and planning with my peers and I demonstrated my social skills in this activity. In farming too I had to work with my peers in order to efficiently complete the work which was assigned to us, I even learnt how to use a sickle to pluck outside plants.

LO6 – Engagement with issues of global significance –

A global concern affecting children is inadequate access to high-quality education. Although the government can fund schools, there is no digitalization and instructors frequently take time off. I not only made underprivileged kids’ science experiments enjoyable, but I also made science topics more realistically understandable for them.

LO7 – Recognize and consider the ethics of choices and actions –

Decisions and actions have far-reaching effects. I became more appreciative of the food on our plates and learned the worth of it from this trip. I used to be really critical of everything I had, but after the trip, I realized the moral implications of my decisions and have learned to be more understanding.

In conclusion, I would like to attribute the learner profile of ” Open minded”. Being open minded allowed me to adapt to a setting which I have not been used to. It allowed me to hold conversations that enhanced and enriched my knowledge about my culture.