INTERNSHIP REPORT

“Your illness doesn’t define you, your strength and courage does” said a wise man. My internship
with the specially abled children in the Ashram school for a week has taught me so much about
empathy, compassion, tenderness, innocence, and the uniqueness each one of us have. The one
week that I have spent with those kids has truly been magical and something that I will cherish
throughout. As adolescents of this generation, many at times we are so engrossed in our own world
of friends and fun and social media that we aren’t really exposed to the real problems faced by
people who are around us. Lack of real-world interaction has made all of our lives so closed and
isolated that we don’t bother to look out of our phones. Teenagers these days are generally of the
opinion that they have the toughest journey to fight against but when you look out there are so
many people of our age who are actually facing such a big battle of their lives and yet are so happy
and full of life. This is something that I have learnt in this internship, that is to stay happy, hopeful
and positive even in the most difficult situations. Despite the children suffering from some sort of
physical and mental ailments they have a sense of respect, affection and love towards each other. I
did see all of them having such a good bond with each other with no envy or any negativity but
sheer innocence and love. The 5 days that I spent with them was really productive, and not only did I
have a nice time but also it led me to rediscover my own self. I became more empathetic, kinder and
a better person and realised that all those kids want is friendship and a loving treatment. If they
have so much to teach me and if they have the potential to change me for the better in such a short
time, I can confidently say that it is their strength and courage that makes them who they are. I
suggest everyone to spend time with people and try to interact with each other regardless of them
having a mental illness or not, as this really helps in self-discovery and helps us come across the real
problems faced by people.

All things said, I believe that five days are quite less for anybody to understand the mental health of
a person and to bring a change for that matter. However, I think those students who have been
taught there for so many years, should have improved their mental health through certain
psychological treatments like CBT, psychotherapy, and other activities. Those suffering from physical
ailments also should have improved their health. Certain facilities provided by the school to those
children could also be improved such as a fan, a better ventilated classroom and an overall better
environment which are basic needs.

To sum it up, I have had a great time doing this internship and I am really grateful for this
opportunity given by my teacher Ms. Srividya, the co-ordinators and the management and would
like to thank them whole heartedly. Looking for more wonderful opportunities even after school.

-Charvi Dev

A level