CAS Experience (11th and 12th Grade Overview

During this program, I have been able to achieve a number of things that I can say I am proud of. This experience has made me become a well rounded person as I have engaged in global issues, I have worked with others, I have challenged myself by trying new things and many more. I think overall, I have been able to touch on all the 8 criteria for the CAS DP program.

Undertaken New Challenges

My major challenge during this program has been the interaction with kids. Prior to this, I always avoided situations whereby kids were involved but this time round, I decided to get involved with the hope for kids service project in order for me to make a difference in the lives of the children. At the beginning, the hospitals visit were very challenging for me but as time passed and as I got more comfortable with the kids and the situation, things got much better. I am really glad I took part in this service project. It also gave me the opportunity to engage in a global issue being cancer.

Planned and initiated activities

In 12th grade i became very much involved in the planning of a fashion show for the Maharagama Children’s Hospital. This was a very challenging thing to do as I had never done anything like it. Of course, I had the help of the leaders and other CAS members and together this was a success. We managed to raise over half a million rupees for the hospital and this money will be used to provide the hospital with facilities and medication for the children. Also the week without walls program also gave me the opportunity to plan activities. In 11th grade with the Lanka Alzheimer’s service project, I got the opportunity to plan some fund raising activities that we conducted during the food and fun fair.

Worked Collaboratively with others

I was involved with the Lanka Alzheimer’s service project in 11th grade. Together with the other CAS members and the founders of the foundation, we worked together to plan fund raisers for the project. Also, I worked together with members of hope for kids to plan fun activities that we will take part in with the children at the hospital. This gave me the opportunity to share my views with my fellow peers in relation to a global issue. Also, during volleyball training, in order to work effectively as a team, teamwork was important to keep the team and its members strong. This enabled us encourage one another during practice and games. During the organization of SAISA tournament in school, I needed the help of others to ensure that everything went on smoothly. Due to this, I had to work with a number of people to make sure that the right thing was done and that there was no confusion during the games. basically in all the projects and activities that i have been involved in during this program, i have had to work with others in order for it to be successful.

Shown perseverance and commitment in their activities

During the final months to the end of the program, I decided to involve in some exercise and I did so by going to the gym on a regular basis. Initially, this was quite difficult to do but I showed perseverance and I didn’t give up. It has been exciting and I will be continuing even after the program has ended.  In both 11 and 12 grade, i commited fully to all the activities i signed up for.

Engaged with issues of global importance

All my service projects have engaged with global issues. I started off with Recycling and Sustainability, Alzheimer’s and the Cancer hospital project. For recycling, once a week, we would go to all rooms in the school in groups and collect pieces of scrap paper and cardboard. We will then sell this to a local recycling place near school. The money made was then put into the recycling account. This is a global issue because of the issues of climate change. Although this is a controversial situation, it made me aware of a lot of problems that our planet is facing. I can say that this had not made me entirely ecocentric however; it has made a different in my life style.

Developed new skills

Over the two years of this CAS program, I have been able to learn how to play the guitar, take good sports photos and learnt how to play competitive volleyball. All these are new skills that I have picked up during the cause of the program. Now I am able to play the guitar while singing. Although I cannot play intense chords with quick transitions, I can play all the basic chords and some complicated ones. Also, in terms of volleyball, I think that I have learnt enough skills that will help me if I pursue the sport in future. Also, it really helped me in terms of teamwork and collaboration.

Considered the ethical implications of their actions

From the recycling service project, I have become aware of the impact that humans have on the environment negatively.

Overall, this has been a good program and I am pleased to say that I have learnt a lot during these two years 🙂

A glimpse of what I have done in 2 years 🙂