Author: Smile Team

(August 02, 2003)

Times of India
(South Delhi Plus)
Saturday Aug 2, 2003

Women have landed on the moon, walked in space, been elected heads of state, yet they are not safe in their own surroundings. The Smile Foundation recently organised a series of workshops on the basics of self-defense for adolescent girls and women. These workshops were conducted by experts form the Delhi Police. The message was: To survive, women need to fight back.

Awareness It’s your first line of defense. Most people think of kicks to the groin and blocking punches when they hear the term “self-defense”. However, true self-defense begins long before any actual physical contact. The first, and probably most important, component in self-defense is awareness: awareness of yourself, your surroundings, and your potential attacker’s likely strategies.

The criminal’s primary strategy is to use the advantage of surprise. Studies have shown that criminals are adept at choosing targets who appear to unaware of what is going on around them. By being aware of your surroundings and by projecting a “force presence”, many alterations which are commonplace on street can be avoided.
Sixth sense call it “gut instinct” or whatever, our intuition is a powerful subconscious insight into situations and people. All of us especially women, have this gift, but very few of us pay attention to it. Learn to trust this power and use it to your full advantage. Avoid a person or a situation which does not “feel” safe – you’re probably right.

Escape it’s always your best option. Run away, yell for help – do whatever you can to attract attention. And if the criminal is after your purse or other material items, throw them one way while you run the other:

Consider action Be more assertive, leave, yell, kick, do something. YOU CAN and SHOULD defend yourself physically. Statistics clearly show that one’s odds of survival are far greater if one fights back. Aim for the eyes first and the groin second. Use the element of surprise to your advantage – strike quickly, and mean business. You may only get one chance. Even the most innocuous of items could be your key to safety Take a look around, see if you can find just five items that you could use as a weapon.

        Look for:

• Anything sharp, like a pen, to poke and stab with.
  
  
• Things that are flexible to wrap around an attacker’s neck and strangle with.
  
  
• Liquids that would sting if they got in an attacker’s eyes: vinegar, sprays, soaps etc.

Picture in your mind, ways to use each of them, for example, your keys. Your house or car keys make great weapons, and importantly, you will often have them with you, and in a very handy place – your pocket, using your keys for self-defense is unknown to most people. Hold the key as if you are going to open a lock, but hold it MUCH tighter and aim to strike the sensitive parts of an attacker’s body: eyes or throat (only I extreme situations), ribs, solar plexus, groin, nose etc.

(August 26, 2003)

(August 31, 2003)

(September 03, 2003)

(September 03, 2003)

The Pioneer
(Satchel)
Wednesday September 3, 2003

SMILE Foundation, organised a workshop on August 30, 2003 for 35 school teacher from 12 NGOs, as part of their endeavour to improve the quality of education imparted through non-formal educational centers. The focus was on improving the class-room interaction between the teachers and the taught, Anupama Puri, executive coordinator, said, “The atmosphere a teacher creates in the classroom has a drastic effect on the students’ respective capacity. When students know that their teachers care for them and believe in them, the response is much better. Teachers need to understand the impact and influence they have on their students’ lives.”

(September 04, 2003)

The Indian Express
Express News Line
Thursday September 4, 2003

* Told it’ll help them transfer experience to their students.

In a workshop for teachers of non-formal education (NFE) centers held last week, stress was laid on improving classroom interaction between students and teachers by increasing the moral and confidence of teachers.

Organized by SMILE, an NGO that works towards improving education, 35 teachers and 12 NGOs from Delhi took part in the workshop. Majority of children coming NFE centers are first-generation school-goers, who have little or no support from their parents. Thus in the absence of motivation from the family, the onus falls on the teachers to educate, enlighten and inspire the children and to retain them in the school.

“it has been observed that a positive nurturing envionment in school results in regular attendance, discipline and reduced drop-out rate, “said Jaya Misra, an HRD professional who along with Priyanka Jain, anchored the workshop.

Third in a series being organized by the SMILE Foundation, as part of their endeavor to improve the quality of education imparted through NFE centeres, the workshop had teachers go through multiple exercises, including one on self-esteem and self-image. Also, not only does exploring these concepts at a personal level enable teachers to understand themselves better but also teaches them how to transfer their knowledge and experiences through interaction to their students.

“Teachers are not aware of the impact their actions and words have on the a child’s psyche. We explore that, “said Mishra, adding that during the workshop “many participants admitted to have used words with negative connotations while interacting with the students. Most participants also complained of an inability to control their temper while teaching and often felt frustrated. Very often individuals shift their locus of control from internal to external, where they start holding others responsible for their thoughts, attitude and actions”.

The earlier workshops had focused on child centered education, gender issues and story-telling as an effective teaching medium, innovative teaching methodology / teaching aids for Maths and English.

(September 05, 2003)

Times of India

(Noida Plus)
Friday September 5, 2003

SMILE foundation recently organised a one-day workshop for 35 school teachers of several NGOs like Prayatn, Vidya, Sankalp, Nai Disha, Navjyoti Development Society, Nav Srishti, SMK Trust, Anurag Society, Adhaar, Ambedkar School, Sai Kripa and Sahyogita. The workshop was the third of a series being organised by the Foundation as part of their endeavor to improve the quality of education imparted through non-formal education centres. The earlier workshops focused on child centered education, gender issues, story telling as an effective teaching medium, innovative teaching methodology, teaching aids for Math and English.

The workshop focused on improving the classroom interaction between students and teachers. Explained Anupama Puri, executive coordinator, SMILE, “The atmosphere a teacher creates in his/her classroom has a drastic effect on whether or not students will be receptive. When students know that teachers care for them and believe in them, the response is much better than when they do not receive positive affirmations.” The workshop was anchored by Jaya Mishra, an HRD professinal, along with Priyanka Jain.

(October 18, 2003)

(November 21, 2003)

(November 29, 2003)