Latest news with #Keya
NDTV
2 days ago
- Health
- NDTV
Beyond The Blackboard: Assam Teachers Turn Mentors To Help Students Tide Over Anxiety, Disorders
Guwahati: For Keya, Shristi and Mofida – students of different Kendriya Vidyalayas of Assam – grappling with challenges in the form of hyperactiveness, social anxiety, fear of certain subjects and lack of self-confidence had become a routine affair. Help finally arrived in the form of their very own school teachers, who donned the role of a mentor to guide not only Keya, Shristi and Mofida, but thousands like them, to tide over academic problems, performance anxiety, behavioural difficulties and even issues at home. They are among more than 2,000 students of the state who benefited from an innovative programme, 'Each One Reach One', which has now completed a year now. "The teachers give their cent per cent in the classroom. But, not all students can move with the pace of the teachers and some need help. Not just academic help, but also guidance to tide through their emotional problems, peer pressure and parental issues," Chandrashekhar Azad, Deputy Commissioner of Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan, Guwahati regional office (RO), said. "This initiative is to lend a helping hand to the students in need of some special attention, be it in their academics, behavioural issues or even problems at home that are impacting their mental wellbeing," he said. The idea to launch the programme germinated when Azad was interacting with students appearing for their board exams last year. "I asked them to write down what is it that they feared the most, especially with an important exam coming. I assured them it would be kept anonymous. And the candid jottings were revealing," Azad told PTI. It was not just the usual desire to score more marks, but these young minds were facing anxieties about their future, pressure from peers and parents, difficulties with certain subjects and troubles at home, he said. When Azad announced the 'Each One Reach One' initiative for the session 2024-25, teachers came out voluntarily to 'adopt' such students for the entire session. "There was no instruction on whom to 'adopt'. The teachers identified their wards themselves. And not just the teachers, principals, vice-principals, headmasters and even the two assistant commissioners of the RO 'adopted' students," the DC said. As many as 2,260 students in 42 KVs under the Guwahati RO were adopted by 1,450 teachers in the first session, with the mentorship continuing for the same student in some cases for the second year now. Out of these, 183 Class-10 students were mentored, achieving a 99.5 per cent pass rate, and 285 Class-12 students were supported, recording a 98.6 per cent success rate, he said. The mentors also identified key learning and developmental gaps, like 29.4 per cent struggled with literacy skills, 21.7 per cent had issues in STEM subjects, 12.6 per cent faced attention and focus difficulties, while 9.1 per cent showed emotional and behavioural concerns. Sharing stories of some of the successful mentorships, he cited the instance of Keya, a 'Balvatika-3' student of PM Shri KV, AFS Jorhat. A hypersensitive child, Keya had difficulty even sitting still when she joined school. "Managing her boundless energy was a challenge, which was successfully done by her mentor as Keya began participating in activities and even started writing beautifully, with the 'written work' initially the biggest challenge for her," Azad said. A Class-10 student of one of the KVs in Guwahati, Shristi was struggling with Maths and Science while also grappling with problems at home, negatively affecting her performance at school. "The help she received from her mentor was not limited to guidance on the subjects alone. He reached out to her parents and together with them, they helped Shristi overcome the anxieties and it resulted in her performing well in these subjects and also coming out of her cocoon," Azad said. For Mofida of KV, IIT Guwahati, performance anxiety, social anxiety and disconnect, lack of self-confidence and sleeping and eating disorders were taking a toll as she was preparing to complete schooling. She was introduced to mindfulness and time management techniques, proper nutritional and sleep plans along with parental counselling, as Mofida emerged a confident young girl at the end of the session. Azad said the 'Each One Reach One' initiative, inspired by the National Education Policy 2020, has grabbed attention nationwide, with many KVs now moving ahead to replicate it in their own regions. "Some of the ROs have already started it… on a pilot basis. It is inspiring that a noble approach we launched has proved to be beneficial for our students," he added. The names of the students have been changed.
Hindustan Times
2 days ago
- Health
- Hindustan Times
Beyond the blackboard: Assam teachers turn mentors to help students tide over anxiety, disorders
Guwahati, For Keya, Shristi and Mofida – students of different Kendriya Vidyalayas of Assam – grappling with challenges in the form of hyperactiveness, social anxiety, fear of certain subjects and lack of self-confidence had become a routine affair. Beyond the blackboard: Assam teachers turn mentors to help students tide over anxiety, disorders Help finally arrived in the form of their very own school teachers, who donned the role of a mentor to guide not only Keya, Shristi and Mofida, but thousands like them, to tide over academic problems, performance anxiety, behavioural difficulties and even issues at home. They are among more than 2,000 students of the state who benefited from an innovative programme, 'Each One Reach One', which has now completed a year now. "The teachers give their cent per cent in the classroom. But, not all students can move with the pace of the teachers and some need help. Not just academic help, but also guidance to tide through their emotional problems, peer pressure and parental issues," Chandrashekhar Azad, Deputy Commissioner of Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan, Guwahati regional office , said. "This initiative is to lend a helping hand to the students in need of some special attention, be it in their academics, behavioural issues or even problems at home that are impacting their mental wellbeing," he said. The idea to launch the programme germinated when Azad was interacting with students appearing for their board exams last year. "I asked them to write down what is it that they feared the most, especially with an important exam coming. I assured them it would be kept anonymous. And the candid jottings were revealing," Azad told PTI. It was not just the usual desire to score more marks, but these young minds were facing anxieties about their future, pressure from peers and parents, difficulties with certain subjects and troubles at home, he said. When Azad announced the 'Each One Reach One' initiative for the session 2024-25, teachers came out voluntarily to 'adopt' such students for the entire session. "There was no instruction on whom to 'adopt'. The teachers identified their wards themselves. And not just the teachers, principals, vice-principals, headmasters and even the two assistant commissioners of the RO 'adopted' students," the DC said. As many as 2,260 students in 42 KVs under the Guwahati RO were adopted by 1,450 teachers in the first session, with the mentorship continuing for the same student in some cases for the second year now. Out of these, 183 Class-10 students were mentored, achieving a 99.5 per cent pass rate, and 285 Class-12 students were supported, recording a 98.6 per cent success rate, he said. The mentors also identified key learning and developmental gaps, like 29.4 per cent struggled with literacy skills, 21.7 per cent had issues in STEM subjects, 12.6 per cent faced attention and focus difficulties, while 9.1 per cent showed emotional and behavioural concerns. Sharing stories of some of the successful mentorships, he cited the instance of Keya, a 'Balvatika-3' student of PM Shri KV, AFS Jorhat. A hypersensitive child, Keya had difficulty even sitting still when she joined school. "Managing her boundless energy was a challenge, which was successfully done by her mentor as Keya began participating in activities and even started writing beautifully, with the 'written work' initially the biggest challenge for her," Azad said. A Class-10 student of one of the KVs in Guwahati, Shristi was struggling with Maths and Science while also grappling with problems at home, negatively affecting her performance at school. "The help she received from her mentor was not limited to guidance on the subjects alone. He reached out to her parents and together with them, they helped Shristi overcome the anxieties and it resulted in her performing well in these subjects and also coming out of her cocoon," Azad said. For Mofida of KV, IIT Guwahati, performance anxiety, social anxiety and disconnect, lack of self-confidence and sleeping and eating disorders were taking a toll as she was preparing to complete schooling. She was introduced to mindfulness and time management techniques, proper nutritional and sleep plans along with parental counselling, as Mofida emerged a confident young girl at the end of the session. Azad said the 'Each One Reach One' initiative, inspired by the National Education Policy 2020, has grabbed attention nationwide, with many KVs now moving ahead to replicate it in their own regions. "Some of the ROs have already started it… on a pilot basis. It is inspiring that a noble approach we launched has proved to be beneficial for our students," he added. The names of the students have been changed. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Axios
12-03-2025
- Business
- Axios
Richmond-based Keya's Snacks chips are selling out online, but locals can grab them all over town
Richmonder and Food Network baking champ Keya Wingfield's recently launched potato chips are going viral and keep selling out online. Why it matters: Locals don't have to battle online shoppers to get their fix. Keya's Snacks are on the shelves at roughly two dozen Richmond stores. State of play: Wingfield, who was born in Mumbai and moved to Richmond as an adult, originally launched her snacks in 2021 as Bombay Chips. The chips, and the process of creating them, was how she channeled her grief after she lost her infant son, Daksh, who died when he was just 55 days old. His name appears on every bag of Keya's chips as her way of keeping his memory alive. Keya's Snacks come in two flavors: Bombay Spice, made with 29 spices, including her "OG masala blend" and Black Salt, which she describes as "a cultural cousin of sea salt and vinegar." Zoom in: Wingfield relaunched the chips in January with perfected recipes, colorful branding and an online store. The relaunch was when folks really started to take notice. A review of the vegan and gluten-free chips hit the national food site The Kitchn last week and a flood of orders crashed her website, Wingfield tells Axios. "Our internet commerce team (a 19-year-old named Sanjay) is threatening to quit," Wingfield jokingly posted to Insta last week.
BBC News
09-02-2025
- Health
- BBC News
Aylesbury mum turns cancer experience into a children's book
A mother and teacher has used the life-changing experience of a cancer diagnosis to develop a children's book to help families deal with tough Pandya-Bhatt, from Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, penned When Mummy Had Cancer as "a tool, to have open conversations and help families".She said she was inspired by her daughters Keya, seven, and Shriyana, five, during those "two very difficult years" of treatment."My main focus was ensuring that the girls knew what was going on because I don't want them making up their own stories," she said. The 39-year-old was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer at the age of 36 and began writing the book while she underwent rounds of Pandya-Bhatt said she first discovered a lump in her breast at Easter 2022, which led to a mastectomy, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and reconstructive surgery. By October 2023, she was "given the all clear" and was now in remission. She said there had been plenty of advice for her and her husband Manoj Bhatt, but she felt her children were missing out."I thought, how much do you tell them, or don't tell them?" she said."I think the questions that I've incorporated into this book would help any family in any situation."Children should know they're not alone." Lorna Russell, from Hope, a charity that supports young people aged five to 25 when a family member is diagnosed with a life-threatening illness, said "talking to children openly and honestly is really important as they can pick up on things really quickly". "Whilst it's a conversation no parent wants to have, sitting down and letting the child know what's going on, and allowing them to ask questions about anything they don't understand, can help them feel like they have a bit more control in what is a really difficult situation for everyone," she said the charity had wellbeing advisers who young people could talk to and it was important "to remind children it's OK to still do the things they enjoy, and to have fun". Mrs Pandya-Bhatt said her daughters were now "a lot more confident" and they "saw themselves reflected in the book"."It's brought something very positive out of two very difficult years that were horrific," she has also led to her becoming a children's life said that cancer was not always openly talked about in South Asian culture but "the community needs to come away from that"."I'd rather speak to my children and tell them everything that I know, which has come from a professional, from someone with a medical background, rather than them Googling or going to a smart speaker." Follow Beds, Herts and Bucks news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
