The Developmental Activities Program at FLAME University gives students the opportunity to experience working in non-profit organizations. This voluntary work provides immense exposure and develops the emotional quotient of the student. For my DAP project, I volunteered as a teacher in a school for hearing impaired students called Zaveri Thanawala School for the Deaf. Located in Mumbai, the school provides education to hearing impaired students from grade 1 to grade 10. I taught English and Mathematics to students from grade 4 to grade 8.

As the entire teaching is executed using sign language, I took a course in sign language before my term commenced. I noticed that the school did not have a planned structure for the English subject due to the lack of English-speaking teachers. While I taught in the school, I also designed a teaching method consisting of videos, pictures, and infographics for the future teachers to use.

The teaching methods are quite different in a school for the hearing impaired. Teachers are expected to use various games, role-playing, and stories to impart the knowledge which is relatively easy for hearing enabled students to grasp.

A teaching job helps an individual give back to society. My experience at Zaveri Thanawala was no different. However, I feel that I took with me a lot more than I could possibly give to the students. The curiosity to learn things, the excitement to converse with the new teacher, the dedication to not miss a single day of school, and the friendship and love for each other were just a few things among the innumerable learnings which I received from the students. It made me sensitive about the differently-abled, and today, two years after this experience, I still feel privileged to have received this invaluable experience through DAP.