Educating Youth for a Sustainable Future Jerin Varghese

Educating Youth for a Sustainable Future Jerin Varghese jerinv 93@gmail. com Environment, Technology, and Economy Economics Service Site I did my service learning experience at the Columbia West Kumon Math and Reading Center. Kumon is a 50 year old academic enrichment program that originated from Japan that emphasizes on individualized or selflearning to help children progress in their academic career and to instill in them the desire to achieve and the motivation to learn independently. Kumon centers can be found all around the world, with 4 million children currently enrolled in the program. Kumon’s mission is as stated, “By discovering the potential of each individual and developing his or her ability to the maximum, we aim to foster sound, capable people and thus contribute to the global community. ” Contact Information: Phone No. 410 -997 -2617 Email: susanrapp@ikumon. com Figure A. Assistant helping student. Retrieved from “Kumon North America”, 2013, http: //www. entrepreneur. com/businessopportunities/kumon/68900. html Issue Confronting Site In order to provide the coming generations with a sustainable world, we have to make sure they are well educated. Education plays a crucial role in sustainable development. It directly affects sustainability plans in three kinds of areas: 1. Implementation 2. Decision making 3. Quality of life Educated citizens are needed to implement versed and sustainable development. Nations with high illiteracy rates and unskilled workforces have fewer development plans. Knowledgeable and good community based decisions that will affect social, economic, and environmental well being completely lies in the hands of educated citizens. “Greener” development options expand as education increases. Lastly, education is vital to improving the quality of life, another aspect of sustainability. It raises the economic status of families, improves life conditions, lowers infant mortality, and makes education more attainable for the coming generations. By educating students at Kumon, we gradually increase the number of educated citizens and provide a more promising sustainable future. Impact Activities As an assistant at the Columbia West Kumon Math and Reading Center for nearly 5 years, I take on more duties than the typical assistant wouldn’t be doing. However, the basic duties that an assistant handles are • grading a student’s classwork and/or homework • filing completed folders back into their respected positions • monitoring student behavior in the classroom • helping students with their math/reading questions when they have trouble • Working with a student one on one if they’re especially struggling on a certain concept Overall, my duties demand constant attention to and interaction with the students in the classroom. Figure B. Sample Kumon Math Program worksheet. Retrieved from http: //libguides. monroecc. ed u/content. php? pid=210717&si d=1760065 I definitely believe Kumon benefited from my participation in furthering their mission to expand education. • Augmented students’ abilities in math and reading. • Participated in the development of more efficient sustainability plans by producing well-educated citizens. Through this experience, I have learned the importance of educating students. I have also developed good work ethic, responsibility, proper communication and teaching and organizational skills. The challenge of having to address multiple students’ questions and problems at a time has helped me improve my multitasking ability. One thing that even surprised me about myself is learning that I have a love of teaching children. I feel satisfied when I see their face after they finally understood a concept. One day, these same students that I am educating may be prominent figures in attacking sustainability issues in the future or developing more efficient sustainability plans to guarantee a “greener” place for the future generations. Future Work As a result of this practicum, I intend to pursue internships or other part time jobs that will provide me with even more professional experience. Though I worked at a center with the purpose of educating children, I don’t plan to be making this something I’d settle into in my future. However, the skills I developed will undoubtedly help me in obtaining internships or part time jobs at places like US Department of Energy or Treasury. In addition, companies like Aflac have positions that require you to be involved in customer service or recruitment where educating another person is a task, so my experience at this practicum would definitely pay off. Figure D. Kumon student learning alphabet. Retrieved from http: //www. nytimes. com/2011/05/15/fashio n/with-kumon-fast-tracking-tokindergarten. html? pagewanted=all&_r=0 Acknowledgements Figure C. Typical Kumon classroom layout. Retrieved from “Kumon North America Media Center”, 2013, http: //www. franchise. com/franchise/educationtraining/tutoring/Kumon-North-America-Inc/videomultimedia. cfm I would like to thank Elizabeth Gillan of the ETE Scholars Program for all the help and support during throughout the experience. I would also like to especially thank my site supervisor, Susan Rapp, for giving me this opportunity to work with her and giving me consent to showcase this experience.