The Spandan Project

In order to truly understand the state of mental health amongst HIV-infected students in India, it is important to review literature that presents a comparative study. The article that we read provides a comparative study between AIDS- orphaned children and other Orphaned children in Southern India. This article was written by SG Prem Kumar, Rakhi Dandona, G Anil Kumar, SP Ramgopal, and Lalit Dandona This allows us to understand exactly why the rates for depression and anxiety are significantly higher for children with HIV/AIDS and how this affects the already worsened condition of bullying, social discrimination, stigma as well as poor optimism for the future. Orphaned children, even without any physical illness, tend to face extreme difficulty from the loss of one or more parents, as it limits their access to basic social services and undermines their chances of survival and future. In addition to this, if they are faced with the herculean task of having to survive and grow with il...

       This research paper focuses on the resilience that is showcased by individuals living with HIV infection and speaks about their well-being. The American Psychological Association defines Resilience as successful adaptation by an individual through challenging life events through mental or behavioural adjustments. Unhealthy coping with stress can often lead to deteriorating health for adolescents living with HIV, and this study was aimed at confirming whether a connection existed between resilience exhibited by adolescents infected with HIV and their wellbeing.  The adolescents residing at Snehagram formed the participants in the experiment that the professional researchers conducted.            In order to measure the resilience of the adolescents, the researchers (G.S. Sunaina, Sahen Gupta, & K. Sreenath) used the Resilience Scale developed by Prince and Embury (2008), which is divided into 3 subscales - Sense of Ma...

Below mentioned are guidelines suggested to follow by UNESCO to support learning environments specific to students with HIV & AIDS. Sensitize teachers and authority; familiarizing the educators with the environment to work in cooperation with the institutions governing bodies, communities, teachers, staff, and students to set norms and work towards protection to the learners. When the volunteers physically attended to the students at Snehagram, after registering under the SPANDAN logs, they acquaint themselves with the strict do’s and don’ts from the 5 charts of rules and mannerisms that are provided to them. Introduce proper curriculum; develop school-based programs from research, involving educational experts, have trained educators facilitating learning, include formal and non-formal educational activities. During the offline sessions held pre-pandemic, soft copies of their textbook were made from which the volunteers prepared condens...

Art as a subject is as fascinating as it is as a mode of therapy. Art therapy is an upcoming sphere of therapy which in itself is body-mind therapy. It involves the creation of something from scratch, which will be influenced by colours, moods, and allows the flow of emotions.        There is considerable evidence that shows an improvement of mood, fewer depression symptoms, help in experiencing feelings and emotions more freely, a better quality of life, patience, etc. through art therapy. In cancer patients as well, it has proved as an effective distraction from the constant anxiety, pain and, sadness.        The creation of something from nothing, be it painting, sketching, pottery, etc, helps to distract the individual and provide a sense of contentment. It moreover, influences brain waves pattern and releases certain substances in the brain. It also reduces stress, fear, and anxiety, and provides a sense of freedom.      ...

       The Snehagram facility focuses on teaching and interaction with the students. Learning and living there provides the children with a great experience and aids with their holistic development. One of the most important aspects of learning is related to the sphere of Psychology. For several reasons, the learning of such a subject is of paramount importance because the individual gains multiple skills like learning about oneself and others, gaining better analytical, logical and scientific skills, the chance to make their overall quality of life better in multiple spheres as well as higher consciousness and awareness.        Furthermore, students learn about different fields in the sphere of psychology, which greatly contributes to various skills and knowledge levels that the students may already have on the subject. Volunteers at Snehagram often use various methods in order to teach children. This includes writing, drawing flowcharts and mi...

       Nestled in the tranquil arms of nature and bordered by hillocks, lies the restful Snehagram compound. But as one enters, the tranquillity is replaced at once by the electrifying youth of the students at Snehagram. Snehagram is synonymous with a home for the students. This is where they live, grow and mature. We volunteers visit every second week in order to accelerate their learning by imparting some of our own knowledge. Leaving aside the academia for a moment, let us delve into what life is like for the youngsters at Snehagram. Vocational education is imparted to the students who reside here, parallel to their regular syllabus. The unique campus includes sprawling gardens and plots of vegetation, where the students plant and grow their own produce. Organic farming is a skill that is integrated into the program at Snehagram They are taught the basics of agriculture and cultivation, making the compound sustainable. Furthermore, the compound rears animals. ...

  The Snehagram program by SPANDAN holds visits by different departments on alternative weekends, taking turns to send 10 of their volunteers and 2 faculty coordinators to encourage and guide the students in the subjects of their respective departments. The department of psychology held their visits of 10 volunteers with Dr. Sudhesh N. T. & Dr. Sreenath K. as faculty coordinators on the last weekend of every month. The visit consisted of morning classes based on the time of our arrival, lunch session, and the second hour of the day followed by an evening break for the volunteers and playtime for the students, and the conclusion of the first day by another short evening session. The second day includes breakfast and the first session of teaching followed by lunch and then departure of the volunteers. The breaks in between enabled us to interact with the students and improve our bonds which directly impact the effectiveness of the instruction of the lessons, which when experien...

  The experience a volunteer can gain during his or her stay is absolutely unique yet extremely satisfying. The major goal is to create a difference and provide assistance in the teaching and the development of the children staying there. The visit is initiated by the introduction to the regulations and expected behaviour at Snehagram, which include certain guidelines that the volunteers must abide by in order to provide a fulfilling experience for themselves as well as a nurturing development for the children that they are interacting with. The volunteers then stay in comfortable and humble housing facilities within the campus itself, at short distances from the learning and eating quarters. This ensures easy access as well as mobility so that they can stay on schedule and fulfil the primary goals and tasks at hand. It is important to note that the volunteers also interact with the children outside the classrooms. They communicate and talk to the children during the lunch and di...

            As a part of the Spandan Project, the Department of Psychology has a team of about 20 volunteers. This includes students from both undergraduate and postgraduate studies. They are guided by the faculty coordinators, Dr Sudhesh N. T and Dr Sreenath K .      Every month, a group with a maximum of 10 students, accompanied by the faculty, conduct a visit to the Snehagram facility during a weekend. The lush-green and serene facility is located in the Krishnagiri district of Tamil Nadu.      The primary objective of the team is to imbibe their knowledge in the field of psychology in the best possible manner to help the HIV+ adolescents in Snehagram improve their quality of life. There are two main spheres here that are focused on:      Firstly, for their schooling, the children follow the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) syllabus. As part of their academic curriculum, psychology is a subjec...

  We arrived at the opportunity to work at Snehagram as a result of a requirement of one of our subjects, i.e. “Service Learning” which is incorporated into the fourth-semester curriculum at Christ (Deemed to be University). The purpose of this course is to provoke and increase the student's sensitivity and awareness of social responsibility by providing first-hand knowledge and opportunities to apply his or her academic knowledge and skills. Furthermore, the community scouts volunteer to assist and strengthen disadvantaged groups. Thus, the university's goal is to integrate the relationship between students, classrooms, and the environment, resulting in a single learning experience that stands to benefit both the environment and the students. The student progresses towards making positive changes in society while enhancing his or her education. As a part of this requirement, we got the chance to work as volunteers at Snehagram. Snehagram formed a partnership with Christ U...

     “SPANDAN” is an initiative that originated in the Center for Social Action wing of CHRIST (Deemed to be University).  The university follows a partnership with Snehagram to provide Academic and Technical skills to the students of the facility in order to prepare them for the future as part of the SPANDAN Initiative.      The programme now includes four departments of the university regularly helping Snehagram to improve their academic and entrepreneurship skills. The Department of Psychology, in particular, hosts life skill seminars and assesses students' use of the same in their everyday activities. The programme focuses on sending a group of ten students and two teachers from the department, on alternate weekends to devote their time guiding the curriculum. The Psychology Department also sends 2 post-graduate interns to help the students with counselling support every week on Wednesdays and Thursdays. The university volunteers took up the work i...

We welcome you to the official blog of The Spandan Project, under CHRIST (Deemed to be University)!  - Archisha Arora, CHRIST (Deemed to be University)