Special Issue (Round Square Virtual Symposium)

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Established: 1995

SPECIAL ISSUE

Saturday, August 22nd 2021

VIRTUAL SYMPOSIUM “There is more to us than we know. If we can be made to see it, perhaps for the rest of our lives we will be unwilling to settle for less.”

-Kurt Hahn, Founder of Round Square -Tanisha Bhadra, Editor-In-Chief

Round Square is an international network of 200 like-minded schools in 50 countries that connect and collaborate to offer world-class programmes and experiences that develop global competence, character and confidence in our students. The AVS Round Square Committee successfully organised yet another virtual conference of schools from around the globe.Twenty nine schools from five countries including United Kingdom, Oman, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and India joined the conversation revolving around diversity,

inclusion, stereotypes, uniqueness and world peace. The theme for this year was “Diversity is the art of thinking independently together”, advocating the first of the five IDEALS, Internationalism.By the end of the conference, students learnt that the only way to turn mere differences into strengths is accepting them. It is important to be inclusive and unprejudiced to create world peace. At the end of the conference, a collective resolution was passed by the school Round Square Representative, Dr. Pooja Jain and the Student Chairperson, Trinayana Saikia.

THE GRAND OPENING “There are two ways of staying young. The first is to commit the follies of youth, and the second is to surround yourself with youth.”

-Ms. Gitanjali JB, Keynote Speaker -Marwati Imsomg, XII

As we step out of the depths, and the world dives headlong into recovering epochs, we catch yet another glimpse of one of the many areas conquered through the assistance of technology. The opening ceremony marked the start of the Round Square Symposium 2021 hosted by The Assam Valley School, with delegates present from all around the world joining forces on a virtual platform and introspecting on the theme “Diversity is the art of thinking independently together”. The Chairperson for the AVS Round Square Community, Trinayana Sakia

gave a crisp speech on Diversity; followed by the Keynote speaker, Ms. Gitanjali JB who just seized the attention of the audience and mesmerized them with her neverending fountain of stories and views. The delegates were also graced by the presence of Mrs. Rajbir Sandhu and Regional Director General Surendra Kulkarni. The opening ceremony ended with students eagerly asking a trail of questions to the Guests who readily answered them with much enthusiasm, before scurrying to their respective Barazza groups.

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Weekly Newsletter of The Assam Valley Express

THE BUZZ AROUND

BARAZZAS

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The symposium was a diverse conference. Although on the virtual platform, the delegates of Barazza 1 developed a quick connect with each other. Led by Aditi Thekedath and Angelica Saikia, the Barazza had 8 enthusiastic delegates. Starting off with a fun game of “myth and fact”, it threw up misconceptions most nursed unconsciously. The delegates discussed stereotypes and culturaldifferences and the spirit that bound us together as a society.

The group leaders of Barazza Group 2 were Tanisha Bhadra from Class XII and Alda Nongmeikapam from Class XI. For the ice-breaking session, the delegates were made to play an online game called Skribbl. io. The number of delegates present was 13, all of them being from India, except for two who were from Bangladesh. The overall vibe of the session was immaculate. All of the delegates were highly interactive and everyone had a lot of fun.

Barazza 3 of the Round Square Symposium had 16 delegates. It was led by Yashodhara Mahanta and Barsha Goel from The Assam Valley School. The group had a friendly environment where the delegates put forward their opinions comfortably. The icebreaking exercise had each delegate introducing themselves and stating one feature that defined their home.

This was followed by an engaging discussion on the keynote speech.

-Angelica Saikia, XI

-Adella F. Massar, XI

-Aakanksha Kumar, VIII

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Barraza Group 4 was headed by Jiya Agarwal, House Prefect Jinari and Chesta Nowal. They commenced the conference with a buoyant icebreaking session in which they played convivial games such as – ‘Would you rather’ and ‘What makes you unique’ along with TwoTruths-and-a-Lie. The session led up to an enthusiastic discussion on topics such as- Stereotypes, Prejudices, World Peace, Accepting Differences, Different Biases and inclusiveness. The discussion threw out the different ideas people had about inclusiveness and celebrating differences. It was quite a thoughtprovoking discussion.

The group leaders for Barazza 5, Tanisha Surana and Gazal Panesar, with 17 delegates from India, Pakistan and Oman was diverse yet inclusive. For the ice-breaker, the delegates were introduced themselves and played ‘Would You Rather’ and ‘The Hot-seat’. Alima from PWS, Mumbai mentioned how yong people conversing about worldwide challenges was a progressive sight. “We all have cultural differences, perspectives, belief systems; however, at the end of the day, we need to keep the human nature surviving for future generations and learn from our experiences”, said another delegate.

The leaders of Barazza 6 were Sampada Malpani and Bipasha Haloi. The ice-breaking activity of Two-Truths-and-a-Lie helped ease the delegates and set the mood of the afternoon’s discussion.

The 15 delegates of the barazza were enthusiastic and proactive unhesitant to give their opinions.

Some of the major takeaways from the discussion in the Barazza group was the need for open-mindedness in our society, the need to accept and respect the differences in cultures. The participants also reflected on the keynote message and agreed that diversity needed an accepting society to flourish.

- Aanya P Sarkar, VIII

- Tanisha Surana, XI

- Sampada Malpani, XI

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Barraza 7 was led by Anam Aviva, XII and Hiyaneijemmy Das, XI. The session started off with the game of Gartic Phone, which brought out the delagtes’ chaotic fun energies. There were 13 delegates, one joining from Bangladesh. They shared their personal experiences on stereotypes and inclusiveness as well as their ideas on tackling issues. There was a very cozy and informal air about the session that allowed for open, productive, and inclusive discourse.

Barazza 8 of the Symposium was headed by Sanjana Barooah, House Captain Jinari and Lavanya Jindal. The afternoon began with a question round on what they would like to do after the pandemic. All fourteen members of the Barazza were very keen to participate in the discussion that revolved around diversity in a multi-cultural society. The participants shared their personal experience relevant to the topic making the afternoon session interactive and engaging.

Group 9 with barazza leaders Kashvi Bhartia and Angie Nonmaithem had twelve delegates.

The session began with an activity where the delegates introduced themselves and mentioned their hobbies. A fun game of Scrabble was played as an ice-breaking activity which settled the delegates and made them comfortable with each other. An interactive session it encouraged the delegates to share their opinions without hesitation making it an enriching experience.

- Hiyaneijemmy Das, XI

- Lavanya Jindal, XI

- Zaheen Shah, VIII

“Let our differences make a difference in the world” -Resolution, RS Symposium, 2021

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Barazza 10 of the Symposium had 16 delegates, including two students from Bangladesh, and was headed

by Neha Swabnam and Donovan Figg. The icebreaking activity was called ‘Guess the gibberish’, inspired from popular Instagram reels. The ensuing discussion threw up topics that ranged from religion to atheism, socialism, global equity, ending with diversity. The delegates participated enthusiastically and the topic which took center stage for the afternoon was globalization against internationalism. Opinions were as varied as they were diverse challenging ideas and mindsets.

21 August, 2021, The Round Square Symposium was a huge success.

Barazza 11 was led by Raseen Shah and Chinmoy Tamuli, who started off the session with an ice breaking activity called “Would you rather”. This led to open ended questions which in turn led to an energetic discussion by the 16 delegates including students from India, Oman and Bangladesh. The evening came to an end with a lively session where opinions were shared and accepted. “Why did it have to end so soon?”, one of the delegates.

The leaders as well as the delagates had a fulfilling discussion.

Aastha Bora and Karun Thapa from the Assam Valley School were the group leaders of Barazza 12. Everyone played Scribble as an ice-breaking activity. Mx Camilo River, a drama teacher at Markham College in Lima, Peru was present as the observer. There were 14 delegates from across India, Bangladesh and Oman.

They discussed prejudices and stereotypes, with the delegates presenting their creative posters.

They talked about how we should make judgements based on our experiences, appreciate unity in diversity and realise that people are more complex than the labels we give them. Everyone was interactive and brought home their views and opinions. The session taught us that we as individuals can share our thoughts and contribute to making the world a better place to live in..

- Donovan Figg, XI

- Chinmoy Tamuli, XI

- Anushka Jitani, IX

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Baraza 13 was a hotspot of lively discussion, headed by Shubhajeet Dasgupta and Ojas Ayapilla. For the icebreaker, the participants were made to learn about each other’s hobbies and how they tied in to helping them appreciate different genders and cultures. There were students from all nooks and corners of India- from India to Oman. The participants deliberated at length on topics regarding gender and cultural stereotypes, aided by videos and personal experiences. They learned to respect our differences and find the good in each other.

Barazza 14 of the Symposium was headed by group leaders Shripriya Kajaria and Riiariti Sohliya. The 14 delegates of the barazza got into a comfortable discussion post the icebreaking sessions. The discussions revolved around the topics of discrimination and prejudice. It was interesting that most delegates agreed that it was mindsets that needed to be changed in order to counter these social evils. The session concluded on a positive note with the delegates having engaged in a discussion that accepted and respected difference of opinion.

Barazza Group 15 consisted of eleven delegates from India, England and Bangladesh. The leaders were Fareeha Ambreem and Tiara Warji. For the ice breaking session, participants introduced themselves and spoke about what they were attached to in their place of belonging. Mollie from AKS, England said, “I have taken away the idea that it is a necessity to have an open mind and to ask questions in order to face stereotypes and overcome them.” Interestingly, all the core themes of the conference were touched upon.

- Ojas Ayapilla, XI

- Vasundhara Sanjenbam, IX

- Shrishti Bajaj, X

CLO S I NG C E R E MO NY -Aanya P. Sarkar, VIII Dr. Pooja Jain, the RS representative of The Assam Valley School began the closing ceremony by thanking delegates and the Barazza leaders for engaging in an enthusiastic discussion over the afternoon. Dr. Jain handed over the session to Trinayna Saikia, Student Chairperson of the Round Square committee at School

who read out the resolution drawn over the Symposium and delivered the vote of thanks. Dr. Pooja Jain then opened the floor to feedbacks from the participating delegates who were very positive and encouraging in their response. The Symposium was a success and was an engaging and enriching experience for all.

Editor-in-Chief: Tanisha Bhadra Deputy Editor: Moom Lego Associate Editors: Neelabh Kashyap, Eloziini Senachena Correspondents: Marwati Imsong, Raseen Shah, Ojas Krish, Donovan Figg, Lavanya Adhikari Design & Layout: Moom Lego, Tanisha Bhadra Illustrator: Eloziini Senachena, Ssara Jha Mistress-in-Charge: Ms. Sarmistha Paul Sarkar Publisher: The Assam Valley School, P.O. Balipara, Dist. Sonitpur, Asom-784101, India E-mail: ave@assamvalleyschool.com Patron: Dr. Vidhukesh Vimal, The Headmaster of The Assam Valley School 4

AVE, Monday, 22nd Aug