National Level  - Unit Advisers & Animators
        Training / Orientation Programme.

 

Two days Training Programme for the Unit Advisers and Animators was conducted on 24-25 January 2011, at AICUF National Secretariate, Chennai.

 

The programme started with the welcome speech by Niraj Lakra (NFT), followed by a melodious hymn, ‘We are gathering together unto Him’. The first day i.e. 24th January, was divided into three sessions. The first session was based on ‘Ground reality: Context & Educational scenario’. For this Dr. Ramu Manivannan associate Prof. Department of Political Science and Public Administration, University of Madras was invited to give a talk. He started the talk by stating that teachers were agents of change, transformation and revolution. And Jesus Christ is one of the earliest social revolutionaries. He continued by saying that how at every point of one’s life one had to fight for the justice. He explained this by giving various examples like monks coming on the street to protest against the government in Burma, exploitation of the people in Latin America in terms of economic development, Amazon people in Brazil, war crisis and rehabilitation task in Sri Lanka etc. The need of the hour was to empower people through knowledge and concern for the society. He told that teachers play a major role in shaping the minds of the students by taking classroom from the class to society for the democratic change. This could be done by trans-locating classroom into social milieu.
The next session of that day started with the introduction, history, constitution, commission of AICUF, which was taken by Fr. Erwin SJ. It was a very enriching session, where the delegates were informed about the history of AICUF, its formation, the thrust area on which it works i.e. Women, Aadivasis, Dalits and Refugees and the future ahead.
The third session of that day was based on the topic ‘Why AICUF & relevance of student’s movement’. The moderator for this session was Fr. Henry SJ. He made the session very interesting by putting up various questions like characteristics of students’ politics, appropriate strategy to make AICUF politics, possible challenges AICUF faces, politicising the students is waste of time, politics of marginalised, when should AICUF be political and A political etc. A panel for discussion was also arranged in which Fr. Claud D’Souza, Fr. K Amal, Fr. Henry (ex National Advisers), Prof. Benard D’Sami (ex National Animator), Dayna (ex NFT), and Niraj Lakra (NFT) were present. They shared their valuable experiences with the participants.
The second day i.e. 25th January, of that programme started at 9 a.m. with the session on skill development and role of advisers and animators. It was taken by Prof. Packiaraj. In his session he explained how an animator and advisers had to inculcate psychosocial abilities to understand the mindset of the students. Advisers and animators should be a role model who must be a very good listener and educator, who teach and learn in every communication and interaction with the members of AICUF, in particular. Ms. Dayna (ex NFT) and Niraj Lakra (NFT) shared their experiences. They explained how AICUF became a platform of opportunities, where critical thoughts evolved and transformation takes place. They told that it was a student’s movement and things should come out from the students. Advisers and animators should act as a guide and a felicitator to them.
After the lunch break Fr. M G Selvin Raj SJ the National Advisor, took the next session on ‘Commitment of AICUF’. While explaining the logo of AICUF, which consists of three petals for society, church and university students, he said that in present time the biggest question was why a person is hungry, poor and sufferer. The need of the hour is to become an activist. He continued by saying that AICUF is the movement which commits to march with the marginalised and includes those who are excluded. It is something like moving from centreric to periphery, finding spirituality for the students, searching information for formation, dos and don’ts etc. He added that AICUF now needs to be political and being political meant deciding and feeling the power within. It meant seeing things around, observing it and committing to bring change in the society.
The programme ended with the thanksgiving mass celebrated by Fr. Wenisch SJ the House Director.

 

Anabel Benjamin Bara
State Animator, M.P.