Service-Learning in Hindi Classes

Images From Delhi Young Artists Forum
images from Delhi Young Artists Forum

Every semester in our Hindi class, we have sessions where we interact and work alongside an NGO in Delhi. I’ve met with this particular NGO several times over 3 semesters. We focus on different topics in each one. For example, last year we discussed Covid-19 and how it was affecting people in India. The girls from the NGO told us about the support they give to the community such as making and handing out masks, distributing food, among other things.

This semester, along with the main conversations we had with everyone including other Hindi classes, our intermediate Hindi class also taught English to the girls in the NGO. During the main section, we all sang songs and read out loud the Hindi poems and haikus that we had written in class. It’s always fun and I’m so impressed by everyone’s creativity. My favorite part is when some girls from the NGO sing songs because their voices are so beautiful. This semester, two of them had written an original song that they shared with us. It was nice to talk again with the people that I had met before in previous semesters. Some of them who I had talked to before recognized me and told me it was good to see a familiar face.

After the main section, my intermediate Hindi classmates and I taught English to the NGO. We had spent weeks preparing “English for Life” lessons, which included things such as American slang, casual greetings, and idioms you would not usually find in typical books. We taught them things such as what “cap” and “SHEEESH” meant. We also taught them knock-knock jokes and had them repeat them back and forth to each other. It was a really fun experience for both sides. By the end, the girls from the NGO were using English words to communicate with us. They were saying “Amazing! Awesome!”, which was really heartwarming to see.

Below are a few comments from my classmates about the experience:

Rithik: “The NGO visit was a great experience! We had the opportunity to speak with native Hindi speakers not too far from our age and learn more about the amazing work that they do. We also got the opportunity to help them practice English introductions and greetings, alongside a few aspects of the English language which you wouldn't find in a textbook such as English slang!”

Ali: "I had a chance to practice my Hindi. I really enjoyed practicing my vocabulary. Sometimes it would be hard to find words and remember grammar tenses. I could have practiced tenses more. I think a list of all the grammar tenses and common phrases would be useful. I enjoyed meeting new people and learning about their own experiences. They were very nice and interesting. I would like to talk with them more to improve my Hindi. I would also love to help teach them English."

Naveen: “I thoroughly enjoyed meeting the people who are a part of the NGO in my Hindi class. It was rewarding to interact with them in Hindi while learning more about the work they do. All of them were lively and welcoming and were open to talking to us in Hindi. Additionally, we had prepared an English lesson for the students, and they did a phenomenal job of learning the material."

Overall, I was inspired by the NGO participants’ excitement to learn from and share their experiences with us.

 

This event was supported and funded by Asian & Middle Eastern Studies and Duke Service-Learning.