TYW
through its members continues to contribute to youth development at different
levels. On Saturday 9th August
2014, Yassin Nyan a founding member of Think Young Women was invited to a youth
camp at Gunjur.
The
session was part of activities of a 10 day youth leadership and Gold Award
programme (of the President’s International Award) in which the participants
took part in a range of activities including community service visits, a 40km walking
expedition and socialisation activities among others. The camp was organised by
the SOS Hermann Gmeiner Technical Senior Secondary School Unit of the
President’s Award Scheme.
Yassin
was an award winning student of the SOS Hermann Gmeiner Upper Basic School from
2004 to 2007 who was actively involved in extracurricular activities and held
various positions of responsibility and leadership whilst in the school. She
was selected as Head girl in her final year in the school and she left the
school in 2004 when she sat to the Gambia Basic Education Certificate
Examination (GABECE) and made A1s in all the nine subjects that she sat
creating a record in the school yet to be beaten. She is now a student of the
University of The Gambia School of Medicine about to start the 5th
year of her 7 year programme of study for a BSc. In Medicine and Surgery.
Yassin’s
session with the students started out with introductions and each student
telling her what their career plan was and why they would like to pursue that
course of study. This formed the basis of the discussion during which she
shared her educational experiences and also teased out the students’ strengths
and weaknesses in their different courses of learning and shared her opinion as
to how that contributes in determining career choice and success.
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A cross-section of adults and adolescents listening keenly to Yassin. |
Two power
issues came up and these were self-esteem and confidence building and the need
for hard work as there is no shortcut to success. And the importance of
vocational training in national development and in job opportunities and that
it is in no way inferior to white collar jobs despite what some people may
think. A student in Grade 11 Commerce, stated that she still hadn’t decided
what she wants to do. To that she responded that life is a voyage of discovery
and that she had the same problem too in deciding what she wanted. This came to
highlight the importance of mentorship guidance and career counselling which
helped her decide to go Medical school, a decision she has never regretted. She
encouraged the students identify role models and try to get close to adults who
can guide them on career paths, to engage their parents in inter-generational
dialogue regarding career choices as a lot of the time parents try to force
their children into certain fields when that is not what they want or that is
not where their talents/interests lie.
This
was followed by question and answer session. The students wanted know who her
role model is, how she copes with medical school with work and her youth
activities, what advise she had for students who want to go to medical school,
what she wanted to specialise in as a doctor and some miscellaneous questions
relating to health and medicine and adolescent reproductive health.
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| Students listening keenly at the open session |
Yassin is still considered a role model in all the schools she’s been to and students look up to her and try to attain and break her academic achievements. Some students in her high school actually have! So the standards keep getting higher with a good example to follow.
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Inculcating self awareness and awareness of children and women’s issues from an early age. |
