Media Release

Panjim, Aug 18: Porvorim-based NGO Sangath-that focuses on child development, adolescent and youth health, and mental health issues organised a workshop on the 'School Counsellor Program' at the Hotel Mandovi, here on Wednesday, August 18.

It was attended by representatives from the Department of Education, the Archdiocesan Board of Education, the principals of ten schools and other partners of Sangath.

This workshop aimed to disseminate the feasibility, acceptibility and effectiveness of the WHO Health Promoting School model used by Sangath in the SHAPE and Manthan program for ten schools of Goa.

SHAPE is the School Heatlh And Empowerment Programme, which aims to promote the health and wealth being of students in nine secondary schools of Goa.

This was followed by a discussion on scaling up this model in more schools of Goa as part of the government's school counselling program.

Officials of the education department responded positively to the outcomes of the programme. The government is trying to extend the availability of counsellors by having one for every school complex in Goa (which involves a maximum of nine schools each).

This could be a start, some participants felt, pointing out that the tasks were huge.

In feedback received, educationists stressed to avoid ghettoising counselling, and work to remove the stigma that wrongly goes with it.  Headmistress Irene Cardoso stressed that if more additional programmes were to be fitted into the school-day, it would make sense to extend working hours on schools at least on certain limited days of the week.

Educationists both from the mining and coastal areas expressed their satisfaction with the positive impacts of the programme, and made some specific suggestions on how its impact could be improved.

The question of scaling-up the impact of such initiatives, so that it could make a bigger difference to education in Goa,  was also discussed.

For further details, contact Achira 9011059851.