The first week in the program was interesting as well as exhausting. Let’s start with the first day. On my first day, just like everybody else, I felt excited and nervous at the same time. I arrived at my classroom 30 minutes prior to the designated time. After a while, everyone else started to show up. At 09:00 AM our class started and the mentor told us to visit the platform “kalvium.community”. I didn’t know what to do, however, my mentor offered guidance and support which made things easy. As the first day proceeded, I understood what was happening little by little. I was able to assess and understand my work as the day went by.
I felt super nervous when it was my turn to introduce myself. As a result, I messed it up. However, by the end of the day, I had learnt so many new things and met so many new people, that everything felt positive. As the next day started, I felt more confident about myself and the new challenges coming my way. Nevertheless, there are times when I feel less confident in class. I feel like everyone around me is smarter and more aware and I on the other hand don’t know anything. But, as days went by, I got used to the new learning methods introduced to us by our mentors. It was still a little difficult to keep up however, it is much better compared to the first day. As time passes, I am confident that I will get used to the self-based learning setup of the Kalvium classroom.
Participating in class activities is sometimes challenging for me. For instance, when our mentor asked us to make a list of the good and bad qualities of our group mates. It was challenging for me to do so because I currently don’t even know the names of all my classmates. How am I supposed to know about their good and bad habits? It is challenging, but nevertheless interesting at the same time. Every day there are some new things we learn from our mentors and classmates. Additionally, every day is a hectic ride because we must do a bunch of assignments which take up time and energy. At the end of the day, after going back to my room, I feel exhausted, and a little disappointed as I am left with no time to pursue my hobby.
Moving forward, after a few days of classes, we were surprised to know that there are going to be divided into three Houses and we have to choose three Captains for the same. The next day we were auctioned into these three houses. We play different games and perform different activities as part of these groups. I am slowly learning how to manage my time and balance my academics with teamwork. I can confidently say that I have improved a lot as a learner in the last week. The first week at Kalvium taught me so many things. It is hectic indeed, but learning has never been more fun. I hope I can improve further and learn new things every day with Kalvium!
– Krittika Talwar