- What Went Well?
This week represented the culmination of the health education curriculum I designed. I delivered lessons on nutrition, exercise, and sleep, created and administered the final assessment, and graded the exams for all classes. These accomplishments directly supported my SMART goal of designing, implementing, and evaluating an educational intervention while generating recommendations that can be sustained after my placement ends.
Initially, I was discouraged when the class average was in the high 70s. Coming from the U.S. education system, I questioned whether I had failed as an instructor or whether I had not explained the material effectively enough. However, after reflecting on both the students' starting point and the local educational context, I realized my perspective had been shaped by my own assumptions. In India, a passing mark is 35%, making an average in the high 70s a strong performance. More importantly, these students began the course with virtually no foundational knowledge of health. Many did not know what carbohydrates or proteins were, or even which organ transports oxygen throughout the body. Achieving an average in the high 70s after only a few weeks of instruction represented tremendous educational growth.
I am incredibly proud of my students. Across Grades 8 through 10, and even among the younger classes, many students achieved perfect scores on sections of the assessment. Their curiosity, willingness to learn, and commitment to applying new concepts exceeded my expectations. One of my proudest moments came during the final practical assignment, where students were asked to bring a balanced lunchbox to school. Many arrived with rotis accompanied by protein-rich foods such as chana salad, demonstrating that they had internalized the concept of balanced meals rather than simply memorizing definitions. I was equally proud of creating culturally relevant macronutrient resources for common Gujarati vegetarian foods. Rather than encouraging students to abandon familiar meals, I emphasized balanced plate composition using foods already available within their communities. Seeing students apply these lessons gave me confidence that the knowledge may extend beyond the classroom and into their families.
2. What Could Have Been Done Differently?
One area I would improve is the translation of instructional and assessment materials. Although I worked closely with native Gujarati speakers to translate my English exam, I noticed while grading that one particular question had an unexpectedly high number of incorrect responses. After reviewing the assessment, I realized the wording had become ambiguous during translation rather than reflecting a misunderstanding of the underlying concept.
This experience reinforced that effective communication extends beyond simply translating words, it requires ensuring that meaning remains consistent across languages and cultures. In future assessments, I would pilot translated questions with local educators before administering the exam to minimize ambiguity and ensure I am accurately measuring student understanding rather than language interpretation.
3. Leadership Reflection (3Cs Model)
Values
The values most evident this week were Brave, Good, and Ambitious. Courage was especially important when teaching topics that challenged local gender norms surrounding exercise. I intentionally encouraged girls to participate in strength training by explaining its benefits for bone health, physical stability, and the prevention of metabolic disease. Using female cricketers as examples helped communicate that strength and femininity are not mutually exclusive. Although these conversations challenged prevailing societal expectations, I believed they were essential to promoting long-term health equity.
The value of Good guided my commitment to delivering culturally appropriate nutrition education rather than promoting unrealistic dietary ideals. Ambition motivated me to think beyond individual lessons and create educational resources that could continue benefiting future students and Sevaks after my internship concludes.
Character
This week tested my confidence, humility, resilience, and judgment. Receiving the exam results initially caused me to question my effectiveness as an educator, but reflecting on both the students' starting point and the local educational context helped me evaluate success more thoughtfully. Rather than allowing self-doubt to define the outcome, I learned to distinguish between absolute performance and meaningful progress. I also realized that leadership requires cultural humility when evaluating success. Instead of applying the standards I was familiar with in the United States, I needed to assess student achievement within the educational context in which they were learning. Judgment was equally important when deciding how to challenge existing health misconceptions while remaining respectful of local culture and traditions.
Capacities
I relied heavily on all three leadership capacities this week. Performance capacity was necessary to successfully deliver multiple health lessons, develop assessments, and analyze student outcomes. People capacity enabled me to communicate effectively across cultures and encourage students to embrace new health behaviors. Process capacity became increasingly important as I began organizing my findings into recommendations that can improve future programming. This week marked a transition from simply delivering education to evaluating impact and developing systems that can support long-term change.
4. Ethical Engagement
This week reinforced that meaningful public health work is measured by long-term behavior change rather than immediate outcomes. Initially, I focused on students' exam scores as the primary indicator of success. However, understanding the local grading system, recognizing the students' baseline knowledge, and observing them voluntarily apply nutritional concepts by preparing balanced lunches reminded me that genuine learning extends beyond written assessments.
I also became increasingly aware of the ethical responsibility to provide recommendations that are culturally appropriate and realistically achievable. Encouraging balanced Gujarati vegetarian meals rather than prescribing unfamiliar diets respected local traditions while still promoting healthier choices. Throughout the week, I found myself thinking less about delivering information and more about planting a foundation for future health behaviors. Lasting change often occurs gradually across families and generations, and my role was to plant a seed of knowledge that others can continue to nurture long after I leave.
5. Adjustment & Development for Next Week
Next week, I will shift my focus from implementation to sustainability. I will begin developing English instructional materials that incorporate multimedia resources such as videos to improve student engagement and create more durable teaching resources. In addition, I will analyze the assessment data collected throughout the program and prepare formal recommendations based on both my classroom instruction and village health visits. My goal is to produce evidence-based reports that can support future Sevaks, strengthen the educational curriculum, and provide lasting value to the school and surrounding communities after my internship concludes.