Psychology has been in me for so long, it feels like a phantom limb now. One of the best things that I like to do is spreading the knowledge of psychology to other people. That’s why I planned my CAS Project to revolve around psychology.
Eating disorders are not generally very well known, and if a person is aware about them, they generally have wrong information regarding them. To busts myths regarding eating disorders and spread truthful information, me and my fellow classmates planned a session to spread awareness about eating disorders with Fountainhead Teachers during the Eating Disorder Awareness week, 2020.
LO1 : As a psych student and lover, I already knew a lot about eating disorders. However, the thing which I am not very good at is communicating with masses without losing my cool. Hence I took this project as a means to improve upon my self-confidence and esteem, and I have to admit I am much more confident in my abilities after this session.
LO2 : Although I have planned sessions for students before, this was my first time planning as a lead planner for teachers. Our content had to be varied according to our audience, and hence we presented a much more detailed and mature content for this project. Another challenge I faced was coordinating everything in a way that it was feasible for everyone. Taking into account our classes and teacher’s busy schedules, we had to fit this session in a way that it acted as a refreshing appetiser with abundant information.
LO3 : This entire project was planned from scratch by me and my team, with the guidance from our psychology teachers. From finalising what activities we wish to conduct (after much debate about accessibility and how to avoid boring our audience), to gathering all the resources (getting them from the school after telling our supervisors to order them), to getting it all approved by our supervisory teachers, this project brought out the best of skills in all of us. The invitation for this event, along with the form of participation was also made by me. I was also in charge of the decorations, hence all the materials needed for the makeshift mirror photo booths, the clay for our doll making activity, and the stash that was to be torn at the beginning of the session were made and managed by me.
LO4 : There were a lot of times where we were all tired and frustrated, mainly in finalising our activities and arranging the time slots, where we felt like we just need to get this done and over. However, our sense of responsibility and fairness got us overlooking that idea quickly, and we jumped into the process again with headfast determination. Hence, we demonstrated perseverance and commitment to our project.
LO5 : If our thinking and activities were the pieces that constituted this project, then teamwork was the glue that kept it together. The thought two heads are better than one is completely relatable to this project, expect this had three heads rather than two. The ideas for our activities increased momentously after all three of us chipped in, and the evaluation of our activities was much better too, as one could point out the pro or con that the other missed, and these perspectives helped us make our event much better. Teamwork also lead to us having much sweeter memories and accomplishments, and I will not forget the experiences this event gave me the opportunity to relish in.
LO6 : The global issue this project focused on was quality education and good health and well being. There has been a lot of misinformation about eating disorders among people, who believe they are just a phase and that the individual suffering from them would get over it. Our prominent purpose for this project was to break that myth. Eating disorders are much more than just a phase–they are complex psychological disorders that unattained and ignored may lead to severe health complications and even death. This Project worked towards spreading this quality information about eating disorders, and encouraging people to follow a healthier mindset to improve their health and well being.
LO7 : The ethical considerations of this event were upholded. We made sure to not reveal any confidential information of our audience to any external sources, and also made sure that any information we displayed was true and reliable.
Learner Profile : This project made a better communicator, as I took on the challenge of spreading awareness about eating disorders to about 20 teachers. This event also helped me become knowledgeable and responsible of my actions. I made sure to be open minded and not judge any person for their personal opinions, along with having healthy debates on points we disagreed on. I also became reflective as I thought about how my actions may be the small step towards the awareness that eating disorders deserve.
In conclusion, the Bewitch and Repel CAS Project helped me become a better version of myself and improve my skills, along with making me a small part of a large event by enabling me to spread much needed awareness about Eating Disorders.
The link to our final presentation : https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1By-5Q1-slLj3r3OWlj3HLCpUYvX_4CGTofUxCbEf0qs/edit?usp=sharing
