I’m proud to say I had a wonderful time helping to deliver the first Taqaddam workshop in the United Arab Emirates and Lebanon, an experience which was of course immensely terrifying and enormously exciting all at the same time! The Taqaddam workshops are being delivered across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, where youth unemployment is at a global high. The average period of unemployment for a young person in the MENA region can be as long as 36 months after leaving school. That’s three whole years of struggling to find that crucial first job. Taqaddam’s aim is to help young people to bridge the gap between education and work or further study, by better preparing them for that transition from childhood to adulthood.

In UAE, Dubai more specifically, the enthusiasm that radiated from the 140 young people in attendance at the workshop was totally infectious. Hosted in association with the British Council and HSBC, we had a huge group of attendees on the first day of the workshop. The workshop focused on the importance of building character strengths and soft skills in young people. This not only benefits their careers, but their ability to deal with life in general.

Many of the young people there were extremely excited to be involved in such an innovative and helpful initiative, which has been designed to help them to develop their aspirations and their confidence. The workshop experience as a whole was viewed positively, from the quality of the lunch to being able to meet new people, and many will be continuing on with their Taqaddam journey.

I also gained a lot from the experience, learning loads from my co-facilitator Dan in our quest to deliver an authentic workshop that would be as fun and engaging as possible.

The second round of workshops that I delivered took place in Beirut in Lebanon, and again this was an amazing experience to work with a different co-facilitator. This time, we faced particular challenges which meant I learned and grew a huge amount as a result. We had to literally embody some of the strengths that we were in turn teaching the young people–mettle, positive emotions and confidence. For that reason, amongst others, I really enjoyed this workshop.

The HSBC volunteers were invaluable in Beirut. They supported us brilliantly, working so hard to make the workshop as successful as it could be. Most of the young people involved expressed their excitement about the next part of their Taqaddam journey. I wish all of the students that I met the best of luck for their futures!

Reflections from Hasmita Chavda, written by Catherine Heath

Travelling to Qatar to deliver the first Taqaddam workshops, I was both excited and nervous. Qatar was a long way from home and I had no idea what to expect. My head was full of questions about what holding this first Taqaddam workshop would be like: would the students be enthusiastic? Would the workshop be a success? Only time would tell.

My co-facilitator Dan and I spent two days in Qatar working with groups of 15-16 year olds from various local schools. The schools are segregated so we delivered to a group of young men on one day, followed by a group of young women on the second day. The workshop helped the young people to identify and articulate their character strengths. I focused on creativity, what it means and how we can incorporate it successfully into a satisfying and inspiring future.

Interestingly, there were some apparent differences between the boys and girls’ approach to the workshop. Broadly speaking, the boys responded more competitively and the girls more cooperatively. The boys even asked me if they had done better than the girls in their workshop! Of course I told them the truththat both groups were great, in different ways.

I was truly touched by the girls’ sense of community and their desire to share resources with one another. One young woman revealed that she wanted to be a human rights lawyer, specialising particularly in women’s rights. Another expressed her dream to solve the issue of sustainable energy for the planet.

There was a strong sense of energy and vitality coming from the boys’ group. They were very humorous but remained polite and conscientious throughout. While the discussion began quite lightly and they expressed how proud of their schools they are, the reflections they eventually shared about their thoughts on creativity were genuinely humble.

There was a real sense in the workshops that, in today’s society, we may be lacking the ability to truly listen, trust and learn from one another. A feeling of connection is essential for creativity to flourish in the wider community.

One thing that particularly stood out was how creativity means finding the characteristic about yourself that makes you special and stand out, and how we should not be afraid of being judged. One participant said he realised that, while he hadn’t thought of himself as creative prior to the workshop, he now knew he was creative because he was a problem-solver.

Of course, creativity is essential for cooperative problem-solving, and both groups quickly caught on to the idea that creativity is not exclusive, nor does it require a rare originality unavailable to most people. Creativity is taking something very simple that already exists, and making it your own, making it extraordinary.

I felt uplifted and inspired after the workshopspurred on by the hope, intelligence and confidence exhibited by the young people taking part, and the sense of connection that we built together. It was an honour to see them paving the way for a creative, bright future.

 

Reflections by Priya Ghai

Taqaddam launches in Egypt

Having witnessed the Taqaddam programme evolve from scratch over the past six months, it was a truly incredible experience to see the delivery of Taqaddam, in the project lead’s countryEgypt. Together with two of our talented facilitators, Naomi and Ped, I travelled from the UK to Cairo, excited to see what the project would look and feel like in action.

We started our trip with a day of touring round the venue, holding briefing meetings with HSBC and the country team, and preparing materials and logistics. As the evening approached, we were ready for the inaugural day of Taqaddam workshops in Egypt.

On the morning of the first workshop we were greeted by bright skies and a host of school coaches from around the country pulling up at Victory College in Maadi. Smiling, enthusiastic students spilled out, ready to embrace their day of learning.

Inside the school hall, James Hampton, Deputy Director of the British Council in Egypt welcomed us all and introduced the day. After this, it was over to Naomi and Ped for a morning of character strength building and growth mindset development. Their delivery style provided the perfect vehicle for the students to really grapple with the content, with interaction and experiential learning at its’ heart. This spirit continued into the afternoon sessions, where students were divided into three groups and rotated around a “skills carousel.” The young people learned about working in a team whose task was to create the tallest spaghetti tower; they got creative finding innovative solutions to problems they face in their communities; and they looked at their own weekly schedules through the lenses of being organised planners. We were very grateful for Tamir, a teacher trainer from the British Council in Egypt, for delivering an engaging and inspiring organised planner session.

The second workshop was equally as fruitful. With Gail Campbell, Director of Education for the British Council in MENA, opening the day we were off to a very strong start. Each teacher was delighted to proudly introduce their students to the other four schools in the room at the start of the day, and the young people were energetic and eager to throw themselves into the tasks at hand. The feedback from the students and teachers during and after the event is a testament to the hard work the British Council country team have applied to the project.

All in all, the launch of Taqaddam in Egypt was a great success. We can’t wait to see how these promising young folk progress through the programme and beyond.