BIS #2984 CELEBRATING THE INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF CO-OPERATIVES

BIS Mumbai                                  

BOSCO INFORMATION SERVICE #2984

CELEBRATING THE INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF CO-OPERATIVES

 

WADALA, JUNE 27, 2012: The school assembly provides the ideal platform for impacting the consciences and the values of a child.  It is here, outside the classroom, that the child brought closer to the vicissitudes of life gets an opportunity to move away from the beaten path and join the banner of social change in a manner that he only can.  Following the UN theme for 2012, "The International Year of Cooperatives", this year the higher classes of the school are given the task to come closer to this theme and reality at the weekly assemblies.  Std. X A took up the challenge to introduce this UN theme to the school at the very first weekly assembly held on June 25, 2012.

 

The task was daunting – since it was a move away from the customary set theme of an assembly – and the class teacher, Ms. Marilyn Dias and the students took up the gauntlet and came up with an amazing performance.  Innovative and well researched, informative and relevant, the assembly had all the features of an absorbing assembly. The presentation was brought alive by a panel of five active members of various co-operatives (enacted by our students) who were eager to answer the queries of the students about the purpose and functioning of co-operatives. Coming from a diverse set up – food cooperative shop in a hotel campus, dairy cooperative, health-based cooperative based in Singapore, and a renowned figure of international cooperatives – the panelists were able to explain the working of a cooperative with the help of some relevant examples.  A power point presentation, colorful self-explanatory charts and a video clipping further livened up the proceedings.

 

In his message, Fr. Vivian D'Souza, spoke about creating 'class circles' as an effective way of practically living out this theme of cooperatives.  It can work at two levels:  one, a brighter child assisting a weaker child; two, acquiring (and thus passing on) more knowledge through research.  In this manner, each class would turn out to be a cooperative that provides self-help and every opportunity to grow. Congratulating the class teacher and the students of Std. X A, the Principal, Fr. Bernard Fernandes, endorsed the idea of cooperatives in the school put forward by Fr. Vivian, and encouraged the staff and the students to work effectively towards achieving this target in the new scholastic year.  It can be the first step towards building a wider scope of cooperatives where business is transacted with a focus on human need and not human greed.

BOSCO INFORMATION SERVICE (BIS) MUMBAI

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