The Tuai Kasih Project by Small Changes MY drew its curtains on Saturday, 8th of April 2023 with a final visit to Rumah Raudhatul Al-Faeez in Gombak. With some 23 beneficiaries consisting of boys aged six to 20 years old, about 10 volunteers from Small Changes MY visited their home to introduce the kids to digital literacy. 

This time around, to get insight of the experience, we sat down with one of the committees that had volunteered for this visit, Alif Aiman, who is also fondly known by his peers (and me!) as Q. The Tuai Kasih Project was his first real experience with volunteering, and Rumah Raudhatul Al-Faeez was  his second visit for the entirety of the project.

“Volunteering was an eye-opening moment for me,” Q muttered when approached on this matter. “It has taught me to be more empathetic, to be more grateful and to be more open and not stereotyping people into certain types of stigmas, as humans are all created equally,”. As a first-timer in volunteering, Q noted that he was definitely nervous, but the moment the modules began, everything went on smoothly and wonderfully.

As it was a fasting month, the Tuai Kasih Project for this visit ended early at 2pm with three modules conducted with the beneficiaries. In conjunction with the theme ‘Digital Literacy’, all of the kids at Rumah Raudhatul Al-Faeez have already beforehand been provided with a Samsung tablet each, by our collaborator and partner, Axiata Foundation.

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The first module served as an introduction to the kids on how the digital aspects of technologies (social media, editing software, education tools, etc.) are very much needed in this day and time, as an essential life skill. During the module, handsomely named ‘Explore Digital Land!’, the beneficiaries were divided into three smaller groups according to the three different learning types – Visual, Kinaesthetic and Auditory. The module also included a Quizziz session, to test the level of knowledge that they had about the different types of digital softwares that they already knew.

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The next module was called ‘Be a Content Creator’. Q was in charge of this particular module, and his thought process when drafting it with his other fellow Small Changers is that they wanted to equip the beneficiaries with the skills that they should have for the outside world. Prior to entering university, Q himself did not know of the existence of editing softwares like Canva or Capcut. He was personally exposed to these types of applications very late, when he was already enrolled in his university, and finds it very helpful if Rumah Raudhatul Al-Faeez kids are provided with the opportunity to learn them earlier on in their lives.

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Once the volunteers had taught the kids on how to use these applications, each group was tasked with making a Birthday poster for a friend using the Canva software. From this experience, the beneficiaries are able to learn and apply what they have learned directly, further enhancing their experience with the digital world. 

The third and final module, ‘Creative Digital Space’ was conducted in the form of a healthy competition. The volunteers first explained the importance of digital software tools in entrepreneurship and how it is implemented in Ramadan Bazaars during the fasting month. The beneficiaries were then tasked with producing videos or posters, to promote their food to their friends. All of the kids were super engaging during their presentation session, and the winner was determined by the number of sales each group received after the presentation.

“What made the experience memorable for me is the kids just kept on trying no matter what,” Q muttered, with sparkling glimmers in his eyes. He really adored the kids. Even if the beneficiaries were not very fluent when presenting in English, they still tried their very best because they wanted to learn

Where Q came from, education is not a top priority. He had seen plenty of his friends drifting apart in the huge waves that life takes them with, and some of them eventually drown into the background. “Volunteering with Small Changes is especially pertinent to me because they focus on education and English proficiency,” And the one main determiner that differed his life from his friends who had drowned was ultimately, education. 

So he’s doing this in remembrance of his peers that didn’t make it, and to all of the youngsters who have dreams, but are not given the helping hand that can aid them closer to their dreams. 

 

Written by: Kartini Jasmin & Alif Aiman
Designed by: Sabrina Ruslan