Unfortunately due to the outbreak of Covid-19, we have been unable to see the service partners face to face since my last reflection. That being said, we still worked to plan sessions given that it was possible the restrictions could have been lifted. We also worked on the portfolio for our service and communicated to the service partners via email, providing them with an update and asking for feedback on our activities. This will enable us to collaborate effectively (LO5) with the new grade 11’s next year to ensure that they can build on our progress and relationships formed with the service partners.
We were planning to do an activity with the junior school in order to further develop our skills when working with younger children, however, due to the transition to online learning, this was no longer possible. As chair, I made sure that everyone had a task and we divided the group so that we worked collaboratively (LO5) on each of the tasks. Perhaps an ethical decision was weighing the safety of the students with their mental well being. For them, coming to visit our school is a break in their daily cycle and they get very excited to be in such a new environment. That being said, their safety is of utmost importance so it was more important that we minimised contact with others to protect them.
Overall, I feel as though my experience as chair of the service has enabled me to understand and respect people a lot more. I gained a huge appreciation for the difficulties facing HI and VI students in terms of communication and day to day life. As I wish to pursue Medicine in the future, I believe this experience has given me an important insight into the respect for all human lives as well as how to empathise and communicate with all different kinds of people. Furthermore, as the leader of the service, I was able to further build upon the leadership skills that I first developed in football (see reflections) and grow more confident in organising sessions. (LO2) Lastly, given the circumstances that we experienced, I feel as though we were able to effectively collaborate as a group to help the children and understand how to effectively work as a group. (LO2 and LO5)
