Simlie Chakraborty
Today’s students are
tomorrow’s leaders!
International Students’ Day is a global event, celebrated on November 17 every year. It is celebrated to remember the bravery of thousands of students in Prague who fought for national pride and the right to higher education. During In 1939 the Nazi forces arrested and executed nine protesters without trial and transported over 1200 students to concentration camps. Many did not survive. International Students’ Day commemorates their sacrifice. The first observance took place at the International Students’ Council in London in the year 1941 where the students decided to celebrate 17 November as International Students’ Day every year. Since then, many organisations and international student groups have continued to observe the day.
17 November can be celebrated by organising various cultural programmes in the educational institutions to represent unity in diversity. Fancy dress parade, depicting the diverse culture of the world can also be displayed. Students will develop a feeling of fellowship, appreciation of diverse cultures and promote respect for one another.
Sports competitions can be conducted to promote healthy competition among the competitors of different culture. Scholarships and financial grants can be awarded to the weaker students who are unable to bear the educational expenses and for whom education is still a distant dream. On this day, students can also participate in various activities like essay writing competitions and debates to express themselves. Such activities will help to know more about different cultures and encourage more and more engagement of the students.
Education has been the essence of life and has been given priority over all other things. It is the spine of every nation and is also the key to empowerment. Malala Yousafzai, a Pakistani female education activist, once said “one child, one teacher, one pen and one book can change the world.”
Many great people like Thomas Alva Edison, Albert Einstein, Stephen Hawking and others have proved that although the world underestimated their talents, they never overestimated their problems and never allowed themselves to be defined by the world. They gave their own definition about themselves. Let us take them as a source of inspiration so that we can reach the pinnacle of success.
Life is precious. Everyone has the right to enjoy it to the fullest by educating oneself. Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today. It is rightly said that education has power to change the world. Create your own pathways to progress! So be educated and spread education as enlightenment of human personality.
(Simlie Chakraborty is teacher at St. Xavier’s School, Sahibganj, Jharkhand, India.)