Sahil Sharma | 1st Year, B.tech. in Computer Engineering from Delhi Technological University
There are many challenges to securing the basic quality of education. In order to receive education, the student must be physically, mentally, and financially capable. Sahil Sharma’s story demonstrates how he tackled each of these issues with sheer determination and support from family and peers. Sahil hails from a family which was always supportive of his education. His father worked at a carpenter shop, but ensured Sahil got the best education available within their means. Sahil was always a high performer in his school. However, things changed in class nine when he moved to an English medium Govt. school, Rajkiya Pratibha Vikas Vidhayala, Rohini Sector 21.
Language is a major hurdle for students who move from a Hindi curriculum to an English curriculum. Switching from one language to another can be a massive challenge. Unlike in the moves, languages take time to grasp and understand their nuances. In particular, academic writing is furthermore challenging. Sahil was distressed by his failing grades. He was unable to follow his teachers in class and feared losing interest in education. However, slowly through consistent work and rock-like support from his family and teachers he was able to regain both his confidence and grades in this new English medium curriculum.
Having secured 90% in class 9th, he moved to class 10th when he enrolled with Gyankunj for guidance and academic support. He joined Gyankunj’s coaching classes and was able to make the most out of them. Aspiring to be an engineer, he took admission at a professional coaching center. Coaching centers are a very expensive affair even for the brightest of students. It took a lot of research to locate an affordable facility. Gyankunj was able to raise Rs. 226,000 for Sahil’s admission at that coaching center. Sahil continued his relationship with Gyankunj even after he joined a professional coaching centre. His confidence in Gyankunj was very strong due to their efforts towards his dreams.
While joining the coaching center was an excellent opportunity it came with its own set of challenges. Since all coaching is cantered in certain parts of Delhi, Sahil had to commute 3 hrs each day to and from coaching. At coaching, he found himself in a completely new world of high-performing students, uber-stressing environments, and speed-reading teachers. His marks were taking a dip, so was his motivation and consequentially his interest in a few of his subjects. He salvaged his holidays to work harder and improved his grades. While he was trying to get a hold of things, the pandemic swept the country, or rather the world.
During Covid, everything went online. Sahil had issues technologically as he was unable to secure a device. His government-issued digital tablet was broken and his phone overheated. As fate would have it on top of all of this he started suffering medically. He had to pause his education and get medical treatment for some time. This put a lot of pressure on him, but he focused on recovering. His first attempt at JEE was unsuccessful but he was able to secure a seat at the prestigious Delhi Technological University in the second attempt.
Sahil was looking forward to complete his B.tech. and contribute to the betterment of his family and himself. He is grateful to his parents for their constant support and is a champion of positive thinking and social services. Sahil witnessed how crowdfunding by Gyankunj was able to donate funds towards his tuition fee at DTU. In Sahil’s words “Believe in yourself and don’t lose hope, there is always a sunrise after a scary night”
