Need for a transition phase
However very recently since the last 2 years we have been feeling that after a period of 2 years, the sewing skills of each one (the primary skill component of the 2 year program) is sufficient to make them cut, sew and make simple Indian clothes like salwar-kameez, blouses, shirts, pants – but what they lack is quality that would take their work to a commercial-public level – they are currently sewing the local clothes (sometimes for a small fees) for their friends and family, but if they want to start their own business or work at a larger enterprise they need to invest a lot more time to get the perfection of finish and also learn clothes which are not only Indian but more western like skirts, dresses, jackets, trousers etc.
This would have been possible for them to learn within 2 years, if this was just a job-oriented vocational education course for sewing alone, but this is not the case when we cover a range of activities, that includes not only sewing, but also crochet and knitting, typing (small batches of 4 students who want to appear at the typing exam, get extra coaching in this field) and computers as vocational skills; English, Mathematics as functional skills, chanting in Tamil/Sanskrit with orientation to their cultural background, plus the societal skills of discussing their problems and looking at solutions from outside and within themselves - using psychology related exercises, empowering their innate core talents, health-related sessions, etc. This spans over the 2 years and so the time allocated within this for sewing (or any single skill) alone is limited. Because of this, we have planned to extend an additional 1-1.5 years program for all those students who complete the minimum 2 years and are interested in perfecting one or two skills (tailoring and crochet, or computer and typing), and call it the transition phase.
The word ‘transition’ is used to express the phase that they will not be like the students as in the first 2 years attending all the classes (English, mathematics, discussions, chanting, empowerment, besides computers, typing, crochet, tailoring), but as students having some of these classes per week; they are the ones who would have to devote in work-skills and have special trainers in that skill component (computer teacher and fashion designer). To this extent, we are interested that the Auroville units who are interested in promoting this ‘apprenticeship’ phase, would send their trainers from time to time as resources and also help support the stipends of these students.