Chemistry Curriculum initiated Service as Action

If you have not helped someone in the day, you have not prayed that day!

- Dr Bindeshwar Pathak

Service as Action is an important aspect of IB curriculum as it helps to create balanced individuals who are equipped with skills to apply their knowledge in the real world along with being caring, compassionate and lifelong learners.

The Chemistry students of MYP-4 aligned their Unit ‘Acid Base and Salt’ decided to test various brands of cold drinks in the laboratory through a series of chemical tests in lieu of Service as Action. They detected the presence of sugar, phosphate, carbonate and were astounded to observe the high acidic content.

In spite of serious health concerns, the cold drink industry has not seen a dip in its sale records in the last few decades. Thus, the learners decided to sensitise a targeted audience within the school about it and spread the message to reduce the consumption of cold drinks.
After a lot of deliberation which involved collaboration and research, they realised that one needs to be aware of the pitfalls of consuming cold drinks from an early age. Hence, the PYP 5 learners at school were exposed to the MYP-4 learners demonstrating all the conducted chemical tests, along with a video showcasing their tests in the laboratory and the comparison of various results that showed how the consumption of cold drinks is harmful for a person’s health.

They also elaborated that alternative drinks like Amla Juice and Lemon squash ought to be preferable to the branded cold drinks that is consumed. In fact, they also demonstrated how they can be made easily at home. The PYP 5 learners were impressed and motivated enough to vow to avoid the consumption of cold drinks.