CAS- Essay
CAS was my favorite core component out of three. I love the whole idea and aim of this subject, Creativity, Action, and Service which was done for 18 long months really help me to rejuvenate myself.
The first activity that comes to my mind when I think about CAS is my CAS project that I organized which was about spending a day special kids. This is an event which is very close to my heart as this was a very first time where I initiated an event. Though this event is very close to my heart this a very difficult event, we faced many problems before, during and after the event however those problems gave me more experience and showed me the areas where I had to improve and also helped me to develop the person I am today. One of the main reasons why this event is special because my partner and I were able to give a stage to normal students to spend time and do activities with special kids and be a part of their life.
I have learnt a lot from CAS like- having patience, time management, cooperation, but most importantly going out of comfort zone. Each and every activity made me go out of my comfort zone, it was hard but it beneficial as it gave huge amount experience that I could use for my future and also helped me to develop myself. Every activity was a learning experience for me and a whole new insight into myself. The Service activities made me more open-minded, reflective, caring and tolerant to the world around. In addition, I also realized how important being a good communicator and a well-balanced student was.
In these 18 long months I have learnt tons and tons of different things which always helped me to grow better as a person. Before going into IB I was never a good communicator, I never went out of my comfort zone to do something, but after joining IB and doing CAS I developed and learnt many new things like- Never giving up, taking risks, developing myself of being a balanced student between studies and extracurricular activities and the most important going out of my comfort zone. As I learnt many things from CAS I also faced many difficulties from doing CAS like- I never took risk in any activity because I was too scared to fail but CAS has taught me that “Failure is not a problem, it’s a learning process” which means that there will be tons and tons of problems thrown at your way but the most important thing is how you tackle those problems and win.
The learning outcomes were really helpful in understanding the purpose and end goal of the experience and each activity. However, there were a few LOs that were difficult to achieve like- Demonstrate engagement with issues of global significance, but I engaged myself into activities were either about working collaboratively or developing areas for growth. Activities that came under Service were only ticking off the sixth learning outcome and I didn’t really indulge myself in Service related activities too much. But when I got to know the importance of this learning outcome I realized the importance of it and conducted my CAS project on it.
As this core component has helped me a lot, I would 100% recommend doing it because this only helps a person in being a better version of themselves as well as making a better version of the society and the environment that we live in. CAS has helped me immensely in developing myself toward being a responsible, time managing, patient and overall being a good person, Although it has its own difficulties, but the final outcome is seen in myself and is very special.