Aanika's journey with Learning Beyond Boundaries

It was just another Saturday night. Except it wasn’t.   

That Saturday, almost three years ago, my world was rocked by a grainy Zoom screen—its shaky service slowly revealing the grinning faces of 30 girls bundled in puffy clothes and patterned hats, essential for the harsh Kashmiri winters. Huddled around the device, their eyes shone with genuine excitement as they shouted in unison, 'Good morning didi!' These were the girls I’d been entrusted to teach conversational English. I was nervous, excited, hopeful, and also scared that my words might get lost in translation. But I pushed through, briefly glancing at my mother for support, and stumbled out a greeting: 'Hi! Mera naam Aanika hai!' The rest was history. 

Well, not quite. “Conversational English tutor” is an accurate phrase to describe my role when I began collaborating with the Borderless World Foundation (BWF). BWF was founded by Adhik Kadam in 1997 to provide ‘Human Touch' and shelter to the people of border areas who lost their loved ones in religious violence and armed conflict in the Kashmir region on the India-Pakistan border. The girls are not only orphans from conflict zones but also face the challenges of displacement, living in harsh, mountainous conditions. Adhik began this work as a student with little more than a deep passion to change the lives of these girls. Now, 27 years later, he is a renowned social activist, and BWF supports 5 homes for 250 orphaned girls across Jammu and Kashmir. Adhik’s work transcends race, religion, and geography, with the goal of nurturing a new generation of female peacemakers. So, when a family acquaintance connected us, and he asked me to be a peer tutor and help the girls improve their English so they felt confident when they left for higher education, I jumped at the opportunity without hesitation! 

Teaching had been my passion for years—I’d tutored math and science at my high school, worked as a camp counselor for Girls Rock Math! and assisted at a school for neurodiverse learners. So, leading online classes each Saturday, covering vocabulary, grammar, and mock conversations to help them formulate thoughts in English, felt familiar. Yet, I noticed that the girls would barely speak on their own account and only two or three older girls dominated the conversation while the others stayed quiet. It wasn’t due to a lack of understanding or interest; their homework showed mastery, and they eagerly took notes each class. The issue was their lack of confidence. 

I realized I needed to look deeper. Teaching grammar and vocabulary would be meaningless without first building the girls' confidence and identity. I collaborated with a local ESL teacher in the U.S. to create a new, unique curriculum that addressed the fundamental gaps I saw. It focused on three principles: nurturing their inner child, drawing out their individuality and encouraging self-expression, and developing technical, research, and presentation skills to help them dream big. 

I wanted to make learning truly fun and help the girls reconnect with their inner child. What better way to do that than introducing them to Junie B. Jones, the mischievous yet ever questioning and confident character from the popular children's book series? Through reading and answering questions, the girls reflected on Junie B.’s adventures, learning lessons about curiosity, respect, and growing from mistakes. More importantly, I used her character to show them the power of embracing their quirks and uniqueness. It worked! One of my happiest moments was hearing Simran, one of the older girls, say that reading Junie B. Jones and a Little Monkey Business made her realize it’s okay to be a little 'bindaas' (carefree). Hearing the girls laugh and seeing their thoughtful reflections on her character showed me that this small change was having a deeper impact. 

We often group disadvantaged individuals together, overlooking their unique identities. It’s easy to define the BWF girls as 'orphans from conflict zones,' reducing them to their struggles and ignoring their distinct identities, interests, and dreams—something Adhik envisioned nurturing when founding BWF. I caught glimpses of this during our lessons, mentioning a love for Justin Bieber or daily activities like badminton and dancing. To encourage self-exploration, I designed the “Who Am I” presentation, breaking it into sections: basic facts, favorites, personality traits, hobbies, and future career aspirations. Each aspect helped the girls learn vocabulary and critical thinking, diving into the why behind the what. Questions like “What are your negative traits?” or “Why do you enjoy badminton?” sparked deeper insights. One of my most memorable moments was when Bhavya, one of the older girls, shared that before this activity, no one had ever asked about her personal interests. This activity gave her the chance to explore herself in new ways, boosting her confidence. 

I didn’t just want the girls to explore their individuality—I wanted to help them discover their hopes and dreams to thrive in the future. Coming from disadvantaged backgrounds, breaking the cycle of poverty and dreaming big can feel impossible, despite their talent and support from BWF. My goal was to equip them with the confidence, knowledge, and hope to pursue any career, no matter how unrealistic it seemed. To achieve this, I emphasized digital learning—not only teaching via Zoom but also helping the girls research and work online through platforms like Google Classroom and EdPuzzle. This boosted their digital literacy skills, organization, and long-term learning. Through the 'Who Am I?' presentation, they learned to enhance their presentations, answer open-ended questions, and research the path to their dream careers. Watching the girls work through this was incredible. Their dream careers fit them perfectly, yet also surprised me. Nilza aspired to be an army officer, and Sonam dreamed of becoming an engineer. With their newfound knowledge and skills, I was confident they were ready to pursue their dreams. 

As I guided the girls through the tailored curriculum, often sharing personal stories—even giving an impromptu house tour—I realized I was learning just as much from them. Somewhere between my late Saturday nights and their early Sunday mornings, our relationship naturally shifted from teacher and student to true friends. Being close in age, we bonded easily over music, funny words, Hindi movies, cute pandas, and weekly bouts of laughter over silly things. I felt truly welcomed into their sisterhood and community, and I can’t thank Adhik enough for the chance to engage with these incredibly genuine people. In reconnecting with them, I also reconnected with my Indian heritage and identity. 

After the success of the tailored curriculum, Adhik asked me to expand it to his 4 other homes across Jammu and Kashmir. I knew I needed help, so I trained the older girls in Jammu and recruited three passionate student leaders from the U.S. to assist. One of them, Gia Gupta, has been an incredible teacher, helping lead the 'Who Am I?' presentations and creating lessons, videos, and curriculum. Together, we built a digital platform with online learning and assessments that the girls could engage with asynchronously. As we expanded to the other homes, we realized the girls needed more devices to access the digital platform. To raise funds for this, I established Learning Beyond Boundaries as a non-profit and raised enough money to buy a few devices for each home. This allowed us to replicate our tailored curriculum and scale and grow Learning Beyond Boundaries, to impact other non-profits as well. 

While virtual classroom engagement was incredibly gratifying for me, meeting the girls, Adhik, and the BWF team in person during my November 2023 visit was truly life changing. One Saturday, I was teaching the younger group, affectionately called the Rising Stars, over Zoom, and the next, I found myself on Thanksgiving Break, traveling down a rocky, unpaved road toward the Borderless World Foundation house in Jammu. The tall building, with its colorful banner, represented many things: an ongoing project to the workers, a life's dedication for Adhik, a sanctuary for the girls, and to me, the most inspirational place on Earth. I arrived, excitement mixed with anxiety, worrying the in-person meeting might alter my connection with the girls or that they wouldn’t like me. Stepping out of the car, though, all my concerns melted away. The same girls I had only seen through grainy Zoom screens greeted me with cheers, laughter, and a traditional Indian "aarti" and "tikka." In that moment, I realized everything wasn’t just the same – it was even better. 

During my week-long stay, I fully immersed myself in the girls' world—joining their dance-a-longs (and embarrassing myself with my lack of dancing skills), enjoying the local rajma (beans) and the communal meals, teaching my “Who Am I?” curriculum in person for the first time, and gifting the computers and tablets I had fundraised for, knowing they would impact the girls' success both now and in the future.  

The Jammu house itself was more than just a shelter—it was a permanent home that the girls considered their own. Despite their hardships—displacement, lack of parental support, and unstable childhoods—the girls remained open-hearted, loving, and resilient, thanks to the supportive infrastructure and sisterhood BWF and Adhik fostered. One of my favorite aspects was the “pay it forward” mindset. I was deeply moved when I learned that Subreena, the girls’ caretaker who facilitated my lessons, was an alumna of the home. She had grown up there, gone to college in a larger city, and returned to support the next generation. The warmth of the teachers and staff toward the girls was palpable, creating a nurturing environment where each child felt seen and valued. It was incredible to see how their struggles had united them, manifesting in love and gratitude for one another.  

One of the most inspiring parts of my stay was witnessing the unique talents and passions of each girl. BWF nurtured their interests across a wide range, from traditional and hip-hop dancing to photography, traveling, computer science, and writing. Their enthusiasm for the future motivated me to think bigger about my own dreams and aspirations.  

Never in my wildest dreams had I imagined that we would come so far. But as Adhik always says— “You have to start somewhere!” Overall, this experience gave me meaningful memories, relationships, and lessons, and all I want to do is give back tenfold, continuing the culture Adhik has built.