Welcome reader…!
In this monthly note, I’m pleased to reflect on October’s activities and progress. It’s been a month full of fascinating and exciting experiences. After a few insightful discussions, I gained clarity on past decision-making missteps and identified strategies to improve future choices. In this monthly note, I am happy to share the activities and how everything went around October. It was indeed a fascinating and exciting day so far. After a couple of enlightenment talks, I figured out where I missed making the correct decision, how to solve that in the future, and so on.
Without further ado, I will jump into each event and walk you through what I did around October.
1. Starting a course at Uki Kilinochchi on Machine Learning with Python
After a few considerations, on starting a new course for students who were not selected for a Full-time course, I wanted to start a part-time course covering Python programming and Machine Learning. Students should present a Machine Learning project by the end of the course until what they have studied. The course is designed to go for around 3 months. The curriculum covers Basic Python programming, Numpy, Pandas, Intro to Machine Learning concepts & algorithms, and an introduction to ML tools & frameworks such as Scikit Learn, NLTK & TensorFlow. Later, a few in-class examples & assignments on classification, NLP projects & computer vision related to image classification. Most modules are introductions; students must research and apply their findings to their projects. Around 14 students are attending the class. Classes are scheduled on Tuesday & Thursday 5–7 pm.
1.1 Regarding the Online web development batch:
The final technical viva is scheduled for the first week of November. Expect around 5-8 students to complete their project. We had 43 students at the beginning and will end the course with less than 10. The way student’s dedication & discipline are something lacking when it comes to online education/classes.
2. Colombo Visit
During the first weekend of October, I went to Colombo to get a few things from my previous rented house. I also met my Velaris colleagues & friends and went for lunch at Dine More. Being surrounded by people who always motivated us and made us feel satisfied and valued was pleasing. We had a lot of chat and shared my experiences so far. I love those people, and sometimes I miss our fun earlier during the outing.
I also watched Lubber Pandhu, another feel-good movie, at Scope Liberty Plaza, Kollupitiya. With my friend Sanjay on his new bike, we went around Colombo city in the dark, with many lights and a vibe-filled city.
3. Career Guidance sessions through Yarl IT Hub at Murugananda Maha Vidyalayam, Pallai Central College & Tharmapuram Central College
For the schools mentioned above in the Kilinochchi district, we had the Career guidance session & Introduced Generative AI tools that may help during their school learning. They all were enthusiastic when they watched these AI tools’ image, text & audio generations. They were also given information about how they could pursue higher education in Tech even though they were not selected for university. An introduction to Uki & how it works, and what students can get from Uki were discussed. All 3 sessions were really went well.
4. Kilinochchi Kandaswamy Temple View
At the start of the month, I took this photo.
5. Visit to Pera for October In-Person lectures
Since I started my MSc one month back, I need to attend one weekend in person and the other 3s in a month via Zoom. So, this month, as usual, I stayed at Hindu Culture Hall & had all our meals at Halo Bojoun (a local authentic food shop run by the Agriculture Ministry: healthy foods). To be frank, I just started to refer to lecture notes and learn, which means at the end of October. I need a lot of time & commitment to do this. I will do it.
6. Participated in TILE’s Youth Conference representing Sri Lanka
TILE: Tamil Institute for Leadership Excellence is a community organization that gathers Tamil youth worldwide and provides them with workshops and learning on different aspects. It’s in the UK. This year, they organized a youth conference where people worldwide who speak Tamil came together and presented their current country on how Tamil is being utilized or what type of activities are taken forward on Tamil learnings and covering Tamil-related topics. I represented on behalf of Sri Lanka. It was an exciting session where I learned about how Tamils live globally.
Check out their Website: https://www.tamilinstitute.com.
7. Commer Point road trip with Kilinochchi friends
Me & a few friends from Kilinochchi planned to go on a road trip from Kilinochchi to Commar Point in Pooneryn. I liked the road and the nature we crossed along the Pooneyn-Kilinochchi road.
8. A Random Day in Kilinochchi: Cooking Video
9. Road Trip to Konavil-Akkarayan on Sunday
10. Ice-cream Meetup
A special meetup with the special one at Kilinochchi following the birthday (25.10) on 26.10.2024.
11. Scratch Programming Workshop for Grade 4-8 students at YIT Kilinochchi
At YIT Kilinochchi, we hosted a free Scratch Programming workshop for Grades 4-8 students on Saturday, October 26, 2024, from 9 AM – 12:30 p.m. The workshop saw enthusiastic participation, with students actively engaged in creating games and animations using Scratch.
During the event, it became evident that the parents highly supported their children’s interest in programming. Many asked us about the possibility of offering paid tuition classes in the future, indicating their eagerness for more structured learning opportunities. This response highlighted an intense desire among families for their children to gain programming skills and knowledge.
Overall, the workshop was a great success, and we are excited about the potential to organize similar events to further inspire and educate young learners in technology.
12. Meet with Nad from the UK
It was nice catching up with Nad from the UK at Kilinochchi. I got to know him through my volunteer work for TAJ. He usually travels to Sri Lanka every 3-4 months. He works as a teacher in the UK and teaches English to a few students in Vietnam online, and he occasionally visits, too.
13. Mentorship call with Zack
I am one of the AWS Community Builders. However, I have not made much contribution to the community since then. I publish blog posts and then try a few services for demo purposes, and that’s it. I am very guilty about that since I am not doing anything that impacts the community. Meet with Arshad Zackeriya, an AWS Hero from New Zealand who started a one-to-one mentorship or kind of a meet where we can ask him questions and careers & clarifications in AWS. I, too, had my one-on-one session on 30.10.2024.
He helped me a lot with brainstorming my ideas on how I can contribute, the importance of having a goal in life, and so on. I have taken those points into my mind, and now I will start working on giving actions for the action items. I hope to get back to him again and tell him what I have achieved in the next few months.
14. Plumbing Skill
I live in a rented house in Kilinochchi, where some construction work is underway. A few workers were on site, and one day, they accidentally broke the pipeline to my unit without bothering to inform me or the landlord. I came home at 7 pm, ready to unwind, only to discover no water. I was frustrated and worried!
After some searching, I finally found the broken pipe. It was a real hassle, but I had to take matters into my own hands and fix it myself to restore water access. Otherwise, I would have been stuck waiting for the landlord to sort it out the next day.
While it was a stressful experience, I learned a valuable skill I will carry forward. It’s a reminder that being proactive can save the day!
That wraps up my October monthly notes! This month has been a whirlwind of activities, and I realized I need to cut back on some commitments to manage my time more effectively. One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is the importance of goal setting, something I’ve overlooked until now. I recognize the need for clear objectives in my life and am determined to set them moving forward.
I’m excited about the possibilities next month holds. With a fresh focus on my goals, I can’t wait to see how things unfold. Here’s to new adventures and a more purposeful approach in the coming days!
Thank you for reading.
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