COMPARISON by

Group 3

Group 3 has compared our research with our partners, carefully analysing the
key differences between the answers we received. This is a summary of our
findings, categorised by the generations

1. First Generation
The first thing that struck out was the eating habits of the Dutch, and how it differs from how
we, in India eat. Not only do Indians have a larger variety of dishes, they also tend to eat
unhealthier things such as a lot of fattening things like ghee and many spicy dishes. However,
Indian students have much more balanced mealtimes compared to Dutch students.
Regarding sports and extracurricular activities, we have similar amounts of P.E blocks in
both JNIS and RJIN. The students in both countries also play their individual sports such
as badminton, tennis, football, gymnastics etc. But, something amazing about Netherlands
is that everyone has to take mandatory swimming lessons for at least a year since the country
is neighbouring the sea. The differences once again make themselves apparent when we move
onto the topic of mental health, which is paid attention to more in Netherlands than in India,
however, JNIS has many more facilities regarding mental health that are available for
students such as JAM members and counsellors who are there throughout the school day and
can be contacted at a short notice.

2. Second Generation
There are more similarities in the second generation than in any other. With most of our parents
living in joint or large families consisting of more than 7-8 people. The difference in diet is still
consistent, but that is mainly because of the fundamental difference between the two
countries with Indians having a more carbs focused diet with a lot of oils, ghee and spices.
But obviously, their diets were still much healthier than the diets of the students now.
Almost all parents had similar answers when asked about physical excercise, stating that
while they played specific sports they also used to play with their friends every single day
which helped keep them fit and in shape. Many of them stated that school had helped them
realise the importance of sports and staying fit whereas others stated that the school that they
went to put much more focus on studies than sport.
 Comparatively, it was the Indian parents who stated that their schools were more academically
oriented than the Dutch parents. But the lack of sports education in Indians schools was easily
made up by the amount of time spent in the grounds, playing cricket, football, kho-kho etc. with
friends. On the topic of mental health, the answers were unanimous. Mental health wasn't
discussed in their time, the only difference being that Indian parents stating that it was treated
like a taboo in their households while Dutch parents saying that they simply didn't pay attention
to it. And they all agree that yes, mental health is an important topic which needs to be paid
attention to, especially now-a-days.

3. Third Generation
The third generation, consisting of grandparents probably had the most difference when
comparing the three generations. Not only did their eating habits and times vary, they also had
extremely different upbringings, resulting in the contrast of results which you see. Back then,
the eating habits were much cleaner than they are now since in most households the food was
grown and harvested there itself. Most Indian grandparents had farms where they grew crops.
Some even had cattle which gave them fresh milk. However, meat was bought at the market.
Even Dutch grandparents had large backyards where they grew their own plants and herbs
which were probably better quality than the herbs found in markets now. Although they ate
very different meals, they were all organic and clean. These healthy eating habits kept them in
shape. Most grandparents stated that there wasn't much physical education in school but the
work that they did at home was enough of a workout. They also played many sports with their
friends, in India it was namely cricket, kho-kho and langdi etc. These are all games that involve
a lot of running around, which acted like a substitute for the lack of sport. However, some
grandparents did say that they used to play sports, mostly individual sports such as
badminton or swimming. Again, in their time, there was absolutely no awareness of mental
health.

THANK YOU