Archive for category: Education

Information and stories on education.

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Pencils of Promise

Pencils of Promise
Pencils of Promise’s programs have impacted more than 300,000 lives. Its schools have served more than 31,240 students and its scholarship recipients are two times more likely to progress to secondary school than the regional average.

Founder Adam Braun was a college student backpacking across the globe when he asked a small boy begging on the streets of India what he wanted most in the world—the answer? A pencil. Braun reached in his backpack and handed him his pencil as ‘a wave of possibility washed over him.’ Over the next five years, Braun backpacked through more than 50 countries handing out thousands of pens and pencils across six continents.

These pencils led to powerful conversations with local parents and children across numerous cultures and languages. In October 2008, PoP was founded. What began with a mere $25 deposit has now built more than 200 schools, breaking ground on a new school every 90 hours.

“We’ve learned that education is a living, breathing entity that with the right nurturing, evolves into something spectacular,” Braun writes on the website.

“We’ve learned that every piece of its growth is a challenge and that each pencil, each dollar, each supporter is essential. Pencils of Promise is now a global movement of passionate individuals, many of which are the most dynamic and impactful leaders we have ever seen. They are committed to supporting a world with greater educational opportunity for all. Thousands have joined us, making contributions through acts both large and small.”

There are three main things that set PoP apart from other organizations. PoP is 100 percent for-purpose, 100 percent direct giving and has a 100 percent success rate. It is a unique organization  because it blends the head of a for-profit business with the heart of a humanitarian nonprofit— by covering operational costs through private donors, events and companies, 100 percent of every dollar donated online goes directly into its programs to educate more children. Furthermore, it does not just “build a school and move on.” PoP monitors and evaluates every project it undertakes— ensuring that every school it opens is fully operational and educating students daily.

On its website, one can donate various amounts of money, each detailing exactly how much of an impact it would make— $100 to keep children healthy, $250 to educate a child, $500 to train a teacher and $25,000 to build a school.

Pencils of Promise is true to its word in terms of a functioning education system. PoP’s students score three times higher on language literacy tests than their peers and the teachers enrolled in PoP’s teacher training program attend school with 97 percent frequency. Additionally, 85 percent of PoP’s teachers report student literacy increases, 88 percent of the teachers report student numeracy increases and an astonishing 90 percent of the teachers report increases in student engagement due to its programs.

PoP can also be credited with being extraordinarily innovative. PoP works to provide schools with smartphones, e-readers, long-range radio and creative materials in order to reach the most under-served communities in the countries where PoP works. One e-reader provides a student with 50 books in both English and the local language. Smartphones deliver interactive audio lessons to provide expanded access to learning and a mobile learning kit contains books, phonic games and creative educational tools for teachers.

This  organization not only trains teachers, but also teaches and trains students about WASH (water, sanitation and hygiene). Students miss 272 million school days due to preventable illness and the international WASH program has allowed PoP to train more than 5,040 students since 2009. Pop does this via a three-step approach: building bathrooms and hand washing stations, teaching students and tracking behavior change.

The Huffington Post reported that the program has brought hope to children around the world in the form of 10 million hours of education as of March 2014.

As Braun writes in his book, “Take the first small step, and chase the footprints you aspire to leave behind.” To take this first small step, visit https://pencilsofpromise.org/.

– Eastin Shipman

Sources: Pencils of Promise 1, Pencils of Promise 2, Pencils of Promise 3, Pencils of Promise 4, Huffington Post,
Photo: Pac For Kids

Let Girls Learn: US Initiative for Global Education

Let Girls Learn is a new U.S. government initiative aiming to help young girls across the globe receive an education. It recruits Peace Corps Volunteers—American volunteers who spend two years in developing countries addressing such issues as health care, infrastructure, agriculture and education—to work on community-centered projects around the world. These projects are designed to facilitate adolescent girls’ access to educational opportunities with direct help from federal funds. They consist of things like girls’ leadership camps and mentoring programs.

The Let Girls Learn initiative was inspired by a 2013 meeting with Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani teenager whose powerful activism for girls’ education recently won her a Nobel Peace Prize. With approximately 62 million girls out of school around the world, and educational access growing scarcer for older girls, the government initiative is aiming to help adolescent girls receive the education they deserve.

An important way that Let Girls Learn is improving girls’ educational access is by combating early marriage and child pregnancy. In the developing world, one out of seven girls are married before the age of 15. Early marriage and childbirth too often signal the end of an adolescent girl’s education. However, girls who have received secondary school training are up to six times less likely to marry at a young age compared to girls who have not received such schooling.

In keeping with the Let Girls Learn initiative, USAID campaigns like the Advancing Youth Project and Best Schools for Girls are helping individual girls in countries like Bangladesh and Liberia overcome obstacles that would otherwise hinder their schooling. USAID encourages students, parents, educators and government officials in communities with high child marriage rates to encourage community-wide pledges against child marriage, and to discourage students from dropping out of school in order to marry. The organization has also developed a mobile tool that helps girls acquire English language skills as a means of improving their employment opportunities within the garment sector, which employs more than 4 million people in Bangladesh—90 percent of whom are women.

First Lady Michelle Obama recently embarked on a five-day journey in Asia, without the president or her daughters, to promote the global education initiative. In Japan, she joined Mrs. Akie Abe, the wife of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, in order to formally announce the partnership between the United States and Japan in promoting girls’ education throughout the world. The partnership is between the U.S. Peace Corps and Japan’s International Cooperation Agency. In Tokyo, the first lady described the problem as “truly a crisis” and cited attitudes toward women as a heavily contributing factor to the worldwide failure to educate young girls. She also traveled to Cambodia, where she met with a number of Peace Corps volunteers who are currently working on projects meant to increase girls’ educational access, and visited a special school that is encouraging notable progress.

Mrs. Obama plans to ask leaders in other countries around the world to stand up for the Let Girls Learn initiative, fostering an international environment that will ultimately prove more support for girls’ educational and personal successes.

– Shenel Ozisik

Sources: Bloomberg, NBC News, USAID
Photo: JetMag

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Education in Tuvalu: Past & Present

education_in_tuvalu
Tuvalu is one of the smallest and most remote countries on Earth. The total land area of the country is approximately 26 square kilometers, or comparatively 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC. Located in Oceania, the country is an island group consisting of nine coral atolls in the South Pacific Ocean with a population of 10,782.

Education System Restructure: Late 1990s

Prior to the restructuring of the education system in 1998, communities operated early childhood education and  had no support from the government. Preschools were operated under a voluntary basis and teachers were poorly appointed and often untrained. Tuvalu also did not have the proper infrastructure to support schools.

When education in Tuvalu was restructured, the following five strategies were put in place: the government would provide financial assistance to all preschools; formal training would be offered to preschool teachers; new salaries would be granted to preschool teachers; funds for building preschool classrooms were secured by the government; and preschool education linked with the primary section would be provided for three year olds.

Tuvalu’s education system at the primary level was also restructured and revamped. Goals and targets contained in the Tuvalu National Education Policy Document included compulsory education for all Tuvaluan children between the ages of six and 15, redesigning and strengthening the administration of the education system, access to education and training for all, development of a national curriculum, as well as improvements to school buildings, teacher training and programs for students with special needs.

Many other improvements and goals were to be met following the restructuring of the system. Children were not the only focus of the reform—education for survival with reference to community life skills was also made available. The skills that adults were offered included secretarial skills (typing, computing, office skills, etc.), carpentry, pluming, engineering and home economics.

Additionally, strategies were put in place to improve the overall quality of life and standards of living. Basic housing, clothing, water, food and nutrition, access to health and education as well as the ability to participate in community life and cultural pursuits strengthened the communities of Tuvalu.

Tuvalu Today

Many of the strategies and Millennium Development Goals have improved conditions in Tuvalu. For example, Tuvalu’s youth literacy rate (ages 15-24) rose from 95 percent in 1991 to 98.6 percent in 2007. The percentage of cohorts reaching grade five also rose dramatically from 72.7 percent in 2000 to 91.2 percent in 2004.

According to the IMF, although cases of extreme poverty are rare, poverty in Tuvalu has risen in the last few years despite improvements in education. Given Tuvalu’s limited land area, poor soil and geographic isolation, it is difficult to create large private-sector employment opportunities domestically. Therefore, citizens of Tuvalu will need to better utilize overseas job opportunities, including seafarer employment and the temporary labor migration scheme in New Zealand.

Vocational training will need to be strengthened in order to enhance the competitiveness of Tuvaluans for these important sources of foreign exchange earnings and to reduce poverty.

– Eastin Shipman

Sources: International Council for Open and Distance Education, UNESCO 1, UNESCO 2, UNESCO 3, CIA Factbook,
IMF

Photo: UNESCO

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Education in the Solomon Islands

Solomon EducationWhat if you did not have to go to school? For some school-aged children in America, this might be a dream, but for the children of the Solomon Islands, it is a nightmare—and a reality. Due to their high poverty rate, the Solomon Islands do not make education a requirement. Only 2.2 percent of the government’s budget goes toward education, dropping drastically from its 9.7 percent in 1998. Only 60 percent of children even have access to any kind of primary education.

Of those 60 percent, only 72 percent of students complete their primary education. As for secondary school, the current numbers show 32 percent of boys attend, while 27 percent of girls do. Since there are so little resources, students have to take an exam to continue on to secondary school. Depending on their score, they can either be placed into secondary school or not score high enough to earn one of the few positions available.

These statistics all contribute to the 75 percent adult illiteracy rate. While education is not compulsory in the Solomon Islands, it is free for at least primary school. So, why are these numbers showing up?

The Solomon Islands had a civil war from 1998-2003, and once the country began to gain its footing again, a devastating tsunami hit in 2007. These events have only add to the hardships the people of the Solomon Islands face. Since adults have no educational background, the main source of income is through agriculture and farming. This can only get a family by for so long, and many children work alongside their families in lieu of going to school.

If a child does attend school, he or she has to deal with a shortage of teachers and classroom materials. Not only are half of all teachers unqualified, but they also struggle to receive payment for their services. In addition, less than half of the schools have access to adequate drinking water. Hopefully, the government will prioritize education in the coming years and break the cycle of poverty in the Solomon Islands.

– Melissa Binns

Sources: Classbase,  Education in Crisis,  ICDE

Photo: Flickr

Education in Suriname

education_in_suriname
Suriname is the smallest independent country on the South American continent, slightly larger than the state of Georgia, and has a relatively small population. Suriname is mostly a tropical rain forest and the majority of the Surinamese population lives along the coast. Recently, UNICEF has made many efforts to reduce inequity in Suriname’s education system.

Although 97 percent of Surinamese children are enrolled in primary education, serious disparities exist between the coastal and rural schools and the interior. Suriname is nationally on track to meet Millennium Development Goal 2, but significant disparities in terms of gender and socio-economic status is significantly lacking progress and falling below the target.

There are various reasons why some children are more successful than others within the education system as well as why the disparities become increasingly evident as the pupil grows and progresses.

According to the United Nations Suriname, the “availability of schooling opportunities, accessibility of schools, quality and appropriateness of the education system affect the learners’ results in the highly varying education context in Suriname. Whereas the national gross primary school enrolment rates are high, enrolment and attendance rates in the interior are generally low in comparison to the national average.  Poor availability and quality of pre-schools and the sudden switch from local languages to Dutch, being the medium of instruction and texts books, could be identified as one of the main hurdles, resulting in high repetition rates in first grade and poor net completion rates in the interior.”

Furthermore, the situation regarding water and sanitation for school youth has posed a major challenge. Only 29.4 percent of schools in the rural coastal areas have piped water and 67.5 percent of the other schools in the rural coastal and rural interior do not have piped water— forcing them to collect rain or river water during school hours.

UNICEF has stepped in to reduce the inequities within the school system of Suriname. The UNADF Action Plan 2012-2016 will continue supporting the Ministry of Education and Community Development strengthening the capacity of kindergarten and primary school teachers in an effort to establish child friendly schools. Thirty percent of the teachers in the interior are not qualified to teach and in public primary schools, five percent have not even completed primary education themselves.

Plans have also been made to assist Suriname with the implementation of technology to provide a better education. UNICEF, in close cooperation with the Ministry of Education and Community Development, has implemented the Computer Aided Learning Project.

– Eastin Shipman

Sources: CIA World Factbook, Curacao Chronicle, United Nations Suriname, UNESCO
Photo: UN

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How India’s Emerging Economy Will Impact Its Poverty

Indian PovertyThere are quite a few economies around the globe that aren’t doing very well, but one country’s economy is beginning to emerge as a potential powerhouse: India.

India is well acquainted with poverty and has been for many years now, with a large portion of the country’s population living in slums and other unsanitary conditions. Approximately 33 percent of the population lives in poverty, with only 62 percent of adults being literate, and only 49 percent of girls attending secondary school largely due to economic reasons.

The recent change in India’s economy could alter this. India’s stock market has reached new highs in recent months with a stable rupee.

Politics have had a large effect on India’s recent success, with the election of new Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party, or BFP, experienced its first win in 30 years. The result is a more optimistic India that hopes to heal a broken bureaucracy.

Nicholas Smithie, Chief Investment Strategist at Emerging Global Advisors, says Modi is more likely to tackle major obstacles, such as a poor infrastructure, than previous prime ministers. Modi and the BJP work on a pro-growth platform, focusing on government approvals and advances in labor and education.

India might only be getting lucky. Certain aspects of the global economy — slowdown in China, money printing in Japan, Russia’s recession, stagnation in the European zones and falling oil prices — aren’t hitting India quite as hard. The deflation around the world is proving helpful to India, which has suffered high inflation. India has a rare opportunity to capitalize on new political officials and economic reform. International corporations are growing eager to invest in India, now assured that India’s policies will foster economic expansion.

As India’s economy emerges with a strong, stable foundation, the future of poverty reduction looks a little brighter. As the economy improves, families are better able to afford food, clean water and sanitary conditions. Educational opportunities are allowed to expand as the economy grows, creating a more secure future for Indian children, particularly girls. The path to recovery and to reducing poverty in India is long, but with a stronger economy and a hopeful leader, India seems to be on the right track.

– Alaina Grote

Sources: The Economist, UNICEF, U.S. News

Photo: Flickr

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Education in Tajikistan

Tajikistan Education
Tajikistan is a small country located in central Asia that gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. A civil war followed for the next six years, which caused the collapse of political regimes and educational systems.

While Tajikistan is one of the poorest countries in the world, the poverty rate decreased from 72 percent in 2003 to 47 percent in 2009. Tajikistan has been working to recover from the effects of the civil war and the global economy, but many remain trapped in a future of poverty due to a significant lack of educational opportunities.

In Tajikistan, children begin school at seven years old and are allowed to continue on to secondary school until age 18. However, many children drop out of school by age 12 to help around the house or to acquire a job, which means that the majority of children are only receiving four years of schooling or less. In addition, 66 percent of children in Tajikistan live in poverty, which affects both mental and physical development. Because of their living conditions, these children usually do not attend school due to economic reasons.

Tajikistan spends 3.8 percent of its GDP on education. Of its total expenditure on education, 73 percent goes to personnel costs, yet teachers’ salaries remain low. These costs leave little for school improvement and teacher training.

However, both Tajikistani officials and citizens are working toward a better educational system. In 2005, Tajikistan joined the Global Partnership for Education, or GPE, which focuses on universal access to quality education. The Tajikistani government spent 68 percent of the educational budget on basic education; yet, there is a funding gap when it comes to implementing the government’s action plan due to a lack of the necessary infrastructure.

The Tajikistani government worked with the GPE to develop the National Strategy for Education Development, which fights to ensure adequate sector coordination in support of the government’s education strategy.

In 2008, Tajikistan received its first grant from GPE for $18.4 million, and it received its second grant for $13.5 million in 2010. The money has been used to construct classrooms safely, provide school furniture and supplies, publish and supply multi-subject textbooks and improve authority training.

Tajikistan is working hard to decrease its national poverty rate, but there is still a lot of work to be done. Without education, children are far more likely to work at young ages, provide for families, take care of homes and continue living in poverty.

– Alaina Grote

Sources: ClassBase, Global Partnership for Education, UNICEF

Photo: Flickr

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Top 4 Reasons Education in Bolivia Lags

education in boliviaEducation in Bolivia appears to be lacking: one in every seven children in Bolivia does not complete primary school, and the majority of Bolivians never go on to secondary school. In fact, over one million Bolivians over the age of 15 are illiterate. This lack of education contributes to the overall poverty Bolivians face. What factors are contributing to this lack of education? Here are the top four:

    1. Classes are mainly taught in Spanish, but some children learned to speak Quechua and Aymara at home. Many children, especially those from rural areas, cannot understand what is being taught. Being taught a second language in school is also not typical. It is easy to see why kids would become discouraged and decide to drop-out.
    2. Due to widespread poverty and not prioritizing education, schools can be very run-down with little to no proper classroom materials. While there is a lack of resources in Bolivia in general, schools are ranked at the bottom when it comes to addressing the country’s needs.
    3. The poverty in Bolivia also affects the teachers—they often go on strike to protest for higher wages and other related issues. This leaves children without teachers for sometimes days or even weeks at a time.
    4. The primary reason for a child not being in school and the shrinking literacy rate in Bolivia is poverty. Children in urban areas are able to go to school on average for 9.4 years, while those in rural locations only make it on average for 4.2 years. Many children have to work and help support their impoverished family rather than go to school.

Some changes to education in Bolivia have been made, however, with the help of nonprofits. Many organizations have helped provide classrooms and classroom materials in decent condition. One organization, the Foundation for Sustainable Development, helps provide training, tutoring, childcare and workshops to assist Bolivians with their educational needs. When given support and better learning conditions, children typically stay in school and even begin to learn at higher levels than their peers who are not given that support.

If their educational needs are met, they are more likely to succeed. Bolivian children should receive the education they need to thrive.

– Melissa Binns

Sources: Bolivia Bella, Foundation for Sustainable Development
Photo: Netpublikationer

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Alleviating Poverty in Calcutta, India

poverty in calcutta
Calcutta is a region that is rich with history, culture and destitution. Calcutta was the former capital of British India, and is one of India’s largest cities and ports, for it is located on the east bank of the Hugli River. Calcutta proves to be the dominant urban center of Eastern India, as it acts as a point of commerce, transport and manufacture. The city holds a diverse range of people, as multiple Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists resides in this city.

Languages spoken In Calcutta range from Bengali, Urdu and Oriya to Tamil and Punjabi. Due to the wide range of people and activities, the population density is extremely high with over 4.5 million people, thus overcrowding is an immediate issue. The conflict in Bangladesh during the 1970s has also contributed to refugee colonies in the northern and southern suburbs. Migrants from less urban areas have migrated to Calcutta in search of employment as well, as it is a major export center for tea, petroleum, jute, coal, iron and manganese. Unfortunately, poverty in Calcutta is a huge problem and severe unemployment has been an issue since the early 1950s.

Calcutta has a housing shortage, and approximately one-third of the city’s population lives in poverty-ridden neighborhoods composed of a collection of huts standing on a plot of land that is at least one-sixth of an acre. These dwellings are often not ventilated, single-story rooms with few sanitary facilities, and very little open space.

India is growing into a substantial open-market economy; however, the economy includes a wide range of modern industries and services, including village farming, modern agriculture and handicrafts. The economic downturn in 2011 affected poverty significantly, and the inflation and high interest rates have yet to be alleviated. Furthermore, problems such as corruption, environmental degradation, overpopulation and increasing economic development contribute to the perpetuation of poverty while decreasing the capacity of the government to significantly alleviate any one problem.

According to USAID, “One-third of its population still lives on less than $1.25 per day. Projected to become the world’s most populous country by 2030, India faces tremendous energy, education, health, water and sanitation challenges. India is an important U.S. partner in maintaining regional stability, deepening trade ties and addressing development challenges in India and globally.”

The impact of overcrowding, displacement by natural disasters and lack of sustainable urban policies contribute to the marginalization of Calcutta’s poor; there is simply a lack of means for the homeless to progress and gain material wealth.

The importance of education and farmer organizations is critical for the alleviation of poverty in Calcutta.

– Neti Gupta

Sources: Encyclopedia Brittanica, News Action, USAID
Photo: Steve McCurry

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Improving Education in Zambia a Priority

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