Blog
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Why education? Part 2/3.
The progress so far
We’re not alone in recognising the importance of education. The UN’s well publicised Millennium Develpoment Goals (MDGs) include a pledge to ensure all children have access to primary education by the year 2015. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights enshrines the expectation that everyone should be able to go to school in article 26, and states unambiguously that “Elemental education should be compulsory”.
At a meeting in Dakar in 2000 a basic framework for meeting the Millennium Goal was drawn up. The good news is that the governments of nearly all developing nations recognise this and are working really hard to improve access to free education at the primary level. There has been huge progress in the last nine years. Across Sub-Saharan Africa, this decade has seen the number of children enrolled in primary school rise from 54% to over 70%. That’s a tremendous achievement.
These statistics hide the fact that people still need help, though. Especially now, when many of the fragile economies of the area have been smashed to pieces by falling commodity prices. Although much has been achieved, governments still lack resources and infrastructure to keep the pace of change up.
Despite more schools, the African educational watchdog, SACMEQ, found that less than 10% of grade 6 children in Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia and Zambia achieved the desirable rate of literacy for a child of their age.
It gets worse. In many countries, high enrollment numbers only lead to high rates of absenteeism and numbers dropping out. Pressure to work or even marry, illness and poor school resourcing all contribute to outrageously high attrition rates in the numbers of pupils actually finishing their basic schooling.
To put it another way, children in France are twice as likely to continue school after 18 than children in Benin or Niger will finish primary school. The 2009 Education For All report projects there will be 29 million children out of school in 2015. In other words, the Millennium Development Goal for education will almost certainly be missed.
The goodwill of governments isn’t going to build schools. That takes money and infrastructure which is all too often not in place. That’s why we are going to Africa. To document the situation on the ground and give you the chance to help.
* Source for all stats - http://www.efareport.unesco.org
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Why education? Part 1/3.
It’s just two weeks now until our first trip to Zambia gets underway. To prepare you for the blitz of stories we’ll be posting once we get there, we’re going to be posting a series of articles which make clear our aims and objectives, the need for our work and our long term plans.
First up is the question of why education?
When you break down all the problems that Africa faces today – poverty, water shortages, civil war, corrupt government, food scarcity, out of control inflation, HIV/AIDS – you might think that education is fairly low on the list of priorities for the continent. It’s not a headline grabbing subject: children aren’t exactly dying in the streets because they can’t get to school.
Yet access to good schooling is absolutely vital if communities are to break the cycle of poverty and dependence that much of sub-Saharan Africa is locked into.
Why?
Here are just a few facts from the 2009 Education For All (EFA) Monitoring Report about the current state of schooling in Africa, and the implications it has for public health and well being. The report argues that general education should be at the centre of strategies for meeting all health-related Millennium Development Goals.
- Improving access to schooling directly correlates to a significant drop in the prevalence of HIV/AIDS, particularly by empowering young women with knowledge of the disease.
- In Zambia, AIDS spreads twice as fast among populations of uneducated girls, and rural Ugandans with a secondary education are three times less likely to be HIV positive than those with no schooling.
- A primary education is essential for childcare in future generations. Stunted growth due to malnutrition in the under fives drops by up to 25% among households of equal income, location and size, where mothers have had a primary education.
- Infant mortality rates can fall by over 50% where mothers have had a secondary education.
- In Zambia, the infant mortality rate for children born to mothers with no education is 200 children per thousand born, or one in five.
- In Mozabique, only 40% of children born to mothers with no formal education are vaccinated against TB, measles and polio. 100% of children born to mothers educated to secondary level in the same country are vaccinated.
- More than half the countries in Sub-Saharan Africa have yet to achieve gender parity in education.
- Nearly one third of children of primary school age in Sub-Saharan Africa have no access to school.
It shouldn’t need saying, but the underlying truth is that a well schooled child has a better chance of finding work or starting a business later in life, and a properly trained community can sustain itself in the long term. As the authors of the EFA report put it, “The educational deficits of today will result in the human costs of the future”.
Knowledge isn’t just power. It’s an essential for survival.
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Fancy a fundraising internship with LearnAsOne?
What we do at LearnAsOne is fairly simple:
- We partner with NGOs in Africa who facilitate education projects.
- They introduce us to communities who need schools.
- We share stories, photos and videos from the community so you can meet the teachers, parents and children and see exactly what they need.
- Then we ask for your help to raise the money required.
- Whilst continuing to share stories so you can see your money in action.
A chance to manage real projects!
We need your help to raise some serious money so children can go to school. None of that tea making or answering other people’s phone calls. Just real projects, that make a real difference!
What’s involved?
Organising fundraisers and motivating your friends, classmates and colleagues to get involved too.
Top of the list is WalkAsOne, a 14km sponsored walk with replicates the distance 10-year-old orphan Saviour has to walk each and everyday just to get to school. A school that soon won’t exist. In March and April 2010 we want to see walks at universities, schools and through cities across the world.
If you are musical why not organise a BuskAsOne? Find some musicians, a place to busk for the day, get permission from the site owner and collect money to pay for new classrooms in Zambia. Simples.
And if food is more your thing then BreakfastAsOne is for you? It’s like a coffee morning, but at breakfast time. Get in some teas and coffees, some pastries and cereal and invite all your colleagues or classmates along for a chat. Then ask them to make a donation in return for your hospitality.
We also need help setting up an online shop and working out how to promote eBay for Charity. You can also instigate any ideas of your own.
Your skills
You must be very enthusiastic, have a good grasp of new technology and actively use social networking tools such as twitter and Facebook. Plus you must have the drive to make your projects your own. Help will of course be at hand, but you will be expected to really put your own stamp on your projects.
Where?
This is a virtual opportunity. By that I mean you can work from anywhere in the world. You just need to have regular access to Skype, msn and email. We have no need to carry the overheads of an office so you can work from home, the coffee shop or even the beach. I’m really not fussed.
When? And how long for?
We are looking for people to start as soon as they can. In terms of how long for, it depends what kind of fundraiser you want to organise. If it’s WalkAsOne then until the end of October. Otherwise for as long as you need.
How to apply
If you would like to apply please email me (Steve) at [email protected] - and include the following:
- In no more than two paragraphs let me know why you want to volunteer with LearnAsOne and would make you a great intern. No generic covering letters, they are so obvious and uninspiring!
- Include your Skype username (very important for virtual communication) and twitter profile if you have one.
- Please attach your CV.
Interviews will be conducted via Skype.
If you have any questions then please direct them to me too. Thanks.
Update - I’m getting a lot of applications without a Skype or Twitter ID. Given that this is a virtual (not office based) opportunity you need to be familiar with these communication tools. So please, please ensure you include these details when you apply. Thank you!
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Cycle Wales: 3 mountain ranges. 250 miles. Please sponsor us.
Relax with your friends and family. Go to church. Consume too many chocolate eggs. Watch the Masters. Just a few of things most of you will probably be doing over Easter.
But I have agreed (read been persuaded) to cycle the length of Wales along with 7 others by Volunteer Nerys (the TV producer coming to Zambia). That’s 250 miles and 3 mountain ranges. It’s called the Lon Las Challenge and is one of the hardest cycling routes in the UK, starting in Hollyhead and finishing in Chepstow. The less said about the weather forecast the better!
Why are we doing this?
To raise money of course. It will all go towards the first community school project in Zambia. Which you can see us document live in May. You can even ask questions for the community to answer. So if you donate to the cyclists (Cennydd, Andrew, Juliet, Nick, Harriet, Phil, Nerys and me) you’ll get to see exactly where you money will go in just over a months time.
Follow the cycle live
It’s only right that you can have a giggle at our pain and suffering. You’ll be able to follow our progress on twitter and via GPS.
Please sponsor us
You can make a secure donation via Just Giving. Then log-on to the site again from 11 May, follow the trip to Zambia and see exactly who your money will help.
Big thank you’s go to Wheelies of Swansea for lending Nerys a bike and to Hannah Davies for helping with the logisitcs.
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27 days to Zambia!
3 self-funded volunteers. 4 possible NGO partners. Flights booked. Zambia is go!!!
The rough plan is as follows:
4 May:
I fly in to Livingstone, Zambia on Monday 4 May. Spend a week meeting NGO possible partners and finalising which one we are going to start working with. Plus try to meet some Zambian journalists and anyone else useful/interesting.10 May:
Volunteers Adam (journalist) and Nerys (TV producer) join me in Livingstone.11 May:
Set off to meet the community we hope to help with our new NGO partner. Spend just under two working weeks listening to their stories and sharing them with you on twitter and our blog as often as the Internet connection allows. Answer as many of your questions as possible. Plus upload the exact costs of the first school!13 May:
Volunteer Brenda (photographer) joins us from South Africa.22 May:
Fly to South Africa. I’ll be staying in Pritoria until 26 May (evening flight). If you are a journalist and want to set up an interview then please contact me at press at learnasone dot org.Countdown to the Zambia
In the run up to trip I’ll be bringing you more about the possible NGO partners, the volunteers will introduce themselves, we’ll share some background about Zambia plus a few other surprises.
If there is anything you want to know then please leave a comment below or email zambia at learnasone dot org and we’ll do our best to provide you with an answer.