Friday, October 23, 2009

ecole de la rue



Tuesday night, rather than 3hrs of educational development class, we got to visit Ecole de la Rue downtown. It is the vision of one man. A school of the streets, classes are held on the sidewalks with blackboards and chalk. Adults come in the evenings to learn how to read and write. During the day they offer primary and secondary education for children.




We pulled up in our taxis, and I was amazed to find that the school was literally on the streets. Chalk boards were leaning against rusting cars. For the evening courses, the sidewalks were cleared and filled with rows upon rows of benches. Classes are held over the roar of the city, of passing cars, and of playing children.


Most of the students live in the surrounding neighborhood. Next to the school and wrapping behind is a neighborhood of lean-tos. The children return home from school to a dirt floor, metal siding for walls and doors of raty sheets. And yet they are pushed to learn. The school director speaks with parents about the importance of their child's school. Many would rather have their son help the father or their daughter help the mother. Daughters especially are thought to be better off helping their mothers with cooking and cleaning, ironing and sewing, and looking after their younger siblings, than at school for most of the day.




It was amazing to see these people's desire to become literate. The founder uses money earned from a field in his village to purchase books, notebooks and pencils for the students. The school also gets material donations from abroad. The 14 teachers (200 adults and more than 300 day students) are volunteers, receiving stipends to cover transportation costs only.

I am making a preliminary request; please save any notebooks, writing utensils, erasers, pencil sharpeners, and other basic school supplies. I will be returning stateside in December and would appreciate any material donations that I may bring back to Senegal- whether to this particular school or to my internship site in Sokone.
Please take a moment to be thankful that you are able to read this post, have access to a computer, have internet access, and much more.

No comments:

Post a Comment