CONNECTING CHILDREN THROUGH GIVING ACROSS THE GLOBE

 

BASIC NEED FOR EDUCATION AS THE BEST SOLUTION TO WORLD POVERTY ..........so what went wrong?

 

The purpose of education was never to get people ready made jobs per se. Far from this, it was meant to enable its beneficiaries become aware of themselves and their sorroundings, appreciate their circumstances, equip them with skills and knowledge, influence their attitudes and instill those values that enable them to exploit their inner potential resources in whichever circumstances theymay find themselves. In short it was intended for their own enrinchment and the prosperity of the wider society. Problems arise, however, when we have an educational system that fails in both aspects. What we produce instead, are people equitable to impractical mandarins who are highly qualified... (PHD) ...but possess little real understanding of themslves or our society at large. This is the greatest source of our problems as a nation.

 

Perhaps the most striking evidence of this is the ever growing army of "educat" unemployed who "decorate: the streets, the capital and the towns. Apathy and frustration, is vividly manifested in the rocketing rate of prostituion, heavy drinking and drug taking and crime among today's urban youth. Such things are all symptoms of an educational sytem that has basically served to alienate the youth from society and from themselves. The situation is not helped by the absence of the role models among those who are perceived to be the "leaders" of society. High levels of corruption, poor and misguided leadership and a degenerated mortal fiber are testimony to the fact that we are in a serious need of a revolution of values.

 

I belive the reason why education is "missing the mark" has much to do with the approah than the content. The school certificate is seen as the one way ticket out of poverty and the "curse" of manual labour. By this standard as Paul Harrison put it, investment in education is likened to buying an expensive lottery ticket, where predictable chances are more inclined to the losing side than on the winning end. Exam based schooling has cretaed too many failures becuase, more often than not, it discourages creative and adptive thinking. Instead, students are encouraged to learn things by rote and are discouraged from asking the critical questions that would instead lead to creativity.

 

Teachers are not immune to this. Many see themselves as pump attendants at petrol stations whose task is to fill the empty heads of students with academic content and see them off; they dont see students as human beings who cometo learn and who have an experience in life. They see themselves as experts hired to fill empty containers not as experienced people charged with facilitating learners to manifest their own potentials so as to develop them. In short, we have an education system that emphasizes how many "papers" on accumulates rather than how one can develop and skillfully put to use hos or her natural inherent potentials.

 

As young people, we are all have sparkling dreams about the future we would like to live; but sooner than later these dreams begin to fast vanish, one after another as they lose touch with the objective reality. Not because they are inherently impossible, but becasue the conditions created around us by the systems make it impoosible. We are faced with a challenge of continuously asking ourselves how can we prevent any more of this to go on. Quite sipmly how can we keep the eagerness and sparkle in the eyes of those young people who yearn to become successful human beings, with a purpose? How do we prevent their enthusiasm from degenerating? We need to find ways to address this serious problem by making the school experince worth the while. It is a sad fact of life that only about five percent of students achieve their childhood amobitions. Does it have to be this way?

 

Dear Duty bearers,

 

Thank you for "Making the Unxpressed Concerns Visible"

 

I am all excited: " I cant wait for that moment when individuals and instituions (both formal and informal) that are enstruted by soceity to fulfil the human rights of children:  are all involved with a common ethos of volunteerism in playing their parts as duty bearers with a responsbilty of ensuring that the rights of children and other members of the society, especially those most vulnerable, are attained.....Thanks again.

 

Richard Bbaale
Founder Member & Chairperson
 SOVHEN Uganda
Plot 17 Ben Kiwanuka Street
P.O. BOX 1289
Kampala, Uganda
Tel: Office 256-0414-231517
Tel: Mobile 256-0712323214/0772323214
Fax: 256-0414-340041
Email:sovhen@yahoo.com