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All children should be able to go to school. The benefits of learning to read and write are self evident. However, for children from some religious communities in India, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Indonesia, going to school remains a dream. The school books used in many schools either don’t include their community or include very negative views about them, teachers and pupils insult minority children who quickly decide that this hostile environment is not for them and drop out of school. In each of the 4 programme countries there are major discrepancies in basic measures such as the levels of literacy and the number of school years completed between minority and majority communities. This project will ensure that these children have a chance to go to school and that the education they receive is fully adapted to their needs.

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Categories

  • Education/Training/Employment Education/​Training/​Employment
  • Human Rights/Advocacy Human Rights/​Advocacy
  • Beneficiaries

    Situation

    Children from Pakistan, Bangladesh, India and Indonesia are facing numerous obstacles to access Education. Child labour, early marriages for girls, lack of schooling facilities are all crucial issues prohibiting thousands of children to attend school every day. For children with a religious faith different from the religion of the majority of the people in those countries, another challenge need to be added to this already long list: Discrimination. Indeed, children from religious minority communities report that the level of racism they experience from their teachers and fellow pupils very often lead them to drop out of school. Too often, these children also feel that the Education system in place is not adapted to their cultural and religious backgrounds with school materials, books and curricula encouraging racism against their communities. As a result, all these children miss a much needed opportunity to break out of the poverty cycle in which they are trapped. (This also sustains inequality between communities which can lead to tensions and even ultimately communal violence or conflict). This project will work at different levels to ensure that these children can experience and enjoy school. Firstly, it will work with teachers from all the countries to encourage them to make children from all religious faiths feel welcome in their school. Secondly, the project will campaign for a change of school materials and curricula to ensure that teaching respecting the religious background of all children is dispensed everywhere. Finally, it will work directly with children from minority religious communities as well as their parents to restore their confidence in the education system of their country and encourage them to attend school for the first time or resume their studies.

    Solution

    100%
    Categories

  • Education/Training/Employment Education/​Training/​Employment
  • Human Rights/Advocacy Human Rights/​Advocacy
  • Beneficiaries