"Nearly 58 million primary school age children are not in school. More than half of these children are girls and 75 percent of them live in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. Of all the primary-school age girls globally, 20 percent are not in school, compared to 16 percent of boys in this age group. That’s 1-in-5 eligible girls worldwide who aren’t going to primary school. But education is vital. Though it's hard to prove the impact of girls’ education statistically, over and over it has been shown that this investment can have a ripple effect of opportunity that impacts generations. With primary and secondary school education can come increased job opportunities and higher wages. Girls who pursue secondary education are also at a significantly lower risk of engaging in crime or falling victim to human trafficking. Educated women have also been shown to marry later and have fewer children."
http://www.halftheskymovement.org/issues/education
I did not like school. I was a good student, but I didn't care a much as I should have. I knew I didn't want to go to college, so getting good grades and applying myself was not a big concern to me. I did what was needed to get by and nothing more. Over the years, I have found subjects I am interested in, and have started to take classes and learn new subjects. My trips with CGA have ignited a passion for schooling that I never had before. Although education is widespread in the US, there are plenty of students who, like me, don't see education as a necessary part of life.
In certain places of the United States, and in most parts of the world, education is the most important thing in life. Being educated can be the deciding factor between life and death. For women, your quality of life relies even more heavily on your education. Despite the women's rights movements happening all over the world, there is still much inequality in business, education and respect. In every country I have visited, education of women is a driving force. More and more women and girls are becoming passionate about their learning and schooling. They have dreams and desires that go farther than just simply having children and getting married at a young age. The girls we have met in Morocco are prime examples.
Youssra wants to be a doctor. A pediatrician to be specific. She knows that the better her English is, the better chance she will have to get into a good university. Her brother is equally ambitious, however he is hoping to become a professional footballer. Their mother did not attend school herself and struggles to find work. She has applied to many jobs and is denied, and her husband has inconsistent work. She spends her days at home painting to ease the stress of paying for rent. She supports Youssra's desire for furthering her education.
Fatimasahra lives with her grandmother and mother. They all three share a room of roughly 8x8. We arrived for our home visit and the table in the center of the small room was covered in food, more food than they can afford to buy to feed themselves. Grandmother never attended school, had seven children and has spent her entire life caring for her husband, children and working to make ends meet. As she sits and tells us about her life, she repeatedly expresses her embarrassment for her lack of knowledge, claiming she cannot leave the house without getting lost. She cannot read a street sign or a bus schedule, she cannot express herself, and she cannot write her own name.
Rabiee, Fatimasahra's mother left her parents at age 12 to marry a man in Rabat 40 years older than her. When I asked her if the marriage was arranged, she said no, she wanted to leave her parents and this seemed to be her best option. By the age of 18, she had given birth to Fatimasahra. 6 years ago her husband passed away. She works three jobs, 12 hours every day. Her total salary is 150 dirham a month and her rent is 300 dirham a month. (Yes, you read that correctly, when asked how she pays rent, she said she makes it work.) She talks of her desire to learn, and at the young age of 30, I assure her it is not too late. She smiles sadly and states she has no time to go back to school, all her energy must now go into creating a strong future for her daughter.
Fatimasahra is a small girl of twelve. At school, she is quiet and hardworking. At home she is helpful and fiery. She wants to be an astronaut when she grows up and doesn't plan on getting married or having kids, to her grandmother's dismay. She has a strong sense of family and is fully aware of the sacrifices her mother and grandmother have made for her. Fatimasahra's grandmother repeatedly thanks us and gives her blessings for our being in their home and at the school She says she is sad that Fatimasahra has no one to understand her and she praises God for sending us to them, vehemently saying she does not want her granddaughter to end up like her. Her gratefulness and appreciation brings us to tears, as we feel we are learning so much more from them than they can possibly learn from us.
