200 children. 1 teacher. The odds are stacked against them.
In Malawi, children living in poverty go to school hoping for a brighter future through education, but that’s not what they get.
There are 200 children in a class with only one teacher. They sit on the bare concrete floor without enough books, paper or even pens to go around.
For a child living in poverty, learning to read, write and count isn’t just important. It’s their best chance of a brighter future. But it’s impossible for a teacher to teach, or a child to learn. As a result, children are forced to leave school without having had a chance to learn to read, write or count – essential skills if they’re to escape a life of poverty.
It’s not right. But with your help, it CAN change.
Will you be part of the change you want to see, and help a child learn to read, write and count?
Children like Lonjezo are in danger of dropping out of school and into a life of poverty. It's impossible to learn in a class of 200 children without any books, pens, or desks. They are in a desperate situation.
Lonjezo is 12 years old and has a learning disability. He lives with his mother, father, grandmother and five siblings in a home with no running water or electricity. He desperately hoped that going to school would give him a better life. But his classroom has 200 children and only one teacher.
Being one of so many children, Lonjezo couldn't get the support he needed. He couldn't even hear his teacher. It was impossible for him to learn, so he spent year after year in the same class, unable to get the essential skills he needed.
How VSO is responding
Everything changed when Lonjezo joined VSO's learning sessions. During these focused sessions, an expert VSO volunteer helps the children learn using an educational tablet in a calm, quiet environment. Away from the crowded classroom, there was the calm he needed to focus. With headphones on, he could hear. If he needed help, he could put his hand up and a teacher is there to help.
In a matter of months, with VSO's help, Lonjezo has learnt to read, write and count, passed his end-of-year exam, and has moved up to the next class.
I hope that in the future, when Lonjezo finishes school, he will be independent, and he will be able to help himself.
Give the gift of an education this year
There are thousands of children we need to urgently reach. They need support now.
Without help from people like you, every day children like Lonjenzo will be forced out of school and into a life of poverty. Without the essential life skills of reading, writing and counting, a life of continued poverty follows. You can change this. You can equip a child to learn and thrive with an education tablet in their hand and a VSO expert by their side.
Please, give a child the life-changing gift of an education today.