Another post from Byron’s Congo trip:
Friday, Set. 4, 2009
Today, after our seminar concluded (it was a success), I visited a nearby school. The building serves three uses. In the morning it is a secondary school serving some of the outstanding young people selected from across the CEUM. In the afternoon it is used by three classes of young women who are learning to read, write, and perform basic arithmetic. These are young women who had to skip normal schooling and now realize how much they need it. About half already have children, and some of them are single mothers. The program takes three years. At the conclusion, a few manage to go on to secondary school. This year, one of the graduates received a secondary-school diploma and three others are in secondary school. At present, there are 30 women in the basic level, 36 at the second level and 26 at the third level. They focus on learning to read and write both French and Lingala, on arithmetic, and on learning to sew.
I asked what they hoped to attain. One young woman said she wanted to learn to sew and read her Bible. Now she can do both—and she said she now realizes how important it is that her children attend school.
Another woman who spoke is 56 years old. She had always wanted to be able to read her Bible for herself and now she can. She was also proud that now she can write her name. I wish you could have seen her face as she talked. Clearly she is very proud of her achievement!
QUESTON OF THE DAY: Beyond being able to read and write, how important to development are the pride and confidence that come with that capability?
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