Things I Learned in Malawi: Education is a True Privilege

He who thinks little of the ABC's will never be a man of great learning. 
A Favorite Proverb Martin Luther Wrote on a Wall in His Home

I have always valued education. As a young child my favorite toy of all the toys in my room, was a chalkboard. I saved every paper that was returned to me in grade school and used them to teach my teddy bears and dolls how to read, write, and do math. (Okay so they had a hard time learning, but I'm sure by "teaching" them I learned the material even better.)

Our two children have watched us receive master's degrees and have witnessed their mother being hooded for a doctorate. They know that education is their most important job as young people. It's a culture we have fostered with them from in the womb and they know no other way of being. 

While in Malawi, one of the poorest countries on earth, I saw signs of hope there in the small village of Kanyenyeva where our church, and a handful of other dedicated churches are partners in an orphan care ministry. There are around 300 registered orphans in the KOCM (Kanyenyeva Orphan Care Ministry) Project and each one of them is required to attend school or forfeit the services they receive four times a week. (Food, and more!) It is not mandatory to attend school in Malawi. The government does not have education as a top priority. There are no books, paper, pencils, chalk, or crayons. There certainly isn't a gymnasium or a cafeteria. There are empty shells of buildings and some half finished that are presently unusable. (The new president promised if he was elected that education would be a priority. He started construction on school buildings and once he was in office he quickly forgot about his promises.) 

Funds have been donated to put a metal roof on but there are few laborers to do the work.

Unfinished building erected by newly elected President. 

Another building that was left unfinished.

Classroom for 80 students. 

Chalkboard

The hope that I experienced is that there are people who are striving to get kids enrolled in school but it is an uphill battle. We learned that "ideal" ratio of student to teacher is 60-1. Imagine our teachers in America faced with that ratio! Yikes! However, the ideal is not the case. . . in the level that is equivalent to our Kindergarten or First Grade there are 200 students to 1 brave teacher. It goes down from there; in the 8th grade there are 80 students and 1 teacher. If a student actually qualifies to go to High School by their performance on exams, it is highly unlikely that they will be able to enroll. Their families simply do not have the $150 it costs for tuition to send them. We pay more than that to have our kids play Varsity Sports at our High School in Norwalk, Ohio. 

Together, we are making a difference! The churches who are a part of the Malawi Orphan Care Project are constantly raising funds to get kids to High School. This year, thankfully, almost 40 students qualified to enter High School. We have about half the money at present with a deadline of 2 weeks away when the term begins. We will do it! I know we will. People are responding already because they know that education is the way to change the world, one student at a time. 

As your children head back to school, think about how blessed we are in this country. We complain way too much about our teachers (a most precious resource!), our schools (palaces compared to the third world), common core (at least we have people who consider what our kids should be taught and they work to provide materials), and a whole host of other things we take for granted. Rejoice that our kids are learning and don't have to walk five miles to a beat up building, try to learn without resources, try to learn with 199 others in one class, and are not simply too hungry and tired to learn most days. Education in some places in the world is not a human right, it is a privilege. We would do well to keep that in mind.