Monday, June 3, 2013

The Hope of Students by Eliza F.


Eliza F.



Ruhango District, Southern Province



 
Hi, my name is Eliza Foster and I’m the third new member of GAD from Education 4. I live in what is known as “the melted land” which, though it sounds like yet another sequel to “The Land Before Time”, is in fact a hot but lovely area in the Southern Province where I get to teach English to Senior 4, 5, and 6.

This past Friday was my village’s “Day of Remembrance.” All the schools in my sector gathered together to remember the victims of the 1994 genocide – we brought flowers to the mass grave, we read the names of the teachers and students who had been killed, community leaders gave speeches, and students recited poetry.  As I’m sure the other Rwanda Peace Corps Volunteers have experienced, it was one of those moments in your service when you are amazed at and challenged by how wholly welcomed you are into such an intensely personal day in your community.

At one point in the day’s ceremonies, I sat among a large group of teachers, parents and leaders to listen to music, a Catholic mass, and speeches.  Sitting or standing on the field across from us were roughly 800 students, mostly from nearby primary schools.

What struck me most on Friday was not what I heard of Rwanda’s past, but what I saw in its future. So many students! I found myself looking at the faces of the children in their school uniforms and could not help but be overwhelmed by a feeling of optimism for this country’s future, both in general and in terms of gender equality. I saw at least an equal number of female students as male (if not more) and thought about how much progress had already been made in educating the youth of Rwanda. Yes, there are still many issues concerning education here. Kids still miss too much school due to sickness, responsibilities at home, hindering fees, and the distance of schools from their homes, among other issues. I know in my upper secondary school where my students focus on history, economics, and geography, all their notes are in English in which they are far from fluent. However, despite the host of issues the country needs to address, more and more children are receiving an education – both boys and girls.

Participating in grassroots development is frustrating and I have countless stories that reflect the persistence of gender inequality, but I also have stories of my students articulately discussing family planning and gender balance, of teachers making sure that an equal number of boys and girls participate in any given event, and of women taking on key leadership roles.

As Caitlan mentioned in her post last week, education is such a powerful tool of empowerment for marginalized people around the world, from America’s inner-cities to the villages in which Peace Corps Volunteers are serving. Seeing those children listening on the field and hearing thirteen of my own students speaking to the ideas of dignity, tolerance, and self-reliance in front of nearly a thousand people, I was swept up in the hope that is very much present in the discourse on development in this country. I DO believe there will be great and rapid progress in Rwanda. I believe it because I see the creativity, thoughtfulness and drive needed for such advancement alighting in the hearts and minds of the students in my community.



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