UNESCO states “Education is a human right, a public good and a public responsibility.”

According to the UIS Data (http://data.uis.unesco.org) ending in 2018,

about 258 million children and youth globally are out-of-school. These young people have not had the opportunity to go to school or have dropped out of school for reasons such as being unable to afford school fees or family obligations.

On this international education day, consider the global out-of-school totals comprise:

• 59 million primary school children

• 62 million lower secondary school adolescents

• 138 million upper secondary school adolescents

In South Africa:

• 845 000 out-of-school primary school children

• 282 000 out-of-school lower secondary school adolescents

• 597 000 out-of-school upper secondary school adolescents

As Communities . . . .

As Schools . . . .

As Teachers . . . .

Beginning at home, how are you assisting your learners to be the best they can be?

Beyond the learners we teach, how are we impacting the children and young people around us who may not have access to education.

• The children in the informal settlement near your neighborhood.

• “Lost” children who can’t register in the country as one of their parents is a non-South African, so she / he can’t register to go to school.

• Your housekeeper’s or gardener’s children, are they going to school?

• A single mother who has children but can’t afford school fees.

Ask yourself:

• What are the little things we could do to assist children around us to gain access to education?

• Have we asked people who work for us or who we engage with, "Are your children or siblings going to school?"

• What about supporting a local school or ECD (Early Childhood Development Centre)?

If we each assist those around us, even in small ways, we can have a positive impact on their education. Each interaction has an impact and influence on those we engage with.

Let’s all do what we can. And together we’ll begin to tackle the UN Sustainable Goal of Equal Education for All.

Sources:

• International Day of Education https://en.unesco.org/commemorations/educationday

• Out-of-School Children and Youth http://uis.unesco.org/en/topic/out-school-children-and-youth

• UIS UNESCO Data http://data.uis.unesco.org/

Contact me, Karen Walstra, for Teaching Staff Professional Development Workshops.