What About Education? Part 9

Graduation without computer skills )-:

Great beginnings!

In 2006, I planted a seed of inspiration. MUCH completed the Sweet Dreams II mattress and bedding project and now it was time to think of another project that would motivate the children to reach for higher goals. While meeting with the administration at the orphanage, I asked if they would be interested in starting a computer laboratory for the children. I suggested that it would take some time to raise enough money for to buy three or four computers. They began the investigation process.

When I returned on my next visit three months later, I had approval of my Board of Directors to begin the project. To my surprise, they had purchased six computer systems. The federal government had given grants to the orphanages of Ukraine, thus, they decided to use some of that money to begin the computer program. When they confessed that they did not have any money in the budget to pay a teacher, I asked what it would cost to have someone teach one computer class a day. I was told $20 a month would be enough.

This spark of encouragement, agreeing to provide this stipend, moved the idea into second gear. One of the teachers found a class to learn how to teach computer skills to mentally challenged children. When I asked this man about his background in computers, he told me that it was limited. I further asked where his aptitude would come from. He answered, “I am a teacher. I will learn it, and then I will teach it.” I later learned that his degree was in teaching the Ukrainian language. Yet, he had been hired to teach art and woodcraft. He is truly a man who lives who he is, a teacher.

They now have seven computers and a PowerPoint projector and screen. They are teaching the children graphic art, word processing and other Office programs, and a number of other skills that will help them compete in the 21ts century. They are also using the computer classroom to facilitate other classes and programs.

Our part in the computer classes for the children remains small, although we continue to sponsor this program. We are seeing great changes in the children. Instead of going outside and getting into trouble, or sitting in front of the television for hours, many of the children are going to the computer room to practice their skills. Games are available, and, of course, many of the children like to play the games. Even so, for these children, hand eye coordination, speed skills, keyboard skills, and organized thought processing, will develop abilities that will make them more marketable in the job market.

What About Education? Part 10, we will look more deeply into the benefits of computer skills and knowledge for these children whose parents, if they have parents, are lost in this emerging country.

What About Education Part 6

My second focus of outreach during my first six weeks living in Ukraine was the Emmaus Food Program. I began to support this program, operated by the local Baptist church, which reached out to children from difficult homes. Some of the children came to eat without having showered for days, some of the children arrived with lice in their hair, and others appeared in clothes that seemed to be stuck to their bodies.

After interacting with the children for a few years, I realized that no matter how good the program was, the children aged out when they graduated high school and had nowhere to go for help. What was next for them? This was the big question that entered my mind. My evaluation was that the children would continue to live with their parents, and many would follow in their footsteps, using alcohol and drugs to escape the seemingly hopeless situation of their lives. How could this cycle of poverty be broken?

One very powerful answer must be viewed as higher education. In 2007, I had a vision of helping students in financial need who qualified for higher education with transportation to and from Odessa. MUCH began the Transportation Scholarship Program, beginning with two students enrolled in a four-year university program. Transportation to and from Odessa universities in 2007 cost about a $1 a day. In 2012, the cost has risen to about $2.50. One of our students graduated last year, see our January 2012 Newsletter, but it was unfortunate that the second student dropped out of our program. Our third student began university in 2010, and she is doing very well. You can read about her in the June 2012 Newsletter.

Our first student who studied to be an English teacher, has since married, and she has given birth to a baby girl. In the future, she will use her education to help her get a good job, but for now, her education will help her to be a better mother. Our third student is studying nursing, in the area of pharmacology. Each student works through difficult times, but their desires and goals were stronger than the challenges that they faced.

I began to investigate the number of children in Illichevsk who are in need of financial help for higher education. I didn’t have to go far to learn that there are many. My current goal for the school year beginning September 2012, is to add four students to our existing program, which will total five students. To send five students to university, the transportation cost will be about $300 per month.

What About Education? Part 7 will focus on the educational programs at the Marganets orphanage that MUCH supports. These children all have some type of mental or physical challenge. Their ability to learn is different, therefore we want to focus on what motivates them the most and help them to excel. We will look more deeply into their needs in the next section.

What About Education - Intro

V. is preparing for her third year of medical college under the MUCH Transportation Scholarship

After ten years of developing the MUCH outreach programs for disadvantaged children and those with disabilities, we have sorted our programs into three categories: health care, education, and clothing. In this article, I will begin to discuss the topic of education.

The schools of Ukraine provide a good educational program, similar to that of the past Soviet educational system. Since the fall of Communism in 1991, Ukraine has been rebuilding itself as a country. One of the many realities during this time was the weakening of the educational system, in a large part, due to the fact that many of the teachers were not being paid.

The teachers, a breed of their own, continued as long as they could, providing the same quality of education as before. After many months of no pay, their personal economy became desperate. They began to take matters into their own hands. They charged the students in different ways. Some for grades, some for diplomas. That was then. Unfortunately, when you corrupt the moral fiber of a people whose government was already corrupt, changing that fiber to the positive, is not so easy.

Having spoken about this problem with some of the teachers that I interact with throughout Ukraine, I asked about the quality of education today. They all agreed that it had taken a turn for the worse two decade ago, but it was getting better. The computer age has helped education, but it has had an equally negative effect on the children. On the plus side, in 2011, the first generation of children born in freedom graduated high school. They, unlike their parents, learned the truth about the world and life in other countries, having access to an overwhelming amount of information. On the negative side, the children prefer the video games and anything that they can learn how to download for free. Becoming flooded with choices has greatly distracted the children from their focus on studies.

About six years ago, after watching the development of the children from difficult homes at the Emmaus Food Program in Illichevsk, I began to understand the bigger need for these children. It was higher education. Without it, their lives would most probably imitate that of their parents, low-income work, alcohol abuse, and no vision for their future. This is bad, but what makes it worse is that Ukraine is on the fast track to change, and change in a big way. You can read in the  http://tinyurl.com/2012jannewsletter about the first university graduate and the second student beginning her third, who participate(d) in the MUCH Transportation Scholarship Program.

I invite you to follow my article series at it unfolds.