Reuters AlertNet Full site
Homepage | Newsdesk | NGO Latest | Crisis briefings | Country profiles | MediaWatch | Jobs | Alerting | Login

FROM THE FIELD

Study Station Project Keeps Children in School
25 Oct 2008 08:27:56 GMT
 Source: World Vision Middle East/Eastern Europe office (MEERO)
wvmeero logo
Youssef, 8, writing his name on the white board of a study station in the Dbayyeh Palestinian Camp, Lebanon
Previous | Next
Youssef, 8, writing his name on the white board of a study station in the Dbayyeh Palestinian Camp, Lebanon
World Vision MEERO, http://meero.worldvision.org

Background

•  Lebanon crisis

•  Children

MORE >>
By Patricia Mouamar

An education project in Lebanon's Dbayeh Palestinian refugee camp has opened new horizons for children with learning difficulties and highlighted the need for access to quality education.

World Vision's 'Study Station Project' in the camp in the northern suburbs of Beirut provided children as young as eight with critical learning skills they need to stay in school.

The educational level of Palestinian children is not comparable to that of Lebanese children or even to Palestinian children living in neighbouring Arab hosting countries. One out of three Palestinian children in Lebanon, aged 10 and above, leaves school before finishing primary or intermediate. The drop-out rate is 39 per cent, which is 10-fold higher than for Lebanese students for male and female alike, according to an Amnesty International Study*.

Youssef, 8 and his brother Jamileh, 9, had difficulties pronouncing words, reading and putting letters together. The boys coped by attempting to memorise texts read to them.

'When the brothers first joined the centre, they could not even spell their own names and now they can read a whole text by themselves,' said Maguy Hamouch Choufani, a teacher at the centre. 'It would have simply been impossible for them to go on memorising large amounts of text without actually being able to read them.'

The project used a personalised approach to support each child with his or her educational and psychological needs.

Like dozens of other young children in similar circumstances, the lack of education would have condemned them to a life of poverty. Unable to read or write and lacking access to specialised assistance, the brothers would have left school in Grade 3 or 4. Yet after just a year in the programme, Youssef can now read and write.

'Let me show you how I can write my name on the whiteboard,' said Youssef. 'Here (at the centre) …I can study and have fun.'

'There are a lot of children who needed our help, but we couldn't accommodate them all,' said Elie Ghorayeb, project co-ordinator. 'Sadly, we had to turn down a lot of cases and let our specialist select the children who have the greatest need.'

About 30 children and more than 90 others, such as parents and teachers, benefited from the Study Station Project. Through the project, World Vision rehabilitated a study centre at the camp, recruited and trained teachers, raised awareness among parents about the importance of education, and empowered local partners on education issues.

World Vision has been working with Palestinian refugees living in Lebanon since 1997. The study station project has been funded by World Vision Canada. The project awaits funding.

*According to Amnesty International Study, 'Exiled and suffering: Palestinian refugees in Lebanon', 2007, which was based on the (58) Third periodic report of States parties due in 2003 (CRC): Lebanon. UN Doc. CRC/C/129/Add.7, 25 October 2005 para. 477-78,


[ Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters. ]

Email this article       Send comments

Topics

•  Children

•  Refugees & displacement

MORE >>

Emergencies

•  Lebanon crisis

MORE >>

Members

•  World Vision Middle East/Eastern Europe office (MEERO)

MORE >>

NGO latest

•  Study Station Project Keeps Children in School
World Vision MEERO - Cyprus

•  International Medical Corps Delivers Medical and Water and Sanitation Services to Pakistanis Displaced from Fighting
IMC - USA

•  Somalia: Seeking refuge in Djibouti
Refugees International - USA

•  Flooding in Honduras Forces Mass Evacuation
Children Intl - USA

•  Economic downturn threatens developing countries
Merlin - UK

MORE >>

Latest news

•  Tribal fighting displaces thousands in south Darfur

•  Tribal fighting displaces thousands in south Darfur

•  At least 14 dead, 35 missing in Yemen floods

•  U.N. council seen backing special forces for Congo

•  COTE D'IVOIRE: "Alarming" malnutrition in north

MORE >>

[ Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters. ]

Background information

Briefings
Lebanon crisis - [Who works where]

Topics
Children Refugees & displacement

Related articles

Breaking stories
 Tribal fighting displaces thousands in south Darfur (1 minute ago)

Tribal fighting displaces thousands in south Darfur (1 minute ago)

AlertNet insight
 MEDIAWATCH: Pakistan refugee crisis looms large (1 minute ago)

Aid agency news feed
 Study Station Project Keeps Children in School (1 minute ago)

Blogs
 What about those who have nothing? (1 minute ago)

Maps
 MAP: Georgia assisting internally displaced people (1 minute ago)


Del.icio.us Del.icio.us  |   Digg Digg  |   NewsVine NewsVine  |   Reddit Reddit   
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2008-10-24T105626Z_01_COL03_RTRIDSP_2_SRILANKA_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/COL03.htm
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2008-10-24T073342Z_01_PEK02_RTRIDSP_2_CHINA-FOOD_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/PEK02.htm
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2008-10-23T175423Z_01_ACO06_RTRIDSP_2_SPAIN_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/ACO06.htm
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2008-10-23T135558Z_01_DEL09_RTRIDSP_2_INDIA-FIREWORKS-BLAST_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/DEL09.htm
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2008-10-23T135433Z_01_DEL08_RTRIDSP_2_INDIA_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/DEL08.htm

A child lies on a flooded road as residents walk past after torrential rain in the Ja-Ela suburb of Colombo October 24, 2008. At least six districts in Sri Lanka have ...


More pictures | Galleries
Disclaimers |  Copyright |  Privacy |  Contact Us |  Feedback |  About Us |  RSS XML

Last updated:Sat Oct 25 22:31:50 2008