Get a Kosovan Kid to School

In a classroom crowded with children I spot the shy smile of Vjollca, one of the children who attend our ‘intensive classes’. These classes, which are led by volunteers, are for children aged 8 to 14 who have never been registered in school or have dropped out of school very shortly after starting.

There are 57 children registered in the intensive classes. When these classes started in early October, 13 children out of the total 57 already knew the Albanian alphabet, but were unable to either write or read; the rest of the children were completely illiterate. Vjollca was part of the latter group, but now, around 2 months after starting the classes, she knows her alphabet, and is successfully learning to write and read in Albanian.

Vjollca’s case is unique in this group because she is a girl with special needs. When I asked her mother what was it that Vjollca suffered from, she told me that all that the doctors had told her was that ‘Vjollca has a brain problem’, which she was born with. This is the reason for the spasticity in Vjollca’s right arm and leg.

Coming from the poorest community in Kosovo, Vjollca’s family could not afford to get her the treatment she needed for her condition. Their only income is what Vjollca’s father makes from the scrap he collects, barely managing to feed the family.

In July we started physiotherapy sessions at our centre in the Roma, Ashkali and Egyptian community in Fushe Kosove, for Vjollca and the other 9 children with mobility difficulties whom we identified living here. These sessions are held once a week, offering support to the children and advice to their parents on treatment they can apply at home to improve their children’s condition. For most of the children, these sessions are the only form of medical treatment they get.

With a look of contentment, the coordinator of the physiotherapy sessions, Rabije, tells us about Vjollca. Rabije is from the same community as Vjollca and she knows the usual fate here of children born with special needs like Vjollca. ‘When she first started attending the physiotherapy sessions, Vjollca was very anxious and would cry a lot’ says Rabije, ‘but after a few sessions her hand and leg were feeling much better, and so was Vjollca, and we realized that it was time for a more challenging activity for her’.

And that is how Vjollca, with the help and encouragement of Rabije, and our Albanian curriculum coordinator, Lirije, became an important part of the intensive classes.

‘She could barely hold the pen in her hand’ recalls Lirije who besides supervising these classes, sometimes teaches too. ‘But now she knows the alphabet and she is starting to write and read’ she says proudly. Lirije has also seen that when Vjollca learned something new and was at the same level with the rest of the class, it immediately made her more confident and comfortable around the other children. Now Vjollca gets so excited about the classes that she always shows up half an hour early, and eagerly waits for everyone else to get there, always with that beautiful smile on her face.

Your donations fund the costs of these classes to help the children of Fushe Kosove who do not attend school, so that they can catch up with their peers and get ready to register in school. The classes are part of a multi-pronged approach which includes putting pressure on state institutions to fulfill their obligations to these children. From Vjollca, and the others of the 57 children learning in these classes, we thank you for the way you are transforming lives and life-chances in these most challenging circumstances.

Six year-old Fetije has just started school. It's been a big month for her, as for many children across the world, embarking on new stages of education. But Fetije is a real rarity in her community - 96% of Kosovo's Roma, Ashkali and Egyptians have not completed compulsory education, so she is setting out to do something truly extraordinary. She says she's determined to see her schooling through to the end - because she wants to be a teacher when she grows up.

Her father, Haki, agrees. 'Without education you're nothing,' he says. His wife only managed four years of school but they are both determined that their girls will have more. 

'The problem,' says Haki, 'is money.' He is unemployed and dependent on casual labour - his last job was unloading lorries, which usually earns 10 euro for a day's work; precious little to keep a family of six. 'You can have good dreams but... there's a problem without money.' 

Luckily, his two daughters old enough for school have been able to benefit from the support of The Ideas Partnership. Both of them attended the free kindergarten we set up last year, and Haki says with pride that they knew all their letters before they started at primary school this month. Being at our kindergarten also meant that our mediator was able to ensure they registered on time for primary school. They also attend our Saturday academic support activities to ensure they succeed at school. The girls' confidence is unmistakeable. 'What do you get from coming to our centre?' I ask them, and Fetije is quite clear about the benefits.

'Friends,' she grins. 'And knowing my letters.'

'And boots' adds her father, referring to the footwear we distibute to children in need.

Fetije says she's happy at her new school and talks proudly about her teacher and her new classmates, including friends who are both Albanian and from her own Roma, Ashkali and Egyptian community; her presence in the schoolroom is a step forward not only for her but for a more integrated future for all Kosovo's citizens.

Fetije and her sister Elmedina are two of the 45 first graders we registered at school this year. Thanks to your support it's a higher number than we've ever before registered, in the five years we've been battling to get the members of the girls' community into education. It's the beginning of something huge - for the two of them, and for all those around them. Thank you for launching these young learners on their adventure - with friends, the letters of the alphabet, and with boots.

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