Help 80 Secondary Pupils in Niger Read and Write

Many of the 6^th graders who come to Hampaté Bâ from public primary schools are reading on the 1st grade level and struggling with even the most basic math concepts. Students who are struggling to keep up in school can easily become discouraged. By the time they reach 9^th grade, they are at risk of dropping out.

The Read and Write program jump-starts underperforming students into learning necessary concepts and vocabulary before their classmates even begin the new lesson. Rather than being stuck in the remedial slow lane, students move ahead of everyone into the fast lane of learning. Read and Write provides a fresh academic start for students every week and creates opportunities for struggling students to learn alongside their more successful peers.

“I did not know that sentences begin with a capital letter and that one must add an ‘S’ to make things plural. Now, I do!”says Boubakar, an outgoing 6^th grader.

“When you see some of our teachers at the front of the classroom doing an entire circus act as they explain how to add an ’s’ to make things plural to a group of adult-sized students, please don’t judge. We are doing our best to bring students who are woefully behind up to grade level”, explains Mr Barro, the principal. 

Read and Write classes increase student confidence and participation. This is because prior knowledge and new vocabulary are placed directly in students' paths just in time for new learning in their main classrooms. Students' newfound knowledge increases the odds that they will know the correct responses to questions. They now feel safe to raise their hands and their fear of embarrassment diminishes.

“I can now answer certain questions and I’m less scared of making mistakes”, says 12 year old Moussa.

“This is not traditional tutoring. Our mission is to get struggling students ahead of the game. We accelerate them in their trouble courses of Math and French by teaching them concepts and vocabulary directly linked to the lesson to come. This enables them to understand new content much better,” adds Mr Barro.

Help us move struggling students in the right path.

All donations, big and small, are welcome ! We thank you so much for your constant support which is greatly needed and appreciated !

Together, we can help these students out by bringing them up to level and ultimately providing them a better future.

Thank you so much for provoking those smiles!