Help us rebuild schools in Nepal

As we begin to plan the second round of our teacher training program that emphasizes reading aloud to children, the feedback from our teachers has been very positive. But, of course, there is still room for improvement.

Earlier this month, our new partner organization in Nepal, Kakshyalaya, (the name loosely translates into English as “inspiring classrooms”), met with teachers from the six schools in Kavre district who participated last year. They said that the new reading corners installed in their classrooms have encouraged students to spend their spare time with their favorite books.

This is great to hear, because it reinforces the idea that children enjoy reading; they just need access to books and a place to engage with them.

This year, we will expand the training program to work with schools in Lalitpur district as well continuing with the same six schools in Kavre that participated last year. We will supply books, bookshelves and other reading materials in addition to the training sessions. Some of the tentative activities for children include karaoke and storytelling using puppets.

Kavre and Lalitpur districts both suffered heavy damage during the earthquakes. Generally, schools in Lalitpur were hit harder than those in Kavre and remain in worse condition.

Teachers also had some suggestions for changes they would like to see in the program. One asked for books that were more closely related to the curriculum, to help students understand their lessons.

Nearly all the principals we spoke to agreed that the training would be more effective if it included practical sessions about teaching methodology and improving the English language skills of teachers. This is a common request of many schools we work with, since the Nepali government has declared that all schools conduct classes in English but has provided few if any resources to improve the English language skills of teachers.

We also need to work on library management techniques, because some books have gone missing. Although this is unfortunate, it’s also something we expected, because the idea of a lending library is completely new in many rural schools.

Thank you for your continued support of our training program.