Last month, I briefly mentioned that I planned to go buy more textbooks for Cura Primary School, building on the purchases we made last summer (after an immensely successful flash FB fundraising campaign!).
This recent textbook splurge wasn't as extravagant as the last one, but it still resulted in providing full class sets (plus teachers' guides) of English language and Social Studies textbooks:
Retail therapy of the very best kind!
And this time the teachers matched their immense gratitude with astute strategy, providing me with an additional list of required materials... just in case my donor friends had any more interest or resources to send Cura Primary School's way!
On my desk right now there sits a hand written list of materials REQUIRED for the students to study for their standardized (KCPQ) exams. Throughout the years, the teachers have made do without them... and the students' test scores reflect it. Though the children have the same range of skills and abilities as pupils in every elementary school, they're fundamentally disadvantaged by the lack of parental resources and infrastructure. How can these children be truly successful as scholars if they don't have the basic materials that make this possible?
The items on this list total over US$2000... and, let's face it, even this is only a drop in the bucket. But if we keep plugging away at it, maybe we fill even more tables with books during my next visit.
Who's with me?
H
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