Highlights this week
The crater of civilization in Tanzania
Singing ‘We are the World’ – Michael Jackson
Save the children in Tanzania
O’Brien School for the Maasai and Montessori
President Obama – Singing enriches cultural and emotional building blocks
Montessori comes to Africa (3 – 5)
The big problem facing education today is that of ensuring every child has the opportunity to receive an education, an opportunity to gain knowledge and sow the seeds of change for future generations. How can this be obtained when the achievement gap between low-income, mostly minority and third world children and those children who are more fortunate is growing daily? There are many world organisations working tirelessly to help make a difference. One in particular the global organisation Save the Children’s first global campaign called ‘Rewrite the Future’ is focused on securing quality education for the millions of children out of school due to war and armed conflict. In conflict-affected fragile states one in three children is out of school. Without education, and without protection, they are being denied both their childhood and hope for the future. World leaders have pledged to bring about universal primary education by 2015, but around 75 million children are still missing out on school for unacceptable reasons, such as being female, coming from ethnic minorities, having a disability or needing to work. Save the Children strives to make education accessible and safe for children, focusing on those who are hardest to reach. Another organization concentrating specifically on implementing the rights of the child, as laid out by the UN convention is OMEP. This World Organization for the Education of Young Children, coordinates national associations in almost 200 countries, and as a non-governmental organization (NGO) is represented at the United Nations. In the United States and other countries, its membership joins with other associations at their conferences and endeavors.
What can we do as individuals, organisation leaders, communities, or government officials to provide education? Prior to this visit to Africa I would have reassured you that there is little for an individual to do because the task at hand is of such magnitude. Well I now confess to a change of heart. Having witnessed first hand the smiling faces of the little ones, the beauty of the children, the desire to succeed mixed with frustration in the older teenage children, and the hope-filled anxious faces of the elderly, it is clear that this is the time for change, the time for sharing the educational wealth to all children around the world.
Check in next week for the first in a series of music lesson plans for classroom teachers
Covering upcoming topics –
What’s the connection between musical play and problem solving?
Why do so many special needs kids do so well in music class
Why is music the emotion of the soul?
Musical fitness for children
Communication skills improve with music participation
Give your child a self-esteem boost through musical experiences
