As a retired teacher, this really got my attention. On his trip there last summer, Lawrence O'Donnell learned that what the teachers said the schools need the most is chairs. The country is so poor that kids must sit on a dirt floor all day, and teachers have to stand up to teach. Now to help improve conditions in classrooms there, Lawrence O'Donnell and MSNBC are partnering with UNICEF to provide desks for schools in Malawi.
I am a retired teacher. I was a teacher in the Peace Corps, and I have taught in schools where conditions were not good. Our building in El Salvador had earthquake damage, and my first classroom in the United States was in inner-city Houston, flimsy temporary building with no air conditioning, and desks that were so covered with graffitti that teachers painted the desks every year to cover it up. My last classroom in Houston was in a 50 year old building with a leaky roof. I have been in a one room school in Mexico that had a dirt floor, but even in that school there were desks and chairs. As a teacher I can't imagine standing up all day to teach without being able to sit down. I can't imagine kids being able to learn if they have to sit on the floor all day. In Malawi, the conditions in classrooms are so bad that children sit on the floor all day, and their teachers teach standing all day.
On The Last Word last night, Lawrence O'Donnell talked about his visit to Malawi last summer. He described the desparately poor schools there where the greatest need expressed by teachers was not for paper or pencils, but simply chairs. In crowded Malawi classrooms, children sit on dirt floors all day. They must also try to read and write sitting on the floor.
As a teacher, I know from first-hand experience that improved classroom conditions do lead to improvements in student concentration and learning. I still remember the day when my Houston classroom finally got air-conditioning, and what a difference that made. Imagine what a difference it will make to a child accustomed to aching muscles from trying to read and write while sitting on a dirt floor for seven hours, to be able to sit comfortably at a desk.
O'Donnell explained how while he was in Malawi he wanted to provide at least one school with desks, film the delivery of the desks and show his audience back home that something can be done. UNICEF found a local carpenter's shop that had a good design for a sturdy desk/chair combination that can seat 2 kids ( maybe even 3). They agreed to build enough desks for a classroom in very short order, by hiring extra workers ( which of course benefits the local economy ). You can see a video and pictures on the Kids in Need of Desks website showing how happy the kids were to get the desks when they were delivered. They eagerly helped unload the desks, and burst out singing.
Now MSNBC is partnering with UNICEF is to provide locally constructed, sturdy desks that can seat two children each to improve conditions in 46,000 classrooms.The project is called Kids in Need of Desks. For $24 gets one kid off of the floor, and $48 provides a desk for 2 kids. If you want to donate a desk in someone's name as a holiday gift, UNICEF will send them an e-gift card. I can think of some people on my list who would like being honored this way!
A simple idea that can bring so much dignity to these kids lives.
To learn more or donate, go to the Last Word/MSNBC website Kids in Need of Desks.