In our quest to understand the educational landscape within the communities we serve, we engaged in focus group discussions with school leaders and teachers. These discussions shed light on the obstacles encountered by children from disadvantaged backgrounds:
Social and Economic Background: The communities we serve predominantly exhibit low socio-economic status, with parents often engaged in daily wage labour. Broken families and minimal parental involvement in education are common.
Support for Children’s Studies: Parental involvement in children’s studies is limited, with only a minority able to afford tuition. Financial constraints and lack of awareness about the importance of education hinder parental engagement.
Challenges Faced by Children: Children grapple with issues like poor concentration, low memory retention, and struggles with independent learning. Weak foundational numeracy impacts performance in subjects like Mathematics, while limited exposure to application-level questions impedes higher-level understanding.
Career Guidance and Ambitions: Parents’ lack of education and awareness restricts their ability to guide their children’s career choices. Many children lack clear career goals, particularly in high school, and schools struggle to provide comprehensive career guidance due to time and resource limitations.
Character Formation and Ethical Values: There’s a recognised need for character formation and moral education among children. However, the absence of dedicated programs or external support agencies poses a challenge in addressing this aspect effectively.
Children from economically disadvantaged backgrounds face significant hurdles on their educational journey. To ensure they receive the support they need for comprehensive growth—academically, socially, and ethically—we must come together and take action.
At Value Education Trust, we’re passionate about making a difference, and we’re inviting individuals and organisations who share our vision to join us. Together, let’s create opportunities, empower young minds, and pave the way for a brighter future.
