Education improves the life opportunities of all young people, particularly the poor. Education enables people to be able to read and write, which helps them access systems and understand the world around them. It enables a young person to gain a better paid or skilled job, have better health, and to productively contribute to society.
So, can you imagine a country where schools did not exist? This happened in Cambodia. Historically Cambodia was profoundly affected by the brutal regime of Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge, who ruled the country from 1975 until 1979. However, peace did not come to the country until the 1990s. Pol Pot had a radical plan for Cambodia and during this time hospitals and schools were abolished, and many educated people were killed, including nearly all doctors and teachers. Families were split apart and sent to work camps. This caused profound trauma that has lasted until today, and it also devastated the educational opportunities of many Cambodians.
After this terrible time modern Cambodia has had to rebuild its educational infrastructure and meet the needs of a rapidly growing population. Many schools in Cambodia still lack basic resources. Many country primary schools are built from wood with dirt floors and no toilets. Students are taught by chanting the Khmer alphabet as they have no materials to write the alphabet down. Imagine a school with no pens, no paper, no textbooks and no toilets! There are no computers, no gyms, no art rooms, no library, certainly no camps or excursions, and not even posters on the walls. Government secondary schools in urban areas have better facilities, but teachers often do not have access to computers and are desperate for textbooks and materials.
Recently Our Lady of Mercy College, with the blessings of our Principal Ms Weir, donated eight re-conditioned computers for use in Cambodia. These computers were distributed to a secondary school in Phnom Penh that teaches approximately 4,200 students. This, together with a corporate donation, has allowed Data Boards to be set up in four of the classrooms, and the OLMC computers will be part of a new computer lab for the school. Not only were students thrilled and excited, but so were the teachers! A group of teachers has now been trained in Data Board use and on the computers. Teachers will now create more dynamic lessons, whilst also having access to lessons and educational resources on the internet. The senior secondary school students using the computer lab will learn computer skills, access learning materials, and be more adequately prepared for university courses which require computer literacy. Our hope is that this will help ‘leap-frog’ education and provide quality teaching to these students. Thank you so much OLMC!