Day One : Freeing Children From the Lack of Education

Global Issues Require Global Responses

Of the estimated 700 million primary school-age children in the world today, about 121 million are not in school. Nearly three-quarters of these children live in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, and 56 per cent are girls.

 The Millennium Development Goals and Education

What are the goals? They represent human needs and basic rights that every individual around the world should be able to enjoy—freedom from extreme poverty and hunger; quality education, productive and decent employment, good health and shelter; the right of women to give birth without risking their lives; and a world where environmental sustainability is a priority, and women and men live in equality.

The UN's  Millennium Development goal's has an educational focus that is aimed for 2015.

The educational target of the Millennium Development goal's are that all countries must ensure that, by 2015, children everywhere, boys and girls alike, will be able to complete a full course of primary schooling.


<--How is the countries doing thus far? Check out the map:

Education and conflicts
Conflicts and war have large negative effects on the educational system of a country. For example during the civil war in Sierra Leone many schools were targeted because of their importance to their communities. School is one of the only ways people have the opportunity to escape from poverty and learn to have a impact on bettering themselves and their communities. Free The Children has put a large focus on Sierra Leone after the war to help the country improve its educational infrastructure and help the people escape from poverty. 

• 70% of Sierra Leone’s population lives below the poverty line.
• The average life expectancy in the country is only 42 years.
• Less than half of Sierra Leonean women aged 15 to24 can read and write.
• 48% of Sierra Leone’s children aged 5 to 14 are involved in child labour.

Donate Today to help us build a school in Sierra Leone! 

Free The Children School: Kids hard at work learning.

Problems with education in the United States
In the United States children are also struggling to get the education they deserve. Unlike other countries children have access to education but many children are falling through the cracks and are not graduating from high school. Children from poor communties and minority backgrounds are far behind the rest of the nation. Education is being an important topic and you should become informed to better take part in democracy.   
The United States educational problems:

• More than 1.2 million students drop out of school every year. That’s more than 6,000 students every school day and one every 26 seconds. 
• The national high school graduation rate is only 70 percent, with states ranging from a high of 84 percent in Utah to a low of 54 percent in South Carolina. 
• Graduation rates are much lower for minority students. Only about half of the nation’s African-American and Latino students graduate on time from high school.
• For more information on the problems with education in the US check out the documentary Waiting  for Superman.

This blog was written for Child Rights Awareness Week at BSU by Iolando Spinola, FTC Vice President.

Check back tomorrow to learn about another child rights issue and how you can help!

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