A lesson in learning: How four young people are helping girls stay in school
Young people are making education a reality for girls across the world.
Every 24 January we celebrate International Day of Education, but right now an estimated 130 million girls across the world are still missing out on going to school.
The triple threat of conflict, climate disasters and coronavirus are making it much harder for children and young people to access education – and girls are often most affected.
Without education, girls face much greater obstacles in the future – at home and in their communities.
Education is an issue of equality. We can’t achieve an equal world if girls are kept out of the classroom.
Meet Cephas, Faith, Tanzila and Melanie – four young people determined to help girls stay in school.
Cephas is challenging period stigma
“In this community, there is a myth around periods,” explains 13-year-old Cephas in Ghana. “When girls have their periods, they are separated from their families and treated as outcasts.”
As a young boy, Cephas saw that his three sisters were treated differently when they had their periods. “Girls are not allowed to cook for the family or touch anything belonging to the family during their periods because they are unclean,” he says.
Cephas initially took this to the classroom. Not being able to tell who was menstruating, he and his friends distanced themselves from all girls instead.
Period stigma and shame forces many girls to miss school. Some drop out of school altogether when their periods start.
Plan International set up a health club in Cephas’ school to discuss menstrual hygiene and address false superstitions. Cephas joined and is now a champion for girls’ rights and menstrual hygiene – from distributing sanitary pads to promoting a campaign that challenges negative attitudes around menstruation in his community.
"It is my dream to see boys and men embracing the thought that menstruation is a natural occurrence in the lives of women and girls and not to be seen as unclean."
- Cephas
Tanzila is helping girls catch up so they can return to school
“People used to call my grandmother and threaten her, saying that if she didn’t marry me to them then they would kill her or kidnap me,” explains 19-year-old Tanzila who lives in Bangladesh. “My grandmother went through a lot. She was afraid.”
Tanzila lived with her grandmother while her mother was working away. Eventually the harassment forced Tanzila’s grandmother to agree to her marriage.
“My mother had no idea,” says Tanzila. “Later, when I started facing difficulties at my in-laws’ home, my mother told me that I didn’t need to go back there anymore,” she shares.
“Even after going through all of this, I finished my secondary school education,” adds Tanzila. “I would like to enrol in higher education and study further.”
Now, Tanzila is a teacher at an accelerated learning school in Bangladesh, supported by Plan International.
The school helps children who have dropped out to catch up with their studies so they can return to formal education – and avoid being forced into an early marriage, too.
“I teach my students from 3pm to 5pm and in between the lessons, I try to ensure they have a good time and feel interested in their studies,” Tanzila explains.
"At the beginning, some of the students used to miss their classes. Now, I have built such strong relationships with them that, if I miss my class for some reason, they come to look for me."
- Tanzila
Faith is teaching young people about their bodies and rights
“Our community has high numbers of teen pregnancies and I have seen some of my friends dropping out of school because of this. I am one of the few who have completed their secondary education,” says 18-year-old Faith from Zambia.
Plan International helped set up youth-led groups to reduce the number of girls dropping out of school due to unwanted pregnancies. In these groups, young people learn about their sexual and reproductive health and rights. Faith is a founding member of one of them.
“I wanted to know more about sexual and reproductive health and rights so that I could teach other students and community members on the same subject,” Faith explains.
“Recently, we visited three schools and three villages and reached more than 250 young people, mainly boys and girls, with the aim of teaching them about body development, pregnancy, sexuality, HIV/AIDS, relationships, harmful practices and other forms of gender-based violence.”
Clubs like Faith’s are vital to helping girls understanding their choices and stay in school for longer.
"I am able to make informed decisions about my life in relation to my sexual health because of the knowledge I have gained as a member of the adolescent group."
- Faith
Melanie is speaking up to help girls claim their rights
“Education not only gives children the space, time, and resources to explore their minds and identities, but also provides a stable and safe space that children may not have otherwise,” says 24-year-old Melanie.
Melanie is a UK-based educational researcher and refugee rights activist. And she’s now a member of a new Global Youth Panel launched on 24 January as part of Plan International’s Youth for Education in Emergencies project (Youth4EiE).
Youth4EiE aims to raise awareness and funding for education in emergencies. It has been set up in partnership with Education Cannot Wait and is supported by players of People’s Postcode Lottery.
As part of the Global Youth Panel, Melanie will work with other youth leaders in countries from Mali to Indonesia to raise awareness of this issue and advocate for much-needed change.
"I believe that educational inequality in emergency settings requires a much greater international effort. I can’t wait to work with my fellow panellists to tackle this issue!"
- Melanie
INSPIRED BY THESE YOUNG PEOPLE?
Learn about the young people across the world who are joining Melanie on the panel.
