Children around the world education

As children around the world return to school, there are more than two million in Syria who will not be able to join them, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) cautioned today, adding that another 400,000 are at risk of dropping out of school as a direct result of conflict, violence and displacement.

With the conflict in Syria now in its fifth year, some children in Syria have never known what it is like to enter a classroom, while others have lost up to four years of their schooling, the agency noted in a news release.

“Syria’s basic public services, including education, have been stretched to the maximum,” said Hanaa Singer, UNICEF Representative in Syria. “We need to do so much more to help the education institutions from collapsing and increase opportunities for children to access education across the country.”

School buildings are also affected by the conflict; 5,000 of them cannot be used as they have been destroyed, converted into shelters for displaced families, or used as bases for armed forces, UNICEF said. Often, the schools and their surroundings are unsafe, dangerous for children to reach, and at risk of deliberate attack. To take their exams last summer, at least 20 per cent of Syria’s children were forced to cross lines of fire.

UNICEF has been working with local partners on the ground to reach around three million children, and has implemented an informal education programme to reduce the number of out-of-school children. The agency is also printing school supplies and text books locally and distributing them to students.

“Even under the worst circumstances Syrian children keep asking to learn and go back to school because they are yearning for a better future and a chance to be influential” said Ms. Singer. “We must all invest in Syria’s children as they are the future of Syria and they will help rebuild their country when peace returns.”

Under the ‘No Lost Generation Initiative,’ UNICEF is starting a self-learning programme to reach 500,000 children who missed out on years of schooling. An accelerated learning programme is also aimed at helping 200,000 children catch up with their learning and eventually reintegrate into formal education. UNICEF is also rehabilitating damaged schools and creating prefabricated classrooms to accommodate 300,000 additional children.

UNICEF requires $68 million by end of the year, of which $12 million is needed immediately in order to continue responding to children’s educational needs.

Lack Of Continued Support Causes Children To Leave School With Reading Problems

The Alliance for Excellent Education is calling for the Congress to focus on improving student literacy, from early childhood through grade 12, on its No Child Left Behind rewrite. The Washington, D.C-based education advocacy group revealed in a new report that 60 percent of America’s fourth and eighth graders are having reading difficulties.


The Alliance for Excellent Education, a Washington, D.C.-based education advocacy group, recently published a new report that found 60 percent of America's fourth and eighth graders are having reading issues. The group is urging the Congress to consider improving student literacy, from early childhood through grade 12, on its No Child Left Behind rewrite.

Like Us on Facebook "Teaching students to read when they are young is an important booster shot, but not a lifelong inoculation, against further reading problems," said Bob Wise, the organization's president. "Instead, students need continued reading and writing support throughout their educational career-especially as they encounter more challenging reading material in middle and high school."

Wise, however, said only few states offer this continued support and this resulted in the majority of today's youth leaving high school without the necessary writing and reading skills for success.

The study, "The Next Chapter: Supporting Literacy Within ESEA," determined the reasons why students have difficulty reading and examined the federal government's success in its efforts to boost literacy across the country. In addition, the group noted on the report that the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act was not meant to address issues arising from poor reading instruction or provide support for students in schools with poor literacy achievement.

The report also maintained that majority of those issues affect students of color, and those from low-income households, Kristin Decarr of Education News wrote. The 2013 National Assessment of Education Progress, also called the Nation's Report Card, revealed 47 percent of Latino students, 47 percent of low-income students, and 50 percent of black students have reading skills below the basic level.

"Without essential literacy skills to master academic course work, students lose the motivation and confidence vital to maintaining their investment in learning," the group noted in the report. "Furthermore, students who do not read well are more likely to be retained in school, drop out of high school, become teen parents, or enter the juvenile justice system."


The group suggested government efforts, including the Literacy Education for All, Result for a Nation Act that would require educators and teachers to use research-backed strategies in their reading and writing classes in all grade levels and subject areas. It also recommended support and interventions for students with reading issues, and support for schools to help them provide high-quality literacy instruction.

When Teaching Children at Home

Consistency is important, especially for very young children, as it helps to reinforce what they have already learned, as well as avoiding confusion when new teaching methods are introduced. If you start by using music and rhyming songs to teach things like numbers, days of the week and colours, stick to that method when it comes to teaching more advanced knowledge such as multiplication tables.

Teaching is a skill, which is why teachers have to be trained for many years before they are equipped to handle a class full of enquiring minds. Parents may only have one, two or perhaps three young children to deal with, but many of the skills required to impart knowledge to youngsters are the same whether you are teaching just one child or 30.

In order that parents can also be effective teachers, there are three basic rules that all Mums and Dads should follow when it comes to educating children in the home, be consistent; be positive; and have fun. Remember these three key steps and you will soon notice that your child is picking up knowledge and skills from home as well as from school.

Kids will find it much easier to pick up potentially difficult concepts if they are already used to the methods which are being used to teach them; and thanks to the internet there are no shortage of educational resources if you are looking for inspiration ans ideas. After all, many teachers use the same methods year after year, with different classes, so there’s no reason why parents shouldn’t do the same.

Using fun methods like music and games is a great way to keep children engaged and interested in what you are doing – and they may not even realise they are learning at all if you make it lots of fun. Even just spending time with your child, doing something which they enjoy, can be educational too. You can improve their verbal communication skills by talking to them and encouraging them to ask and answer questions, while spending quality time together will also improve your relationship. Many home “lessons” happen because the child has done something that they shouldn’t and the parent has to explain or show the youngster why it was wrong. Lessons which are reinforced by negativity will not be learned as effectively as those which are taught in a positive way; rather than shouting at the child or punishing them, persuade them to think about why what they have done in not acceptable.

As well as creating a better relationship between child and parent, this educational method is much more effective than old-fashioned lectures and punishments.