The rainy season is finally coming to an end. The people of Kissa are reaping harvests of beans, corn, millet, peanuts and cotton. New fruits and vegetable that thrive at this time of year, like watermelon, cucumbers, and pumpking are available. Food is plentiful and people are able to eat a healthy variety of foods. Also, now that there is less work in the fields, kids are returning to school!
There are two schools in Kissa, an Arabic school and a French school. The French school is funded by the Malian government and also in large part by the American NGO Save the Children. It is a first cycle what we would call an elementary school, and it goes to 6th grade. When kids finish there, they take a test. If they pass the test, they can go on middle school, and if they pass the test at the end of middle school, they can go on to high school. There is only an elementary school in Kissa, so students who pass the test at the end must move to a bigger town for middle and high school. Many students do not pass these tests, and, if they fail it twice, they are done studying. Most student who fail become farmers, although some move to cities and try to find jobs with the minimal education they have.
To give you an idea of the prevalence of education, at least in Kissa, I would say that about half of the kids in Kissa, especially girls, never go to school, and never learn to read. Of those that go to school, most make it to middle school, although a significant portion to not pass the test to move on. Getting from middle school to high school is a lot harder though: last year in my village, 16 students took the test, and only 2 passed. Getting from high school to college is similarly very difficult in Mali.
Is is also worth noting that there is a huge gender gap in education in Mali, especially in small, rural villages like Kissa. As you look at the pictures below, notice how much the boys outnumber the girls. This is due to a variety of factors. One reason is that boys work is mostly in farming, which lessens during the school year, which girls' work is in the household, which does not lessen in the school year. Thus, parents lose a helping hand if they send a girl to school, but not so much if they send a boy to school. Another reason is that school (and the world beyond Kissa) is not considered a girls "place". Girls are also expected to marry and start having children around age 15, before they might even be finished with middle school, while boys wait much later to marry. Finally, a have heard a few men (but certainly not all) make the downright sexist and incorrect claim that women are not as smart as men.
Here is the French school in Mali:
This is the 1st and 2nd grade classroom, and the teacher:
There are three classrooms in the school, and each has two grades in it. In this classroom, students start learning their letters, and how to read and write in French (a language that they've never even spoken before). They also learn some basic Math.
This is the 3rd and 4th grade class:
Here, students continue to learn reading and writing in French. They also continue learning Math, and start learning History and Geography.
And this is the 5th and 6th grade class:
Here, students study pretty much everything american students do: reading and writing (in French), math, geography and history, science. They also have homework and spend a lot of time preparing for the big test to decide if they can go to middle school.
So that is what school is like in Kissa!
Matt,
ReplyDeleteAre Osthman and Adama in elementary school or did the older one make it to Middle school? What do they aspire to be when they grow up?
Have you met any smart girls - who are sort of leaders, that insist on school and studying, with strong desires for college?
And the most educated, where do they end up usually? Do they ever choose to go back to Kissa and serve, or do they almost always move on to a bigger city or a different country??
Usthman just started middle school, he is in Kolondieba now. I've asked them this question and it surprised them. Its seems like they dont have a lot of encouragement to think in this direction.
ReplyDeleteThere are some smart girls I know who are from Kissa that are now in Middle and High school. They are ambitious and hard working, but nevertheless they are rare. One of the best jobs a woman could have in rural Mali is working as a Matron, helping women give birth. Also, my host sister in Bamako (the one sticking a Mango in my mouth in the picture) is very intelligent and hard working - she is studying law at a university in Bamako.
Unfortunately, there are more college-educated Malians than there are jobs that require a college education. So, graduated almost have to seek jobs elsewhere - in Bamako, or in another more prosperous African city like Abidjan or Dakar or even in Europe if they are lucky enough to make it.
There is one man in the next village over who has a university degree. He was unable to find a job for his qualifications, even in Bamako, and now lives back in his village, and is a farmer. He just happens to be a farmer with a university degree.
I think it's interesting, but unfortuneatley makes sense that there is a female teacher, but she teaches the lowest grade level, and it is a man who teaches the higher levels. Or did it just happened to be that way when u took the picture? Are there set teachers for each grade, like here, or do the teachers switch classes every now & then. If there was a female teacher in the higher levels, that would probably be inspiring for the young girls! Also, it seemed like the class sizes were about the same for grade 1-6. This is promising! I thought the class sizes would get smaller as the level of education increased.
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