“Invest in People, Prioritise Education!” That’s the clarion call from the United Nations at this year’s World Education Day (January 24, 2023). It’s definitely the need of the hour and a leap into a better future for all the world’s children.
At Vision Rescue, we united to celebrate World Education Day by hosting programs to create awareness about the importance of education in the slum communities we work in.
For the last 18 years Vision Rescue has invested deep into the lives of children through our Education Programs that include
- Beacon Learning Centres (Primary and Pre-Primary)
- Beacon Learning Centres (Open Basic Education)
- School Support Program
- Vision Rescue Bus Program
- Vision Rescue Tuition Centres
These programs are a bridge where children are given foundational literacy and along with their families supported with nourishment, health-care, legal aid, counseling, social awareness and much more. These programs equip children to succeed in formal schooling. (Learn more here – https://visionrescue.co.in/why-education/ )
It is your generous donations, dear donors, that help us engage children in education, and sustain them in these programs. Together it is our aim to free children from exploitation so that they can find their purpose, enjoy their rights and live with dignity.
On the 24th and 25th of January 2023, we hosted awareness programs for parents of children benefiting from our education programs in the four target slum communities of Mumbai – Kalwa, Maharashtra Nagar, Mandala, Shivajinagar. The total number of attendees at these programs was 1614.
Through video screenings and live street-plays, parents and children were informed about:-
- The power of early childhood education in preparing children to develop social and emotional skills which will help them thrive and succeed later in life. Every parent in our slum communities wants their child to succeed but there are environmental factors that pull children down when they grow up in conditions of poverty and vulnerability inside slums. What lies ahead for parents are a series of tough decisions to prioritise their child’s education and empowerment despite their difficult circumstances.
- The importance of education despite various life-struggles families face, due to which education is often a low priority. For example: Children are forced to work outside the home and contribute to the family income or forced to stay at home from school and do household chores so that parents can go out and work. In such situations, education takes a backseat in many families and it takes a radical shift in mindset for parents to re-prioritize education.
- The dangers of not engaging children in education and also the long-term benefits of timely, sustained education. A child out of school is at risk of exploitation through human- trafficking, childlabour, physical, sexual and emotional abuse. However a child who enjoys the right to education feels safe with a protected classroom, empowered to make informed life choices, finds their purpose and is motivated to succeed. This in turn creates a better environment in the family and a positive impact on the community.
Our parents were helped to understand that ‘Education once achieved cannot be taken away’ but can lead to progressive thinking and intergenerational transformation. Prioritising the child’s success through education is a powerful decision that a parent is endowed with, and education is a sustainable tool for the development of our nation and for the future of our children.
Each parent plays an important role in making this vital choice for their child.
Children grow in the blink of an eye and time is running out. We believe that each parent left these awareness sessions on World Education Day inspired and committed to always choose education for their children.
Thank you, Vision Rescue community of supporters for investing into the lives of these precious children, and their families. Thank you for doing your part to contribute towards a better nation and a better tomorrow. Through your support, you’re fulfilling the United Nation’s clarion call to “Invest in People, Prioritise Education!”