The search is on for two sparky, committed year-10 pupils who can inspire young people in the UK to campaign for quality education for children around the world. The two students who are chosen will travel to Bangladesh to see progress towards the Global Campaign for Education (GCE) goals.
This a crucial year for GCE. Its campaigns include the UN millennium development goal of securing a primary education for every child by 2015. The organisation’s UK young ambassadors will travel to Bangladesh with the charity ActionAid to see the work that has been done and – with 57m children around the world still not in school – the barriers that remain.
The two winners of the Steve Sinnott award – set up in memory of the former NUT general secretary – will visit the capital, Dhaka, as well as spending time in the remote rural area of Nilphamari to learn how food shortages affect children’s opportunities. They will meet young campaigners, politicians and children both in and out of school.
Back in the UK, they will use their experiences to encourage more pupils to sign up for the Send My Friend to School campaign, which encourages UK children to speak up for the right to education. They will also share their findings with teachers, media and MPs.
Bangladesh was chosen as the destination for the fact-finding mission because of its significant progress towards the goals of universal primary education and gender equality in school attendance. More children are enrolling for school and fewer are dropping out so it is hoped that other countries could learn from Bangladesh’s strategies.
But concerns persist about the quality of education – a theme that has emerged around the world as enrolment rates have risen. Many schools in Bangladesh only open for two to three hours a day and primary school teachers are often untrained. And though enrolment is high overall, only 59% of disabled children have access to education.
This year’s young ambassadors, Rebecca Unwin and Maisie Le Masurier, from Guildford County school in Surrey, went to Uganda, with the Guardian, where they met visually impaired children denied an education because of their disability. They found it both distressing and inspiring. “To know that their dreams for the future will never be realised made me feel angry for them,” Rebecca says. But visiting two schools with specialist units was uplifting. “It’s been a privilege to be young ambassador this year,” she says. “I have been involved in so much exciting and memorable campaigning.”
Entries for the 2015 award, which is funded by the NUT and GCE UK, must be in by 15 November. The GCE is looking for pupils who are passionate about education for all with a good understanding of campaigning and lobbying. They’ll need excellent communication skills and their own ideas on how to inspire more young people to campaign.
For more information visit www.sendmyfriend.org/2014/09/wanted-young-ambassadors-travel-bangladesh-send-friend-school-2015/
