Children in quake-hit villages in Balakot had a rare moment of joy when they got books, uniforms, bags and other material provided by the Academy for Educational Development (AED).
The AED, an international non-profit development organisation, had provided educational assistance for remote areas in the quake zone at schools in Bagh and Balakot.
A team from the AED office in Islamabad travelled to Balakot in NWFP and distributed an assortment of items to the children in two schools of a far-flung villages in the presence of community and government officials from the education department.
The aid packages also included uniforms both for boys and girls, note-books, story books, teaching kits for primary classes, stationery, furniture, floor mats, white boards, water flasks and signboards. Earlier, this month, the AED distributed similar articles among students at three schools of Bagh in Azad Kashmir.
Communities both at Bagh and Balakot as well as education department officials in these areas appreciated AED's efforts in reaching remote schools and handing over schools supplies to each student individually.
Other than provision of the material, the AED plans to hold workshops both in Bagh and Balakot at the selected schools for teachers in trauma counselling, use of low and no cost material,multi-grade teaching and literature therapy through joyful reading and story telling to bring the traumatised children back into the mainstream. AED's alumni who have received one semester of teacher training in three US universities will impart this training at selected schools.
Teachers'training is imperative as teachers require guidance and motivation to restart their schools as they too have been victims to the earthquake.
"We hope what we are doing and will contribute to reviving educational activities in the areas battered by the October natural calamity," said AED Country Director Iqbal Jatoi.
He said his office conducted a survey for the needs of children before arranging the supplies.
"Interest in schooling was very low in a month after the earthquake as major concerns then were survival, proper shelter and food. But the situation has improved now and children are keen to restart their schools and rebuild their lives and school is the best place to help them," Jatoi said.
The AED is operating in about 50 countries to support educational and other developmental activities.
In Pakistan, the AED is also implementing Pakistan Teacher Education and Professional Development Programme funded by US Agency for International Development and have so far trained 172 master teacher trainers in math, science and English in three US universities.
Currently, The AED is training about 60 master teacher trainers in these subjects all over the country, including quake-hit districts.
An other AED official who was present on the occasion of distributing of school supplies at Balakot narrated how excited six-year-old Muhammad Usman felt while receiving the reading material at his village near Balakot. "I will read all books in a single day," the kid told her. The boy's father said more NGOs should come to the area to spur children's interest in education and help rebuild facilities destroyed in the earthquake.
This help will contribute to turn every child eye towards the rising ocean of education, they added. AED officials say provision of schools supplies, including story books will inculcate among children the desire to go back to schools and restart their lives.
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