Jarrett Black
Global Studies
Blair and Matz
7th Hour
One Child Can Change the World
Nelson Mandela famously once said, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world” (Resources for Speakers). While an education is a fundamental human right that is often taken for granted in the United States and other first world countries, in many impoverished third world countries children are not able to obtain an education and are therefore forced to bear the consequences throughout the entirety of their lives. As a result, countries such as Haiti remain in poverty, as future generations do not have the qualifications necessary to hold jobs that can provide more than the means to simply survive paycheck to paycheck. The most effective way to break this cycle of poverty in Haiti is through providing children with the education they need to prosper.
The situation in Haiti is the worst in the entirety of the Western Hemisphere. “Haitian poverty runs deeper and is more widespread than anywhere else on the continent” (Poverty in Haiti). Poverty in Haiti has been a constant burden on the nation since it first became free from the French (it was a former slave colony). Not surprisingly there is a direct link between this poverty and the absence of a strong educational system in the country. “Surveys conducted by the UNDP indicate that Haitians who are 25 years and older received on average only 4.9 years of education and only 29 percent attended secondary school” (Education). While in Haiti on mission trips both this year and last, I had the opportunity to meet and speak with many Haitian adults. Very few of those with whom I spoke had any level of education beyond fifth grade. Not coincidentally, only a handful of them had jobs that did more than simply provide enough to “get by”, if they even had a job at all. While there is not much that can be done about the lack of education these adults received, it stands testament the state of the educational system in Haiti in recent history.
Furthermore, this problem has been passed on to the current generation of children in Haiti. For instance, “Less than 2% of Haitian schoolchildren pass the sertifica examination at the end of grade 5” (Education System). Even when children do attend elementary school, very few make it into what we know in the United States as middle and high school. There are many reasons why the children of Haiti do not attend school or stay long term, but the greatest reason is price. “Being privately owned, these schools usually require tuition fees. Along with the cost of transport, books, and the mandatory uniform, it is very hard for Haitians to send their children to school” (Four Things). If families do not have the money they need to send their kids to school for all thirteen years (through what we know as high school), then the cycle of poverty will continue to plague the children of Haiti, and the country will never become truly self-sustaining. Parents will continue to only be qualified for jobs paying only menial wages, allowing them only to scrape by. As such, they in turn will be unable to send their children to school, thus continuing the vicious cycle of poverty. For this reason, I have decided that the best idea for my social action project is to raise money in coordination with Mission of Hope in order to help cover the cost of a Haitian child’s education.
When children are given the funding that they need to go to school, they will take full advantage of that rare opportunity. “[The] statistics show that a generation of Haitian youth is at risk for not having the necessary knowledge and basic skills to succeed in the labor force and contribute to the continued development of the country” (Four Things). Without an education, the future of Haiti continues to look perilous, as their dependence on other countries will only continue to grow. Although the situation currently looks bleak, progress can be made with each dollar raised. Every child that is given an education will help the nation progress towards breaking the trap of poverty. While in Haiti I had the opportunity to talk with many students at the Mission of Hope school, and all of them expressed their gratitude for the funding they received from the sponsors they do have already, and that was subsequently reflected through the effort they put into their schooling. “Education allows kids to have a different perspective than they would otherwise. Children don’t know the opportunities and options they could have to use their education, passions and skills they learn in the process.” (Sommerville). Similar to the United States, there are a wide variety of sustaining occupations readily available and in high demand, including everything from becoming a civil engineer helping to rebuild the country to a teacher educating future generations.
One major problem with the cyclical poverty experience in Haiti is that students do not realize that these careers are a possibility for them as a result of their parent’s occupations or simply the culture of the nation. “Just this simple elevation of their mindset on its own will impact their lives and also the economy of Haiti. But the key is this needs to occur over multiple generations to stick” (Sommerville). A change can be made, but it must start with one child, who will create a domino effect. According to Union Vice President Mary Blair, the allowance for a student annually at Bloomfield Hills High School is over $11,000, as opposed to the $5,460 for thirteen years of education in Haiti (Blair). In this contrast, the numbers are not in the slightest outside the realm of possibility. Progress begins with every donation, but will be continued on through the actions and developments of those who will be aided in Haiti. Once children are given the gift of an education, they will get jobs that can send their children to school, allowing those children to achieve all of their dreams and aspirations in life. Funding is not the end-all solution, but is it the first necessary step in re-creating a nation that has the capacity to thrive.
Poverty has been a constant curse borne by the people in Haiti since their nation’s inception. The basic human right to an education has been violated throughout the country’s history, and without financial assistance this will continue to be the case. But on the other hand, Haiti has the ability to become a thriving nation that is able to sustain itself and truly begin to prosper when its youth are educated and given hope about the endless possibilities their futures could hold. I believe that creating a fundraiser to help our brothers and sisters in Haiti is extremely important because through it we will have the potential to transform a nation, one child at a time.
Works Cited
Blair, Mary. "Schooling Statistics." Personal interview. 2 May 2016. "Education | Haiti | U.S. Agency for International Development."
Education | Haiti | U.S. Agency for International Development. US Aid, n.d. Web. 25 Apr. 2016.
"Education System in Haiti." Haiti Education System. Classbase, n.d. Web. 25 Apr. 2016.
"Four Things You Need to Know About Education in Haiti." World Bank. The World Bank, 12 Mar. 2015. Web. 25 Apr. 2016.
"Poverty in Haiti: The Impact of Aid, Earthquakes & Imperialism."Poverties.org. Poverties, May 2013. Web. 25 Apr. 2016.
"Resources for Speakers, Global Issues, Africa, Ageing, Agriculture, Aids, Atomic Energy, Children, Climate Change, Culture, Decolonization,
Demining, Development, Disabilities, Disarmament, Environment, Food, Governance, Humanitarian, Refugees, Women." UN News
Center. UN, n.d. Web. 25 Apr. 2016. Sommerville, Jon. "Haitian Education." Telephone interview. 30 Apr. 2016.
Global Studies
Blair and Matz
7th Hour
One Child Can Change the World
Nelson Mandela famously once said, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world” (Resources for Speakers). While an education is a fundamental human right that is often taken for granted in the United States and other first world countries, in many impoverished third world countries children are not able to obtain an education and are therefore forced to bear the consequences throughout the entirety of their lives. As a result, countries such as Haiti remain in poverty, as future generations do not have the qualifications necessary to hold jobs that can provide more than the means to simply survive paycheck to paycheck. The most effective way to break this cycle of poverty in Haiti is through providing children with the education they need to prosper.
The situation in Haiti is the worst in the entirety of the Western Hemisphere. “Haitian poverty runs deeper and is more widespread than anywhere else on the continent” (Poverty in Haiti). Poverty in Haiti has been a constant burden on the nation since it first became free from the French (it was a former slave colony). Not surprisingly there is a direct link between this poverty and the absence of a strong educational system in the country. “Surveys conducted by the UNDP indicate that Haitians who are 25 years and older received on average only 4.9 years of education and only 29 percent attended secondary school” (Education). While in Haiti on mission trips both this year and last, I had the opportunity to meet and speak with many Haitian adults. Very few of those with whom I spoke had any level of education beyond fifth grade. Not coincidentally, only a handful of them had jobs that did more than simply provide enough to “get by”, if they even had a job at all. While there is not much that can be done about the lack of education these adults received, it stands testament the state of the educational system in Haiti in recent history.
Furthermore, this problem has been passed on to the current generation of children in Haiti. For instance, “Less than 2% of Haitian schoolchildren pass the sertifica examination at the end of grade 5” (Education System). Even when children do attend elementary school, very few make it into what we know in the United States as middle and high school. There are many reasons why the children of Haiti do not attend school or stay long term, but the greatest reason is price. “Being privately owned, these schools usually require tuition fees. Along with the cost of transport, books, and the mandatory uniform, it is very hard for Haitians to send their children to school” (Four Things). If families do not have the money they need to send their kids to school for all thirteen years (through what we know as high school), then the cycle of poverty will continue to plague the children of Haiti, and the country will never become truly self-sustaining. Parents will continue to only be qualified for jobs paying only menial wages, allowing them only to scrape by. As such, they in turn will be unable to send their children to school, thus continuing the vicious cycle of poverty. For this reason, I have decided that the best idea for my social action project is to raise money in coordination with Mission of Hope in order to help cover the cost of a Haitian child’s education.
When children are given the funding that they need to go to school, they will take full advantage of that rare opportunity. “[The] statistics show that a generation of Haitian youth is at risk for not having the necessary knowledge and basic skills to succeed in the labor force and contribute to the continued development of the country” (Four Things). Without an education, the future of Haiti continues to look perilous, as their dependence on other countries will only continue to grow. Although the situation currently looks bleak, progress can be made with each dollar raised. Every child that is given an education will help the nation progress towards breaking the trap of poverty. While in Haiti I had the opportunity to talk with many students at the Mission of Hope school, and all of them expressed their gratitude for the funding they received from the sponsors they do have already, and that was subsequently reflected through the effort they put into their schooling. “Education allows kids to have a different perspective than they would otherwise. Children don’t know the opportunities and options they could have to use their education, passions and skills they learn in the process.” (Sommerville). Similar to the United States, there are a wide variety of sustaining occupations readily available and in high demand, including everything from becoming a civil engineer helping to rebuild the country to a teacher educating future generations.
One major problem with the cyclical poverty experience in Haiti is that students do not realize that these careers are a possibility for them as a result of their parent’s occupations or simply the culture of the nation. “Just this simple elevation of their mindset on its own will impact their lives and also the economy of Haiti. But the key is this needs to occur over multiple generations to stick” (Sommerville). A change can be made, but it must start with one child, who will create a domino effect. According to Union Vice President Mary Blair, the allowance for a student annually at Bloomfield Hills High School is over $11,000, as opposed to the $5,460 for thirteen years of education in Haiti (Blair). In this contrast, the numbers are not in the slightest outside the realm of possibility. Progress begins with every donation, but will be continued on through the actions and developments of those who will be aided in Haiti. Once children are given the gift of an education, they will get jobs that can send their children to school, allowing those children to achieve all of their dreams and aspirations in life. Funding is not the end-all solution, but is it the first necessary step in re-creating a nation that has the capacity to thrive.
Poverty has been a constant curse borne by the people in Haiti since their nation’s inception. The basic human right to an education has been violated throughout the country’s history, and without financial assistance this will continue to be the case. But on the other hand, Haiti has the ability to become a thriving nation that is able to sustain itself and truly begin to prosper when its youth are educated and given hope about the endless possibilities their futures could hold. I believe that creating a fundraiser to help our brothers and sisters in Haiti is extremely important because through it we will have the potential to transform a nation, one child at a time.
Works Cited
Blair, Mary. "Schooling Statistics." Personal interview. 2 May 2016. "Education | Haiti | U.S. Agency for International Development."
Education | Haiti | U.S. Agency for International Development. US Aid, n.d. Web. 25 Apr. 2016.
"Education System in Haiti." Haiti Education System. Classbase, n.d. Web. 25 Apr. 2016.
"Four Things You Need to Know About Education in Haiti." World Bank. The World Bank, 12 Mar. 2015. Web. 25 Apr. 2016.
"Poverty in Haiti: The Impact of Aid, Earthquakes & Imperialism."Poverties.org. Poverties, May 2013. Web. 25 Apr. 2016.
"Resources for Speakers, Global Issues, Africa, Ageing, Agriculture, Aids, Atomic Energy, Children, Climate Change, Culture, Decolonization,
Demining, Development, Disabilities, Disarmament, Environment, Food, Governance, Humanitarian, Refugees, Women." UN News
Center. UN, n.d. Web. 25 Apr. 2016. Sommerville, Jon. "Haitian Education." Telephone interview. 30 Apr. 2016.