Children at the elementary school in Carcha, Guatemala.
By Wendy Pacay, A Rotary Peace Fellow at Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
When I was a child, I really enjoyed school. I lived in a small town surrounded by the rainforest. Meeting with my friends at school, playing with them, and learning from them are among my best memories. I had a lot of curiosity that drove me to discover new things from books and from my teachers. It was easy to do my homework because I liked it so much.
This year, as I study at the Rotary Peace Center at the University of Chulalongkorn in Bangkok, Thailand, my elementary school celebrates its 100th anniversary. While, I won’t be there because of my studies, being at the Peace Centers is itself a blessing.
For a Guatemalan woman to attend school, even at the elementary level, is not easy. My grandmother and mother-in-law did not go to school and my other grandmother only attended through sixth grade. Despite primary education being compulsory and provided for free by the government, the average years of school attended by women is 4.1 years. Close to 25 percent of the population is illiterate, with rates more than 60 percent in …read more
Source:: Rotary International Blog
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