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Thank you for your generosity to the children and to development in Malawi.

If you prefer to mail your donation, send your check to:
Circle of Hope International
615 Bohicket Road
Wilmore KY 40390

COH Newsletters

Education Projects

Adult Literacy Classes:

The progress our children have made in school has inspired many adults in the community to learn to read themselves. On their own initiative, a group from the Grace Center community hasorganized adult literacy classes. More than 60 adult students meet every morning for lessons, each contributing a small fee to pay the teacher. The emergence of grassroots movements for personal development is a great indication that the community is being empowered to take steps out of poverty for themselves.

 

 

 

Peer Tutoring:

Our Peer Tutoring program is designed for an older child to teach 4 or 5 younger children to read.  The sequential lessons make it easy for the tutor to pull out the folders, sit down and teach.  The impact this program is having on our children is phenomenal.  For years our kids have been caught in a cycle of failure and repetition, struggling to make it past the 3rd grade.  With the introduction of peer tutoring, they are learning to read and our peer tutors are thriving in school.  The program is designed so that adults can also be taught using the same curriculum. 

One of the most exciting aspects of the Peer Tutoring curriculum is the fact that it is reproducible and translatable.  Our goal is to make this peer-tutoring curriculum available to all projects that provide educational assistance to vulnerable children in underdeveloped nations.

The Peer Tutoring program is currently being implemented at the Grace Center and the Chipoka Community Development Center.

Literacy:  The Literacy Curriculum is in its final revisions.  All the lessons and books have been translated and the translations have been revised.  We are finishing up art work and activities for the lessons.  Once the curriculum is complete we will pursue publication so that it can be used in projects and schools around Malawi.

Economics:  Development of a Math and Economics curriculum focusing on the skills necessary to run a small business will begin soon.

English:  A prototype of the English Curriculum was developed in Summer 2009 and tested on the field by our Education Coordinator, Melissa Beckley.  Further development of the program and revisions will take place over the next 12 months.

Leadership:  Leadership training is an integral part of the Circle of Hope programs.  Peer-tutors are chosen from program participants based on academic assessments and natural leadership skills.  The peer-tutors are trained using our “Expanding Our World View” curriculum.  This curriculum was designed to broaden the students understanding of the world through lessons in art and music allowing the children to draw, sing and dance the stories of their lives and challenges.   An additional positive effect on children serving as peer-tutors is the development of skills which will assist them to be successful in completing secondary school or technical training.

Secondary School Scholarships: Students who have progressed through our Children’s Programs for orphaned and vulnerable children receive scholarships to secondary school.  These scholarships provide school fees, uniforms, books, school supplies and rent (if the child must rent a room near the secondary school).                       

Library:  A small library has been opened at the Grace Center.  About 1000 lbs of books were shipped to Malawi by the Wilmore Elementary School, Wilmore, KY.  The children were so excited to get their hands on the books.  When handed a book about monkeys, Moses Bokho, one of our children, commented, “I wanted the math book!”

Teacher Training Seminars:  Over the past two years we have developed a Teacher Training Seminar which has become very popular with the local public school teachers.  In the past we have focused on primary school teachers, but this year the secondary school teachers have expressed their desire to have a seminar for their level of training.  The seminars cover topics such as methods for teaching math, reading, English and science; how to develop a lesson plan and discussion sessions on the need for education. Next year’s topics include: integrating special needs children into the classroom and a celebration of differences.

EDUCATION PROGRAM NEEDS:

  •  Artists: we still need artists who will contribute to the art work of the peer tutoring curriculum.  If you have any artistic skill, please contact Karen@cohcommunity.org
  • Curriculum Developers:  if you can write lessons in foundational math/economics or English, please contact Karen@cohcommunity.org
  • Teachers:  Our teaching teams travel to Malawi each year in June to host our two teacher training seminars.  If you are interested in learning more about joining a team please contact Karen@cohcommunity.org
  • Financial Support:  Support for education programs comes in all shapes and sizes, but in the end, if there is no money, there is no program!  Your financial support is deeply appreciated.  Below are some options of how you can support the educational programs of Circle of Hope:
    • Provide a Peer Tutoring Kit:  One literacy kit costs $200 to produce.  You can provide this literacy resource for an entire community in Malawi.
    • Provide a new or gently used computer for our library.
    • Buy a desk for a learning center ($100).