“This might change the way you think about education everywhere”
Jordan Shapiro brings to life the power of CAMFED’s model
Forbes columnist and world-renowned thought leader on global policy and education, Jordan Shapiro, travelled to Tanzania to see CAMFED’s program in action, meeting students, teachers, district officials and our Learner Guides. In his extraordinary article, he brings to life the power of what we do:
CAMFED’s work in sub-Saharan Africa might change the way you think about education everywhere
Jordan Shapiro writing in Forbes
“’To care for yourself, you need first to care for others — so that you feel valued,’ one teenage girl reads from a black and white speckled composition book. She’s standing at the front of a classroom in Tanzania, presenting from her notes. Just moments ago she was huddled in one of many small groups, discussing answers to the prompt: what does it take to care for yourself, to feel competent, to have self-esteem?
“‘What about accepting your strengths and accepting your weaknesses?’ Another student interrupts her. ‘And having the confidence to speak out,’ the first one jabs back playfully. The room erupts in laughter. Unlike some of the other girls in the class, the girl in front of the blackboard is not wearing a white cotton hijab. She’s dressed in a long orange skirt and a blue sweater. Just thinking about her sweater makes the back of my neck itch. Tanzania is hot; really hot. I’m dripping with perspiration — uncomfortable even wearing the thinnest linen shirt I own. How does she bear the heat? ….”