World Education recently entered into a new partnership with the Myanmar Literacy Resource Center (MLRC) under the USAID-funded Project for Local Empowerment (PLE). MLRC is a registered non-governmental organization that is able to work in partnership with government entities as well as community-based organizations to increase educational opportunities for PLE target populations. Through this partnership MLRC will implement Non-Formal Primary Education (NFPE) activities in 16 learning centers across five townships in Karen and Tanintharyi States in Southeast Myanmar as well as in Mae Sot, Thailand. This partnership expands PLE's scope of education support by providing out-of-school youth and migrant children (ages 10-14) with an opportunity...
At only 11 years old, Zaw Win (name changed for privacy) was forced to leave Myanmar and become one of the 120,000 refugees living in nine refugee camps along the Thai-Myanmar border. As a result of decades of conflict and political unrest, Zaw Win, like many others, could no longer stay in Myanmar and sought refuge in neighboring Thailand. Living in Mae La Oon camp came with its own challenges: being separated from his family, disruptions to his education, and lack of economic opportunity once he graduated. Despite these challenges, Zaw Win was able to complete high school in 2009, but faced a future of uncertainty and limited prospects...
The Global Border Studies (GBS) program, founded in 201, is a collaboration between World Education and local partner the Karen Refugee Committee Education Entity (KRCEE) with financial support from the Dundalk Instiute of Technology in the Republic of Ireland. During the two year academic program GBS students explore topics of peacebuilding, reconciliation, and sustainable development as well as participate in practicums including the Peacebuilding Workshop in Karen State, Myanmar, during the month of December. In November 2015, Myanmar held its widely anticipated national election with the National League for Democracy (NLD) victorious and forming a new government. As the NLD comes into power, the people of Myanmar...
Migrant children living along the Thai-Myanmar border often face social and economic hardships and these hardships are often reinforced when the child has a mental or physical disability. As a result, disabled children are often vulnerable to abuse or rejected from their communities, while requiring parents to often face the difficult decision between going to work and caring for their child. Recognizing the lack of services for disabled children along the border, the Star Flower Center was established in 2009 to provide a safe space for students to grow, learn, and develop. World Education has worked with the Star Flower Center and its partner, the Burmese Migrant Workers...
Migrant children living along the Thai-Burma border are often unable to attend school regularly due to family commitments such as tending to livestock, childcare, or household chores. As a result, their education is frequently disrupted putting them at risk of falling behind or dropping out. To address this need , World Education Thailand piloted the Non Formal Primary Education (NFPE) program in Phop Para, Thailand in June of 2014. NFPE programs provide an alternative pathway to education and accreditation by establishing community centers where children are able to go to school during evenings and weekends. In offering atypical hours and spaces near their work and...
Many children of migrants from Myanmar (Burma) living in Thailand are unable to access education because of family pressures to earn an income during the day. Following an outreach program conducted by World Education to assess the needs of migrant children, staff found that many children were indeed missing out on education because their parents needed them to work in the fields and in the shops to earn a daily wage for the family. As a result, World Education opened Literacy Centers in 2012 for all those children who could not attend school during the day. School in the Center begins in the evenings after...
A recent seminar in Bangkok reviewed the past decade of Thai policy for education management for stateless children, and the next steps toward education for all. Organized by World Education in coordination with the Migrant Working Group (MWG), Save the Children, World Vision, and the Thai Ministry of Education's Office of Basic Education Commission (OBEC), the seminar highlighted the issues facing stateless children in Thailand, particularly those who are out-of-school. In The Nation's article on the seminar, World Education Country Director Patrick Kearns spoke about the situation for stateless children born to migrant workers from Myanmar. Kearns cited research conducted by World Education finding that there are around 400,000 migrant children...
Mon State in Southeastern Myanmar (Burma) is home to many schools located in remote villages that can only be accessed via boat or four-wheel drive trucks. Because they are so remote, many of these schools do not have the ability to get teachers with extensive training and qualifications. The Mon National Education Committee (MNEC) partners with World Education to manage a system of over 100 community schools for Mon ethnic minority and low-income children in these challenging conditions. In order to get more qualified teachers into their schools, MNEC provides a one-year pre-service teacher training program for young adults as part of their two-year higher education program called Mon Post-10. The first year of the...
The Star Flower Centre is located in Mae Sot, Thailand and is the only Centre along the Thailand-Myanmar (Burma) border that provides an education for migrant children with special needs. Many of the Burmese migrant population living along the border face social and economic hardships. This is particularly true for migrant children with special needs because there is a greater danger of them being taken advantage of or rejected by the community. The Star Flower Centre is a place that sees all children having unique abilities and potential to do great things if provided with a nurturing and supportive environment. With Star Flower facing a...
Migrant learning centers (MLCs) on the Thailand-Myanmar (Burma) border have been integral to the education of displaced Burmese children for years. Many Burmese have difficulty accessing the Thai education system for a number of reasons, including transportation, cost, and language issues. When these issues arise for children and their families, MLCs are able to fill the educational gap. However, over the past two years, MLCs have found it increasingly difficult to find adequate funding, to the extent that several have had to close. In order to prevent a rise in the out-of-school youth that results from such closings, World Education has worked with Parent Teacher...