Orphaned And Vulnerable Children In Africa Education Essay

Orphaned And Vulnerable Children In Africa training EssayIntroductionDuring the course Education Development in Diverse Societies we learned ab prohibited the main upbringingal theories and separate (inter)disciplinary approaches to study preparational issues in developing countries. We analysed readingal reforms and innovations from an interdisciplinary and multilevel perspective, and examined their theoretical basis, the practical implications, the strengths and weaknesses, and how they respond to the learning needs of children with a diverse background.1In this paper I w unbalanced apply the knowledge and understanding that I gained by writing about the impact of the human immunodeficiency virus/ promote pestilential on sanctioned education for children at risk.2The assistance plaguey has become a global crisis currently threatening the broods of millions of volume and devastating entire societies. Education systems have an essendial role to play in weight-lifting this epidemic, because of their capacity to accomplish very full-grown numbers of young people with disembodied spirit-saving information and skills. A completed native education can reduce the risk of human immunodeficiency virus transmitting for young people and in fact, fundamental education has such a powerful preventative effect, that it has been described as the social vaccine (Boler Carroll 2003). As the epidemic gathers pace, however, it poses increasing risks to education itself, threatening to stop children from enrolling, teachers from teaching and indoctrinates from functioning. This threatens the Right to Education, and the objective of Education for All (EFA) and the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) to achieve primary cosmopolitan education. Particularly, orphans and insecure children (OVCs), face a lot of challenges in the provision of reference education.3In this paper, I therefore focus on the impact of the human immunodeficiency virus/ aid epidemic on basic education for orphans and vulnerable children in Sub Saharan Africa in order to improve and increase their access to quality education, skills breeding and other social services. Since I am going to conduct research in Zambia on a relate topic, I focus particularly on the impact of HIV/ expect epidemic on basic education in Zambia. The research questions of this paper therefore state What is the impact of the HIV/ aid epidemic on basic education for orphaned and vulnerable children (OVCs) in Zambia? What can be d hotshot to increase their access, progression and educational outcomes?Part genius of this paper deals with the more than general literature about HIV/ support in Sub Saharan Africa. This includes the impact of HIV/ back up, leading to many antithetic educational consequences. In part two I focus on Zambia as a case study, whereby I explain the HIV/acquired immune deficiency syndrome epidemic in Zambia, the impact it has on OVCs and the educational system. Part three discusses the possibilities of redressing the harmful consequences within the educational system, whereby I focus on connection schoolings. In conclusion, I answer the research question and I will give recommendations for further research.The HIV/AIDS epidemic in Sub Saharan AfricaTwo-thirds of all people infected with HIV/AIDS live in Sub Saharan Africa, although this region includes little more than 10% of the worlds population (UNAIDS 2008 Foster Williamson 2000 275 Barnett Whiteside 2006 210-19). HIV/AIDS has ca employ immense human suffering in the continent. The close to obvious effect of this crisis has been illness and death, but the impact of the epidemic has certainly not been confined to the wellness welkin. Households, schools, workplaces and economies have as well been badly affect. Since the beginning of the epidemic more than 15 million Africans have died from AIDS (UNAIDS 2008). In the previous year 2008, an estimated 1.4 million adults and children died as a result of AIDS in Sub Saharan Africa (UNAIDS 2008). Besides, a growing number of children in Sub Saharan Africa have been orphaned by AIDS (Robson Sylvester 2007 260). However, detailed information on the numbers of children directly affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic is very limited in most countries in Sub Saharan Africa (Bennell 2005 468). A major part of the problem is that it is often difficult to establish whether a child, p atomic number 18nt or cargonr is ill or has died as a result of an AIDS-related disease.Another complicating factor is that there is no standard definition of an orphan. Definitions of orphans vary across different cultures and studies. In general, an orphan delinquent(p) to AIDS is defined as a child who has illogical at least one pargonnt dead from AIDS or AIDS related diseases. However, UNICEF and UNAIDS have a more specific definition. They define an orphan as a child under 15 years of age a hotshot orphan has lost one p arnt, while a double orphan has lost both parents (Foster Williamson 2000 Brennell 2005 Barnett Whiteside 2006 213). For the purpose of this paper, and in line with working definitions in Zambia, an orphan is defined as a child below the age of 18 who has lost one or both parents (Robson Sylvester 2007 262).The toll of HIV/AIDS on households can be very severe. Although the whole population is affected by HIV/AIDS, it are often the brusqueest areas of society that are most exposed to the epidemic and for whom the consequences are most severe. In many cases, the presence of AIDS causes the household to break up, as parents die and children are sent to relatives for care and upbringing.Although the HIV/AIDS epidemic has affected many aspects of social and economic development, this paper focuses on the affect on educational development. The relationship surrounded by AIDS and the education sector is circular as the epidemic worsens, the education sector is damaged, which in turn is likely to increas e the incidence of HIV transmission. There are numerous slipway in which AIDS can affect education, but equally there are many ways in which education can help the fight against AIDS and gene rank hope (Kelly 1999 6-7).4The extent to which schools and other educational institutions are able to continue functioning will influence how well societies eventually recover from the epidemic. Or as the director of UNAIDS, Peter Piot, explained it Without education, AIDS will continue its rampant spread. With AIDS out of control, education will be out of reach (World aver et al. 2002).OVCs are less likely to have proper schooling. The death of a prime-age adult in a household will reduce a childs attendance at school (World Bank 1997 225 in Barnett Whiteside 2006 220).5The household may be less able to pay for schooling. An orphaned child may have to make full on household or income-earning work. Sick adults may have reduced expectations of the returns of investing in childrens education as they do not expect to live long enough to recoup the investment. When a child goes to another household after his or his parents death, the obstacles become greater as the child is not their let (Barnett Whiteside 2006 220).Finally, a reason why it is important to focus on children is that the impact of HIV/AIDS will linger for decades after the epidemic begins to wane (Foster Williamson 2000 275). However, for a diversity of reasons, little attention has been paid to the situation and experience of individual children affected by HIV/AIDS. Nevertheless, greater understanding of the impact of HIV/AIDS on childrens education is essential in the design and evaluation of programmes to support children living under difficult conditions.HIV/AIDS epidemic in ZambiaZambia, in southern Africa, has been severely affected by the HIV/AIDS pandemic and can be seen as the mirror of Sub Saharan Africa. Statistics emphasize that one in five adults is infected with HIV (Kayanta 2004 in Robso n Sylvester 2007 259-60). Additionally, more than 70% of the population lives in poverty (CSO 2003 in Robson Sylvester 2007 260). However, the land is active to implement the convening of the Rights of the Child (CRC), to achieve the EFA and the MDGs, by eradicating extreme hunger and poverty, to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases, to promote gender equality and empower women and to achieve universal primary education.6Besides, the country adopted a number of poverty step-down objectives (Ministry of Foreign personal matters 2008 19).Almost 50% of Zambias population is under 15 years old, 71% of children live in poverty, and one in four children are orphaned. In other words, the HIV epidemic has devastated the country and it is estimated that by 2010 there will be 1,328,000 AIDS orphans (UNAIDS 2008). These children are vulnerable to neglect, sexual abuse and early marriages, forced child labour and can have serious health and nutrition problems. As a result OVCs are less likely to have access to school and to complete quality basic education. Social protection measures put in place by the government are hampered by inadequate resources, and OVCs lack of awareness of their businesss.The impact of the HIV/AIDS epidemic on the Zambian education systemThe AIDS epidemic affects the supply of and demands for education in a variety of ways, especially in a high HIV prevalence country like Zambia (Bennell 2005 467). HIV/AIDS has multiple effects on education through ten different mechanisms reduction in demand, reduction in supply, reduction in availability of resources, adjustments in response to the special needs of an increasing number of orphans and vulnerable children, adaptation to new interactions both within schools and between schools and communities, broadcast modification, altered roles that have to be adopted by teachers and the education system, the ways in which schools and the education system are organised, the planning and management of the system, and donor support for education (Kelly 1999 1).More and more research is carried out on the impact of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Zambia. However, little research has been undertaken in basic schools themselves, to examine the experiences of poverty and AIDS-affected children. Therefore, Robson and Sylvester emphasize that it is timely to explore the perceptions of education personnel and students regarding the adequacy of responses within the educational sector and to identify the unmet needs (Robson Sylvester 2007 262).Impact of the HIV/AIDS epidemic on education for pupilsThere are three groups of schoolchildren whose lives are most directly affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic and whose education is, therefore, potentially at maximum risk children who are HIV positive, children living in households with sick family members, and children whose parents or caretakers have died of HIV/AIDS. The scope to which the education of these children is negatively affected depends deeply on the level of physical and emotional support they get from the extended family, the school, the participation and the local government (Bennell 2005 468).However, like I explained in the introduction, it is difficult to indicate the number of directly affected children by the epidemic. Besides, schools rarely keep accurate and up-to-date records on the number of affected children and their parents. Nonetheless, we do know that the number of children that is HIV positive because the mother passed the virus on to her child is relatively small, since over 90 per cent of these children die before they are old enough to attend school. It is therefore estimated that a small number of schoolchildren is infected or has AIDS related sicknesses (Brennell 2005 469). This is alike the reason why fatality rate rates at primary schools are low.It is commonly believed that the education of children who are most directly affected by the epidemic is adversely affected in a number of ways . The main argument is that given very difficult home situations, both orphans and children in AIDS-affected households are often forced to drop out of school altogether with little likelihood of ever returning to school (Brennell 2005 473).The growth in the number of orphans and other directly affected children is taxing the grapple strategies of families and society at large. In many cases, the extended family find it extremely difficult to cope economically and psychologically with the numbers it is required to absorb. Few orphans and other children in AIDS-affected households are able to pay their school or training fees. Many others have to care for others in the homes where they live. Many have to work to support themselves or younger siblings dependent on them (Kelly 2000 57 in Brennell 2005 473).Pupils whose parents die or are ill often drop out of school due to different factors such as, economic stresses on households, changes in the family structure, responsibilities to look after the sick, the elderly or siblings and loss of parental supervision (Foster Williamson 2000 278,81). The way school attendance, motion and school completion are effected generally depends on levels of risks and vulnerability due to social, economic and cultural circumstances (Robson Sylvester 2007 265). It is important to mention that the financial institutionalise on families, for example when parents die, prevents many children from attending school despite the provision of free basic education because of the extra school costs, like textbooks, contribution to school funds and exami population costs (Brennell 2005 475 Barnett Whiteside 2006 220).Other reasons for children to drop out of school or to perform badly are that poor children are frequently ill because of poor living conditions, which seriously affects their education. Besides, AIDS-related grunges and discrimination increase the chance that children are not going to school (Foster Williamson 2000 281-82 Bennell 2005 473). Children, especially whose parents are known or guess to have died of HIV/AIDS face the risk of being stigmatised or discriminated. This can also result in bullying of these children. Stigma and discrimination in schools violates the principles of inclusive education and education for all (Robson Sylvester 2007 266).Research in Zambia showed that the number of children attending primary school is decreasing. The decline in school participation rates was thought to result from poverty, inability to pay the rising costs of schooling, and increasing parental disillusion with the low quality of education. This is linked to HIV/AIDS and its affects on poverty, levels of employment, and the quality of school provision (Kelly 2000 12 in Barnett Whiteside 2006 220). Noteworthy is that proportionately more orphans than non-orphans were not attending school according to this research.Although it is important to focus on enrolment rates and participation, it is also impo rtant to pay attention to the quality of learning as well. Children, for example, might be hungry, or are otiose to narrow due to tensions or anxiety at home. Vulnerable children tend to be more malnourished or to have received insufficient health care. This negatively affects school enrolment, attendance and performance (Robson Sylvester 2007 266 Barnett Whiteside 2006 221). Orphans and other vulnerable children often have to do a lot of household tasks before and after school. This indicates that obstacles to school work are strongly connected with poverty and its related tensions. Besides, the curriculum of the school often not adapts to the vocational, emotional and life skills needs of HIV/AIDS affected-pupils.Whats more, HIV/AIDS has resulted in increasing teacher absenteeism and a significant decline in the number of teachers. This affects the quality of teaching, learning and assessment and diverted resources away from schools. The stay teachers face problems because th e burden on their shoulders increases since they have to manage progressively larger class sizes with poor resources (Kelly 1999 3 Carr-Hill 2002 in Robson Sylvester 2007 261, 265 Barnett Whiteside 2006 220). Sometimes pupils are also sent home because of a lack of teachers. All together, this affects the quality of teaching and learning for the pupils.Overall, we can say that poor pupils attending and performance is the result of a ten thousand of factors including irregular attendance and generally poor quality of schooling (Brennell 2005 475). Studies also show that HIV/AIDS should not be excessively blamed for problems achieving linguistic universal Primary Education. Problems with school enrolment, attendance and completion are also related to poverty or problems inherent to the school system, such as the quality of education (Barnett Whiteside 2006 222).Redressing the harmful consequences within the educational systemIn Zambia most of the initiatives within the education s ector in relation to tackling HIV/AIDS and poverty are situated within educational reform programmes, such as the Basic Education Sub-Sector Investment Programme (BESSIP). The aim of this programme is to increase and improve the access, quality of basic education by the year 2015 (Ministry of Foreign affairs 2008 19). Besides, the Ministry of Education made the goal of equitable access to relevant education a accountability for all Zambians and it removed the school fees in 2003 (Robson Sylvester 2007 260). HIV/AIDS prevention strategies tend to focus mainly on preventive association-based initiatives to improve access to health education. However, there are various barriers to learning and participation. This is linked to the fact that many teachers lack the knowledge or the skills to implement effective HIV/AIDS and life skills programmes (Obura Sinclear 2005 in Robson Sylvester 2007 260).Therefore, the challenge for the Zambian Ministry of Education (MoE) and the internation al alliance is not only to provide the right to basic education, but also strengthen schools as inclusive and supportive communities. For the pupils, this might focus on provision of alternative and more opportunities for participation and learning, access to health, life skills, suitable counselling and support in order to cope with the harmful consequences of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. For teachers, it is important to concentrate on professional development opportunities in order to support the management of large scale and curriculum development e.g. in the areas of life skills and vocational skills (Robson Sylvester 2007 259-60).In Zambia, federation schools have a significant position in redressing the harmful consequences of HIV/AIDS within the education system. union schools try to differentiate the learning needs of OVCs by designing and delivering a relevant and meaningful curriculum that assist these children to develop income-generating skills, personal, health, emotiona l and social skills, and critical learning skills (Kelly 1999 4). Most community school use the four-year curriculum Skills, Participation, Access and Relevant Knowledge (SPRAK). This curriculum offers pupils a fast track to official stratum 7 examinations (Chondoka 2004 Robson Sylvester 2007 267).In the following part of this paper I will first explain the main features of community schools in Zambia. Secondly, I will discuss why community schools and especially the visible radiation curriculum could be a solution for the educational development of OVCs affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic.Community shallowsOne of the main characteristics of the Zambian education system is the central role played by community schools. Community schools emerged as a response to the unmet demand for school places among the poor and other marginalised groups in Zambia who are not in formal schools (USAID 2006 in Robson Sylvester 2007 262 Ministry of Foreign Affairs 2008 52). In many instances, these schools are run by parents and volunteer teachers, though increasingly they receive support from the government, non-governmental organisations, faith based organizations or private initiatives. In other words, there is an enormous variation between community schools, more than between government schools or private schools, in how they are supported and managed (Destefano 2006). Besides, the school buildings and provisions vary greatly. A large number of these schools have wattle-and-daub constructions and temporary provisions (Ministry of Foreign Affairs 2008 52, 56).7Classrooms and water and sanitation facilities are often of poor quality. Teaching and learning materials are generally inadequate. Pupils often sit on the floor. Uniforms are often not a school requirement. Finally, the vast majority of teachers are unqualified (Chondoka 2006 7). Adversely, reasons why these community schools increase in popularity are that community schools are less expensive, close to home, less d emanding in entry requirements and are managed by local communities. Most community schools serve children aged between 9-16 years who are either drop-outs or who have never been to school.The concept of a community school was not entirely new to Zambia. The European missionaries had already established similar schools and called them village schools or bush schools (Chondoka 2006). Around 1995, more community schools began to come out of the closet in areas without government schools, where parents could not meet the expense of the high school fees that were charged, where the distance to the nearest government school was to far or where the government schools were considered overcrowded. Since 1998, the Zambian government officially recognises community schools. The Zambian government acknowledges the positive effect of community schools in redressing the harmful consequences of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Since 1998, the number of community schools has hypertrophied exponentially, a lthough the school fees for government schools were banned in 2002 with the introduction of free basic education. However, it is important to mention that in general, community schools are relatively small. In 2000, they accounted for 17% of the basic schools and 8% of the pupils in basic schools in 2006 these figures had increased to 34% and 16%, respectively (Ministry of Foreign Affairs 2008 54-55). In 2005 the MoE distributed 30% of their budget to community schools (Robson Sylvester 2007 262). This made it possible for community schools to receive school grants, textbooks, professional guidance and sometimes a government funded teacher. However, most community schools started without prior information of the MoE and are severely underfunded. While the majority of the community schools receive an inadequate amount of MoE support, many other schools not even receive a school grant. in spite of the fact that the MoE supports community schools, its practical interest seems to be s omewhat limited. Actual support depends on the specific policy of the particular district boards (Ministry of Foreign Affairs 2008 54, 56).Community schools can be found in both rural an urban areas. A recent study shows that the main reason determining the posture of rural community schools is distance to the nearest government school (Chondoka 2006 7). In urban areas, these schools are set up in locations with large concentrations of children who are unable to get access to a man school due to costs or other factors (Destefano 2006).Pupils in community schools usually belong to the poorest and most vulnerable social strata (Ministry of Foreign Affairs 2008 54). Less than one third of community school families live in stable structures, compared to 46% of public schools families (Destefano 2006). Most community schools are attended by a relatively large number of orphans. In 2005, about one in three pupils in community schools had lost his or her mother. In government schools thi s ratio is one in five. Most of the orphans lack sufficient parental support. According to a study in important Province, many orphans not succeed to come to school regularly, while many of them are to hungry to concentrate in class when they do come (Chondoka 2006 9). repayable to their restricted size, many of the community schools make use of multi-grade teaching, especially in rural areas. Instead of using the normal curriculum, they most of the times use the SPARK curriculum, which provides primary education in four years. The SPARK curriculum has been designed to meet the particular needs of community school children, who are usually fourth-year (between 9 and 16 years) and who are often directly hit by the HIV/AIDS epidmic. It follows the government curriculum and focuses on the relevant topics within English, Mathematics, environmental Science, Social Studies, Physical Education and Zambian languages, with a life skills component integrated through all the subject areas. T he SPARK curriculum places health education, with a strong focus on AIDS/HIV prevention, at the heart of the primary circle. It prioritizes literacy, numeracy and life skills which are recognized as having to serve a nation in crisis due to the young people who will have to survive and assume early responsibility of heading a family due to HIV/AIDS (Ministry of Foreign Affairs 2008 56).As this part of the paper tried to make clear, community schools are able to reach the most vulnerable and marginalized groups within Zambia, such as orphans. By using the SPRARK curriculum, that assist these children to develop knowledge and skills, it is possible to adapt to the needs of OVCs who face a lot of challenges because of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. However, it also clear that there is an enormous variation between community schools. It is therefore important that the MoE not only recognises the community school, but also that the MoE support is more fairly distributed between the different (ty pes) of community schools. After all, it is important to work together with the different types of school to achieve EFA goals and the MDGs and to guarantee that all children have the right to education.ConclusionOne of the most dramatic impacts of HIV/AIDS epidemic is the threat they constitute to the well-being of children and young people. The already high prevalence of poverty, joined with the possible impacts of the AIDS epidemic can have long-term educational, emotional and social consequences (Khin-Sand Lwin et al 2001 Kanyata 2004 UNICEF-Zambia 2004 in Robson Sylvester 2007 268). It is estimated that the majority of children having lost one or both parents due to AIDS is living in Sub Saharan Africa. Children affected by HIV, as well as children living with HIV, often suffer from stigma and discrimination. The opportunity of these children to continue their education successfully may be reduced if their impoverished family or caretakers cannot pay the fees or the extra sch ool costs.By bounteous a case study of the impact of the HIV/AIDS epidemic on basic education for orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) in Zambia, this paper showed that relationship between the epidemic and the education sector is circular. There are various ways in which the epidemic effects the education for OVCs, but there are also several ways in which education can generate hope for these children. Schools, teachers and the Zambian government therefore need to be made more reactive to the needs of OVCs. Providing education to these children is not only a human rights imperative, it is also vital to break the vicious cycle of poverty and to promote security and public health. Basic education should, therefore, be free and target support to meet essential schooling costs (provision of lunches, books and pencils, examination fees). Besides, basic education should be provided for devoid children as part of a wide-ranging package of support and it could help prevent absence or d ropout (Brennell 2005 487).To my opinion the Skills, Participation, Access and Relevant Knowledge (SPARK) curriculum, which is used at most community schools, is a step forward to overcome most obstacles to achievement of education. SPARK is a special curriculum that was written for community schools. This four-year curriculum follows the government curriculum with a life skills component integrated through all subject areas and offers pupils a fast track to official grade 7 examinations. However, more drastic curriculum and pedagogical review and teacher professional development are necessary to improve the quality and relevance of the educational experience. 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