Why I work as a Life Schools Tutor
Embrace supports the Life Schools project in Egypt, run by our partner Think & Do. Anat, a teacher at the project, describes how she became involved, her passion for the work and how the project is transforming rural women’s life chances through education, skills and personal and community empowerment.
My father was the most influential person in my life. I grew up in a family of 5 siblings (2 boys and 3 girls). My father used to love all of us without discrimination and he cared a lot about our education, whether boy or girl. Although our financial situation was poor, my father insisted on educating me like my siblings and I was able to get a bachelor’s degree.
My father was an elder in the evangelical church. I was always seeing God in my father’s acts and in how he was praying and trusting God all the time. He taught us how to be honest and faithful. Church shaped my life and taught me how to serve others and the community.
One day at church, I heard an announcement about the Life School program with Think and Do. I applied, took the training and was chosen as the class supervisor. I have been working for four years with the Life School.
The aim of the Life School project is to empower women who didn’t have the chance to be educated. In the rural areas in Egypt, most of the women are housewives and don’t work. Parents live in poverty and their lives are very hard; they don’t care about education, especially for girls. Their main priority is to marry off their daughters at an early age and this of course affects the family life and creates many family problems. The girls have no opinion concerning their marriage and they are not involved in making decisions in their community.
The Life School projects helps the community to raise the educational level of women, raise their awareness and take care of the different aspects of these women’s lives.
Vocational training, such as sewing, is offered at the Life Schools.
Inside the school, they have the chance to learn reading, writing and math and also learn a vocation (sewing, hairdressing and cooking) and do handicrafts so they can improve their income by starting microenterprises. The Life School project presents education in creative and different ways that suits their age. It also offers virtues, advice and practical awareness for rural women to help them in their practical life. Different awareness topics are presented and healthcare is offered to women, including medical tests for hepatitis C.
I teach Arabic and Math. I also teach human virtues and values for a better life and health awareness. I very much enjoy teaching these subjects. But my first goal is the ministry and not the work. How can I assist in advancing the life of rural women? How can I help them be more effective and fulfilled in all aspects of their lives?
The Life School where I teach is in a village in the Minya governorate. It consists of three classes, each of 20 women. We hold the classes in the Evangelical church in the village. The duration of the class is 4 hours, including 30 minutes presenting virtues, 30 minutes on awareness topics, 90 minutes for teaching literacy and math and 90 minutes for teaching vocations.
Women can also access medical tests at the school.
The Life School is beautiful and impressive with all that it offers to rural women. It helps women who are living under pressure and helps the community in decreasing the illiteracy rate and helps them to change harmful customs and traditions. It raises the value of education in the community as women became interested in education and in educating their children.
As a result of the project, the women create healthy relationships with others, gain self-confidence and be independent. This change has been very noticeable for everyone in the village. The school also breaks down the barriers between the different backgrounds. The women realize how wonderful is the difference between them; they respect each other and share each other’s joy and sadness.
Being among the ladies helped me a lot in gaining experiences in my life and it helped the women to have someone beside them to support, listen and advise them. My presence in the school became part of my service and a big part of my mission. I love very much being among these women.
The Life School is not only about the specific number of hours in classes; its effect lasts throughout the day and the length of life.
SUPPORT WOMEN’S EDUCATION
You can help women to access access the education, training and support previously denied to them with our Wonder Woman Alternative Gift.
