Goducate … Go And Educate! – Page 95 – Helping Asians Help Themselves

2013-10-222013-10-18

Parents and children from Goducate Literacy Centers in Laguna go on educational tour

Twenty-six pupils from four Goducate Literacy Centers (in Maitim, Tranca, Sitio 74, Sitio Ulik) in Bay, Laguna, along with their teachers and parents, went on an educational tour on Sept 27. The purpose of this tour was to educate the pupils and their parents about the importance of rice, the stages of rice production from land preparation to consumption, and some rice varieties grown in different countries. At the same time it was a chance for the pupils and their parents from different literacy centers to get acquainted with each other.

The first stop was thus the Rice Museum of the International Rice Research Institute in Los Baños, Laguna. The children were completely awed by what they saw. They learnt that there are different varieties of rice and rice-based products. They saw the old tools and implements used by the farmers in Asia, Latin America, and Africa. And they saw exhibits of the different kinds of birds commonly found in the tropical rice fields.

This vist was also the first for the mothers and some of the teachers. Hence, they were as happy and as curious as were their children.

After the visit to the Rice Museum, the group was brought round the University of the Philippines Los Banos campus, with a stop-over at the newly-built Japanese Garden. The trip ended at the Goducate campsite in Bay for some games and for lunch.

2013-10-18

Boys at Goducate Children’s Home in Cambodia gain several livelihood skills

June last year saw the opening of a boy’s workshop at thet Goducate Children’s Home in Cambodia. Since then the older boys have gone a long way in terms of the practical skills they have gained from the weekly training sessions. Under the careful supervision of their trainers, the big boys can now confidently do some carpentry, welding, electrical wiring, plumbing works, and basic car/vehicle repairs.

Among the projects the children have been actively helping with are the construction of the new Boys Dorm and Girls Workshop, both of which are expected to be ready before the end of the year. The Home’s leaders and staff are very proud to see how the children have improved in their practical skills. The skills learnt in the workshop have been extremely useful not only in the construction of new buildings but also in the daily maintenance of the Home’s facilities. In addition, many of the items in the Home, from tools such as rakes and hoes, to furniture such as lockers, beds, tables, and benches, have been made by the boys.

We hope that the training given at the Cambodian Children’s Home will open work opportunities for them. When resources permit, we will extend training to boys who are not residents at the Home.

2013-10-152013-10-18

Goducate Scholar in Laguna, Philippines, does internship in Vietnam

Goducate has a scholarship program in Laguna that helps to see needy students through their tertiary education. There are 24 scholars in the program for the 2013-14 academic year. It is one way by which Goducate helps the needy help themselves. Scholars are encouraged to help others. They do so by holding tutorials every Saturday morning for younger children in Laguna. The 33 children who attend these tutorials, both in academic subjects as well as in music, were featured in the book In the Shoes of a Filipino Child published last year by Goducate.

The leader of Scholars Group, Mariane, who has also been in charge of the tutorial program, is in her senior year at the Laguna State Polytechnic University studying for her Bachelor of Secondary Education, with English as her major. She was one of a few students selected by her university to do a 6-month internship in practical teaching of English at a Vietnamese university. She left on Oct 5 to teach at the Thai Nguyen University in northern Vietnam.

Mariane may have another chance to go abroad to brush up on her English. In July a visitor from Singapore offered her an opportunity to go to Singapore when she graduates, to attend a school that he and his wife run.