By Adama Kone, Teacher Project Coordinator
As part of work to help girls get into school and succeed there, Mali Rising Foundation works with boys. Why boys? Because we need them to be allies for the girls in their classrooms and their sisters at home! I lead regular discussion groups with boys in our partner schools to help them think through the benefits of girls’ education and their role in making it possible.
Abdoulaye enjoyed the discussion about the benefits of educating girls…but he also really enjoyed the cakes provided as a snack to full the discussion.
Recently, we hosted a boys’ discussion group at Sue Taylor Middle School in Diorilia. Eighty-seven boys at the discussion! We had great talk with boys and they enjoyed talking about the disadvantages of being a non-educated girl. When I asked the boys for specfici examples of how a lack of education can hurt a girl or her future family, one of the boys said: “If a girl is not educated, she can poison her baby because she cannot read the instructions on medicine.”
We also discussed the advantages of having their sisters or future wives be educated women. Boys loved this topic. As they discussed it they realized that all the boys wanted to have an educated wife who would support their families and take care of the children better. They also said that wanted their sisters to be educated so they could also work as police officers, doctors, teachers, nurses, or lawyers. In general, the boys agreed that everyone benefits when a girl is educated — the girl herself, her family, her future family, and her whole community.
Abdoulaye Touré is a 15-year-old ninth grader. He likes school and he wants all his sisters become educated because he believes that one day they could help him with money and build nice houses for their parents in the village. Abdoulaye believes girls’ education is very challenging in Diorila because parents are less involved in keeping track of their children's education, especially when it comes to the girls.
However, Abdoulye still has hope and thinks things will change for better when their parents are more sensitized on the importance of girl’s education. Abdoulye said, “Many parents give their daughters to early or forced marriages instead of keeping them in school because they do not want their daughters be pregnant and bring a shame on them in village. If they had more hope for the future of an educated girl, maybe they would instead keep them in school.”
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