We help children return to school
The Challenge
When you walk the cramped alleys of Kibera you come across many children who should be in school. Instead they are playing in the streets, running errands for their parents or caring for their siblings. Some collect recyclable items out of rubbish mounds to sell for a little pocket money.
Poverty is the main barrier keeping these kids out of school. Their parents cannot afford the cost of sending them to school. Though primary education is free in Kenya, the underfunded and over-subscribed schools charge for many things. From admission to the feeding programme to the pupil’s desks.
Our Approach
We work with children who have dropped out of school and support them to return to education. Our school transition programme enrols children in our free primary school and provides extra support as they settle back into school.
What kind of support do children receive?
Each child is paired up with a student buddy who helps them make friends and find their way around the school
Each child also has a Mentor Teacher who helps the child set goals, overcome any challenges they are facing and identify where the child might need extra social or academic support
Finally, we help each child catch up on the learning they missed while they were out of school through remedial classes.
Our Impact
Collins is a rapper; he loves to make up his own songs. A crowd of excited Turning Point kids were wowed by Collins performing one of his songs around the campfire at our annual holiday camps. Collins is also an orphan and was living on the streets, completely homeless with no one to take care of him and no home to sleep in at night.
Turning Point was able to reconnect Collins with an uncle who he now lives with.
Collins was way behind in his education, but it’s never too late to make a change. At 16, he was unable to read or write but Collins is a determined young man and worked hard in Transition Class to catch up. He has persevered and shown amazing progress and is now in Class 8, the equivalent of Year 10 in the UK. He will be taking his final primary school exams this year at age 19. What’s more, he can now write his raps down.
