This was a blog post written by Carmen Lundell, Intern, BRAC Communications. The opinion reflected here is her own and is not that of BRAC.
Last weekend, a few interns and myself traveled to Srimangal for recreational purposes. We hoped to escape the busy Dhaka life and spend a weekend relaxing in solitude. What we didn’t realize was that no matter how far we traveled from Dhaka, we wouldn’t be able to escape BRAC.
On a tour of the Bangladesh Tea Research Institute, the four of us interns ventured deep into the village inside the estate. After a few kilometers, we saw a BRAC sign on a thatch hut and had to investigate. Around 20 kids stuck their heads out of the windows and enthusiastically greeted us. I promptly asked their names and explained that we worked for BRAC. They invited us into their classroom. Since the teacher was away on a short break, a few girls in the class took initiative and led a song to which the entire class sang and clapped along. Two girls danced, giving us a great show. When the teacher arrived, we thanked her and the students for their hospitality and left them to continue their learning.
My first experience at a BRAC School was about three weeks ago and organized by our internship coordinator. The kids were overwhelmingly participatory and respectful. Having grown up in the United States, I rarely experienced a classroom setting with such well-behaved children. On the ride home, some of the BRAC interns explained that a BRAC School is a second chance to receive an education for many of the students. Even so, I felt like kids in the United States who receive a similar second chance do not take advantage of it like these students demonstrated. I wondered if we would have witnessed the same attentiveness had we visited the school without prior warning.
Sure enough, I had the opportunity to visit a BRAC School without any forewarning, and I found the same well-behaved, motivated, and enthusiastic students. Two young girls eagerly took charge of the classroom, and their peers gladly sang and clapped along to their performance. I was extremely impressed and so glad to verify the success of the BRAC curriculum. Something about BRAC’s education model invigorates the students; they sincerely want to learn and have a profound appreciation for education.
This experience also showed me BRAC’s remarkable scope across Bangladesh. In what seemed like the corner of the world, I happened upon a BRAC School where students respected their teacher and most importantly one another. Yet again, BRAC has proven its ingenuity, but more remarkably, BRAC demonstrated its ability to spread this ingenuity on a large scale. Such a scale allows BRAC to maximize its poverty alleviation efforts, impacting millions of people’s lives.
By Carmen Lundell, Intern, BRAC Communications