Education

Supporting School Children for a brighter future.                       

Approximately 50% of the people of Tejakula village are classified as poor. The mountain regions around Tejakula are also home to refugee communities, arriving in the area after the eruption of Mt Agung in 1963.

Many labouring, fishing and farming families live below the poverty line, whilst students who attend the mountain schools mainly come from poor tenant farming families who cannot afford to support their studies. Most children have to assist with daily household and farming chores and their drop-out rate tends to be high.

Additionally, many talented students drop out after they finish primary or lower secondary school, as they cannot afford the new uniforms and new books for the next stage of schooling. They typically go on to assist their parents in the fields or look for work in the nearest towns.

How your money is invested

Starting with 21 minor scholarships in 2008, last year, Yayasan offered scholarships to approximately 50 students worth about USD 4000. These go to pay for the next stage of schooling (from Primary to Lower Secondary; or from Lower to Upper secondary), which is not funded by the government. Students in-between stages are not eligible for government scholarships, hence many have no way to afford the new school uniforms, books and fees which they must pay to go from Primary to Lower Secondary, or from Lower Secondary to Upper Secondary School.

…some success but still an uphill battle…

One 11-year old girl had another 6 months to finish primary school and was offered a scholarship by Yayasan while the headmaster volunteered to house and feed her, and to keep an eye on her studies.

The parents said “No”. They had a job lined up for her as a servant in Denpasar.

Another boy who was a top student was given a Yayasan scholarship between primary to lower secondary school and this continued for another two years as he was the top student in the regency and represented his school at the Mathematics Olympiad for the regency. Upon finishing his secondary studies, he applied for a scholarship to Bali Mandara, a premier school for gifted but poor students. He graduated top of class from Bali Mandara and got a scholarship to ITB, one of Indonesia’s top universities.  He is now looking to apply for an overseas scholarship, and Gaia is helping with this process.

… extra assistance for mountain schools

In addition to working within Tejakula, Yayasan has helped at Selombo Primary School, Bondalem village and is now working with Kutuh Primary School, Kutuh Village, located in the remote mountain areas around Gaia-Oasis. Bondalem village has 9 primary/elementary schools whilst Kutuh village has only 1 primary school. Kutuh is an ancient village, with a rich cultural heritage. Our support comprises

• nutritional supplements for students once a fortnight.
• basic educational materials such as writing books and pens.
• supplement for teacher honorariums and provision of an English teacher
• tuition in English and Mathematics, both in school and in our Abasan retreat.
• support for kids’ extracurricular activities: Balinese dance, yoga, etc

Depending on the requirements in any particular year, we have also provided school uniforms, umbrellas and raincoats during the rainy season, built water tanks, provided environmental education and waste management classes, funded inter-school and regency competitions (an important source of pride), and funded ‘mini-ashram’ workshops for schoolchildren.

** Every dollar you give goes 100% to the mountain schools or for scholarships to enable students to continue on to secondary school **