Page 14 - 20160818-Haiti booklet

EDUCATION PROGRAMS

After the earthquake, many children dropped out of school for financial reasons, as such, Tzu
Chi volunteer Jean Denis started a community classroom program in temporary classrooms.
Community classroom programs operated on weekdays, except on holidays from 8 a.m. to
12 p.m. Local volunteers provided students with hot meals at 11 a.m., for many students was
the only meal for the day. Community classrooms had about 100 students, 10 teachers, 5 Tzu
Chi volunteers, and 9 local volunteers. Students were between 4 to 13 years old. Their families
could not afford tuition, so they were between not able to attend public schools. Students who
attended the Community Classroom learned math, reading, writing, colors, and geometry.
Philological teachers also taught the young students how to develop character. Many activities
like recycling, movie watching, dancing, and physical education were also available in the
Community Classroom. From August 2011, Tzu Chi provided USD $100 to USD $120 each
month to the Community Classroom program. The purpose of this program was to help children
return to formal schools.

Because of location issues, the Community Classroom program closed on August 2011.

14