Fort Mean Chey Province News: The bright yellow sun shines on the rice fences left over from farmers' harvesting in Batu Phu District, Fort Mean Chey Province.
Apart from farming, some citizens must migrate to neighboring countries to find additional livelihood supplies.
Rita and Lika are among many other children who have not been able to keep up with school due to having to travel with their parents between Cambodia and Thailand.
Currently, the two girls have returned to the classroom regularly through the Joint Partnership Project on Educational Opportunities for Disadvantaged Children in Cambodia (CCOSC) Phase II.
The girl said that she returned to second grade and ranked third in her class as well as in school.
In the song, Lita said: "When I came to learn, I was really happy and wanted to learn very much."
World Vision, in collaboration with more than 30 education partners, has played an important role in helping children, such as Rita and Lika overcome the barriers of poverty, migration, and limited learning opportunities.
Mat Somit, Project Manager of World Vision's CCOSC, said that the project, with financial support from Educate A Child (EAC) of the Education Above All Foundation, coordinated in Cambodia by AeA, focuses on providing disadvantaged children with access to quality education at the primary level.
The main objective of this second phase of the World Vision mission focuses on children who have lost their academic opportunities and are at risk of dropping out of their important education.
Mr. Sumit highlighted that the project contributes to the Ministry of Education's Education Strategy 2024-2028 "Ensuring that all Cambodians have access to quality, equitable and inclusive education filled with knowledge, aspirations, discipline, morals and good behavior, as well as good health, physical fitness, and lifelong learning", towards achieving Priority 1 of the Fourth Sustainable Development Goal (SDG-4) 2030.
The struggle of rural citizens facing shortages
An Lai, the head of Batu Phu district, said that out of a total of 2,163 families or nearly 9,000 people in the commune, 54 children migrated with their parents, including 29 girls.
Mr. Lai said that the authorities really need the involvement of World Vision, especially the CCOSC program, which not only helps the education sector and local communities but also facilitates the work of the authorities.
Ms. Chan Si Mung, the younger sister of the child, said that Rita has been migrating with her parents since she was 9 months old and has not had the opportunity to learn like other children.
She stated: "Because the mother is indifferent and wants to learn, both me and my siblings [Lita's parents] struggle to bring the child to school, worried that he will not be able to learn."
Separately, Ms. Tuch Sokcha, the mother of a girl named Lika who has a poor livelihood and lives under the roof of her brother's house, is willing to quit her job as a migrant worker and come home with Lika as another girl living in the same village who benefits from the project.
The mother, who dropped out of school in Grade 6, confessed: "I was able to help push my child to study hard.
She once asked her son: "If you want to go back to work in Thailand, do you go with me? She replied, "No! I didn't go! If you want to go, go alone, I'm still learning."
Giving value to studying, Ms. Sokha said in a heartfelt way: "I believe that studying will be able to change his life.
A New Hope: The Educational Journey of Rita and Lika
With the help of World Vision, Rita, now 11 years old, received school supplies and a bicycle to make the commute to school easier.
Ms. Si Mum claimed: "Because of her love for studying, she (Lita) spends a short period supplementing for just over a month, she can keep up with her classmates and have good grades."
After receiving some learning materials, such as pens, books, and bicycles for the benefit of Rita's studies, Ms. Srimong said that she attended the workshop twice as Rita's guardian under the arrangement of World Vision.
The Role of Local Authorities and Educators
The success of the CCOSC project can be achieved not only by World Vision but also by the active involvement of local authorities and education service providers.
Mr. Phat Night, the principal of a primary school in the village of Batu Phu district, emphasized the importance of community involvement in the project.
The Principal stated: "The (CCOSC) project is really good, not only helps students, but it also reminds teachers to strengthen their attention to students who are at risk of losing learning opportunities and students who have dropped out of school to return to school."
He said 44 students who were at risk of dropping out of school had consistently dropped out of school, while 6 children who had already dropped out due to migration with their parents had returned to the classroom.
He is also a kindergarten teacher, Rita herself, said that the CCOSC project, which started in 2023, has provided children with books, especially bicycles, which so far has 31 bicycles.
The primary school consists of 7 classes, 112 students at both primary and kindergarten levels, and 4 teachers including the principal, who teach two classes at the same time.
Teacher Saud Sinat, who teaches third grade and fourth grade together, said that the teacher had only met Lika in the third grade for a few months.
But Lika's studies bear good fruit as students who have dropped out of other schools require special attention and extra supplementary hours so that they can learn ahead of time and not be afraid of school.
Dressed in a beige folding skirt and sky blue shirt, the teacher explained: "We are diligent in caring for him, encouraging him, putting him in the homework, and monitoring his studies and checking his tasks, especially allowing him to answer various questions or lessons."
Children at risk and dropped out of school in Batu Phu district
Ms. Tung Chanlina, Deputy Head of the Office of the Batu Phu District Administration, Fort Mean Chey Province, said that World Vision's CCOSC project in Batu Phu district has helped 274 children at risk of dropping out of school and has recovered 274 children, including 150 girls.
She said: "There are many factors arising from the family economic situation, where citizens have to migrate, including unsuccessful businesses and bank debts."
She added: "The most important factor is born from the individual himself, as he is illiterate, he only wants to give up, as it can arise from social factors, teachers who do not use techniques in teaching, and the health factors of the children themselves."
Tackling Challenges
Mr. Sumit said that before bringing the project (CCOSC), some of the major challenges that hindered the education of children in primary schools, especially in rural areas, were the reading of third-grade students and the lack of access to education due to poverty, neglect, and migration.
He highlighted that the project's interventions include the creation of classrooms, the provision of learning materials, the capacity building of more than 5,000 teachers, and the provision of scholarships to children at risk of dropping out of school, such as poverty factors, violence both in the family and at school, among several other issues.
He said: "We have built 8 schools with 34 rooms and 2 sanitary toilets with 10 rooms under construction and will be completed in the first quarter of 2025."
20 provincial primary education learning forums were held in the 10 provinces to learn from each other and find various solutions to the challenges of disadvantaged and vulnerable children.
Guardians and other stakeholders have increased to nearly 10,000 people attending meetings with teachers to discuss the results of their children's learning, and community authorities have contributed up to 20 percent to the construction of school buildings.
Vision for the future
The CCOSC project provides benefits beyond encouraging children who have dropped out of school to return to the classroom, but the project also focuses on learning children who are at risk of dropping out of school, as well as their communities.
Local authorities, teachers, and parents are working together to ensure that education becomes the foundation of the future of the people living in these rural villages.
Village Head Cham Chieu acknowledged: "Worldview's projects have promoted education and related sectors, as well as strengthened community networks, which have provided valuable support to the people."
As the CCOSC project is completed in 2025, he emphasized that the project's support is still important and highly effective.
Mr. Sumit said that although progress is improving after the COVID-19 crisis, which has caused children to lose school time (especially poor and vulnerable children), its effects are still lingering for years to come.
He highlighted that challenges such as the lack of classrooms in remote provinces highlight the need for the CCOSC project to be adopted to support children facing various difficulties, as well as contribute to the Ministry of Education in accelerating and accelerating the learning outcomes of children returning to the classroom.
We see that the size of the intervention is still relatively limited compared to the size of the Ministry of Education's national education targets."
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