Vulnerable children of Mongolia have bright futures
All over the world children go to school to learn, to socialise, and to become familiar with their culture, religion and customs. Education is vital in today’s society no matter what your background, creed or beliefs to become a functioning member of society. The basic right to education is one of the main aims of the UN’s Millennium Development Goals, to ‘achieve universal primary education’. Education is one of the factors used to calculate where a country lies in the Human Development Index (HDI). Mongolia is ranked at 110 in the HDI with a score of 0.653 in 2011, a middle ranking country, below Thailand, but above Egypt. The education figures are revealing with mean years of schooling at 8.3 years but expected schooling should in fact be 14 years.
In recent years the education system of Mongolia has changed, with the age that children begin school going from 7 to 8 years old to an age more in line with international schooling systems, where children start primary education at 6 or 7 years. The education system in Mongolia is still continually changing and developing.
These inequalities can be seen in the quality and access to basic social services and information. The vulnerable children and children of vulnerable households in Mongolia suffer from a greater disadvantage and can easily become stuck in a poverty cycle. Children of herders, female headed households and poor households can be at a disadvantage before they have even entered school. Most children of pre-school age will have already learned to count, will have held a pencil and have some basic shape recognition skills, but some vulnerable children may have missed out on these activities. Children from more privileged backgrounds are able to attend pre-school and kindergartens where these basic but vital skills are developed and nurtured.
There is a problem of categorising children and there being a stigma surrounding vulnerable children. If they have bad grades from the beginning then they will not be given the individual help that they need. Teachers just don’t have the time to pay special attention to individual children in the Mongolian education system.
Some organisations are offering these services to vulnerable children and households with the aim to break the poverty cycle and help these children, who may otherwise always be at the bottom of their class, flourish and reach their full potential. The “Flourishing Future’s” NGO operating in Ulaanbaatar and the “Minii Ger Tsetserleg” (My Home Kindergarten) in Erdenet are two such examples. Both provide a free specialised preschool program where children from disadvantaged backgrounds can receive basic education; from the most basic skills including how to hold a pencil and colour identification to more subtle skills such as how to interact in social situations and classroom behaviour.
Both pride themselves in keeping contact with the children after they have left to continue their education. The “Minii Ger Tsetserleg” operates a library where children from the area can visit to read in peace, do their homework or to see their old teachers. The social worker for this organisation confirmed that many of the children who had attended the kindergarten often came back to show their old teachers their good grades. She went on to say that the children are very proud of their education and can appreciate the advantage that this start has given them.
At the “Flourishing Future’s” community centre many of the children who graduated from the pre-school class in the past are now successfully integrated into their schools or colleges. Some have even gained scholarships to university, and come back to the centre to volunteer their time and contribute to tutoring programs for other children.
These are but two examples of many projects that are in operation. It is good to see that there are initiatives across Mongolia that are helping to improve the quality of the education of Mongolian youth.
In recent years the education system of Mongolia has changed, with the age that children begin school going from 7 to 8 years old to an age more in line with international schooling systems, where children start primary education at 6 or 7 years. The education system in Mongolia is still continually changing and developing.
Compared to European and American styles of education it is very different. The teaching styles for a start are worlds apart, but one thing that is a universal truth, is that the vulnerable sections of society are at a disadvantage.
Educating the vulnerable
Although economically Mongolia is jumping ahead in fits and bursts, socially many Mongolia’s are still insecure. The disparity in income equality has been growing since 1995. The most vulnerable sections of society, according to UNDAF, include unregistered migrants, female headed households, herders and those requiring special care such as the homeless, orphaned children, the elderly and the disabled.
Educating the vulnerable
Although economically Mongolia is jumping ahead in fits and bursts, socially many Mongolia’s are still insecure. The disparity in income equality has been growing since 1995. The most vulnerable sections of society, according to UNDAF, include unregistered migrants, female headed households, herders and those requiring special care such as the homeless, orphaned children, the elderly and the disabled.
These inequalities can be seen in the quality and access to basic social services and information. The vulnerable children and children of vulnerable households in Mongolia suffer from a greater disadvantage and can easily become stuck in a poverty cycle. Children of herders, female headed households and poor households can be at a disadvantage before they have even entered school. Most children of pre-school age will have already learned to count, will have held a pencil and have some basic shape recognition skills, but some vulnerable children may have missed out on these activities. Children from more privileged backgrounds are able to attend pre-school and kindergartens where these basic but vital skills are developed and nurtured.
There is a problem of categorising children and there being a stigma surrounding vulnerable children. If they have bad grades from the beginning then they will not be given the individual help that they need. Teachers just don’t have the time to pay special attention to individual children in the Mongolian education system.
With classes of 30 children and extra roles assigned them by the Department of Education, teachers have little time enough to teach, let alone single out children who are lagging behind. Also some children will bring in ‘gifts’ for teachers. An apple or a note-book; small things. But children from disadvantaged background cannot do this, and it has been suggested that this may have an effect on the quality of education they receive. But with a solid grounding in the basics then it is possible that this may not be an issue.
Some organisations are offering these services to vulnerable children and households with the aim to break the poverty cycle and help these children, who may otherwise always be at the bottom of their class, flourish and reach their full potential. The “Flourishing Future’s” NGO operating in Ulaanbaatar and the “Minii Ger Tsetserleg” (My Home Kindergarten) in Erdenet are two such examples. Both provide a free specialised preschool program where children from disadvantaged backgrounds can receive basic education; from the most basic skills including how to hold a pencil and colour identification to more subtle skills such as how to interact in social situations and classroom behaviour.
Both pride themselves in keeping contact with the children after they have left to continue their education. The “Minii Ger Tsetserleg” operates a library where children from the area can visit to read in peace, do their homework or to see their old teachers. The social worker for this organisation confirmed that many of the children who had attended the kindergarten often came back to show their old teachers their good grades. She went on to say that the children are very proud of their education and can appreciate the advantage that this start has given them.
At the “Flourishing Future’s” community centre many of the children who graduated from the pre-school class in the past are now successfully integrated into their schools or colleges. Some have even gained scholarships to university, and come back to the centre to volunteer their time and contribute to tutoring programs for other children.
These are but two examples of many projects that are in operation. It is good to see that there are initiatives across Mongolia that are helping to improve the quality of the education of Mongolian youth.
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