Ways you can give the gift of education this Christmas
Christmas is around the corner. It is one of the happiest holidays as friends and family gather to celebrate and give presents to one another. However, before you get swept up by this holiday season, it is important to remember that the season of giving extends to the less fortunate too. One of the most powerful gifts a person can receive is indeed education. There are many ways you can give the gift of education this Christmas. As Malcolm X (the African American leader in the civil rights movement) once said,
“Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today”.
Here are four different ways you can give the gift of education this Christmas.
Photo credits: Aidha
Aidha offers courses such as Financial Management and English courses. Many of their students are transient workers. Many transient workers are also the main breadwinners and are constantly under pressure to send most of their salaries back home. Thus, they are vulnerable as most do not have savings. According to their website, Aidha has impacted over 5,000 students, which not only impact the students alone but their families as well. This rounds up to around 45,000 lives impacted. Your donation can help to fund and subsidise these courses. As a result, they will become affordable to their beneficiaries. Make a change this Christmas through gifting education to transient workers.
Daughters of tomorrow is another Singapore-based organisation. It seeks to empower low-income women. They provide livelihood opportunities for low-income women and support them in achieving financial independence and enabling social mobility for their families.
Photo credits: Daughters of Tomorrow
Daughters of tomorrow focuses on providing a back to work support scheme. Some services they provide include courses for financial and IT literacy, and full-time and part-time job opportunities. Your financial donation can gift education to less fortunate women. Some ways include providing a laptop for job searching, for instance. Other ways to contribute include volunteering as a befriender or fundraising.
For those more passionate about helping children, Children of the Mekong is one such charity. Their mission is to educate the disadvantaged young people of Southeast Asia.
Photo credits: Children of the Mekong
Children of the Mekong’s programmes include building schools and sponsoring education. Their outreach has impacted countries including but not limited to Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand. Thus, you can help by sponsoring a child through their programme or giving to their projects that will impact the education and lives of marginalised children in Asia.
The Patatas recognise that for children in underrepresented communities, giving them access to education has the power to change their future.
One of our ongoing projects that aims to do this is CaseStudy. As its name suggests, CaseStudy is essentially a classroom in a case, designed to bring education digitally to rural communities without internet or power. The ‘case’ itself is a single waterproof and shockproof briefcase. Therefore, it is easy to carry around and sturdy enough to withstand rough handling. The mini computer within the CaseStudy can be fully customisable for students to view and download educational materials for self-directed learning or physical class engagement. For example, Wikipedia, PDF, slides, and videos. It can even connect to a projector, allowing teachers to set up a classroom anytime, anywhere. This is especially beneficial in times of COVID lockdowns. Additionally, it is uniquely portable and customisable. Thus, teachers can bring educational materials to their students in closed communities even during school closures, with the help of CaseStudy. Sponsoring one CaseStudy can have a tremendous impact on how children learn in rural communities by making educational resources more accessible to them. In conclusion, there are many ways you can give the gift of education this Christmas. This holiday season, let us take the time to find ways to generously give to others and help the less fortunate. After all, that is what the Christmas spirit is all about.