Monrovia – Since President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf branded the educational system in Liberia as a mess, many strides are being made by the government and its partners including private institutions and ordinary citizens to improve the sector.
Report by Gerald C. Koinyeneh – [email protected]
One of such person is Ms. Ama Harris, the Executive Director of the Rosetta Steps Literacy Center in New Kru Town, Bushrod Island.
The Center, in collaboration with TOTAL launched the Adult Literacy and Accelerated Learning Program with the aim of providing basic literacy skills including reading, writing and small business to adults with little or no educational experience as a mean of empowering them and building their self-esteem.
Speaking to FrontPageAfrica at the launch of the program recently, Ms. Harris noted that the program, dubbed “Learn to Earn” is currently benefiting 32 students, predominately female who own small businesses.
She explained that after a slow start, the program is now in full swing and the students are responding positively.
“Initially recruitment was a bit difficult. Because people were skeptical about how it would run, how it will eat in their already busy life schedules and how it would affect the time that they take up to earn their own income.
But as time went by, and when we reached the mark of about 15 students, we began to see that these students then went out and they informed their friends and their colleagues.
“And then we began to see an influx of more people showing more interest in the program.”
“In fact for the past two weeks, we have had to send students away from the program due to lack of space,” Ms. Harris explained.
She intoned that sending people with the desire and enthusiasm to learn away because of limited space was a difficult decision to make and expressed hope of extending the center to other communities in the near future.
“One thing we have always said from the time we founded this program is we would like to have hubs of learning in different communities.
Not just one communities, but our goal is that we will find houses or homes that we can transform into various hubs of learning in different communities, not to have one large learning center in just one part of Monrovia or Liberia,” she averred.
She explained that the programs is offered free of charge and noted that despite the enormous challenge in running the program, she and her team are committed to the cause .
“Currently there are no fees attached; not that the contribution is that monumental, but simply because it is our first year, and we want people to see the benefit of education.
Because once we spot that initial interest, and they are able to see the benefit of education, we are sure that when we attach a cost to it they would be so interesting, they would have seen the changes in their lives and they would be willing to pay towards it,” Ama noted.
During the launch, students were given studies materials including dozens of copybooks and study lamp (flash lights).
Speaking with FPA, the students extend thanks and appreciation to TOTAL and Rosetta Steps for the initiative and stated that it is impacting them positively. They encouraged their friends to follow their footsteps.
“I want to encourage my friend that they should not be ashamed of learning. If you are old or young, don’t be ashamed. You are not too old to learn. So I want to encourage all my friends out there to take a step like the way we are doing,” urged Jullet Wesseh.
Veronica Kerplah, who sells doughnut and juice in New Kru Town, explaining her ordeal, said she was bullied by her friends when she started attending the program.
“I am very happy for this program because the first time I started coming to school, people used to laugh at me.”
“But I told them that I am not going to school to get office job; I am going to school to learn how to read and write,” Kerplah intoned.
“If I learned to read and write, tomorrow if somebody brings a paper for me at little market, I will not wait for my child to come from school before he reads it for me, or I if I go somewhere and see notice up, I will not ask anyone to read it for me. I will read it myself,” she beamed.
“I thank God for TOTAL and Rosetta Steps because they have enabled me to write and spell my name from start to end. I dropped from school because of my children and I am happy to be in school again, said Tete Jallah.