Back to School

Today was „Back to School“ in the areas affected by typhoon Haiyan. UNICEF and its local partners set themselves the goal of welcoming more than 500,000 children back to learning over the course of the month. An ambitious target, given the still widespread devastation.

As usual, there is also a sufficient number of critics: “School? Don’t these people have other problems?” But if you witness the enthusiasm which the children – and the teachers – display in the mostly makeshift classrooms and school tents to get “back to learning”, you quickly understand how important it is for the children to get back this sense of normalcy. Here they are safe, here they can meet friends, here they can find some kind of routine.

The story that mostly touched me was the one of Rhammie and his mother Athena, who I met at Kapangian School in the center of Tacloban. It is Rhammie’s first day here – at his new school. The family used to live in San Jose, but their house got completely destroyed, and his grandfather and uncle both did not survive the storm. Until today, his mother tells me, he and his siblings tend to panic when there is strong wind or rising waters.

The family therefore decided to move to the city. They hope that it also helps that the children don’t have the loss in front of them every day – the material loss, and the loss of family members.

This is why Rhammie is now going to Kapangian School: “I hope that I will find new friends soon”, he tells me.

It must be thousands of other children that are in the same situation as him. Of the 2,200 that attended Kapangian Central School before the disaster, today a bit over 1,000 showed up. Sadly, a quite large number of children of Kapangian School died from the storm and the surge. Kapangian School itself was flooded up to the second floor. The majority of children however seems to have been forced to move, often now living with other family members and relatives. Another reason why it is so important for children that school starts again and they can find new friends and a sense of normalcy and distraction.

Until today, numerous families are still living in Kapangian School, which was also used as an Evacuation Center, accommodating over 600 people at peak times. As a consequence, up to three classes have to share one room. There were more than 100 pupils in her classroom this morning, tells me April Rose, a 12-year old girl. And still she is happy that she can finally go to school again.

In case your children are complaining over the next days that they have to go back to school, why not tell them about Rhammie and April Rose.
 

Rhammie (9) and his mother Athena

April Rose (12)