Public schools in manila are notorious for:
1. Having at least a 50:1 student-teacher ratio.
2. Having classes that don't really learn much even if there are diligent students because of the bad environment caused by some rowdy and unruly classmates.
3. Having performance incentive schemes for teachers which encourage corruption and manipulation of grades by the ranks.
We partnered with a barangay (smallest unit of political organisation for each geographical area within a city) to have some willing-to-learn public school students study with us on a daily basis after class to study more math and english. Right now we have 10 children consistently participating. Grade 7 students finally get to learn their basic english grammar and vocabulary and arithmetic skills properly and the younger students start by mastering their word reading and spelling skills as well as their multiplication tables and other basic math lessons. These are lessons they should have mastered in their previous years in school but have not, so that's where we start our supplemental lessons.
Families with means prefer to bring their children to private schools because private schools provide better education compared to public schools which are free but are known to be ineffective. Our long term goal is to propel these students to finish their schooling with ease due to having the right foundations (something very few students get to have) and maybe to even help some of them to get scholarships with private high schools and colleges. Private beats public in the Philippines and they are actually generous in giving scholarships based on both financial aid and academic merit.
We spend around US$5 for each hour of teaching them (allowance for teachers, photocopied materials, school supplies, and utilities). We look forward to taking in more students and reaching out and forming partnerships with other barangays. We hope you can help educate the diligent but underprivileged children of the Philippines. Thank you!
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