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Grant Lovellette - Page 3 |
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The cramped room in which all classes
were held from 1999 until January 2004. In 1999, a missionary established
an education program to teach the Roma children basic reading, writing,
and arithmetic skills, along with educating them about the Bible.
There is a public school in Szürte, but they do not attend
it. In the past, when Roma children have tried to go to the regular
school in Szürte, they have been ridiculed and harassed by
their fellow students and ignored by their teachers. The Roma children
would rather go to a separate school than go to the regular school,
and their parents are much more willing to send them to a Roma school
than the regular school. The Roma parents are also convinced that
their children will receive a better education at a Roma school
than at the regular school. The regular school is also a 30-minute
walk from where the Roma live. Another problem with trying to integrate
the Roma children into the regular school is that the children have
been separated from the regular school system for so long that it
would be impossible to have the children enter their respective
grade levels in the school; they would be, for the most part, far
behind their counterparts in what they should have learned by now.
Though the missionary’s education program can definitely be
counted as progress, teaching so many children in such a cramped,
limited space was a difficult task, both for us educators and the
children. |
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One of the central aspects of the mission to the
Roma in Szürte is the construction of a new community center
in the Roma camp. This is a photo of the building before it was
fully finished (the building was completed in October 2004). In
addition to these new church-constructed facilities, the government
has promised government-certified teachers who will teach the government
curriculum, meaning that the Roma children, after they finish this
school, will be able to go on to further study if they so choose.
The curriculum, coupled with the intensive afternoon help (unavailable
at the regular school), will help the Roma children catch up in
those areas where they are currently trailing their counterparts
in the regular school. |
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Perhaps the biggest long-term risk of the Roma
school is that it could institutionalize the segregation of the
Roma community from the majority community. Although the church
recognizes this as a danger, the church believes that the foundation
of the school is a crucial step toward elevating the socioeconomic
position of the Roma in Szürte, integrating the Roma community
into the majority society, and wearing down the walls of intolerance,
distrust, discrimination, and injustice. |
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Here we have Arthur at the chalkboard,
practicing writing his letters. This photo shows the learning materials
available to the Roma children right now: a chalkboard, a map, an
electronic keyboard (used more for worship than for education),
posters with letters and numbers, and a few books. If his clothes
look familiar, that is no coincidence; most of this community’s
clothes come from Dutch charitable contributions. |
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