The film, “Girl Rising,” opens with Sokha, a Cambodian girl in a golden costume, dancing in slow motion. Suddenly, the camera shifts to her life before she was given the chance to get an education—Sokha’s previous life picking trash. How did she get from the dump to dance?
This course will focus on four themes directly related to the education of girls worldwide: (1) access and equity, (2) public health, (3) education in emergencies, and (4) empowerment. We will examine (a) research: the data around the education of girls, as well as analyses, images, and stories; (b) relationship: how new learning about girls’ education relates to our practice; and (c) results: the capacity to make a measurable difference in and for our classrooms, our communities, and the world.
Educated girls are 50 percent more likely to immunize their children in the future. With an additional year of education, a girl can earn up to 20 percent more as an adult. A child born to a literate mother is 50 percent more likely to survive past the age of five. This course focuses on the continued education of teachers as multipliers of change, as well as the chance to get involved. "Educating Girls" connects scholarship, classroom practice, and service.
