We have been working hard over the past year making a ton of improvements at Keur Soce Primary School. With 360 students, Keur Soce Primary faces many obstacles including overcrowded classrooms, lack of textbooks, and crumbling infrastructure. Many students are forced to stay home during seasons of the year to work in the family’s fields or take care of siblings. When they do come to school, a poor learning environment and an empty stomach often translate into poor test scores and limited opportunities for the future.
I did not get the chance to go to school, but I believe that it is very important. School permits students to have knowledge and to serve their community. School teaches a child not to waste time, to work, and to be healthy. - Mother Aissatou Ndao
In working with the school and the community, Andando has helped rebuild this crumbling school and bring pride back to those who attend. We rebuilt crumbling walls, restored chalkboards and desks, and provided a small library for each classroom to get books in the hands of students. We established a nutrition program to draw back to school those who often go hungry and dramatically increased parental involvement as mothers got involved to cook the meal.
Previously, the students would be hungry by a certain time and unable to follow the lesson. Today, they are happy; they want to learn. - Teacher Magatte Thiaw Mbaye
So with all these efforts over the past school year, we were incredibly excited to see the change this caused – a 50% increase in test scores from previous years!!! We knew that there would be some kind of noticeable change, but this dramatic improvement is fantastic! The community, the school, and the parents were very happy with the students’ performance this year and are excited for the future. We are very proud of the students and excited to continue this partnership and hope to gain even more ground in the future.
The school looks after the good fortune of the child. School helps me to work and to succeed to help my parents. - Student Ibrahima Diagne
The Ministry of Education in Senegal has taken notice of these improvements and is very pleased with the progress at the school. Because of improvements in the facilities - coupled with increased test scores - Keur Soce Primary recently received three computers and a projector for students and faculty to use! In this rural corner of Senegal where even textbooks are hard to come by, this is a huge boost to the learning possibilities for the students. For these students, having access to technology was never even a dream. Now, they can learn new skills that can translate into real, applicable competencies for the rest of their lives.
Great things are happening in Keur Soce and we are happy to be a part of it