Students learn to help others
Youth get lesson in altruism by raising funds to build school in China
Myles Dolphin
Northern News Services
Published Monday, April 21 2014
KIMMIRUT/LAKE HARBOUR
A small group of students in Kimmirut have taken it upon themselves to lend a hand to people in rural China, more than 9,000 km away.
Sixteen Grade 5 to 6 students and their teacher, Alison Vipond, have ambitiously pledged to raise the $10,000 it will take to build their distant counterparts a new school.
The fundraising is part of a leadership program with Free the Children, an international charity that helps youth around the world achieve their fullest potential.
Vipond, whose daughter travelled to Kenya to oversee the building of a school there, wanted her students to feel a greater responsibility for social justice.
"The leadership program has demonstrated that participants have a clear understanding of what they want to do in the world," she said.
"The students feel empowered to take action when they see something that isn't as it should be - such as child labour. We also talk about social global issues, such as Malala Yousafzai speaking up in favour of women having education."
Since the fundraising activities at Qaqqalik School began last November, the class has raised $1,000 for the project.
Students have kept busy organizing bake sales, making everything from smoothies to muffins to cupcakes.
Vipond said her students are acquiring valuable life skills in the process.
"It's useful for the children to organize the event and do all the work. Not only are they learning social justice but also math, writing and leadership skills, marketing, cooking, and independence in the kitchen. I think it's very valuable for the youth in Nunavut to be involved in such a project because it's empowering to know you can help others, people who have less than you. You can make a difference in someone's life even if you have problems in your own life."
On April 17, the classroom took part in another Free the Children annual event. They took a vow of silence for the entire morning in order to raise awareness of the approximately 200 million child labourers in the world.
The students came to school at 8:30 and worked in total silence until lunchtime, Vipond said.
Enoosie Allen, a 10-year-old student in the class, said he had initial concerns about the project because it's a large amount of money to raise.
"I thought it was going to be hard," he said. "But it turned out to be easier than I thought."
Even though the fundraising might take a long time to complete, the students are enthusiastic about the project and want to see it through.
"We have this goal to build a school," Vipond said.
"It might take a few years but we're well on our way!"
- with files from Miranda Scotland
