A lot of stress for the Red Rose 8th graders last week...
Like any 8th graders of the country, Amati had a very intense week. Four full days of exam...the KPCE (Kenya Certificate of Primary Education). Her grade will determine which Secondary School will accept her next year. The closer mark she gets to 500, the better is her chance to go to a boarding National School and thus the best chance for her to find a sponsor to pay for her High School education.
Amati lives in Kibera in a house made of mud and sticks with a corrugated tin roof. She had been preparing for the KPCE exam for months now with the help of the teachers at Red Rose School. She stayed at school longer hours to study all the subjects and even move 4 months ago to the Red Rose Safe House, away from her family, to study in silence after school. Doing your homework at Kibera can a big challenge! Music from the neighbors is blasted until late at night, no electricity means buying expensive and scarce candle, rains wash away houses, heavy house chores is the first daily routine when children come back from school. So Amati was so happy when she heard that Red Rose Safe house will offer a safe and quiet place for the 8th graders girls.
From the moment they are born, kids in Kibera learn resilience. And this helps them when KPCE time arrives.
Students enrolled in Kenyan primary school system take the same national exams regardless of the environment or challenges in which the students learn and grow up. Studies have shown that some children coming from the slum areas and living in impoverished environments manage to do well just like children from the urban area.
You can help Amati and her peers at the Red Rose School to pursue their High School Education by donating $60 per month or make a single donation to buy books or portable solar lamps. Go to www.project-kenya/Donate
