Organizing workshops of project reflection and transition implementation responsibilities to relevant partners is continued to maintain the sustainability of project activities to help improve the children education in Cambodia. The Easy To Learn project or called E2L, which has been implemented by KAPE since July 2021, has improved the eleven target schools in Kampong Trabaek district, Prey Veng province, in terms of community attitudes and local authorities. E2L has helped change the teaching habits of teachers, director’s school management styles, librarians, infrastructure, learning and teaching materials, classroom arrangements, helping children with disabilities, girl counseling, scholarship programs, life skills programs, fundraising, for school development, collaboration between the school management committee (SMC) and parents, especially the project, provided capacity training to all target groups.

 

“Time is more expensive than money because we will not be able to get time back. But we can make money after we spend at all. We cannot forget ChildFund Cambodia and KAPE who have spent their time for threes in helping eleven target schools to be developed faster than the other schools,” said Mr. Ven Pronei, the Deputy Director of the Provincial Office of Education, Youth and Sports of Prey Veng.

 

Improved access and retention of eligible primary school-aged girls and boys with and without a disability in target primary schools​​ is to help schools map, conduct enrolment campaign, identify school-age and vulnerable children who need economical and disable support, provide community-based education services to children in school catchment villages during the Covid-19 epidemic.  Improved school environments and teaching and learning in accordance with Child-Friendly School policy in target schools are enhancing classroom learning environments and providing teaching and learning materials. It is also to improve the reading habits through libraries where are flexible learning places including ICT training courses, strengthening the school system to solve learning loss and regular evaluation tests. Strengthening school leadership and management to ensure accountability, ownership and gender responsiveness, especially strengthening the capacity of school management committees to create school improvement plans.

 

“After having been implementing the Easy to Learn project for three years at eleven target schools in Kampong Trabek district, we are proud that we have started to work together since the first until this third year. Particularly, we have worked with all the teachers and long year-experienced persons in Kampong Trabaek district. We see it as a tremendous achievement that we are pleased after implementation done by participation and support of all. I strongly urge that we should all work together as hosts to raise funds from various sources to continue the Easy to Learn project activities when ChildFund Cambodia ends its financial support from July 2023 and on,” said Mr. Sao Vanna, the KAPE Executive Director.

 

All of the above mentioned, there are required to host a workshop to inform and share the project impacts, investments, best practices, achievements, lessons learnt, and challenges of the project to stakeholders such as the Provincial Office of Education, Youth and Sports (PoE), District Office of Education, Youth and Sport (DoE), student councils, school management committees, School Directors, teachers, vice-school directors, literacy coaches, commune councils and community representatives. In addition, the workshop gathered input from the participants who still need additional support to ensure sustainability for the implementation of KAPE's strategic plan after the project is completed.

 

“After partnering with KAPE, we transfer the E2L project with many achievements to KAPE, District Office of Education, Youth and Sport, Provincial Office of Education to continue improving the quality and education through E2L and replicate successful achievements from target schools to expand to other schools. This is why we call today's workshops on project transition to schools, provincial office and local communities. On behalf of an international organization, ChildFund Cambodia does not intend to stay in one place for long or not change its target areas," said Mr. Prasan Verma, the Country Director of ChildFund Cambodia.

 

Mr. So Sovanna, the Director of District Office of Education, Youth and Sport of Kampong Trabek, said, “I would like to express my sincere gratitude and appreciation to ChildFund Cambodia as well as KAPE for choosing Kampong Trabaek district as their partners to develop the schools into model schools in the future. In Kampong Trabaek district, there are 4 upper secondary schools, 15 lower secondary schools, 58 primary schools including 1 Khmer Islamic primary school, 46 public preschools, 4 separate preschools and 46 community preschools. From June 2020 until June 2023, the Easy to Learn (E2L) Project has helped construct school buildings, libraries and library materials, Tablets, Smart TVs, LCD computer cabinets, Toilets, water tanks, alcohol wash basins, alcohol dispensers, urinals for boys and other materials. KAPE has helped train our teachers how to produce teaching materials, improve the school environment, train school directors, school management committees on soft and hard skills monthly and technical training, etc."

 

All participants as well as representatives of the student councils from eleven target schools participated in working group to discuss the challenges, past experiences, compile brainstorms to plan activities and proposed implementation plans after E2L would be ended in June 2023.

 

“The E2L project has helped my school grow in many ways including supporting vulnerable children and children with disabilities, training early literacy teachers, decorating classrooms and preparing school environments, quality environment of learning, children protections, children's health, and children, parent and community involvements, capacity building for school management committee (SMC) and teacher and school director trainings. My school is committed to better conserve all achievements left from the project. All staff at Thmat Kang Primary School will apply the knowledge, skills and good experiences provided by the project to the students, parents and the community,” said Mrs. Bun Saran, the Director of Thmart Kang primary school.

 

The one-and-a-half-day transition workshop showed that the Easy to Learn project has really helped the 11 target schools, especially to reduce the expenditure burden of the District Office of Education, Youth and Sport in leading and developing its local schools.

 

This workshop was held at Kampong Trabaek district hall in Prey Veng province in May 2023, with approximately 75 participants, including the school directors, teachers, school management committees, teachers, librarians, student councils, district authorities, directors of Provincial/District Offices of Education, Youth and Sport, school director, KAPE’s and ChildFund Cambodia representatives, commune councils and vice-governor of Kampong Trabaek district.

 

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