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US and Afghan Pen-pals

Learning Partners Peace Education Exchange 
 
As part of the AP’s outreach program with the Omid Learning Center in Afghanistan, AP has developed an innovative “pen pal” exchange between 20 Afghan students in the Omid schools and 20 students in Squannacook Elementary School, in Townsend, Massachusetts. To accomplish this exchange, AP has partnered with a group of New Hampshire-based educational consultants: LOFT (Learning One Frame at a Time).

The AP-LOFT partnership recognizes that there are many things lacking in standard American education, among them cultural diversity, global awareness, student “voice” and trust. The Learning Partners Peace Education Exchange grew out of our shared interest in bringing these elements into US schools while raising awareness of the issue of Afghan girls’ education. The program also hopes to encourage the Afghan students to write and attend classes.

Girls’ education is one of the key priorities for rebuilding Afghanistan. As is now well known, an entire generation of girls grew up without an education during the Taliban rule. According to some estimates, only one percent of Afghan women could read or write when the Taliban rule ended. The demand for education is now high among Afghan parents and children, who realize that education offers a way out of poverty for them and their country.

In 2003, after many years as refugee in Pakistan, a young woman returned home to Afghanistan. Recognizing the dire need for education, Sadiqa Basiri put up her own money to pay for the schooling of 30 girls from her home village of Godah. A private donor read about her work on the AP website, and provided a generous grant to support the school.

After just two years, Omid—which means “hope” in Pashto—is supporting 1,200 girl students in four schools. The girls are succeeding admirably, despite having to walk long distances to schools and attend classes in extreme temperatures. There are several key indicators that remain to be met in the months ahead, among them improved exam results, decreased absenteeism, and higher retention rates. 

The Learning Partners Peace Education Exchange has several goals. It hopes to give the girls in Noor Khel and Godah—two remote villages in Southeast Afghanistan—an incentive to remain in school and also to write. In the United States, the exchange provides the American students with insights into a different culture and encourages their creativity, openness and compassion.

The timeline below tracks the evolution of the Learning Partners program, from Ms. Basiri’s return to Afghanistan in 2002 to the recent “Night of Peace” put on by the American students in her honor. Click on the links to read excerpts from student poems and letters, view their photos, and read comments on the Learning Partners program from parents and friends.

December 2002 A small revolution occurs in Godah when Sadiqa Basiri, a young woman who has just returned from Pakistan, persuades her father, a much respected elder, to help her start a program to educate girls. 40 girls enroll. Read more about the story of Omid.

January - June 2003 Mary Moore, an AP consultant, goes to Afghanistan to work with the Afghan Women’s Network.  Ms. Moore’s reports on her experience, published on the AP website, attract a generous donor who offers to fund an education project in Afghanistan. Read Ms. Moore's reports.

Fall 2003 - Fall 2004 Ms. Basiri secures a 3-year grant for what is to become the Omid Learning Center, working with her father to gather support from the communities for new schools. Read more about Ms. Basiri's field updates on the AP website.  In 2004, AP intern Ginny Barahona worked with Ms. Basiri at Omid and published blogs about her her experiences.

	Summer 2005 AP approaches the LOFT foundation, a group of New England-based educational consultants, about developing a pen-pal program between American and Afghan students. Meanwhile, AP intern Shirin Sahani goes to Afghanistan to work with Ms. Basiri and the Omid schools.
	Summer 2005 AP approaches the LOFT foundation, a group of New England-based educational consultants, about developing a pen-pal program between American and Afghan students. Meanwhile, AP intern Shirin Sahani goes to Afghanistan to work with Ms. Basiri and the Omid schools.
	October 2005 AP director Iain Guest arrives at the Noor Khel school in Afghanistan with letters, photos, and artwork from the American students, as well as 20 disposable cameras. The students of Noor Khel write their responses, learn to use the cameras, and take pictures to share with their learning partners.  Read his diaries here.
	December 2005 Students and parents at Squannacook Elementary School come together to organize “A Night of Peace.” Students read peace poems and parents share homemade Afghan dishes. Sadiqa Basiri and an Afghan diplomat speak. Iain Guest shows a video. Most importantly, the students receive the photos and translated letters from their pen-pals.

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