Teach Young Afghan Women to Teach Afghan Girls

Thanks to your generosity, young women from rural northern Afghanistan continue to be transported safely to our Teacher Training Center. The women attend teacher training classes six days a week and look forward to educating students from their villages after their completion of the two-year-long cycle.

We wanted to share with you the impact you are making:

“It is my second and last year studying at TTC. The TTC classes, supplemental English classes, and computer classes are great tools provided here at Dawlat-Abad. I tutor high school boys and girls in 8th, 9th, 11th grades at home. Our computer classes instructor at TTC has taught us MS Excel and MS Power Point programs. This prepares us with cutting edge technology and makes us better candidates as we try to find jobs.” - Anahita

Most of Afghanistan’s schools, including government schools, are segregated by gender, with boys and girls studying separately, and virtually all studies from class ten on are separated by gender. (Ministry of Education report, p. 425) Many parents refuse to let girls attend school starting around the age of 10 unless taught by a female teachers. The availability of female teachers is, on average, 33% nationwide, with great variation between rural and urban areas. According to the Education Sector Plan for Afghanistan, “there are no female teachers in almost 80 out of 364 districts."

Your support in providing opportunities for Afghan girls to receive teacher training is vital to changing these statistics. On behalf of the next generation of female Afghan teachers, thank you for your investment in Afghan girls! 

Because of your support and generosity, young women from rural northern Afghanistan continue to be transported safely to our Teacher Training Center. The women attend teacher training classes six days a week and look forward to educating students from their villages after their completion of the two-year-long cycle.

This year the teacher training program continues to be a huge need in the rural area where it is located. The students and the community continue to beg us to continue this program as it is the only option they have for continuing education beyond high school. We continue to try and provide additional training to make the overall program more robust. Each trip to the Teacher Training Center requires approximately 2 hours one-way. This level of commitment results in a sense of accomplishment and excitement as newly minted teachers enter their own classrooms.

“My father told me it was too dangerous and too far to go to Teacher Training. I graduated high school in my village and wanted to become a teacher. My family is very poor. If I can become a teacher, I will help them. I see what happens to the girls who stop going to school. They are married so early. With the transportation program, I can go to the TTC center every week."   

This project will dramatically improve the long-term economic and social opportunities for these women. Training women to become teachers fosters their independence and raises their status, encouraging civic participation. This year 111 women have completed training. When these women attain teaching positions, they will be empowered by their income and ability to manage their budgets and make their own financial decisions.

The Asia Foundation conducted a public opinion poll in 2014 of Afghan citizens and when asked about the most pressing problems facing women today, Afghans consistently identified education and illiteracy, a lack of job opportunities for women among the top concerns.

You have not only invested in these women’s independence, but also in the education of thousands of girls who are denied the opportunity to learn because there are no women to teach them. Many families do not allow their daughters to go to school if there are no female instructors, particularly in rural areas where conservative attitudes are deeply rooted. These future teachers, who you have helped transport to our teacher training center, will impact an estimated 4,500 students a year upon graduation.

Your dollars impacted the lives of thousands of girls. We thank you for your support in helping us end the cycle of female illiteracy and in creating more opportunities to learn in rural Afghanistan. One female teacher has the power to change the future of girls’ education.