Ignorance is bliss. The problem of literacy is probably more urgent than ever.
Every person must have a solid foundation in literacy. Someone can only learn effectively if they are able to read, write, and communicate. It helps children understand their environment and their opportunities in life. People who are more literate also have a better perception of the world and how they interact within it.
According to studies, the literacy rate in the Philippines reached 99.27% in 2021. Out of 109,991,095 Filipinos in the same year, 802,935 or 0.73% are still illiterate. There are still a huge number who need assistance from the government. As a Rotaractor, our main goal should be to defeat or maintain the 0.73% illiteracy rate in the country.
Service above self. Rotaractors ought to devote more time to volunteering in the community, especially in one of the seven areas of focus, the Basic Education and Literacy. Creating a project plan that promotes education literacy can be done by offering free program tutorials, donating relevant books, working with the authorities if the beneficiary is a school, or by communicating with the parents of the children if it is a community initiative. By taking this action, a large number of children, including those who don’t attend school, will get an additional education and be able to use the programs indicated above as supplemental resources for their academic journey.
Fellowship through service. Every volunteer felt thrilled to see the children’s smiles as they absorbed everything they were learning. This kind of volunteering activities should not be considered a chore but instead a mission out of heart. Imagine that the children you help read, write and count, will be a successful person someday. It makes us feel the fruit of the seeds we planted are already growing. We can have an impact on them and change their lives. Perhaps they will be able to help others in return for everything we did for them.
Those who are unable to read, write, and count are vulnerable to abuse. They become easy targets of injustice and deceit. Lacking basic literacy skills, they’ll have a hard time knowing, fighting, and defending their rights. Also, opportunities available for them are insufficient to lift the quality of their lives thus they become stuck in poverty. Sometimes, this may result in some of them clutching on the knife’s blade just to get by the day.
Imagine a world where everyone is literate. If everyone has given access to education then, everyone is capable of improving and making valuable impacts to their own lives as well as to their community. The world will be a better place as crime and unemployment rate will be reduced significantly. All these things will remain an imagination if we do not take actions. It all starts with us.
