Street School: The Gift of Education

Education is everyone's right. This is what our religion teaches us and this is what the world has come to realize. It is a tool of empowerment which if employed wisely enables individual freedom and development. Sadly, in Pakistan many are deprived of this basic right, mostly because of poverty but also because of other various social reasons. This has led to more poverty and has widened the economic gap between Pakistanis. Hence a very common sight is of people spending thousands on food and clothes right next to the people who do not have sufficient food for the next meal or enough to clothe themselves. Therefore, the school of Shireen and and Hasan Zafar for street children in Karachi deserves all the praise.

This makeshift school was started at the beginning of 2016. The motivation came from Shireen, the younger of the two siblings. While observing children begging on the traffic signals one day, the then 12-year old got to thinking of a way to bring education to those who cannot afford to go to school. She discussed it with her 15-year old brother who agreed with her. The idea was to educate and motivate the street children to go to school. What started as a small awareness session quickly turned into a regular class of 25. Soon the duo were running a classroom six days a week after their school hours. They setup tables and chairs near Café Clifton for this purpose where they would teach children basics like alphabets and counting from 4 pm to 6 pm. Their students were children who would otherwise be found begging or selling flowers / tissues in the street.

The humble beginnings of the street school by the siblings Shireen and Hassan (source).

It was not easy to convince the kids in the start as many of these were a source of economic support for their family. Pressure from the families would result in regular absentees. To solve this the duo started meeting the parents to make them realize the importance of allowing the children to go to school. For motivation Hassan and Shireen paid each student Rs20 after every class to help in their financial needs.

Children having an exam.

Now after more than a year the brother and sister duo are running two street schools educating about a hundred children. More teachers have joined their cause now. The school is arranged in three levels from playgroup till class one and they also have an exercise class on Friday. The curriculum being followed is the same which the siblings study in their private school. There have even been some examples of kids leaving their previous institutions and shifting to the siblings' school because of its higher quality of education. A pick and drop service has also been arranged.

Among the regular students of these schools are sons and daughters of maids and laborers, people who in normal circumstances could not afford such an education. They are now proud parents with hopes of a better future for their families because of the extraordinary initiative of Shireen and Hassan.

The founders standing proudly with their happy students.