Building a future

Teem (18), is the son of Iotia and Nei Teaau. He was a student at ChildFund Kiribati’s Building Block program in 2021. He is so grateful that the program gave him a chance to learn writing, reading, maths, and most importantly, English.

Teem was nine when he left school, when he was in class 4 in primary level. He missed two years of school because of sickness.

After two years his parents sent him back to school to continue his education. Even though his parents sent him back to school, Teem didn’t understood everything in school, which led to boredom, and he decided to quit.

“I always left school early because I do not understand what the teacher explains in class and my teacher is very strict and always punishes me because I always leave school early, this got me scared and I never wanted to do back to school again,” says Teem.

Teem had been out of school for almost eight years. When he heard about the Building Block program which was designed for students who need help in literacy, basic maths and English. He did not hesitate and quickly registered his name at ChildFund Kiribati. A year later he was joining the program and he was grateful, but at the same time scared about the things he would learn, as he knew that he no longer had the confidence in his maths and his writing and reading skills in Kiribati and English.

“It was so hard to do this, especially writing and reading for I have not been writing and read anything for almost eight years.”

Teem always tried his very best to encounter his fears in learning. His Building Block teacher was very good to him as she prioritized him if he did not understand what they learnt in class.

Since Teem left school early, he became naughty and most people in his community never really cared for him. Straight after he joined the program, he saw the changes in his community as people noticed him, smiled at him, and often talked to him. This happened because they were proud and supported him in what he was doing.

Teem was grateful for this program as it gave him back his confidence in maths and especially on how to read and write in Kiribati and English.

UPDATE 2023

In 2022 Teem joined Kiribati Institute of Technology’s Program Bridging program and now he is studying Certificate I in English course at KIT. He plans to continue to Certificate II in English course and his dream is to become a teacher.

“Joining the Building Block program has given me the opportunity to learn new things, particularly how to speak and read English, and through engaging with my classmates, it has improved my social skills. I once thought that I would never comprehend English and mathematics at this age, but I’m grateful for this wonderful opportunity that has given me another chance to study,” says Teem.

Teems wants to encourage his friends and family members who did not finish their education to follow in his footsteps and register at ChildFund Kiribati so they can further their education in the future.

Building Blocks

Young people can thrive when they have at least a basic understanding of reading, writing and maths. ChildFund Kiribati runs a Building Blocks programme to help out-of-school youth to build skills in these areas, so they can continue into the formal education system and have a brighter future.

If you want to know more about the Building Block program, please contact ChildFund Kiribati office #: 73088603 or email: info@childfund.org.ki