The Importance of Educating Girls

Here in America we expect that girls of all ages will have equal access to education, but this isn’t the case for the rest of the world. For millions of girls education is just out of reach. Instead girls get dragged into doing housework, early marriage, child labor, and experience extreme violence. Others have noticed this and are trying to change education to be more gender equal in schools.

Girls are an important and vital part of society; if they are under-educated it impacts them not only as individuals and mothers, but it also impacts other woman, and the greater community. To provide girls with an education equal to boys will ensure their worth in society and prevent them from being subjected to sexual violence, child abuse, and malnourishment.  Establishing education equality for girls will also help fight poverty, lower rates of sexually transmitted diseases and aid in the general health development of girls.

Luckily progress has been made. “In 2000, then United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan issued this challenge: How can the nations of the world work together to stop the gender inequality around education?” The United Nations partnered with UNICEF and other organizations to form the United Nations Girls’ Education Intuitive (UNGEI). Their mission- to ensure equal education for girls all around the world by 2015.

 

At the start of the UNGEI campaign more than 10 years ago, 110 million children were not in primary school. Two thirds of these children were girls. Now, ten years later, the number of children not enrolled in schools has dropped to 72 million children, with girls making up half of that. According to the article, What Does It Take to Educate a Girl? (and Why Does It Matter?), “work remains to be done, but it's a dramatic difference which spotlights the achievable goal made possible with the dedication and work of volunteers, activities, local governments, and of course, the girls themselves.”

The United Nations is taking the necessary steps to fight the battle for girls and their education. At Girls’ LEAP we fight the battle for girls to value their bodies, emotions, and beliefs as well. Our physical skills and reflective curriculum are designed to make girls feel powerful and to educate them about how to effectively control their anger and keep themselves safe through their choices and actions. I am interested in education for young woman and believe in order for girls to reach their full potential they need to be educated on how to do so. I began my college career set on teaching but soon switched to social work. I have always enjoyed seeing children learn and think what the United Nations is doing is a step in the right direction.