BRAC is a development organization founded by Fazle Hasan Abed in February 1972, soon after the liberation of Bangladesh, has acted as both the initiator and catalyst for many such innovations and change. They focus on issues such as poverty, education, economic development, human rights and agriculture. Today, BRAC is the largest southern NGO and employs more than 100,000 people, the majority of which are women, and reaches more than 110 million people with our development interventions in Asia and Africa.
They report on their website the tremendous strides they have taken to have a 92% enrollment rate for primary education in Bangladesh. BRAC has opened 22 one classroom schools in Bangladesh for primary education. The primary aim for these schools was to develop a school model for poor, rural children which focuses on basic reading, writing, numeracy and especially life skills.
BRAC made simple changes to accommodate the special needs of Bangladesh children:
- Children are in the same cohort for a four year term
- One teacher classroom
- Flexible school times (according to the needs of the children)
- No fees
- No homework
- No long holidays
- Specialized course subjects (Bangla, English, Math)
These small changes and accommodations, made by the BRAC schools, have resulted positively for the Bangladesh children. There is a higher success of graduation and completion of primary school and a smoother transition into further education. Children living in underprivileged regions of the world are different from the average Canadian or American child. They have different needs, different wants, and different expectations. BRAC truly understands this and has has incorporated this into their schooling model.
