Providing Appropriate Learning Environment

The quality school buildings can help create an appropriate environment for both learning and teaching. Based on studies, the well-designed school buildings and pleasant surroundings can lead to students’ better attendance, concentration, motivation and self-esteem which have a positive impact on their daily performances. Indeed, the physical and emotional health of students and teachers depend on the quality of location where they learn and teach. A proper school building boosts students’ confidence and helps them how to work together as a team, which is a primary principle of any successful society. Without school buildings, knowledge would not spread and transferred quickly as required, and our access to better knowledge could easily be affected.

This is why the Government of Afghanistan has launched the Education Quality Reform in Afghanistan (EQRA) Project under the Citizens’ Charter National Priority Project of the Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development (MRRD/CCNPP) to increase equitable access to primary and secondary education and improve learning conditions in the schools across Afghanistan. Kuhna Qala village, Khanchaharbagh district of Faryab province is among many Afghan communities where hundreds of students have recently had access to a much-needed primary school.

Said Miss Barakat, the School Teacher: “In the past, only four teachers taught 211 students in an old building comprised of three classrooms inside the community. Most of the parents didn’t dare to send their children to school because the classrooms didn’t have windows, chairs, blackboards, desks and enough teachers. The classrooms were too cramped and dark that the students could hardly learn. In addition, the classes would usually remain closed during rainy days because the ceilings were leaking.”

“Thanks to Citizens’ Charter - the number of students increased to 450 once this six-classroom school building has been constructed in our community. Now, the students are taught by 11 teachers in concrete classrooms which are equipped with necessary facilities such as chairs, desks, fans, chalkboards and doors. In comparison with past, the capacity of our students has enhanced further because they are learning in spacious and light classrooms. Taking the design of the school building into consideration, we are no longer concerned about the seasonal changes which would usually disrupt our classes over the past years”, added Miss Barakt.

Constructed at a sum of AFN 3,973,870 funded by the EQRA Project under the MRRD/CCNPP, the school project encompassing six classrooms, three toilets and one office commenced on 3rd of March and completed on 6th of August 2019 successfully.