Education Afghanistan Project #59122

Help Home-Based IT & Coding Class for Afghan Girls

A microproject by Sahar Education

Project Report | Jul 3, 2023
Underground TechSheroes Moves to Permanent Status

By Allie Renar | Operations & Finance Manager

Thanks to your support, Underground TechSheroes has been classified as an ongoing program with Sahar Education! The pilot has been immensely successful with students in 3 home-based classrooms learning computer skills, coding, and women's empowerment!

The IT and coding project, now dubbed Underground TechSheroes, consists of one round of coding classes and two rounds of computer and IT classes. The girls and women in this program regularly participate in women’s empowerment programs. By the end of June, the first round of IT classes was complete! Our partners are now recruiting new students for the second round!

Student’s progress:

Students actively participated in classes in IT, Coding, and Women Empowerment. The students in this inaugural round proved they would let nothing stop them from learning their rights! They are standing up for their rights and taking responsibility for their country, inspiring their teachers and those of us at Sahar!

The outcomes of the programs:

The IT and computer students learned the MS Excel program. The lessons were theoretical, and they also had computers to learn. This IT class teaches students to learn a skill such as how to make attendance sheets and other important parts of MS Excel. These skills can help them advance into online learning courses, start their own home-based schools, or be prepared to enter the coding course through Sahar.

In the first round of coding, students learned CSS. This is the coding language used to style an HTML document. CSS describes how HTML elements will be displayed on the screen, paper, or other media. The students have done unique projects such as Navigation bars, Table design, div rounded borders, webpages with transparent image backgrounds, and more.

“The subjects that I am learning from this course are motivating me. This computer course is why I start to become hopeful and work toward my dream of becoming a doctor. After joining this course, I feel stronger and more confident about my future. I used to use the computer only for playing games. Still, now I learn the computer has other uses that help me to find a job and improves my skill now I know how to use computer settings, use Microsoft Word and Excel programs and create documents, design table charts, etc.”

Women Empowerment program

One of the key changes needed in Afghanistan is to have women’s leadership, and this program empowers and inspires women to stand up for themselves and others, especially those who lost hope over the course of the last two years. In this course, students learn about gender stereotypes, conflict resolution, early marriage prevention, Islam's saying rules against forced marriage, and leadership and equality. In the last three months, we have noticed changes in girls’ attitudes toward women's rights and society.

They are learning that women's right is a human right. Women and girls know that they can make decisions and realize they can do the same work as men to support the family. Women can be leaders. And the students now know that misbehavior against them is violence, and discrimination should not occur.

“Before this course, I felt weak when I was at home. I asked myself why we cannot go to school and study. Since this course started, especially the women’s empowerment program, the feeling of being weak has been removed from me, and my attitude has strengthened. I feel that I am strong. Now I know about my rights. Also, I earned computer programs that are useful for me. Now I can do my homework on the computer.”

Home-based IT & Coding Class is continuing with Sahar for a second round and we expect to open this course up to even more women and girls as we proceed! Thank you for your support!

Join Sahar Education on July 10th for a virtual info session!

Hear Executive Director, Meetra Alokozay relate the mission of Sahar and how it’s even more important due to the gender apartheid in Afghanistan. Learn about our current programs from Program Manager, Shogofa Amini. And, listen to a program graduate relate how important education has been for her success!

Thank you again for your support of this program, please take a look at the current project page for more information!

Links:

Permalink

Jun 12, 2023
Underground IT & Coding Update June 2023

By Allie Renar | Operations & Finance Manager

Girls Gather in Teachers' Homes to Learn Coding

Dear Friends of Sahar,

Sahar continues to change the lives of Afghan girls with your support. You can read our June 2023 Newsletter for more details.

Program Updates Home-Based IT & Coding Courses

We continue to offer 3 satellite programs in the homes of local teachers. These programs serve over 100 girls who are learning computer literacy and coding skills which will serve them to further their own education or employment ambitions after completion of the course. The girls in these courses are ever grateful for the opportunity to learn thanks to your generosity.

One Student reported the impact this course has had on her mental health:

"I suffered from depression before joining this course because Afghan girls were banned from schools, courses, and universities. When I was at home, I just slept and watched TV series, which was not useful. I didn't talk to anyone about my life, and I was a recluse. That is, after school was closed, I had all the symptoms of depression. After joining this course, my mental state has improved. And I have hope for the future. I learned a lot from this course. And my interest in computers and computer programs has increased. I want to study computer science in the future.”

The Taliban Continues to Strip the Rights of Girls and Women

A May 26th article by Aljazeera recounted the struggles of women in Afghanistan since the Taliban took over.

"What is happening in Afghanistan is “a war against women” that amounts to “international crimes” that are “organized, widespread, systematic”, said Agnes Callamard, Amnesty’s secretary general.

Without elaborating, she called for the international community to dismantle “this system of gender oppression and persecution”.

Despite initial promises of a more moderate rule, the Taliban started to enforce restrictions on women and girls soon after their takeover, barring them from public spaces and most jobs, and banning education for girls beyond the sixth grade."

Sahar Continues to Educate Girls in Afghanistan Despite the Crackdown

Sahar is committed to partnerships with grassroots organizations on the ground, working to bring educational opportunities to girls in their communities. We believe that education, particularly for women and youth, is the key to bringing about fundamental change in a country. None of this would be possible without our dedicated local partners, who are highly motivated to effect change and educate women regardless of personal risk.

Underground IT & Coding Courses

These courses are between 3 and 6 months in length and are provided for groups of girls and women aged 14-25 years in the region of Balkh, Afghanistan. More than 100 girls participate in group study with class sizes between 10 and 20 girls in each location. This opportunity is a lifeline for many girls, giving them hope for a brighter future.

The girls in these courses have been learning computer basics, MS Office, and website building along with our integrated Women's Empowerment curriculum. Once progressing from the IT course, students learn front and backend web design. Programs are currently running from April to September.

July Bonus Day

This July 12th offers a great opportunity for our supporters to contribute through a matching program with GlobalGiving. All individual donations between $100 and $1000 will be matched up to 50%. Please consider sharing Sahar’s mission and work with your friends and family to increase our reach and future opportunities for the girls we serve.

IT & Coding Students Learn IT Basics First

These Students Also Engage in Women's Empowerment

Girls Advance to Coding from IT, learning HTML

Join us on July Bonus Day!

Links:

Permalink

About Project Reports

Project reports on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.org by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.

If you donate to this project or have donated to this project, you can recieve an email when this project posts a report. You can also subscribe for reports without donating.