This project will be led and delivered by 8 teenagers from the community of Eldorado in Diadema and they will deliver storytelling and puppet theatre sessions to 2,000 elementary school children thus increasing the quality of education they receive in addition to stimulating them to use their imagination and read more.
Brazil has managed to provide school places by running schools in 4-hour shifts/day for up to four different shifts of students in marginalised communities like Eldorado in Sao Paulo.This often results in a very low-quality education, with underpaid teachers, working with upwards of 120 students each day. Unsurprisingly, the system relies on rote learning, with little access to creative thinking, with almost no access to books (other than the basic textbooks) and little to inspire new ideas.
In addition to the benefit to the 2,000 children who are part of the project in the schools, it is very important for the teenagers. It is clear that with the changing economy, young people need to develop core competencies and abilities so that they have the capacity to adapt and remain in a job. By leading and delivering this project themselves, the young people are learning and developing competencies such as leadership, learning to follow others, group work, time keeping and self confidence.
In evaluations done with school head teachers, they have stated clearly that this project "increases the levels of reading and writing amongst their pupils", "makes them more interested in their classes", "increases their repertoire of games and songs, as well as improving their ability to express themselves." These benefits will be received by 4,000 primary school children in the community of Eldorado in the city of Diadema, Brazil.
