How Does Education Poverty Impact a Family?

Education poverty is often detrimental to an individual, family, and community. Here’s an example of its impact and how this type of poverty cycle can be broken.

Kasni had never set foot in school. In fact, the thought of sending her to school hadn’t even occurred to her mom, Dayita. As the sole provider for her family, Dayita simply worried about getting enough food to feed her children. In their home in south Asia, there were no dreams beyond survival.

Dayita spent her days gathering firewood in the forest and selling it at the market. This resulted in very little income, but it was all she knew to do. She was illiterate, so job opportunities were limited. When families switched to kerosene stoves, fewer people bought wood in the market, which further impacted Dayita’s ability to provide for her family. Since Dayita didn’t receive an education, she didn’t understand the need for her children to learn.

While Dayita worked, Kasni looked after her younger siblings. They would roam around the village and look for handouts. One day, GFA workers encountered Kasni and her siblings. These GFA workers discovered the struggles of the family and presented an invitation to Dayita for Kasni to join GFA’s child sponsorship program.

Kasni’s life changed that day. She was provided with a nutritious meal each day and personal care items for the family (taking a burden off her mom). That day, she learned so much, and it continued day after day.

Kasni now has a zest for learning and the workers have enjoyed teaching her. She learned about things like how to talk politely, cultural traditions, and Bible stories. Dayita saw her daughter was developing quickly. The center reached out to Dayita, too, and encouraged her to attend programs and activities.