Starting a new school year in Haiti and Canada: Contrasts

A few minutes ago, my son left to start Grade 11 at our local high school.

Then I read this short article on students starting school in Haiti (click here to read the article).

The contrast in my son's experience and those of similar-aged students in Haiti is remarkable. One small example: My son walked a few hundred feet to catch a bus that will take him to his school of 1, 500 students where he will likely have a maximum of 25 students in a class. In Haiti, it's rare to have a school bus and, as the article states, high schools often have as many as 4,000 students in total (two shifts) and 80 students in a class. In fact, a couple of years ago, I was in a large public school in Haiti where there were more than 100 students in a class.

The sentence that caught my attention was this:

"[In Haiti] Only three of every 100 elementary school students will graduate high school without having to repeat a year or dropping out."

The vast majority of my son's classmates will never repeat a year or drop out.

So, this morning as I think about the start of a new school year, I am reminded of the many benefits and blessings we enjoy in Canada. May we not take these for granted.