Podcast Alternative

Maysoun Shehab is the Regional Early Childhood Care and Development Programming Coordinator at the Arab Resource Collective (ARC) in Beirut, Lebanon. She is the director of the early childhood education program and works with many ECE professionals. She also raises awareness about early childhood education, and trains caregivers on best practices. The Arab Resource Collective functions in many different countries. In July 2006, she was involved in a psychosocial project in war torn Lebanon. The war was devastating, and totally destroyed 126 primary schools. Families and children needed much help. ARC provided psychosocial training to parents and caregivers on the effects of the war on children. They realized that adults needed to be supported so they could. In turn, support children. Coping techniques and strategies were taught to many adults.

Sharing Insights on Poverty

Eastern Mongolia

1. Many children do not receive an education until they are between 11 and 15 years of age.

2. All children help with chores. They help with household responsibilities and also at harvest time.

3. Some of the children keep their money and buy clothes or sweets for their siblings the older boys play with their money as they spend it on gambling on card games and billiards.

4. Some of the children start school then have to drop out. Some stay out, others reenter.

Many of the children have to work very hard for their households. They do things like collect firewood and dung, fetch water flowers clean the house and wash the dishes. It is very difficult for the children to go to school. They don’t have electricity and have to work by candlelight. They do not have concrete roads to travel on. Here in the United States we take so much for granted. We are so blessed and so very fortunate. We have too much of what we want, and have so much more than what we need.