AY 2007-2008 Projects - Europe/ Eurasia

Country                       Hungary
City                              Pecs
Host Institution           Ghandi Secondary School/Romaversitas Foundation

Project Description
Three institutions have arisen in Hungary to address the problems of educational access, quality, and attainment for Roma youth: the Gandhi Secondary School in Pécs; the Collegium Martineum in Mánfa; and the Romaversitas Foundation in Budapest and Pécs. Each of these institutions has an educational training and community building component, and all three have made significant strides in educating and forming Roma youth who are often the first in their families to go to secondary school and/or university. The EL Fellow will work with each of these host institutions as follows:

- At the Gandhi Secondary School currently two teachers are teaching English grammar and one teacher (who is leaving at the end of this school year) is teaching English vocabulary; overall, around 130 students are studying English, divided into two groups (one slightly more advanced). The EL Fellow will team teach with the other two English language instructors, offering instructive feedback regarding their overall methodology, lesson planning, and teaching approach; develop an English language curriculum that accentuates the Roma culture and engages the students, utilizing more games and movement, interactive and cooperative learning, and emphasizing the development of other skills (besides English language), for example, concentration and motivation, discipline and drive; teach a communications class, focused mainly on reading and writing, speaking and presenting in English (for the most advanced students, approximately 20-30), incorporating the use of books, CDs and DVDs; work on short- and long-term individual and group projects; take trips to English-speaking places (if funding is available); and start an after-school English club where students can have fun learning the language, through music, movies, computers, and the Internet.

- At the Collegium Martineum in Mánfa at the beginning of the year there is an individual evaluation of each student, and a yearlong plan is developed to meet their needs and measure the outcomes. The intent would be for the EL Fellow to design a project with the assistance of students that would effectively further their understanding of the English language and culture. The EL Fellow will direct the project for an hour during the afternoons on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays.

- At the Romaversitas Foundation one of the primary aims of the program is to enhance English language proficiency among its scholars in order to ensure that Roma graduates are qualified and competitive in applying for jobs with international and Hungarian institutions, organizations, and companies. Most Romaversitas scholars receive individual tutoring in a foreign language (a requirement for university graduation), which has been expensive for the Foundation to maintain, and the organization would like to institute more group classes so the students can learn from and practice with each other in a less intimidating and more motivating setting. Since almost all of the students are attending classes or studying during the day, the EL Fellow would offer English classes during the evening, from around 5:00 pm to about 8:00 pm. The EL Fellow would teach in Pécs during the first half of the week and in Budapest during the second half, offering a mix of beginner, intermediate, and advanced classes, depending on the abilities of the students.

Project Objectives
The ultimate goal of the EL Fellow’s work is to open up the world and expand study, work, and life opportunities for talented Roma youth in Hungary. More specifically, the overall goals of the EL Fellowship are to raise English language skills so that Roma students can finish secondary school and attend university, being able to pass the required language exams; to improve English communication skills so as to enable Roma secondary school students to study abroad and pursue degrees in professional fields like business or law, government or medicine; to design an English language curriculum especially for Roma secondary school students (for use at Gandhi and possibly other secondary schools in Hungary and Europe); to develop a greater understanding of European, American, and global issues and challenges; to instill more confidence in the possibility and Roma students’ ability to study and work anywhere in the world; and to increase the quantity and quality of experiences outside of each Roma student’s village, school, and world, which helps to open minds, build skills, and create dreams. Numbering several hundred thousand (around 7% of the total population), the Roma minority in Hungary faces significant barriers to achieving success in school and in society. First and foremost, nearly half (40%) of this young and growing population (sometimes referred to as Gypsies in English) lives in poverty. One of the main reasons for the high poverty rate is the low educational level of Roma. While a relatively large number of Roma youth in Hungary attend pre-school and primary school compared to other countries in the region, graduation from secondary school is well under 10% and attendance at university is only 2%. The indirect result of fewer Roma graduates is fewer Roma professionals and leaders in their community and throughout Hungarian society. Beyond achievement in education, the quality of education Roma receive is a serious problem as well. Too often, Roma youth are sent to “special schools” intended for disabled youths (or schools for vocational training, not college preparation) or put in segregated classrooms for lower-achieving students. Furthermore, many teachers do not possess the necessary training and/or basic materials to adequately instruct Roma students, and the curriculum is less rigorous and the expectations are much lower for them than other students.  

About the Host Institution
The Gandhi school is the only secondary school in Europe devoted exclusively to preparing Roma students for higher education. Founded in 1994, the school has received widespread acclaim throughout Europe for its groundbreaking work. (Most notably, the Principal, Erika Csovcsics, received a human rights award from U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright during her visit to Hungary in December 2000.) The mission of the school is to train promising Roma youth to be well grounded in the sciences, art, history and culture, as well as languages, including foreign and Roma, and therefore, to provide the same standard of education as non-Roma students receive. 270 Roma youth from across Hungary attend the school and live in an adjoining dormitory, receiving constant support in order to finish their studies. Overall, 145 students have graduated from the school and 60% continue on to study at university.

The Collegium  Martineum in Manfa (CMM) (a small village 10 km from Pécs) is a residence hall and community for Roma youth from the surrounding villages who are studying at area secondary schools. Around 50 very poor, but highly-motivated Roma youth attend integrated schools in the morning and return in the afternoon to the residence where they participate in small groups to discuss issues and problems, as well as take part in projects that further their learning. With sole responsibility for making and keeping the rules of their one of four “family” groups, the youth learn the value of democratic governance, while adult helpers act as guides at the residence and advocates at their schools to ensure that students also have a proper support system. The aim of the institution is to lower the Roma secondary school drop-out rate by providing a place where Roma students can live and eat, study and meet together in a family-type atmosphere. Since its inception five years ago, around 50% of these Roma youth have graduated from secondary school, which is much higher than the average rate of 5-10%.

The Romaversitas Foundation (RVF) provides financial, educational, and community support to Roma students attending universities in Budapest and Pécs. Currently, 80 Romaversitas scholars receive a monthly scholarship for food, housing, and books, which enables them to attend the university of their choice full-time for four years. The scholars are also provided with individualized language and computer skills training, so that they have the same opportunities and abilities as non-Roma students. Romaversitas students are also offered occasions to discuss any personal problems or educational challenges, and to learn from Roma graduates and professionals on how to succeed at university and in their careers. Since 1996, over 150 scholars have participated in the program and over 100 have graduated from university. Romaversitas graduates are working in the fields of art, economy, engineering, law, medicine, natural sciences, sociology, and technology, and some have become Roma specialists in Hungarian Government Ministries and the EU Parliament.