Since our last visit, there has been a noticeable change in something for Bright Sparks students – the way they travel to and from school. We all enjoy watching the students clamber into a tuktuk after a day of learning. However, during this visit we have noticed many students arrive and depart with their own bicycles.
According to the teachers, parents are buying their children bicycles because it is cheaper than paying fees for other modes of transportation (such as the tuktuk). Bicycles can be used to transport more than one person, which is not only convenient for parents collecting their children but also for siblings to travel home together. We have seen many bicycles with one person cycling and one or two children perched on the pannier rack.
I asked several students about their bicycles and Manju (Class 5) told me that she received her pink bicycle in December from her mother. This was a great opportunity to practice their conversational English.
It is wonderful to see the students happily cycling to and from Bright Sparks and perhaps we will see this trend continue to grow in the future.
Kate
