We are very grateful to Jack Ryan, a high school student who raised funds to purchase 31 Kindle e-readers, rechargeable LED lights, cases, charging stations and books for our students! We are thrilled that our students now have access to thousands of books, which will develop their language and cognitive skills while opening up worlds of possibilities by exposing them to realities outside the slum.

Books are a great equalizer when it comes to education. For our students, having access to books will be instrumental in reaching learning goals while also helping them dream beyond their circumstances.Numerous research studies have linked access to books to positive educational outcomes, including literacy and number of years in attendance at school. For example, a longitudinal study of 70,000 students from 27 countries found that having many books at home was as good a predictor of educational attainment for children as their parents’ educational levels:

Children growing up in homes with many books get 3 years more schooling than children from bookless homes, independent of their parents’ education, occupation, and class. This is as great an advantage as having university educated rather than unschooled parents, and twice the advantage of having a professional rather than an unskilled father.[1]

Most significantly, the study found the greatest impact of having access to books was seen among the poorest and least educated families.These findings – and those of other similar studies – are highly significant for eduKenya’s work, as the majority, if not all, of our students’ families are unable to purchase books for their homes. Books are frankly a luxury in the context of extreme poverty. The availability of books at school is therefore of utmost importance for our students. We have a significant responsibility to expose our students to books, read to them and teach them to read. The availability of 31 Kindles will have a substantial impact in enabling us to provide students with access to thousands upon thousands of books.

We are deeply thankful for the initiative of Jack Ryan and the generosity of the many donors who funded this project!Stay tuned - our teachers are compiling a wish list of books that you can purchase for the Kwa Watoto School!

[1] Research in Social Stratification and Mobility: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0276562410000090