Binti Shupavu is a four-year life skills course for lower secondary school girls covering topics such as study skills, personal leadership, health, and self-confidence with the goal of increasing graduation rates for vulnerable girls.
Overview
Binti Shupavu is a needs-driven training and mentoring program for adolescent girls in Tanzania. This initiative is tailored to specifically address key challenges that lead to tens of thousands of Tanzanian girls dropping out of secondary school every year. This comprehensive program lasting four years builds confidence, resilience and the determination to succeed no matter what. A mix of seminars and small group tutorials delivered weekly by university educated Tanzanian women, Binti Shupavu ensures that thousands of new girls every year get the knowledge, skills and support they need to thrive.
How Binti Shupavu Works
Meet Lucy
Lucy is a 13-year-old girl living in rural Tanzania. She is among the 39% of girls who reach secondary school, but she still faces gender discrimination and poverty that prevent her from graduating and making the transition to upper secondary school. Through four years of skill development and mentorship, Binti Shupavu aims to give scholars like Lucy the tools they need to stay in school and graduate.
The Binti Benefit
A girl’s earning potential increases by up to 25% for each year of secondary school completed. By providing the skills necessary to succeed in and out of the classroom, Binti Scholars are more likely to stay in school and improve their economic situation. When Lucy has the opportunity to continue her education, her entire community benefits. Women reinvest 90% of their personal income into their families, thus creating generational and societal change.
Motivation and Personal Leadership
The first unit teaches Scholars to believe in their potential to succeed. In one lesson, Lucy and her peers draw dream trees to help define their hopes and dreams. Through activities like this, Lucy learns that small ideas grow over time when mentored and given the resources needed to thrive.
Health and Wellness
The second unit focuses on emotional and physical well-being and addresses the lack of access girls have to information surrounding sexual health, menstruation, and mental health. Unit 2 gives Lucy the knowledge she needs to take care of her changing body and mind.
Study Skills
The third Unit ensures that Binti Scholars have the academic tools they need to excel in the classroom. Lessons cover time management, organization, study groups, and how to ask for help. Lucy learns how to use these skills to create her own personal strategy for academic success.
Developing Your Potential
Lucy and her Binti Shupavu classmates spend Unit 4 learning about making good decisions, developing self-confidence, nurturing positive friendships, and combating peer pressure. Now Lucy can recognize positive influences and make better choices to achieve her goals.
Strength and Resilience
The final unit focuses on resilience in the face of obstacles. Mentors address sources of strength that Scholars can draw on to persist in and out of the classroom. Learning about topics from inner strength to gender stereotypes, Lucy gains the skills necessary to fight for her education.
Spiral Curriculum
Binti Shupavu units repeat each year. Their specificity and intensity progresses in tandem with Scholars. The goal is to see Scholars like Lucy graduate, but the spiral structure ensures that girls who drop out still have skills that can help them overcome obstacles.