EMOTIONAL WELL-BEING OF THE GIRL CHILD AS HUMAN RIGHT

This time last year, it was the International Day of the Girl Child and THE ADEKUNLE CHILD FOUNDATION (TACF) commemorated it with a lecture organised for girls of a public Junior Secondary School in the city of Abuja. We partnered with the pragmatic African Women Lawyers’ Association (AWLA) and Sisters, Wives and Mothers (SWiM), a women-led NGO on the cutting edge. Theme for 2017 was Power of the Adolescent Girl: Vision for 2030. The event was such an eye opener. The girls were given an opportunity to open up to the women on their various issues. And they did! Many of them were going through various abuses – sexual molestation, indecent assault, domestic abuse etc, the festering sores of which were concealed under their flowing, faded uniforms.

Educational Psychologists have since the mid 20th century, identified 3 main domains of learning i.e. the cognitive (mental skills), the affective (feelings, emotional) and the psychomotor (physical skills). Educational curricula globally are generally defective in that they place the least emphasis on the affective. The educational system shoves loads and tons of literature and formulas down the throats of poor students who are psychologically detached from the classroom as a result of unhealed emotional wounds, and no one cares. From statistics, the girl is more vulnerable. Worse still, they are rated brilliant or dull at the end of the term, with a cognitive-only-assessment that is based on so warped a scorecard.

At TACF, we are of the opinion that an educational system that parades a curriculum that is imbalanced and less than foursquare, is an infringement of the child’s human right. With our experience from last year’s event, we are determined to provide an intervention and make a difference. It is therefore our resolve to launch a Girls’ Club at one of the Junior Secondary Schools in Abuja. It will be a platform where the girls will be provided with therapy, counselling, empowerment, motivation and many more, a platform where they will socialise, heal and learn.

Is this what government should do? yes it is. Shall we wait for the government? No we won’t. At TACF, this is our gift to them on the International Day of the Girl Child 2018.