Basma Triumphs over Exam Error

When Basma protested, saying she should have received the test for Christian students, her teacher ignored her.

Basma* almost failed 3rd grade because she didn't know the Quran. She had already had her share of hardship with school. When she was 8 years old, her mother pulled her out of school and sent her to work at a local beauty salon--for about 20 cents a day. Luckily, Basma had Christine, her big sister in the Valuable Girl Project (VGP). Christine immediately intervened so that Basma was only out of school and on the job for two days, and connected her family to another resource to help meet their living expenses.

But that turned out not to be the only benefit of having a big sister like Christine. Basma soon faced another big problem, this time in school, one that many of her peers had not been able to solve.
When it came time to take the exam for the religious studies part of the curriculum, Basma’s teacher handed her the test intended for Muslim students.  When Basma protested, saying she should have received the test for Christian students, her teacher ignored her. Not surprisingly, Basma failed the test, as her knowledge of the Quran was limited at best.

But instead of accepting her fate and being held back a level in school, Basma went straight to Christine. Christine joined forces with their VGP site manager and complained to the school administrator. Basma’s exam scores were quickly overturned.

Now, nine-year-old Basma is keeping up her grades thanks to tutoring from Christine. Not only is she learning how to succeed in school, she is learning how to succeed in life.

When you donate to Coptic Orphans, you are helping girls like Basma stay in school and learn to stand up for themselves.

*names changed to protect the dignity and privacy of our children