by Merritt Frey, Executive Director

I love to read, and I think that love and skill is what carried me through my education and into a career. Reading opens doors (and worlds!) like almost no other skill can. That’s why we launched Great Girls Read, and why I’m so happy to report on its results in the 23/24 school year.

Great Girls Read is part of our larger Girls’ Project, which strives to get girls into school and help them succeed there. We added this reading curriculum to the Project because our manager, Hindaty, noticed that many girls struggled in the classroom because of poor reading skills from primary school.

Last school year, Great Girls Read helped our girls’ skills improve wildly. In fact, we saw a 27% increase in the number of girls who could read well or very well when comparing pre- and post- evaluations. In October, only 31% of the girls read well or very well. By April/May, 59% percent of the girls read well or very well.

See the short video (below) for just one girl’s reading transformation!

Great Girls Read uses regular tutorial sessions, a remedial reading book, fun readings, and take-home work to boost reading skills. The girls also help each other, both during the tutorial sessions and on their own between sessions.

This low-budget intervention with a big return is something we will continue (and improve!) next year. We will also be doing additional evaluation to explore if the improved reading skills translate into better grades and lower dropout rates. Stay tuned!