The Struggle to Afford High School Textbooks in Bangladesh

A year's worth of textbooks for a student in Grade Nine in rural Bangladesh cost about $13 US Dollars. But many high school students drop out because they can't afford to buy them.

In this short video, I meet a Grade Nine student struggling to buy his textbooks for the year. I buy the books for him and - to show his thanks - he sings a song.

Here is some information in Bangladesh Rickshaw Drivers:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rickshaw#Bangladesh

I dedicate this video to all those watching my videos from High Schools back home.

The list was compiled based on those who joined the Uncultured Project Facebook Group at:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=18807049968

For More Information on My Work in Bangladesh, check out my Blog at:

http://uncultured.com

The music in this video (in order used) are:

"How Far" - Jamison Young

Music by Jamison Young is used under an in perpetuity Creative Commons attribution-only license. You can download his music for free at:

http://www.jamendo.com/en/album/18714

I've recently setup a PayPal account because so many people have been asking if they can send me donations. More information here:

http://uncultured.com/donations

Donations to me aren't tax deductible as I am not a charity or NGO. If you'd like to donate to a registered charity, check out:

http://uncultured.com/charities

This video is shared under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA license.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Bangladesh
• Poverty
• Education
• School
• Student
• High
• Books
• Textbooks
• Aid
• Help
• UnculturedProject
• Poor
• Kid
• Child
• Xbox
• 360
• Uncultured
• Project

[cinephilist]

shawn, i really admire your work. however, i don't think buying one person's books is going to solve the problem of illiteracy in bangladesh. there must be something (more large-scale) we can do to make your simple act of kindness more sustainable!

[UnculturedProject]

@cinephilist Check the date on this video: it's 2008. This video predates me even accepting donations. Back then my primary goal was to highlight through action how inexpensive it is to keep people in school.

Also, as someone who is doing this project in a way that's not a charity, my focus has always been one difference at a time. This village had dozens of charities operating there - yet this boy still fell through the cracks of their (more sustainable-focused) programs.

[The100jackass]

hey what up man , u did good job , but u know the Bangladeshi people is cheater , i watch the video . u gave him book, but don't know that he gonna sale the book in library , so u got a know , don't gave shit in Bangladesh , sorry for course ,

[UnculturedProject]

haha - if he sells the book instead of uses it to stay in school, than it's his loss - not mine. At least with the book, he has a choice - before his poverty forced him to choose.

And, if I were him, I would totally sell the book - AFTER I'm done the school year and am finished with the book :P

[ronyahmed]

Shawn, You are a true symbol of what Americans stand for. Imagine what we could have done if we stopped spending millions on Bombs and buy books instead...

[UnculturedProject]

Thanks Rony :) Great to know you're still checking out my videos. You've been a supporter for a long time now.

[samin94]

wow, here in USA we are encouraged to go to school and many kids just don't care to take advantage of it. If they see this video they might change...

[cantecleer]

@TheEsotericDesi -- I shouldn't be so one sided. there are good students and they really care about learning and appreciate what they have. still, it is sad when students take it for granted. I think our world would be a very different place if the average U.S. teen understood how a lot of people around the world live. I think they would be a lot more serious about learning so that they could do something positive with their lives. But videos like this are a good tool to increase that awareness.

[DADiDANNi]

tht wass real nicee of you.

[TheEsotericDesi]

@cantecleer I finished my elementary education in India and my junior high/high schools and college in the USA... and one thing that I hated the most was not just how much kids took their facilities in the USA for granted... but how easily they cursed at teachers... it always left me feeling sad at teachers...

[TheEsotericDesi]

Here in USA I hate it when these bastard kids drop out of school because of their shitty "Family Problems" and I'm like "What Problems?" "Smaller burgers for dinner? Less stations on your home cable box? DSL instead of Roadrunner Broadband as your internet?" And 1/2 of the world that wants to go to school cannot actually afford it... so sad...

[TFMANIAC]

@cinephilist

I feel that making a difference to one child is better than not making one at all.

With that being said... I do hope what shawn has set out to do will blossom into something bigger that can produce some phenominal changes.

[cantecleer]

-- So many kids in the developed world are spoiled and scoff at going to school. I should know, I am a junior high teacher in the USA ( @samin94 is right). It's stunning how much they take for granted when a simple thing like buying books makes that kind of a difference for that young man. I wish my students had to live one month as the world's truly poor do. It would open up their eyes to reality and light a fire within them to change things for the better. Nice uploads and good works, man^^

[shancateyes]

lol..you speak bang-la funny....its like your drunk...and there is no word called free education...the tuition maybe free but what about the book supply and stationary...

every year if you think over your wasting papers, loosing pencil or if its too short you throw it out, pens if they have tiny bits of ink in them and erasers cutting them in shapes when your bored well why not throw them in a box and give it to charity...i did it twice...the kids where thankful

[shancateyes]

lol..you speak bangla funny....its like your drunk