The world is flat?!
The bestselling book “The World is Flat” tells us about the convenience and impact globalisation has brought us. The development of technology and the internet has shortened the distance among people, making the world a “flatter” place for many people. But has everyone benefited from it? Is there something we can do to make the world flatter and flatter? This is the question I keep asking myself during my time in Myanmar with IWitness…
Our IWitness journey is accompanied by Save the Children, a long-term partner of the IKEA Foundation. Save the Children has many sectors in Myanmar, and people from the education sector are travelling with us this time. We visited five-year-old children from KG class (kindergarten) in the township of Pakokku.
Save the Children’s introduction made me realise how indispensable preschool education is in children’s development. In some less resourceful villages, Save the Children focuses on teacher training, investing in teaching materials and improving facilities, which has had a huge influence on children, teachers and parents. Yes! Education can help the world become flatter and flatter. Because education can produce knowledge, knowledge can create skills, and skills can bring a better life and the possibility to realise dreams.
We interacted with the children based on the concept of “Let’s play for Change.” Their enthusiasm and unlimited creativity have realised this great idea. While wondering how to make the world flatter with education, I saw the quick reaction of kids when they were playing the games and the innocent smiles as they responded us with. That’s when I realised that in a way, the world is actually flat, especially for these innocent children—their lives have infinite possibilities as long as we start with education!
