Comments on: unicef: liberia’s first post-war generation starts school

By: Scarlett Lion | Picturing Education

Scarlett Lion | Picturing Education — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 13:10:23 +0000

[...] okay with this. As I’ve said before, I don’t think only crowded classrooms deserve documentation, nor [...]

By: the first day of school… « I live in Africa now (.com)

the first day of school… « I live in Africa now (.com) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 17:37:23 +0000

[...] UNICEF: liberia’s first post-war generation starts school [...]

By: G. Casely de Bong Jr

G. Casely de Bong Jr — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 19:03:53 +0000

As a Liberian, I must commend you for these wonderful pictures depicting some normalsy in the life of ordinary Liberian kids.
Please keep it up as much as you can, it is the side we never get to see.
thanks,
G. Casely de Bong Jr.
678-479-4717
mambapoint@msn.com

By: Luca Varaschini

Luca Varaschini — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 12:34:45 +0000

this set is wonderful and, as you say, it portrays a particular life and story, unseen before. or at least, not with this quality

By: Dustyn WInder

Dustyn WInder — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 16:53:26 +0000

Beautiful photos.

By: Scarlett Lion

Scarlett Lion — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 08:09:18 +0000

You both make good points, but, both points weren’t the point of this story. This story was about kids starting school who haven’t know war in their lifetimes, not classroom overcrowding.

I too have been to many, many overcrowded classrooms where kids don’t learn as much as they should, but I find this is much a variable of region as it is public versus private. For example, even the private schools I saw in southeast Liberia were incredibly overcrowded.

As for pretty pictures that show achievements, UNICEF also takes plenty of photos they call “advocacy” photos that show not so pretty scenes. I don’t take these photos as much because I think one of my personal strengths as a photographer is not heart wrenching poverty, but people living their lives however they can, wherever they can.

Ideologically, it’s important to me to take these kinds of pictures since so few exist, while another type of photo certainly exits in abundance. I don’t think it’s a straightforward dichotomy, but if you think of it as a continuum, I like to believe that I’m more on one side of it near the middle than on the other side.

By: Liza

Liza — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 06:23:37 +0000

I think KFC makes an important point. Your last photo shows 4 happy kids in an notherwise empty classroom.
I presume this was before or after call. Where are all the other children. I visited a UNICEF supported school in Burkina Faso a few years ago and there were 212 children in one 1st year classroom. ONly 2 teachers for all of them. The children were literally sitting in eachothers laps. Private school situation is better, but classes are still overcrowded and children don’t get the attention they need. Hence, they don’t learn as much as they could/should.
Unicef likes to show pretty pictures of their acheivements, but I find it is often an unfair embelishement of the reallity

On a different note, your photos are fab as always.

By: kfc

kfc — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 19:38:18 +0000

superb photos. but you have to read the unicef supplied text closely to see that salomie is in a private school and not a regular government school or a unicef supported one. The text mostly tells us about government and particular UNICEF supported schools. but the pictures are only of private. Why is that? These pictures don’t show aid supported schools in Liberia. What would pictures of such schools look like?