Select a choice

Episode 4:
Bridging Educational Gaps

This episode focuses on the current challenges certain communities may face in providing adequate education and how this impacts children’s readiness for their adult years. World Vision’s Resource Development Director Jerome Yuen shares his journey in World Vision and how the organisation works with communities around the globe to bridge these gaps.

AVAILABLE AT YOUR FAVOURITE PODCAST DESTINATIONS

AVAILABLE AT YOUR FAVOURITE PODCAST DESTINATIONS

Transcript

0:35	So for this episode of The Teaching Point, we will be chatting with Jerome, who is a director at World Vision and he is going to share with us a little bit about what he does and what the team at World Vision encounter as well as their experiences when reaching and talking to vulnerable or even communities around the world.
0:59	Hi Jerome.
1:00	Hello.
1:02	Could we understand a little bit more about your role in World Vision?
1:06	OK, to understand my role, you have to understand the Singapore office.
1:11	Around the world.
1:12	There's about 100 World Vision offices.

1:15	Some of them are called support office, some of them are called field offices.
1:19	I am in a support office, so actually a support office’s job is to gather resources for the field to use.
1:28	So some people would call me the fundraising person.
1:33	You also mentioned resources.
1:36	Could you share maybe, what are some of the resources that you are referring to?
1:41	By and large, resource in our world is largely money.
1:45	So we move money around between those who donate through us to the field.
1:51	But very often we also would get two other things.
1:54	One is give-in-kind very similar how we partner in terms of your work with World Vision.
2:03	Sometimes it's special skill sets.
2:05	If we are looking for something that we need to use on the field and for some reason is lacking in the country itself, we would also sometimes fly that into the country.
2:16	I see.
2:17	So I'm glad that you referred to our partnership.
2:19	We have been working with World Vision for about two to three years, providing books and other resources.
2:29	What are some of the main challenges vulnerable communities face when providing education for their children?
2:51	In many countries, although there appears to be structure, education systems may not function effectively.
3:16	During harvest time, children may not attend school because they are needed for agricultural labour.
3:39	Schools may be far away, requiring children to walk 5 kilometres over difficult terrain, taking up to 1.5 hours.
4:10	Cultural factors such as child marriage prevent children from continuing education.
5:08	Nutrition is critical. Poor nutrition in the first 1000 days affects physical and mental development.
6:20	World Vision focuses on long-term community transformation through child sponsorship over 10–15 years.
7:20	Parents may initially want children to become farmers or wives, but mindset change is key.
8:21	When children’s aspirations expand to professions like doctors or teachers, parents’ mindsets change as well.
9:24	Environmental challenges such as typhoons can severely disrupt progress and destroy livelihoods.
11:05	Children in vulnerable situations are always the starting point before selecting an area to work in.
12:42	Community alignment is essential; interventions are discussed with village or provincial leaders.
13:39	Health and clean water are often prioritised before introducing education programmes.
14:44	Water filtration may need to be addressed before building school infrastructure.
15:28	Family violence must sometimes be addressed before focusing on women’s empowerment initiatives.
17:29	Projects are defined with clear outputs, expected outcomes, and long-term impact measurements.
20:08	Sustainability means communities can continue programmes independently after 10–15 years.
22:51	Advice: Speak to the community, understand their needs, and avoid imposing preconceived solutions.
24:52	Expect the unexpected, as interventions rarely go exactly as planned.
25:14	Be ready to partner with organisations that have the expertise rather than reinventing solutions.
26:45	Thank you for the opportunity to share. Looking forward to more partnership with MCE.
26:56	Thank you.

More about our guest below

Jerome Yuen

Jerome joined World Vision Singapore after a commercial career spanning 25 years in leadership roles at leading global companies, and followed by another decade of guiding local charities in Singapore. He previously served as CEO of Cycling Without Age Singapore and Executive Director of Club Rainbow Singapore. Jerome holds a Master of Technology and a Bachelor of Business Administration from the National University of Singapore.