Malcom X

Mission Statement

In a globalized world like today’s, it is important that everyone be able to communicate effectively with everyone. It is important that education systems around the world teach students how to do this. Learning English is one of the most important skills that can be taught, since it’s the language which connects most people, businesses, and ideas.

That’s why many foreign countries are teaching English to students, starting at the elementary level. However, developing nations struggle with teaching English to their young students. This is largely because resources or funds needed to supplement existing curricula are lacking. Some areas are simply unable to afford books, which can be pricy.

Yet, the situation is not much better in more affluent developing areas, either. Most of the times they merely use textbooks or other teaching manuals or guides in order to teach the English language. So in these areas structures do exist to teach children English, but they rely solely on the content from textbooks.

The problem with this approach is twofold. Anyone who’s opened a textbook before in school will tell you that the material isn’t the most exciting stuff they’ve ever read; in fact, textbooks can be quite dry. It’s not easy to fully grasp the material straight out of a textbook because of this, and that’s when the text is in a language that both the teacher and student speak. Imagine what it’s like using those same textbooks in developing nations where English isn’t spoken. Not surprisingly, these students find it difficult to learn English.

Moreover, textbooks generally provide little context. You may learn vocabulary, spelling, and various grammar concepts, and even read stories. But readers will be left with a key aspect missing: culture. That is something which a regular textbook is unable to provide. They lack cultural context, and are unable to portray lifestyles, customs, and beliefs associated with language. Thus, students remain unaware of different cultures. This is a problem.

Much of acrimonious relationships between people across different nationalities and cultures can be attributed to the gap in the knowledge about the lifestyle and culture of the other side. Cross-cultural knowledge exchange helps reduce this gap and result in a more harmonious and peaceful world. When one is aware and educated about the cultural backgrounds of other people, he/she is less likely to be aggressive and more open to differences and discussion.

OneBook is a nonprofit charity consisting of dedicated high schoolers and education members aimed at bridging this gap and help developing countries better understand the English language. We plan to do this by collecting and distributing children’s books written in English. This is a quick solution to some of the issues presented by the current system of teaching English, as story books are engaging and easy to read. By reading stories in English, students can see through literature how the language they learn from their textbooks is actually used to communicate, which is the ultimate goal of learning English.

And importantly, readers are exposed to culture, as well. They are exposed to the lifestyles, are shown other customs, and can begin to understand different perspectives. The ultimate benefit is a better learning experience overall, as prominent literary scholars Louise Rosenblatt and Kathy Short detail in their research, children develop key cognitive and social skills through reading stories.

OneBook is equally dedicated to helping underprivileged schools locally in Pittsburgh, where it is based. Many inner-city schools are poorly funded and could greatly benefit from OneBook’s services. These schools receive little support in terms of actual reading material and supplies, so we hope to make a difference by delivering books to these schools.

Many families here have children’s books lying around that they don’t have any use for anymore. OneBook’s primary goal is to collect these books and send them to schools in need. In doing so, we can bring together different parts of the world that maybe don’t know too much about each other. Little by little, by helping schools enhance their English education, we can move towards a more connected world.