A Sunshine Coast publisher has donated $1.1 million worth of books to help improve literacy in disadvantaged communities.
Firefly Education has partnered with the Rotary Club of Mooloolaba to distribute Sound Waves student books and decodable readers to schools in the Pacific.
The first shipments are already on their way to the Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea, with further distribution planned for Nauru and Fiji.
Firefly Education director Anthony Stannard announced the donation during a recent address to the Rotary Club of Mooloolaba.
“I’ve spent many years living and working in Samoa, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and Fiji, and have a personal understanding of the challenges that kids face accessing something as simple as a high quality reading book,” he said.
“Fewer than half of Year 4 children across the Pacific Islands reach the minimum expected standard in reading.
“In Papua New Guinea, the World Bank estimates 37 per cent of the population is illiterate, with the problem particularly concentrated in rural areas, and a lack of books and learning materials identified as a key barrier.
“We’re pleased that together, Firefly Education and Rotary Mooloolaba can play a small part in helping to make a difference for teachers and students in remote and disadvantaged Pacific Island communities.”
The donation is being coordinated through Rotary Australia World Community Service and its Rotary Australia Repurposing Equipment (RARE) program, which distributes donated educational and medical equipment to communities in need.
The Rotary Club of Mooloolaba collects and transports donated goods from the Sunshine Coast to the RARE warehouse in Brisbane for shipment.
Founded in 1989 by teachers Peter Stannard and Ann Smales, Firefly Education develops literacy and numeracy resources for primary schools across Australia.
Mr Stannard said the company was committed to supporting children’s education regardless of where they lived.
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“Every Firefly resource begins with a teacher, is shaped by their educational expertise and is designed with one goal in mind: helping children succeed,” he said.
“That’s true whether a Firefly book is opened in a classroom in Australia or somewhere in the Pacific.”
