Vanuatu can take some students out of their comfort zone. We encourage all schools to include a visit to a local village school for a number of reasons. It can be quite thought provoking to see an extremely under-resourced school (both in materials and facilities) where primary age pikininis are totally happy and keen to learn.

Small Guide Travel, who organises Vanuatu Study Tours, has 'adopted' Eratap Village Basic School. Some villages and schools are part of the tourist trail (e.g. Mele Village, because of its proximity to other tourist attractions like Mele Cascades waterfall, the Secret Garden and Hideaway Island Marine Sanctuary. Eratap is only 15 minutes from Port Vila but is way off the tourist path. Employment is low in the village and the main income is derived from selling fruit and vegetables at the Port Vila markets. School fees are hard to find (less than $18 per term!).

The visit to Eratap by our visiting schools is a highlight for students (both those visiting and those in the village school). We like to set aside at least a couple of hours for the visiting students to be shown around the classrooms, meet Donald (headmaster) and his staff and then play soccer with the children with refreshments to follow (coconut juice from a coconut, local paw-paw etc). Admission is by a donation of stationery, sports equipment and/or rice. Rice is used as a fundraiser the same way we have sausage sizzles. Stationery and sports equipment like soccer balls are expensive in Port Vila (especially without funding to purchase!) but inexpensive when picked up here at Target or Woolies.

Some schools take the community service further than others. For example, St Joseph's College, Gregory Terrace Brisbane visited the school in 2006. On their return, the students had a fundraiser for the village school. This resulted in $1960, which was enough to paint the exterior of all the classrooms. Terrace returned in September 2007 and donated time as well as money. The Terrace boys physically painted the inside of two classrooms (getting themselves pretty splattered in the process) and presented the school with another donation of $2000. As electricity had recently arrived in the village and one classroom and the headmaster's office were connected, it was decided that a photocopier/printer would be a wise investment. Small Guide Travel has made an ongoing commitment to purchase copy paper and toner cartridges as required.

Also in September 2007 a group from 'Churchie' school in Brisbane visited Eratap. They have decided to try and outdo their rival school Terrace in the fundraising stakes. We'll see! But if they can raise $2500, Term One 2008 will see a brand new classroom, meaning 70 students can move out of the one with a leaky roof and holes in the wall. The school has stockpiled bricks, timber, sand and has the labour ready to go - all they need is the corrugated iron for the roof and $2500 would see this dream become a reality.

Other schools we have included as part of itineraries are Vila East Primary, Malapoa College, Montmartre Boarding School and the Catholic Mission School on the island of Tanna.

Just a bit on the Vanuatu school system. Primary school is relatively inexpensive with fees around 1500 vatu per term ($18). At the end of Primary, all students sit a test - if they fail, that's the end of school for them. If they pass, they are graded reflecting results and placed in schools accordingly. For example, the highest ranked students will go to Malapoa College, the next to Onesua School and so on. This means boarding for students (and up to a year away from the family if delegated a school on an outer island because of the cost of travel). Secondary fees are relatively expensive - around $300 per term. This is a lot to find if you are unemployed or working for low wages (for example, even some quality resorts pay as little as $50 per week to local staff). These fees, combined with the attrition following the end of Primary test, mean that less than 30% of ni-Vanuatu children will complete secondary school.

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For general information on Vanuatu visit Vanuatu A to Z.