The Cambodia Rural School Project
The Phakdei Nippon
Foundation School
Pen Saran is a sixth grade student at the Phakdei Nippon Foundation School.
Out of the twenty students in his class he ranks with the best. He is sixteen years old.
| On the new building: | “I am very excited to have a new building. I’m no longer afraid that the building might collapse as I used to be with the old one. I like to study here very much and want to take care of it well. When we were studying in the old building, rain and wind would force us to leave. The school looked so old and would lean to one side, and there was no guarantee that it would be safe inside.
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| I live about 700 meters from school. It takes me about ten to fifteen minutes to walk.
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| On school subjects: | “My favorite subject is mathematics because it helps me figure out the number very well and makes me feel smart. When I finish the primary school I want to continue with the secondary school.
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| On his spare time: | “In my spare time I help my parents with their work at home. I plant cabbage, mango, guava, eggplant and chili.
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| On his future: | “I want to be a teacher and want to share my knowledge with the children of the next generation. Else I would like to be a doctor and help people. If I were a doctor I can also help my family when any of them should get ill.
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| On his family: | “I have six siblings, and four of them are studying at the new school building every day. I am the second child. My parents are farmers and they make 30 to 40 sacks of rice per year, but that’s not enough to feed my family. When we lack rice, my parents borrow money from Thaneaka Phum [village bank] Cambodia Ltd and buy more rice.”
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| On traveling: | “I wish to travel to the United States and see how developed it is. I heard that the United States is big and is the world-largest economy.
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