Classrooms Without Walls: Lighting a candle for students in need

Mother Teresa once asked, what is the greatest tragedy? Her answer wasn’t hunger, disease, or war—it was loneliness.

David Falconer, executive director and founder of Calgary-based Classrooms Without Walls (CWW), knows all too well the impact that loneliness and lack of support can have on a young person.

In 1973, at just 12 years old, Falconer and his family escaped from Chile because of a coup and ended up exiled in the Peruvian Amazon.

Due to complications, Falconer was separated from his family for a brief period of time and lived with a different family that took him in.

“I remember my first night there. I was in a very dark room by myself. I remembered that my brother had left a box with me and he had said ‘At night, you’re going to need this’,” Falconer recalls.

“I was crying, I’ve never cried so hard in my life. I remember hearing his words, so in the darkness of this room and this extreme, deep loneliness, I put my hand in the box and realized that there were candles and matches. And suddenly there was light.”

Planting the seeds

Falconer developed a deeper understanding of what people and children in similar situations are going through, which is where the roots of CWW began to grow.

“I say to my volunteers, ‘We’re lighting these people’s lives. We are all grabbing our own candle and it’s not one candle anymore. It’s lots of candles coming together to support these wonderful and beautiful people that feel they’ve been forgotten,’” Falconer says.

“We need to light that candle for them to say ‘We have not forgotten.’”

Falconer is a school principal in Calgary and has been a principal in various other parts of the world, including Myanmar and China.

Just over a year ago, Falconer received an email from a Ukrainian non-profit educational organization, Smart Osvita NGO, in Kyiv looking for volunteers to help Ukrainian students who were unable to attend school due to the war.

“I volunteered, not thinking that 13 months from now this is going to grow into an organization, but one thing led to another and it just happened,” Falconer adds.

United in support

Falconer launched the Teachers for Ukraine program and he was able to recruit teachers from Canada, Europe, Australia, India, Bangladesh, and more.

“This was our way of saying, ‘Look, we’re thinking about you and we’re going to do everything that we can to help you and support you,’” Falconer says.

“I wish I had some sort of magic wand that could do more.”

A Myanmar principal contacted Falconer last summer recognizing his contributions to Ukraine and asked if he could help Myanmar in a similar way.

That’s when the Teachers for Myanmar program launched.

Spreading support

Last November, Falconer started hearing news about what was happening in Afghanistan.

Women and girls in Afghanistan are still encountering barriers and obstacles when it comes to accessing education due to the Taliban’s resurgence.

“It just suddenly hit me that we need to do something for Afghanistan,” Falconer says.

That’s when Teachers for Afghanistan was born, in partnership with Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan (CW4WAFGHAN).

“We have quite a few female university students that are now able to go to school.”

Through the program, thousands of students from five to 30 years old have been offered an online education.

A brighter future

CWW’s success in offering education to students living in conflict zones is due to the support from teachers, volunteers, and partners such as Monash University, Smart Osvita NGO, Edmonton Public Library, Sora, CW4WAFGHAN, and Ocean Wise.

“It’s truly a celebration of partnerships and how much has been accomplished by having the same goal, which is to let our students know the world cares,” Falconer says, adding guests including Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield have even reached out to participate in sessions.

Falconer has used his past experiences and expertise to help children and adults facing difficult situations by providing them with access to education and opening up opportunities for their future.

“All of this has led basically now to Classrooms Without Walls with three programs: Ukraine, Myanmar, and Afghanistan,” Falconer adds.

Around the world

Falconer says many people have asked why he is doing what he is doing. He says a large part of it is the messages he gets from his students around the world.

“I got a message from a child from Myanmar that said, ‘Last night, I dreamt that soldiers were rampaging my streets and stabbing everyone they saw. My street was filled with blood and dead bodies lying everywhere, I can no longer have peace, even when I sleep,’” he says.

“Our sessions allow these children and people to start thinking about Chris Hadfield, or the teacher from Grand Prairie or the US, and it allows [the children] to dream, to set goals, and to feel there is still hope.”

In Myanmar, there are approximately eight million internally displaced children, according to Falconer. CWW has helped many children from Myanmar access an education online.

“At the end of the day, we’re teaching calculus, social studies, yoga, and more, but ultimately at the end, we want to give the students hope.”

Expanding the work

Despite all of the work and success Falconer and his team have had in the three countries where they’re currently working, he is pushing forward with a mission to expand the organization’s impact.

He’s in the process of working with volunteer public health nurses and medical doctors to provide training about hepatitis to Bangladesh residents.

CWW is also expanding to a fourth country that will be revealed when the details are finalized.

“I want to let people know that I care. You don’t need to be my brother or sister. We’re humans, and that’s enough of a reason to help each other,” Falconer says.

Anyone interested in volunteering or partnering with CWW to light another candle can reach out to Falconer through CWW’s website.