The school, which was founded by a recent university graduate, operates for two hours everyday and provides opportunities to members of an underprivileged neighborhood.
Freshta is up at six o'clock in the morning, sweeping the floor of her makeshift cave classroom in Afghanistan's Bamiyan region.
Donkeys saunter down the orange-dirt slopes of her time-capsule town to get water, and cave houses fill with the scent of freshly made flatbread as the day begins.
The informal school, which serves up to 50 students, the most of whom are females, is located not far from the site where historic big Buddha sculptures were demolished by the Taliban 20 years ago.
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It operates for two hours each morning, providing a valuable service to the underprivileged population at a time when the country is experiencing an enormous humanitarian disaster.
In an interview with Al Jazeera, Freshta (who only revealed his first name) said that his community advised assembling the youngsters and teaching them basic English and Dari, as well as arithmetic, geography, and the holy Quran.
"It grew into something greater year after year," said the 22-year-old, who began teaching at the school when she was 12 years old. She said that the majority of the kids, who range in age from four to seventeen, come from the cave hamlet, which has 50 families.
Freshta admitted that she was terrified after the Taliban armed organization retook control of the country in August. When the Afghan group was in control from 1996 and 2001, it prohibited women from pursuing higher education or working.
The Taliban took over Bamiyan, and I was terrified, so my friends advised me to remove all of the posters and artwork off the walls. I did so, but it was a nightmare." It was assumed that I was in danger, especially because I was a female teacher," Freshta explained.
I tossed away everything, including all of the colors and pens, in the river Patablaghman," Freshta, who was dressed in bright colors for the occasion, explained.
'They [Taliban militants] visited three times, seeking for my neighbour who used to work for the local police, but he'd already escaped,' she continued. It made me feel uneasy, but they didn't appear to be aware of my presence."
Freshta is the only teacher at the school, and she does it on a volunteer basis. However, despite the fact that she occasionally got money from visitors from Kabul, the school has managed to stay afloat because to her dedication.
'The people who live here have economic difficulties; they are either farmers or jobless, and the school is absolutely free,' she explained. In addition, private schools are out of reach for some families, while public schools are too far away.
According to United Nations data, the literacy rate of Bamiyan is poor, particularly among girls, with just around a quarter of the population being literate.
The sole university graduate in her cave community, Freshta just completed a midwifery course at Bamiyan University, making her the only person in her cave settlement to have completed a university degree. Many of her students expressed an interest in pursuing a career as a teacher like her.
Because of the abrupt death of her mother when she was two years old, the same age as her tiny half-brother today, whom she enjoys cuddling and caressing, she has a strong desire to give to other people. She has six stepbrothers who are significantly younger than her, but she also has a 20-year-old sister who is married.
"[My mother] is always with me," she added, going on to describe how much she enjoyed studying English, which she spoke well, and how she was kept going by her father's sense of humour, a 60-year-old farmer. "[My mother] is always with me," she said.
The topic of education for women has become a particularly contentious one in Afghanistan since the Taliban seized control there in August, after the withdrawal of US-led forces after 20 years of war and the collapse of the Western-backed government of President Ashraf Ghani.
In recent years, Western governments and aid agencies have pressed the Taliban to do more in the areas of human rights and education for girls, as well as women's empowerment. The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, as the Taliban's administration is known, continues to be isolated on the international stage.
After the Afghan New Year, which begins on March 21, Zabihullah Mujahid, the government's spokesperson and deputy minister of culture and communications, said that the education department will open its doors to all girls and women. Mujahid was speaking last month.
When Al Jazeera inquired about the specifics, Mujahid stated that "Islamic values" will play a vital part in determining the future of females' education.
"When it comes to this, Islamic beliefs have a more technical component to them." When learning, [women] should be in a safe physical and mental environment. Transportation concerns, as well as budgetary considerations, should be taken into consideration. Men and women should be kept apart in order to bring together all of the girls and women across the Islamic Emirate," he said in an email on January 25.
Mujahid told Al Jazeera that "all phases of education would be resumed," which he described as "a critical concern for Western nations when considering the return of assistance to Afghanistan." The Minister of Higher Education and the Minister of Education both stated that this will happen "in accordance with the capability and facilities of the Ministries of Higher Education and Education."
SOURCE: NEWS AGENCIES & Channel Eljazeera tv
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