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A Lesson learnedMichael Foster — Brantford, ON Being a recently retired elementary school principal, and having the opportunity as a first time SCAW volunteer to travel to Tanzania was a blessing from heaven. My dream to travel to Africa had come true. Our 10 days of distributions (700 bedkits per day) in remote rural communities a distance outside the city of Dar es Salaam proved to be a tremendously huge success. Our travelling distance out of the city each day was anywhere from 35 km to 135 km each way for us to eventually reach our distribution sites. All of our distributions were at primary schools which gave me the opportunity to view the education of Tanzanian children first hand. Back in 2002, the Tanzanian government had mandated free, universal primary education for all children. This development objective was to be fully implemented by the year 2006. Their belief was that an education was an absolute critical element to erase poverty and to further enhance the development of the country. This meant that it was necessary for all children to attend school. There was a Commissioner assigned to the community villages and schools to make sure that all children attended school regularly. It was very evident that there was a place in every school for the sick, physically and mentally challenged, blind, autistic and also for those many children who showed signs of being healthy. All children attended school uniformed but many were shoeless. In many cases the child’s family could not afford a uniform. If this were the case, a uniform would be sponsored by the government through the local Commissioner.
All of the schools and classrooms that we visited had very similar characteristics: no electricity, no running water, outdoor toilets, not enough benches or desks, virtually no classroom resources, one blackboard and a dirt or concrete floor. However, they did have a large number of happy uniformed children and a very understanding, dedicated and patient classroom teacher. The schools that we visited ranged in size from 840 to 2,200 children. Class sizes varied from the smallest of 43 to the largest of 73. The enrolment in schools has surpassed the recruitment of teachers, thus resulting in the increasingly large class sizes. The class size didn’t seem to be a concern but the lack of resources was by far the greatest need. Teaching resources, such as lesson planning books, curriculum guides, textbooks, writing utensils and paper were totally inadequate and unavailable. They had to rely on donor funding for many of these resources. Many of these children travelled long distances in their bare feet in the early hours of the morning to reach school on time. The school hours varied from community to community. Some started as early as 7:30 am while others started at 9:00 am. Those that started early had greater distances to travel. In some cases the school was also on shifts due to the large population in attendance. One half of the school population would start early, finish around noon and then the second group of students would attend school in the afternoon. Some children were travelling up to 15 kilometres one way to reach their local community school. Once at school, it was the responsibility of an assigned level of students to make sure that the playground was swept before classes started. Their homemade whisk brooms would be used to gather up any leaves and twigs that might have fallen off any of the trees from the previous day. There was virtually no garbage of any kind ever seen on the red dirt playgrounds.
The educational system has been structured by standards. Children begin school at the age of six and remain at their primary school until Standard 7 at age 13. At the end of Standard 7, all students must write a national exam in English to progress to the next level of education. While we were there, the Standard 7 students were prepping for this exam coming up later in the month. Upon passing this exam, they can go to Secondary School for four years after which they must pass an exam which allows them to attend High School for an additional two years. On completion of High School another national exam gives them the opportunity to attend college and eventually go onto university. Very few of the students go beyond the Secondary Level because the cost of education is a great burden on families. All subjects similar to ours are taught in Swahili. Children receive their first formal English classes in Standards 5, 6, and 7. At higher levels of education, more classes are taught in English. After two years in Secondary School they specialize in subject areas such as farming, tourism, business, or commerce.
Arriving at the distribution sites early in the morning certainly gave us the opportunity to meet the Headmaster of the school (principal) or the 2nd in command teacher as they are called (vice principal). We were often given a tour of the school, visited classrooms and a chance to meet a number of the teachers. Some of the teachers would arrive on foot or bicycle as they lived in the nearby villages. Many were local people who lived in the homes that could be seen adjacent to the school. All teachers had to sign in and out at the principal’s office as to their arrival and departure times. The teachers received a salary that ranged from 93,500 to 132,000 Tanzanian shillings per month (approximately $85.00 to $120.00 Canadian dollars per month). These figures were examples of teachers with 5 years to 39 years experience. To reach retirement and receive a minimal pension, it was necessary to work to age 65. Their salaries were based on their experience, education and seniority. Many teachers had indicated that it was necessary for them to have an additional source of income outside of education to be able to provide adequately for their family.
The start of the school day began with the ringing of the school bell which was a tire rim hanging from a branched tree struck with either a rock or piece of metal. The children then scurried to their classrooms for attendance to start their school day. At a few school sites, we were treated by the entire population of students greeting us in an open courtyard all assembled in perfectly straight lines. Opening exercises would begin with the beating of drums and the singing of the National Song of Tanzania. This was often followed by their Theme Song -“Education is Our Liberation” “Their Teachers are Great!” “Their Teachers are Wise!” Respect for teachers was paramount. We often heard their school song being chanted “Napenda Shule” (Believe in School) and “Shule Ninzuri (School is Good) and they would also sing, happy and proud about them progressing from Standard to Standard. It was truly obvious that the children loved being at school.
At Kigamboni Primary School, one of our distribution sites, I had the exceptional opportunity to visit a class that was already in session. When I arrived at the open classroom, I was greeted by fifty-three girls rising to their feet and speaking respectfully to me in their native Swahili. They quietly sat down and waited for the teacher to speak. This was an extra English class that the girls were attending to prepare for the upcoming national exam. The teacher invited me to take over the class and discuss the prepared government grammar practice test that had been provided for review. Their English was very good for students with only three years of formal English instruction. After the review had been completed, one girl put up her hand and said, "More English please!" This gave me the golden teachable moment. They wanted to hear more about Canada and children their age. I sensed a thirst for education and learning in these children. After leaving their classroom, I could hear them repeating to each other exactly what I had said. I knew that a lesson had been learned. My experience as a SCAW travelling volunteer to Tanzania is certainly the greatest lesson that I have learned in my lifetime. Thank you to everyone involved especially those who have kindly donated and provided some necessities to the children of Tanzania. |
