Feed A Hungry Mind

This week is half-term. Last week Standard VII pupils sat their national examinations marking the end of their primary school studies. Standard VII pupils are mostly 13 and 14 year olds, and these examinations determine whether they continue into secondary school.

Since our last report Jane Firth and Anne Samson have both visited, and for the first time their visits coincided and they worked together. Jane continued working with the teachers and head-teachers from primary schools in Mabogini ward. Jane conducted a seminar on teaching basic mathematics and handwriting to Standard I pupils (7 year olds), and the teachers of these pupils were introduced to the necessity of using real (‘concrete’) items such as stones, sticks, and beans, for the children to count. Jane demonstrated the teaching of addition and subtraction using straws – individual straws, and bundles of ten straws tied together – to show the meaning of units, tens and hundreds. The teachers were given these and other materials to use with their pupils, and on the last day of the seminar they made more of any materials they particularly wanted to use. Jane visited some of the teachers in their classrooms in the week following the seminar, and was delighted by the teachers’ enthusiasm, and their willingness to try to implement the new methods of teaching.

Anne Samson spent time meeting head-teachers, school inspectors and the district education officer to discuss how the work conducted within our Whole School Development Programme is progressing and what needs there are. Anne then planned with George Kasenga, our Programme manager, work for the next three months. Anne and Jane worked together to give a most valuable one-day session at Singa Chini Teacher Training College attended by the Teacher Training tutors and most of the district school inspectors. Jane demonstrated her teaching methods to use with young learners, and Anne developed this to show the real meaning of participatory teaching/child-centred learning. Within these methods are many ways of assessing the pupils’ progress. This led to a discussion on assessment, marking and evaluation. Such were the differences of opinion between the tutors and inspectors on the needs and merits of different ways of assessing pupils that a special session will take place in October to try to reach some conclusions. We are delighted that our work is now enabling such important issues to be openly discussed, and enabling these main stakeholders to query the interpretation of government policy.

George Kasenga has been active since Jane and Anne’s visit doing follow-up work in the schools and noting any needs and problems.

In August Dilly Mtui and Katy Allen met the Prime Minister, the Hon. Mr Pinda, to show him the sample books of the proposed course for teaching English in the primary schools. The book project is progressing and will be presented to the President soon.

Later this month Jane Firth returns to further her work in Mabogini ward. A new volunteer, Jane Bentley, will start a three-month assignment intending to support the teachers with basic mathematics teaching. In October and November Anne Samson will host two more meetings of the Network of UK charities which work in education in Tanzania, which was started in June this year.

We are pleased with the steady progress we are making, and how we now have the confidence of government officials to work so openly with us. We remain convinced that only long-term projects can hope to bring about any lasting change, and we thank all our donors who support us so generously in this.

13th September 2011