By Laura Albertyn | Chief Operations Officer
We are thrilled at the progress we are making with is project and with how it is beginning to take shape. With the funding we have received so far and the current political situation in Zimbabwe we will be running the Mobile Laboratory from May on a smaller scale than initially planned. It does not mean that this will always be how the lab is run. Our reasons for this are two fold - full funding for the whole, far reaching project, is yet to be secure and the current economic situation in Zimbabwe makes logistics on the ground a little more tricky. BUT we are thrilled by this as we feel this gives us time to really see how this model works, test out our teaching material and techniques, gain feedback from students etc. We are excited at the launch of the lab in this way and to see a great resource accessed by such worthy students.
How will this pilot model work?
We will be running a full Saturday programme of experiments (2 to 3, 2 hour sessions). The workshop will be a 12 week commitment, working on 6 weeks of Biology Practicals initially and moving onto 6 weeks of Chemistry Practicals. The students will come to the Resource Centre each Saturday and attend one session - this session will be run two to three times a Saturday impacting 45 students.
There will be a total of 15 students at each session - 45 students. We will be targeting only Form 3 students, so that they are able to do the practical work before the pressure of their examination year is upon them. To assist with the income for these sessions we will be using the GlobalGiving Funds donated, as well as the small fee charged to each student ($5 for 12 weeks) this helps the students commit to the programme and another income avenue.
The proposed other income revenue we will be exploring the possibility of offering 5 to 10 of the places to Home School community students who will pay $10 per lesson. This will be a wonderful opportunity for students from different backgrounds to come together but also provide a valuable resource to the homeschool community. A win, win for both parties!
What we are working on at the moment?
We are currently putting final touches on the Biology experiments - these have all been written up, edited and now have been passed onto two Biology teachers to check and approve against the syllabus. The Chemistry experiments are in the process of being written and will undergo the same scrutiny once finished. It has been wonderful having our past students help with the writing of the experiments - their enthusiasim and work ethic has been fantastic and we feels to privileged to be receive such a tangible giving back to Makomborero.
Final health and safety checks are being put in places in the Laboratory. Signage is being hung, safey sytems and procedures being drawn up and first aid training being conducted for the teachers involved. We will also be building an external toilet close to where the Mobile Labortory is positioned at the Resource Centre so that the boarding house does not have to be accessed on the day of the Science lessons. We will also be purchasing a big pop up tent, two long folding tables and folding chairs, which will all be stored in the Mobile Lab but will be set up as a class room outside the laboratory for the lesson time, prior to the laboratory time. A white board will also need to be purchased, as well as insurance taken out for students who will attend lessons in the Lab. All these final touches will take place between now and May.
During the month of April we will begin to advertise the Mobile Lab and recruit students from low income students in and around Harare. Starting with students that our current Makomborero Students are mentoring in their communities.
We are very excited by this first implementation phase of this project and feel that this will be a good learning season for us, before we venture further afield. Keeping costs to a minimum but impacting lives and learning as we go along.
We hope you continue to enjoy watching this project evolve over the next few months.
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