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Thank You
By Carol O’Connor
Hawassa College of Teacher Education
ELIC Centre
The English Language Improvement Centre at Hawassa College of Teacher Education has developed a school linkage program with seven government-operated primary schools located throughout the city. The purpose of the program is to provide in-service training in English for teachers, with the emphasis on methodology as per teachers’ requests. In addition, ELIC provides resources for both teachers and students in the form of books, magazines and other print media, as well as CDs, DVDs, games and various learning materials.
Although all the schools have stressed their interest in participation, one in particular stands out as a model of how to use available resources to meet the needs of disadvantaged youth. Headed by principal Elizabeth Kebede, Negat Kokeb Elementary School serves 517 students in grades one through four. Located on the corner of two unpaved roads a few streets behind a thriving thoroughfare, the school is adjacent to Tesfa Raey Kindergarten, whose students feed into the elementary school. The area is populated with exceptionally low income families. Many of the students are AIDS orphans, some are HIV positive, and all are considered vulnerable youth.
Although financial resources are scarce, Ms. Kebede has established an ELIC club, cleared out a storage room to make a teacher resource center, and brought parents together to make bookshelves for the designated library. “Now all we need are the books,” she says. Students and teachers also tend a vegetable garden; the vegetables are given to students’ families, or sold to raise money for school supplies.
I was introduced to this school through a university contact, and have been able to include them in our linkage program. Ms. Kebede also works closely with Tesfa Raey by supervising the teachers and overseeing their lesson plans. She has been very receptive to my English class observations, and has encouraged my work with students for English language improvement in the area of social skills. Tesfaye Wolde. a licensed tour guide who speaks five languages, has been volunteering his time to act as a mentor and translator, and to help the children build their comprehension and communicative skills.
Part of Hawassa CTE’s ELIC program involves a focus on art and music. Recently, fellow IFESH volunteer Mariama Ross and I visited Negat Kokeb on the school’s weekly art and music day. We were pleasantly surprised to visit a 4th grade classroom where active learning was very obviously taking place – and all in English. Students were questioning one another, playing language games, and working in their illustrated journals. On other parts of the campus, students were participating in dance and practicing traditional and contemporary songs.
To assist with Negat Kokeb’s book acquisitions, I have developed contacts with an English teacher at an affluent private school whose students will donate books, clothing, and school supplies to the elementary students. In return, Tesfa kindergarteners will visit their benefactors’ school to perform a rap song they have learned, and some of the talented elementary boys – who formerly were street kids – will dance. I will film these events, and interviews, for a short documentary film I plan to produce by the end of the school year.
Photos:
1. Carol with teacher Titaku Abebe at Tesfa Raey Kindergarten
2. Negat Kokeb Principal Elizabeth Kebede and Carol in the schol’s vegetable garden
3. Mariama Ross dancing with Negat Kokeb Elementary School students
4. Sudents’ journals
5. Resource room
During our in-country training in Addis Ababa, IFESH volunteers had the opportunity to experience several facets of Ethiopia’s culture. We attended the annual Meskel Festival, where Christian priests and other celebrants gather to commemorate a historic religious event with music and prayer. This festival also marks the end of the rainy season, when brilliant yellow meskel flowers cover hillsides and poke out from cracks in walls or curbs.
We also visited the palace of Menelik II in the Entoto Mountains where he first established his capital. Set on a peak, the grounds offer a stunning view of Addis stretched out in the distance, The palace grounds include a historic octagonal church where Menelik was crowned emperor, and a museum that contains artifacts such as the ceremonial dresses of royalty, their furniture, jewelry, and other personal items. all 17 of us (we are the largest IFESH contingent in Africa) enjoyed these learning sessions and felt that we were becoming more knowledgeable about our new home.
As an IFESH Volunteer I’ve created successes and will continue to create more. As is true with any
commitment I have faced set-backs caused by forces over which I have little control.
This is a statement of the most repetitive obstacles of my venture.
Brief Overview of Assignment
Challenges
Some of the most frequent deterrents include:
Because over three quarters of the schools participating in the CPD project are located 50 to one 120 miles from DBU, maintaining consistent transportation to and from school sites is essential but has been challenging. Absence of a vehicle to drive from the university to the rural schools (although the official clearance from administration has already been given and a driver assigned),is the most frequent problem; a related challenge is that of having secured a vehicle but not having a driver. One day our team was able to secure a vehicle and a driver, but there was no fuel in the entire town so we decided to return to the university. As we were driving back, we intercepted a second university vehicle that was well-fueled; we made the switch after proper notification was made and journeyed to the rural schools. Lack of transportation and delayed transportation are meddlesome threats to the success of the project. In order to reach the schools to begin the work of supporting teachers, the vehicle must be on the road before 9:00 AM; a day is lost if the trip begins any later. Each time a visit to a school is rescheduled due to transportation difficulties, teachers do not get the monitoring support they need. Continued disruptions could result in reducing the numbers of schools that can participate in the CPD project.
When telecommunications blackouts occur in Debre Birhan and the North Shoa region of Ethiopia, we are unable to contact schools to notify administrators of trainings or to remind them of site visits. Nor can school administrators contact DBU to inform us of changes that impact our site visits. I created a tentative schedule of visits last semester, but DBU was not able to follow the planned visits. We are able to send Email notices to some schools however, most rural schools do not have internet access even if they have a computer. Many adjustments are made by ‘word of mouth’ in person (by someone from the university who can notify the school) or they are made when telecommunications systems are operative again.
The lack of planned operations for education activity seems to be a country-wide phenomenon. Regional Education Bureaus (REBs) often schedule trainings during the year without providing sufficient prior notice to schools by telephone or otherwise. If the university has scheduled trainings for the same dates the bureaus schedule trainings, most school administrators direct the teachers to attend the REB training and expect the university to reschedule. Lecturers and university trainers bear the brunt of rearranging their personal lives (because most trainings occur on weekends) when bureau trainings supersede university trainings. Repeated delays of this type contribute to weakening the morale of lecturers which impacts their motivation. De-motivated lecturers are less likely to inspire teachers in the CPD project.
Ms. Katheryn Crayton-Shay receives IFESH/Ethiopia Outstanding Volunteer of the Year Award. Dr. Julie H. Sullivan, IFESH President and CEO and Mr. Mamo Mangesha, IFESH/Ethiopia Country Representative present the award.
Typically, IFESH volunteers I’ve worked with in teacher colleges, universities, schools, education bureaus, and at the ministry level do whatever it takes to accomplish their annual plan goals as they relate to USAID objectives. Most are flexible, versatile, innovative, persistent, creative, and apply professional skills appropriately to work through challenges. However, it cannot be overstated that even the most stalwart professional is put to test as he/she performs duties in what may possibly be referred to as ‘pseudo-professional’ communities in Africa.
Other volunteers should be requested to share individual experiences of challenges.
From Kano University of Science and Technology, Wudil, Kano State, Nigeria
Barbara Ritter, IFESH Volulnteer
Every day I have moments where I stop and say to myself, “This is significant. Memorize this. You will want to remember it later.”
Prior to this assignment, I had never been to Africa! My work is in Northern Nigeria in the State of Kano. I’m assigned to Kano University of Science and Technology (KUST), which is located about 30 miles East of Kano, but thousands of miles away in many ways.
Kano is the fourth largest city in Nigeria with a population of millions; Wudil is a small village that is made up of Hausa and Falani tribes-people. KUST is central to Wudil with the campus located adjacent to the village, residences, and farmlands. Most of the administrators and instructors live in Kano except for the few of us who reside on campus.
KUST (and Wudil Village) are all Hausa-speaking, all Black, all Muslim, and KUST is 99% male. That makes me, a white non-Muslim English-speaking woman somewhat of a novelty. Few people here have ever seen a white person! I take a daily walk around and the campus and on the nearby trails where the Falani nomads herd their animals. This is how I meet the locals and practice my Hausa greetings.
Work at KUST has been about 3 primary projects and many smaller ones.
I am teaching computer classes for students in the Professional Diploma Certificate and Higher Professional Certificate programs weekly. The students are mostly secondary teachers, but also include university students and residents from surrounding areas. I also taught classes to the primary and the secondary students for the campus school in January. The students of all ages are attentive, eager to learn, and very quick to pick up technology skills.
My second project is what I hope will be a major accomplishment. KUST currently graduates students in 13 science and technology programs but offers no program for students to be certificated to teach. The shortage of mathematics and science teachers in the region is severe. In response to this need, KUST has decided to implement a BS in Science Education in Teaching in Geography, Mathematics, Biology, Physics, Chemistry, and Agriculture. I was given the task planning for this implementation, including creating four-year plans in each area. This would lay out the required education courses and core courses by semester for four years. I am working with the Dean of Education at the Federal College of Education in Kano, the Dean of Science Education here at KUST, the Director of Academic Planning, and the department heads of the six departments. The National Universities Commission has to approve any university in Nigeria adopting a new degree program, so this has involved taking the proposal through several committees at KUST and completing the forms for the Commission.
At this time, the proposals are complete and ready to be given to the committees for approval. If all goes according to the timeline, the program planning will be complete and approved by June and students will enroll in the fall of 2011!
The third major project is co-writing a series of books about the development in Wudil. The books will look at education, industries, economics, politics, and the community of Wudil; those contributing chapters are all academics from KUST and surrounding universities and colleges. The other author is a political scientist and Assistant Registrar; we have the blessing and encouragement of the Vice Chancellor, Wudil District Head, and representatives from all academic areas at the University. Very little is written about Wudil, so first-hand research has kept me busy with “Field Studies”!
Other projects that I have quickly “jumped on board” with include: presenting at the New Student Orientation on the topic of Goal Setting; assisting with a Northern Nigeria IT conference hosted by KUST; providing information and photos for the KUST website; connecting students to other university students abroad; working with the single counselor at the university on various projects; and assisting students in a variety of ways.
KUST is a warm and welcoming environment. The campus is attractive and currently being landscaped in preparation for the first-ever commencement ceremony to be held March 19, 2011. KUST has been a university since 2000, and the seven graduating classes will come together in the new commencement building for the celebration.
Background
Our Lady of the Apostle College of Education, OLA is a sea-front, woman’s college located in Cape Coast Ghana. The lovely, soft-spoken students, numbering approximately 750, in their light green uniforms, are highly regarded in the region.
Arrival
We arrived to Accra. Ghana in early October 2009, approximately 2 ½ months after President Obama’s historic visit to Ghana. Our Country Representative, Kwesi Dzidzienyo, IFESH Ghana, greeted us warmly. Enthusiastic Ghanaians extended the lovely Ghanaian greeting Akwaaba (meaning “welcome” in the Ashanti language). The spirit of Akwaaba was present in our daily encounters with Ghanaian people. It is often said that if you ask a Ghanaian for directions, he will escort you to the place you are looking for. We found this to be true on more than one occasion. Everywhere we looked we saw posters of US President Obama and Ghana, President Mills hence even before our arrival, the stage had been set for Change! One week later Reverend Sister Elizabeth Amoako, Principal, OLA College of Education escorted us to the campus on the Cape Coast shore of the Atlantic Ocean. Thus, our adventure began!
MST Seminar
With the support of the administration, OLA Departments of Mathematics, Science, and Technology; OLA Drama Department; Choir and Resource Center in collaboration with IFESH, Ghana, we were able to initiate and implement a seminar to motivate students to achieve in Mathematics, Science, and Technology (MST). The program promoted gender equity in these subjects. The event, Be a Winner in Mathematics, Science and Technology, explored the question: If women can be winners in other academic subjects, then, why not in Mathematics, Science, and Technology? The Program featured three speakers; a slide show, question, answers, and handouts, all centered around two skits by an acting troupe group, The OLA Winners. The students were introduced to successful role models of Ghanaian women in the fields of math, science, and technology.
Next Scenic Ghana!
The “Art for Equality” summer camp allowed 46 middle and high school students (20 girls and 26 boys) from the region of Thiès, Senegal, to use their love for English to explore themes of gender and leadership through the arts. The fruit of a long collaboration between Ndèye Bineta Mbodj, Secretary General of the Association of Teachers of English in Senegal-Thiès chapter, and Kether Hayden, IFESH Senegal in Thiès, the camp was held on Thursday, September 30th through Saturday, October 2nd 2010 at the Technical High School in Thiès. It was made possible with the support of the office of the Regional English Language Officer of the US Embassy in Dakar, Senegal, and Plan Senegal.
The official opening was conducted by the Inspecteur d’Académie Adjoint. Which was followed by a morning session on “What is gender?” presented by Yacine Fall, Head of the Gender Office at the IA. We started the three arts workshops (visual, performing, and creative writing) all continuing the theme of gender from the morning. The students signed up for the workshop of their choice and were split up accordingly.
The visual arts workshop was facilitated by Jane Moorman, a guest art teacher from the East Palo Alto School District, and Jules Diene, an English teacher in Thiès. They started by making collages inspired by the morning discussion on gender using colored paper, magazine clippings. Then they worked on figure sketching and then painting.
The creative writing workshop was facilitated by English teachers Diouldé Sy Ndiaye, Omar Ndong, and Mbouillé Diallo. They did free writing and wrote poems that started with “My Mother” or “My Father”.
The performing arts workshop, facilitated by Kether Hayden, IFESH Senegal, with the
help of English teachers Mamadou Lamine Ndiaye and Amadou Toutou Kanté, did a body warm-up followed by improvisation games. Then they looked at collages made by fellow students in the visual arts workshop and decided to do a skit inspired by one of the collages. The second day the performing arts workshop did dance and theater warm ups and games that challenged them to work in groups and think about the concept of leadership in movement, speech and action. They then read and discussed two poems written in the creative writing workshop from the day before. The students were given free rein to create a skit, song, movement based off of the poems for the performance.
On Friday, October 1, the students arrived and went to the group session facilitated by English teachers Sadibou Diouf and Maimouna Ndiaye Diop. The session was on “What is Leadership?”. The students worked in groups and discussed themes such as different qualities of leaders, leadership, teamwork, what is a false leader, etc.
In the creative writing workshop the students worked on freewriting about leadership.They wrote about themselves in relation to leadership and leadership qualities with the help of prompts such as: I am ….; I will …; I need…; I can …; I want to…; If you….
On the last day they did a reflection and evaluation session on “What’s Next?”. They worked in groups to determine what they could bring away from this camp and share with others. They also worked individually to write a “book” of their memories from the camp, including what and how they can share their experiences with others. After lunch the students had time to rehearse, setup, and prepare for the cocktail and presentation of their work. Parents, teacher and administration were all invited to this event. Little by little guests arrived and eventually we started the performing arts presentations at 4:15pm. Before and after the performing arts presentations, the guests and students were invited to look at the writings and visual arts pieces on display.
The camp was a huge success. The students were very positive in their evaluations of the camp (both oral and written). The students and teachers were enthusiastic about the camp and expressed that students need more constructive opportunities like this during school breaks as students often have very little access to constructive, creative and socially themed activities such as this. Additionally, the students requested in their evaluations to have a camp like this one every year and to invite more students from the region to participate. Some students asked for the camp to be longer. The students loved meeting young people from other schools and other English Clubs and they became very close after only three days together. Many stated in their evaluations that they greatly appreciated learning about leadership qualities and gender equity. They described the camp as: unforgettable, essential, informative, educational, fun, pleasant, emotional, wonderful, extraordinary, instructive, magnificent, amusing, and motivational. All the written evaluations were overwhelmingly positive.
The experience brought many people together from different schools and different walks of life and motivated teachers and students to start the school year off with a positive and fun attitude about learning. We are hoping to secure funding to hold this camp in other regions in order to motivate both teachers and students—especially those in resource poor regions. The next time, we would like to increase participation of students in order to give more students the opportunity to participate. The camp encouraged the use of English to discover different ideas, opinions, cultural practices, concepts and issues particularly having to do with leadership and gender—it presents a unique opportunity for cross-cultural exchange while facilitating social, artistic and academic growth among participants.
In 2010, three IFESH Volunteers advocated for quality and equity in formal education at the 2010 United Nations Girl’s Education Initiative (UNGEI) Engendering Empowerment: Education and Equality Conference. The impetus for their participation at the UNGEI Conference arose from the IFESH volunteers’ experience working under Senegal’s Ministry of Education at three regional teacher training bureaus in Koalack, Thies, and Kolda.
UNGEI Engendering Empowerment: Education and Equality Conference, May 17-20, 2010 Dakar, Senegal
The three IFESH volunteers—Kether R. Hayen, Bridget A. McElroy, and Yanick Douyon–co-authored and presented their research at the May 2010 UNGEI conference in Dakar, which was entitled Teacher-Training: The Superhighway to Gender Equity in Senegal. The research notes the overall absence of gender equity training for newly recruited teachers in these three regions and argues that gender-responsive pedagogical training for teachers is essential; absence of threatens Senegal’s goal to assure an equitable and quality education for all. The authors focus on the role that in-service teacher-training for secondary teachers may play in creating a gender-responsive educational system in Senegal.
The conference audience included large UN offices (regional, national and international secretariat); well-established international NGOs; and Ministries of Education from numerous countries.
IFESH-Senegal established three teacher resource centers at the regional teacher training bureaus in Fatick, Kolda, and Ziguinchor. In Fatick and Kolda, the centers were both equipped with five computers, desks, chairs, five back-up batteries, one printer and a binding machine. Additionally, IFESH provided the teacher-training bureau in Ziguinchor with a photocopier, printer, binding machine, three computers and three back-up batteries.
Teacher Resource Center in Kolda, Senegal
Many untrained secondary school teachers in these regions have limited if no access to references and resources to appropriately deliver their curriculum content—this is a particular challenge for rural schools that are further isolated due to poor roads and limited public services such as Internet and public libraries. The role of the teacher resource centers is to alleviate this burden among teachers facilitating the use of Internet research and the development of teaching supports to improve the quality of their teaching.
As the teacher resource centers are located at the regional teacher training bureaus, these teachers will be guided and will learn from the regional teacher trainers who are specialized in their discipline and the Regional IFESH Volunteer. This will allow teachers to be guided and teach themselves how to research and select the best sources to develop a student-centered approach in their teaching. The regional teacher trainers were delighted to see this as an added service for their teachers.
In Kolda, the Director of the Regional Ministry of Education in Kolda, the Regional Teacher-Training Bureau’s Coordinator and the national IFESH Coordinator inaugurated the resource center. This press conference was a public ceremony and included school administrators, teachers, teacher-trainers, Parent-Teacher Associations, teacher unions and the general public.
The Director of the Regional Ministry of Education in Kolda, the Regional Teacher-Training Bureau’s Coordinator and the National IFESH Coordinator inaugurated the resource center in Kolda
The Regional IFESH Representatives in these regions will continue to build the teacher resources centers during the 2010-2011 academic year in collaboration with their Senegalese colleagues.
Four teachers collaborate on a workshop exercise dealing with classroom management skills.
IFESH-Senegal provided a three-day seminar for 50 newly recruited untrained secondary school teachers in the region of Kolda—this leadership motivated the Regional Ministry of Education to fund two additional trainings for the remaining 90 newly recruited untrained teachers in the region—this was the first pedagogical training in Kolda of this scale since 2004.
Logistical and budgetary challenges limit training efforts in Kolda and only 2% of of newly recruited secondary school teachers have received the appropriate training. IFESH’s critical role in this region helped realize the training of all 2009-2010 new recruits. An important accomplishment—as all 140 newly recruited teachers will return to their schools with greater set of skills and confidence.
Regional teacher-trainer Papa Thiam provides encouraging words to teachers. Many teachers traveled over 200 miles to participate in the IFESH workshop.
In Kolda, three veteran regional teacher-trainers and one national regional teacher trainers with over twenty-eight years of classroom experience led the pedagogical training. The preparation and content of the training was a collaborative effort including 16 regional teacher-trainers and the Regional IFESH Representative in Kolda. The training materials addressed some of the most pertinent topics associated with educational quality: course planning, defining lesson objectives, classroom management, student-centered pedagogy, and testing.
During the 2009-2010 academic year, IFESH-Senegal provided teaching-trainings to an estimated 700 teachers in 13 of the 14 administrative regions in Senegal. The 2010-2011 academic year will bring more training for secondary schools teachers as six IFESH Volunteers have been placed in five administrative regions.
During the 2009-2010 academic year, IFESH-Senegal provided trainings in 13 of the 14 Administrative Regions in Senegal.
Regional Teacher-Trainer Ibrahima Diedhiou creates a learning support for the teachers during the training in Kolda.
Regional Teacher-Trainer Mamadou Diamanke and National Teacher-Trainer Mme. Oumy Samsou prepare for the training in Kolda
