Because Children’s Global Alliance student volunteers will
be working in a school during our service trip, I believe that it is crucial
for us to understand Tanzania’s education system and the value the country
places on school. I have researched Tanzania and have learned some interesting
aspects of their methods of education. I thought that I would share these facts
with those following my blog, for it is important for us to gain an appreciation
of where CGA will be volunteering and the challenges that arise when teaching
in a school in Africa.
Tanzania’s Education system is
divided into three realms. The first is primary school. This ranges from grades
one to seven. Secondary school ranges from grades eight to twelve. Tertiary
education takes a minimum of 3 years, it is very similar to college here in the
United States. School is supposedly free until children reach the age of
fifteen, but many parents fail to afford the uniforms, school supplies, and
examination fees. Despite the challenges that many face, the gross enrolment
percent for males in primary school is 92.2 and is 95.1 for females. These are
amazing statistics; proving that many children attend school!
Many attend school, so the main
question now concerns the quality of the education. “Many children enrolled in
school drop out before completing primary education, especially girls. At
higher levels of the education system, the situation is even worse: the net
enrollment rate for lower secondary education is 30.8 percent, and for upper
secondary education only 1.9 percent. The results of a study on the quality of
education showed that when Tanzanian children finish primary level their
performance is extremely poor with seven out of every ten children unable to
read basic Swahili and nine out of every ten children unable to read basic English”(
http://www.usaid.gov/tanzania/education).
It becomes clear as to why
Children’s Global Alliance volunteers will be working at a school. Student
volunteers and chaperones will be working at L.O.A.M.O, a primary school with
grades ranging from “baby class” to grade seven. 250 students attend and many
cannot afford the uniforms or tuition. Many families donate whatever than can
in order for their child to receive a decent education. More than half of the
students are on scholarship from the
founder, Maria, who started the school in her living room in 2001.
A goal of mine when working at L.O.A.M.
O. will be to infuse a sense of
responsibility to the students and promote application of education. I aim to
educate the students on how to use the skills that they learn in class in the
real world. I hope to teach the students beyond the classroom, showing them
what it means to be efficient and empowered, encouraging them to apply these
terms in their own lives.
