Iringa in March

The rains are continuing, almost daily. This morning I woke up (thanks to the monkeys running across the metal roof - thankfully a bit later than normal though) in a cloud:

The cloud persisted most of the day, as did the rain (surprise, surprise):

Since the rains began, the road down to our house has become rather tricky to walk down and nearly impossible for a car to get up. Here are some of the latest pics:

 

 

You can see where the asphalted road at the top is being washed away down our road.

On the walk to school you can see where the rainwater has created ruts as it ran through the road:

And I am guessing this has been deposited to use as filler, although it's already been sat there awhile so the cars have already created new ruts going around it:

 

And these are the rascals who like to play music by running across my roof in the morning (although I wouldn't put these lovelies on my 'wanted' list - thanks by the way: the previous request seems to have been taken care of as I haven't seen the cockerel for a long while, he must have found 'pastures new' like someone's dinner plate or something):

 

Education systems

I came into teaching fairly late in my working life, having done a myriad of other jobs which enabled me to (mainly) travel. Friends often would say to me: "You should be a teacher!" I was never certain of what to teach, but I always agreed that I enjoy working with children and young people! You get a buzz from their energy, and certainly for me, their innocence and curiosity is captivating.

It was fantastic when I learnt of the new subject, 'Citizenship', which involved all of my favourite topics! Also, central to the subject was involving the students in the lesson as much as possible, as opposed to the other end of the spectrum, dictating using a 'chalk and talk' method. Into teaching I went! At first it was like putting on a glove, it fitted so perfectly! Student-centred learning is enjoyable: if we give them the chance, young people will surprise us and rise to whatever challenge or task we suggest.

This is why it saddens me so much whenever people here ask me about what it's like back home, and I reflect on what's going on with the education system in the UK. The article here describes it much better than I could hope to:
http://www.theguardian.com/education/2014/mar/14/teachers-life-inside-the-exam-factory

'Soft' subjects that contribute to a child's whole learning experience; subjects which prepare them in life skills which are difficult to measure rather than subjects which can have outcomes in numbers - these are being sidelined. Time is spent measuring, assessing, then giving justification (within a set of given options nonetheless) on why/if they're not 'on target'. (How those targets are determined are the topic for another reflection.) Teachers are having a hard time of it, and the students are suffering with higher stress levels as well as having to deal with their own issues such as, you know, growing up. More issues can then compound such as worsening classroom behaviour, tired teachers who have to deal with the worsening behaviour, and so on downwards it can go. That's not to say it is going downhill for all the schools, but reported rises in stress and teacher resignations is a worrying national trend.

Here in Tanzania we're on a project to support student-centred learning, using participatory methods rather than the 'chalk and talk', lecture style, that the students (and student teachers) are used to. The government have decreed that children should be at the centre of their learning, however seem to have neglected to provide the means and know-how for their student teachers and tutors to support them with it until now, and we're pretty thinly-spread out! I am pleased to report, though, that some student teachers and tutors are 'singing from the same songsheet' as the project and know how beneficial student-centred learning is, to both teacher and pupil (see 'The Lazy Teacher's Handbook' for more info if you need convincing!).

Tanzania seems to be following in the footsteps of the UK, albeit that it'll be a few years before everyone in the class has an idea on how to participate in their own learning. However, I really hope they manage to slam on the brakes and reflect before they also adopt the next phase that we're going though.

Travelling in Tanzania in the rainy season

During the month of February our team conducted the 3^rd round of visits to 5 of our 6 colleges. To spice things up a bit we changed the order, so we started with the furthest this time: Sumbawanga. Here’s a summary of our travelogue for you:

Tues 4^th Feb: 9.15am bus to Mbeya (leaving at a decent hour! It’s not far: only 6 hours.) Stay overnight: time to try a new motel opposite the bus station, however it doesn’t have a restaurant so a pre-evening walk of just Carla and myself to find food attracts unwanted attention from the locals who all want to chat (and ask for money/help/phone numbers etc.). Fortunately the receptionist locates a chipsi mayai (chip omelette) for us later in the evening.

Weds 5^th Feb: breakfast of tea & chapatti at the bus station, and then collection at 9.30am by the wonderful Sumbawanga principal who was also staying in Mbeya to drive us together to the college so we didn’t have to contend with a bus. Considering the condition of the unfinished last 50km of road, our gratitude doubled when we saw the amount of rain that fell:

We arrived about 6pm that evening. If we had been on the bus, who knows when we would have arrived? Checked into our usual residence, the Ligunga Lodge, where for one of the most remote towns we visit it is the only motel to have wifi. Amazing! We just love it (when it’s working…).

 

Thurs 6^th & Fri 7^th Feb: working with the lovely tutors at Sumbawanga TTC although unfortunately the BC (British Council) trainer wasn’t able to be there at the same time, so we missed working with her. I did, however, observe an interesting lesson where the students partook in a group work competition, being creative and using their phones to shed light on their work due to the lack of lights in general at the college:

Sat 8^th Feb: Lift back to Mbeya in the car again (thanks Mama Maeda!) leaving at 7am, to get to the bus station in good time to catch a daladala to Tukuyu. The majority of the road is now asphalted, but for about the last hour as you come into Mbeya it is dangerously warped:

As this is on the way to Kyela, border with Malawi, a lot of tourists travel this route and so the locals are used to haranguing wazungus (white Europeans) to part with their money for snacks and sodas on route. Gladly though, this time they seem to be less aggressive: maybe they’re beginning to recognize us as regular pass-throughers?! Arrive in Tukuyu around 4pm: not bad. Decide to try a different motel here too: enquiries during our 2^nd round of visits proved there were sometimes a few cheaper rooms (and therefore within our budget) available at the more luxurious Landmark Hotel, so we walked from the bus station up the hill with our backpacks to find out (phone calls having gone unanswered). Er, unfortunately, the cheaper rooms are now still double our budget (that’s quite a raise in prices!), and although we pointed out we would likely stay a week; return again in 3 months, AND be eating in their restaurant every night (and it most definitely did not look full), the manager/receptionist didn’t want to negotiate on price. So it was back to the trusty DM Motel for us (although no internet access here). At least it was downhill this time.

Mon 10^th & Tues 11^th Feb: working with the lovely tutors at Tukuyu TTC, and a good catch-up with the BC trainer there. Whilst at Tukuyu we heard that sadly a tutor had passed away who was at Mpuguso (where we planned to go next), and as such there would be very few tutors and certainly not the principal available for the rest of the week. We looked at re-jigging the schedule, even phoned one of the other colleges to see if it was worth swapping but they were also busy, so we decided to head back to Iringa on Wednesday and try and visit Mpuguso at the end of the trip instead. Maybe it’s just as well we didn’t push for a week at low rate at the Landmark…and the good news is that it is Carla & Wim’s 30^th Anniversary today (Tuesday) so they can at least celebrate it just one day late!

Weds 12^th Feb: 8.15am daladala to Mbeya, 11.30am bus to Iringa, arriving about 5.30pm with some new friends on the bus which made the journey more interesting!

Sun 16^th Feb: feeling decidedly worse for wear from food poisoning on Friday afternoon but expecting it to pass within a couple of days, we took the bus to Njombe at 6am and waited to be collected by the principal. He was kindly sending his own vehicle to come and get us, as the college car was at the workshop (likely never to return by the sounds of it!). Still, while we waited at Njombe bus station looking around, there were 2 absolutely gorgeous girls that I had to photograph who got very shy about smiling for the camera:

Once on our way, a previously 1hr 15min journey took 3 hours this time, and that was using a 4WD:

Arriving at about 4pm, thankfully we rested for a while before being treated to rice, chicken, greens, and fruit at the college for dinner. One of the best things about visiting Tandala is the remoteness of it and the stunning surroundings. However it also means no internet OR phone access, unless you stand on a particular spot on the driveway (with Vodacom anyway), but that’s why we call it our place of retreat.
 

I also observed another interesting lesson where a tutor had her students playing a round of ‘teacher says’ (like ‘Simon says’):

Mon 17^th & Tues 18^th Feb: working with the lovely tutors at Tandala TTC, followed by a visit to the BC trainer in her newly-finished and very welcoming accommodation for afternoon tea and home-made mandazi (like doughnuts): I managed to eat one of those…delicious!

Weds 19^th Feb: a very rough journey back to Njombe (but still very grateful for the lift!) and at 10am onwards to Songea, on a bus resembling something that would transport prisoners with the windows very tiny and high up. However, we made it safely to Songea in just 4 hours, and again thankfully retreated to the hotel for a rest and preparation before our next college visit early the following morning. (I still wasn’t feeling great.) Couldn’t get online to check mail, but I could at least have a bath with hot water running from the tap, of all pleasures, and one NOT to be underestimated!

Thurs 20^th & Fri 21^st Feb: working with the lovely tutors at Songea TTC, and even took part in the interviews and announcements of the Student Council elections, which was a nice treat.

Sat 22^nd Feb: 6am bus Songea to Mbeya, then daladala back to Tukuyu, and back at the DM and no internet access, but once again gorgeous surroundings with bright flowers blossoming everywhere thanks to the rain (and Tukuyu is the wettest place in Tanzania as it is!):

Mon 24^th & Tues 25^th Feb: working with the lovely tutors and BC trainer at Mpuguso TTC.

Weds 26^th Feb: lift to Mbeya (what a relief to have use of a car! Asante Mama Dorothy!) and then 11.30am bus to Iringa. Seats right at the front made for a nice view of the journey, although I think I was sitting directly above the engine as I was roasting away. Nevermind! Made it back home and walked through the door at 6.45pm.

Thing is, I’m now so exhausted from the travel I don’t have the energy to follow up with new friends. We still need to work at our base college here in Iringa, then type up the zonal report as well as follow up with the college reports and prepare for the next visit. Before I know it we’ll be back out on the road again for our 4th visit for another month, without enough time at any one of those places to really establish a friendship or spend time with anyone. With no teammate/housemate here and my boyfriend 2 days’ travel away, it can get quite lonely. That might be one of the hardest things to contend with on this project.