The time has finally come for our first scholarship students to really spread their wings and take flight into higher education–they’re university-bound! We are so proud of Tumsifu, Dibeit and Saidi for completing Form 6 and doing well enough on their exit examinations to join universities in Tanzania.
Tumsifu and Dibeit at their Form 6 graduation ceremony.
Dibeit and Tumsifu are both interested in studying medicine. Their long-term goals are to become surgeons. In particular, they both shared their unique interests in maternal health care. It’s not surprising since they both come from small villages in Western Tanzania where the incidence of maternal and/or infant mortality are high. It has historically been difficult for women to get to the hospital to deliver their babies and when certain complications arise, even the best midwife loses patients. Fortunately, development is spreading in Tanzania, so transportation options are increasing from villages into town hospitals. Continue reading “University-Bound Project Wezesha Students!”
Happy Autumn to all of you! The leaves are turning in their brilliance here in Vermont, but back in Tanzania, rainy season is upon them – which means everything gets so lush and green!
Students are getting ready for their end-of-year examinations. Let’s just say there are some stressed students in our midst! These exams play a significant role in the lives of students in Tanzania – determining for some whether they will be able to attend secondary school, determining for others if they will continue to study at the secondary level, and determining for yet another cohort whether they will move from secondary school into high school. The stakes are high!
But in the spirit of Autumn, we’d like to celebrate that for which we are grateful. Lucas recently spent time traveling around and visiting some of our current students and their teachers to see how everyone is doing. Here are some highlights.
Ezekialshared his story with us. He said that he was born in 1997. He attended Mungonya Primary School in Kiganza, Tanzania and finished in 2012. He began secondary school in 2013 with the help of Project Wezesha and this year, he is completing Form 4. He is one of our high school hopefuls who will take the exam this month. We will get his results in December and find out if we can support him as he pursues studies through Form 5 and 6. Ezekial wants to be a doctor. He says that in Tanzania, many people die due to a shortage of doctors in the region. He wants to fill that gap and we want to help him do so!
Ezra
Ezraalso shared some thoughts with us. First, he says he thanks God because he was blessed to have a father who cares about him and education. When Ezra was young, he didn’t like studying. But his father gave him advice and highlighted the example of a cousin who did very well in school. With this cousin as a role model and his father as his mentor, Ezra studied with renewed enthusiasm. After his standard 4 exams, he was ranked second in his class. He was motivated to become the top in his class, so he studied even harder. Throughout the remaining years in primary school, Ezra was ranked first in his class. It was this ranking that landed him a spot in our scholarship program. He did so well on his O-level exams that he was sent to a boarding school in another region, where he studies Physics, Chemistry, and Biology. His dream is to become a doctor – with a rather specific focus on kidney problems. We love his focus and determination! He also takes his exit exams this month and we see a bright future in higher education ahead!
George
George, like Ezra, was inspired by a parent – but in this case, his mother. George saw how hard life was in the village and he saw how hard his mom worked to provide for him and his siblings. She encouraged him to study. He studied hard throughout primary school and succeeded in the exams to get into secondary school. His ranking as top of his class caught our attention. Life continued to be difficult for George through secondary school, however, because he had to walk a long distance. He later decided to move closer to the school – where he had to cook and care for himself. Fortunately for George, he did excel in secondary school – scoring high in Division 2 on his Form 2 exams. We expect an equally high result on his Form 4 exams in his track: Physics, Chemistry and Biology. George would like to be an Engineer, specializing in the Oil and Gas industry, and we’re proud of him for having tenacity and vision!
Prospective Students
As students graduate from our program, space opens for new students to join us. Lucas and our friend, Madaga – an amazing local educator – have started to visit local primary schools to scout for new students to join our program. They have created an assessment tool to do some initial screening. Once we get exam results from these recent Standard 7 graduates, we’ll be able to announce who is joining us. The photos of the young girls below are the faces of some of our potential new students. Join us in sending them hope as we await their results. We’ll soon let you know who will join us in January!
Asante Sana for all of your support. Please know that our work continues as long as there are children in need of education … i.e., forever! … or for as long as we have the capacity to do so. As you know, we can’t do this without donors who are willing to contribute to the cause. Now that secondary school fees have been waived by the president, we can focus on the critical costs of keeping students in boarding schools, buying text books, and funding support classes between terms.
Please share the work we do with friends and family (click the sharing buttons below) and of course, chip in when you can (click ‘Give Now’ here on our donation site). Let us know if you’d like to know more about how you can help.
With gratitude,
Rai Farrelly & Lucas Lameck
Co-Founders, Project Wezesha
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – talking to Lucas Lameck always puts the biggest smile on my face. Lucas is the heart and soul of Project Wezesha. Today, he updated me about the upward momentum for scholarship students in our program – students that you help support!
Here are some of the highlights:
Kiza and Hajira are rounding the bend in secondary school. This month, they will sit for their Form 4 Exit Exams. These exams are difficult and stressful and let’s be honest, most students are not well-prepared in village schools to take a national standardized exam. But we think Kiza and Hajira will do their best and lay out some nice options for themselves. If they do well, they have the choice to go on to high school. If they don’t pass, they can let us know what next steps they wish to take – and we’ll try our best to support them!
For some of our students who didn’t pass secondary exit exams, that next step was vocational school. This past year, our former student Diana graduated a program offered through the Vocational Education Training Authority (VETA). Now, using her newly developed clerical skills, she is working in Mwanga market as a secretary. Lucas told me today that she is so happy because she is making money for her family, who still lives in Kiganza village.
Amosi, one of our bright young students from Kiganza village also finished secondary school. He has since taken a job as a teacher in a nursery school (pre-school) in Tabora! We’re so excited that one of our graduates is a school teacher, and can only imagine what an impact he’s having on these cute little learners!
Several of our other scholarship students are still studying in Form 2 or 3, and a few of them are staying at the top of their class in their respective schools, including: Simoni, Ezra, George, Ezekial, and Rahma.
In December 2016, I’ll be traveling to Tanzania again. When I’m there, I’m hoping to meet with Saidi in Arusha and Tumsifu in Dar es Salaam to see how our first high schoolers are doing! I’ll also check in with Dibeit by phone (but by all accounts on Facebook, he seems to be doing well!). I have to say, knowing them from the time they were 10 and 11 years old in a village without electricity to now being their friends on Facebook while they live in cities and go to high school – well, it’s pretty incredible!
In 2008, when we started supporting students by paying school fees and mentoring them on their options, we figured we would help a handful of students. Thanks to your support, we’ve helped dozens and we hope to continue!
Please consider sharing this project through Twitter and Facebook (share buttons below!) and encourage friends to chip in. Funds pay school fees, buy textbooks, and pay for additional support (tutoring) between semesters to make sure they are coming in on level for the next term.
We are very proud to announce that as of Summer 2015, our three young men – Dibeit, Tumsifu and Saidi found out which high schools they will be attending starting July 18th. School assignment is based on secondary school exit exams, and the fact that these three are going all over the country speaks to how well they did!
Dibeit was selected to attend Mahiwa High School in the Lindi Region of Tanzania. He will study a PCB combination – Physics, Chemistry, and Biology. Tumsifu was selected to attend Kibiti Secondary School in the coastal region just outside of Dar es Salaam. He too will take on the ambitious PCB combination. Both of them have goals of becoming doctors! We’re hoping they excel in their high school program so we can continue to help them pursue university studies. Continue reading “Evidence of Impact – Sky’s the Limit!”
In 2011, three amazing young men – Tumsifu, Saidi, and Dibeit – began their studies as Form 1 students in Tanzanian secondary schools, with the help of Project Wezesha. In November, they all graduated!
Dibeit: Due to his excellent performance on the secondary school entrance exams, Dibeit was selected by the government to study in Dodoma, Tanzania at a boarding school. He studied hard and stayed focused, even though he was half way across the country from his family. He remained among the top of his class throughout these four years. Continue reading “From Students to Graduates to Teachers! Bravo!!”
Our next update is from Kagongo Secondary School. In August, Lucas and I went and visited with our new Girls Education International Form 1 students, and we also met with 6 of our current Project Wezesha students. These 6, Marieta, Olivia, Sango, Simoni, Mahamudu, and Ahmadi wanted to share with us some of the challenges that students are facing in the village schools.
In this video, they share their honest views on the situation. I admire their willingness to speak candidly and their ability to think critically about the roots of their problems.
Before you watch, I have to also be an advocate for the teachers, who come under harsh judgement by the students at times. In many cases, it’s true – the teachers are not performing at their best. The reasons for that vary from insufficient government support (large class sizes, no textbooks), to disenchantment with living in the village (they don’t get to choose where they work). Of course, other factors such as personality, motivation, and organization are likely contributors.
Two of our students mentioned that teachers come and go. The reality is that student teachers do come for their teaching practicum and internship on a short term basis. This seems to cause confusion for our students – understandably so. But, all student teachers do teaching internships. The key is to organize them well so that they compliment student learning and support existing curricula, not lead to disruption. But – this is work for another phase of our long term vision!
For now, please take a moment to hear what our students have to share. And remember, at the end of the day – they still choose education over no education, even if the reality of their situation is less than ideal.
Lucas and I are happy to share some wonderful news! Our amazing students, Hindu and Khadija graduated in November from their program at the Vocational Education and Training Authority (VETA). They began studying together two years ago and both pursued careers as administrative assistants.
Before they entered VETA, neither of them knew how to type or use computers. During this program, they have learned about shorthand, typing, using MicroSoft Office, communicating via email, and browsing the web for information. Each of them participated in two field placements (internships) in the Kigoma Region. Continue reading “Congratulations Hindu and Khadija!”
We hope everyone is doing well and enjoying the start of a new season! I know in Tanzania, everyone is very excited about the coming end to a long rainy season … ah, but of course – the water and vibrant green of the landscape during this season is so refreshing!
In Tanzania, our students actually start their school year in January (not August or September as in many parts of the world). So, they are in the early stages of a new school year. Nonetheless, the year is off to a race for some of them – namely Saidi, Dibeit and Tumsifu who are currently in Form 4. This means that these three very bright young men are rounding the bend in their secondary school experience.
They will take two mock exams this year and then in October, they will take the high stakes final exams to see if they qualify for entrance into high school (and we know they will!). At that point, we’ll have some big decisions to make and we hope you’ll join us in making them. Continue reading “Our Boys – Approaching Graduation”
Twice a year, Lucas makes his rounds to the various schools where our scholarship students attend. He checks in with the headmasters and teachers, he gets updates on our students, and he collects report cards. Like a proud but nervous baba and mama, Lucas and I wait in anticipation as the grades roll in. Well, Lucas has more of a wait as he has to sit there as the headmaster or secondmaster meticulously copies from the grade books into a report for Lucas. Subject by Subject, score by score, letter grade by letter grade, and then finally the average. (I just have to open the email and see all of Lucas’ scans.)
I’m not going to sugar coat it. Getting good grades in remote village schools is a challenge. You can view a chat on the topic with our students Hindu and Saidi here:
Here’s a quick refresher on the realities:
Secondary School teachers in Tanzania don’t generally want to be sent to the village schools. They are often trained in cities and large towns and hope to get an appointment there. For those who want to work in the village, they have a sense of committment to the children and communities. For those who would rather be back in the cities, it’s a struggle to show up every day with the energy and motivation to teach well. Why? (see #2)
Children in village schools are already at a slight disadvantage. Primary school teachers only have to complete secondary school, but are not required to pursue any further teacher education. Therefore, they are often underprepared to manage and promote learning well. Not to mention, one village classroom can have up to 100 students! (continued in #3)
Secondary school subjects in Tanzania are taught in English. Primary school is taught in Swahili. (Need I say more? I will.) Teachers sometimes don’t speak English very well, but they teach subjects in English. Students barely speak English when they reach secondarly school, and now they are learning all their subjects (e.g., math, history, physics, biology) in English. This has been well documented as ineffective in my field (Applied Linguistics) but, it’s a byproduct of colonialism, so we just have to wait it out. Soon, the GOV will hopefully embrace dual immersion in primary or bilingual approaches in secondary (still requires English proficiency in teachers).
Students don’t have books. Most village schools have one book – for the teacher. The students have no books. There is no electricity, therefore no copy machines (therefore nothing to take home and study besides what is copied into one’s notebook).
Families in villages have a lot on their plate – from supporting large families through subsistence farming and fishing to managing health issues with limited infrastructure. The women rely on the children in many ways – they help mind siblings, carry water, tend animals, prepare meals, clean, etc. So, school can, at times, take a backseat to the rest of life.
Does it seem like I’m preparing you for the worst?Well, in part – I am, but not completely.
Some of our students are not getting very good grades in their subjects. When they are selected to the scholarship program, we have them sign an agreement that states that they will maintain a certain grade average and if they fall below that average, they will receive tutoring for 4 months. If their grades don’t come up, they will unfortunately lose support.
Can Lucas and I cut anyone from our program?No. Does that make us bad ‘business people’?Maybe. But, I know that even when our students get an F or a D in their courses, it’s not because they don’t want an education. It’s not because they hate to study or go to school. Most of them wake at 6am and walk for up to (and sometimes over) an hour each way without breakfast or lunch. (I love that last part because it sounds like a ‘fly-in-the-eye’ campaign – i.e., an exaggeration to tug at heart strings. It’s just reality. I do the walk with them when I visit, and their capacity to storytell and sing the whole way there and back blows me away! I’m usually the one complaining about the heat, dust, distance.) They are failing and flailing due to no fault of their own. The system – it’s all about the system, no matter where in the world you look. So, until the system changes (and beyond) – we’ll stand by them.
But, the good news is – we have some shining SUPERSTARS in the group who show us the potential of a bright young child when given the right balance of support (i.e., financial, emotional, physical and familial) and determination.
So here are the highlights!! (i.e., the Good News) (Note on Curving the Grade Scale: American A = TZ village B; American B = village C; students are praised for receiving Cs and Ds)
Girls
Amina, one of our first year Form 1 students really blew me away! She scored a B in Civics, Geography, Physics, Chemistry, and Biology!! There’s no stopping her if she can keep this up! Bravo, Amina!
Rahma, another new Form 1 student, earned an A in English, B in French, and a C in History, Geography, Chemistry and Physics. She has quite the range of strengths!
Khadija was one of our first ever scholarship students. She graduated from secondary school and now studies at the Vocational Training and Education Authority. She is doing exceptionally well and has secured a B average and a rank of 3rd in her class. Her favorite subjects appear to be French and Computer Applications.
Boys
Tumsifu is one of our Form 4 students. His overall, cumulative grade average is B!! That is amazing, folks. His top subjects are Civics, History, Biology and Geography.
Simoni, a new Form 1 student, was sure to be a rockstar. Our intern Katy knew that about him the first time she taught as a guest in his class. Sure enough, quiet little Simoni secured an A in Civics, Chemistry, Biology and Swahili with a B in History and English. He has an overall B average!
Samiru, one of our new Form 1 students, had a very successful first year. He earned a B in Geography and a C in Physics, Chemistry and Math!!
George had an amazing first year with an A in Biology and English and a B in History, Geography, Swahili, Math, French and Chemistry! Way to go!!
Mussa, another new Form 1 student, rounded out his first year with a B in the following: Physics, Biology, and Chemistry!! Wow! Go, Mussa!!
Mahamudu also joins his Form 1 peers with a strong start, earning a B in Physics and Chemistry. (I’ll have to praise these STEM field teachers when I see them this summer!)
Ezekial, another Form 1 student, earned a B in History, English and Biology.
Albert held strong during his Form 1 year with a B in Civics and a C in Geography, Swahili, Biology and Physics!
And last but never ever the least, my best buddy since 2008 – Saidi!! Saidi moved from the village school in Kiganza last year to live with Lucas and attend a private school in town. His father wanted our support in that decision because the village school wasn’t keeping up with Saidi.
Saidi, as a Form 3 student, has earned an A in Math, Physics, Commerce, Swahili, and Beekeeping! He has a B in Civics, English, History, Geography, Chemistry, and Biology!! He is ranked 2nd in his class – in a big private town school! Remarkable!!
Wow – what an update! I wish I had more high grades to report, but you know – we’re really just proud of all of our students for continuing to get up every day and go to class. In fact, after recieving the reports, I emailed Lucas to find out why some of them were not doing so well. He went to their schools, met their teachers and conducted interviews. The findings: they wanted to be there, their attendance was good, their family support was in place, and they were having no problems at home. I can’t point a finger at the exact problem, but many factors are at play – student motivation and desire are NOT two of them. So, keep it up, kids!
Thank you so much to all of you for helping us keep them in school, in pursuit of their dreams. We’re in this for the long haul. You’ll know how they’re doing now and and down the road.
For now, there are three things you can do to help us:
Spread the word. Please share our website and Facebook page through your social media networks. Bring us up in conversation and let people know why this cause, among the many you could support, matters to you.
Build a Fundraiser. GlobalGiving makes it very easy to build your own fundraiser. Go to our project page, scroll down to just beneath the big Donate button; click on the little green fundraiser button and voilà! You can build a page for a wedding, holiday, sporting event, etc. You can personalize it and tell your friends why you want to help.
Donate. Of course, at the end of the day – Lucas and I are Project Wezesha and we just have to keep making the ‘ask’. If you have a little to spare, feel free to share. It goes a long way – literally and figuratively – to complete the amazing start to what you see in these pictures!
On Saturday, July 13th Lucas, Maiko and I made our way into Mgaraganza Village with Saidi and Albert, two of our students who stay in town. Our destination – Amahoro Secondary School. Our purpose – meet with the current students in our program to visit, chat, and take pictures.
Between 11a – 12p, the students showed up alone, in pairs, in small groups. Rahma and George trekked almost 2 hours on foot from Bubango Village. (I’ve done that walk in 1 hour, so I think they were sauntering at best.) When all were present, we were a group of 21 students plus Lucas and Maiko. A few of our students were not able to join us because they attend schools outside of the region (Iringa, Dar es Salaam, Dodoma and Tabora).
Starting out our visit, there were many greetings and introductions among the students so they could get to know one another. It’s nice to see this scholarship program bringing new friends together from neighboring village around the shared desire to continue their education.
Once everyone was together, we sat around one of the unfinished, shaded and breezy classrooms of the new school. Lucas invited them to ask questions and share views. Of course, the students I’ve known the longest were initially the most chatty. They provided some insights into the situations that most affect students here in Tanzania. One student shared that life for students is hard and that after school, there is no time to study. Her mother died a long time ago and now her father, who is elderly, is ailing. Hajira, therefore has a lot of work to do around the house to help her father and grandmother after school. This includes everything from tending to the animals, fetching water and firewood, and cooking.
Khadija, one of our long-time students who now attends VETA to study computers (having completed secondary school 2 years ago) noted that yes, life is hard and there is much work to do, but there is also the issue of students being lazy. She said there are plenty of times in the week when students are not working, times when they could be studying but they don’t. Of course, I know both cases to be true. The general apathy the adults can have toward improving their lives through hard work and creativity is shared by some of the students. It’s like there is no carrot hanging in front of them to keep them going from day to day, so they continue in life with a ‘day-to-day’ mentality.
Fortunately, several of our students are driven and highly value the opportunity being afforded them. Khadija will be taking a ‘field’ assignment near Kasulu in the fall where she’ll work as a secretary in an office to put her new computer skills to use. Diana has enrolled herself in a college, similar to VETA to also study computer and secretarial skills. Ismael and Kiza are aiming for Nursing School. They both have scores high enough in the subjects necessary for admission to a Nursing program near Kasulu. Lucas and I told them that now their responsibility is to find out all the information Lucas needs for us to proceed – application due dates, cost of tuition, and other details. We talked to them about initiative and encouraged them not to wait for Lucas or me to make suggestions and connections for them.
The usual woes of the education system emerged: shortage of teachers, teachers who don’t come to class, lack of textbooks, cost of school fees (for those out of our program), size of the class, low English language proficiency for subjects taught in English only, lack of breakfast that leaves them starving by noon and unable to focus, etc. If the Government could just make two major changes, education and therefore life in Tanzania would be dramatically improved: 1) make secondary school free and 2) adopt dual language immersion (Kiswahili and English) earlier in primary school or implement it in secondary school. The abrupt transition from education in Swahili to education in English is brutal and causes most failures. Now if only President Kikwete would listen to little ole me.
They also paired up and brainstormed some questions to ask me so that we could discuss other issues or so they could just pick my brain a bit. (Think-Pair-Share anyone? J) They asked me lots of questions – some requests for additional support, some requests for a field trip to Gombe or the Livingston Memorial, some personal Qs (Do you have children? Why not? Are you married? Why not? How old are you? – most guessed in the 20s, so that was nice. J), and then some social questions: Why is the US one of the most powerful countries in the world? In the US, is it true that man can marry man? And for you, what do you think of this? To the latter question, I was honest. I told them about my many friends who deserve equal rights to marry who they love. I talked about the states and countries that have legalized same sex marriage. I talked about the similarities with the Civil Rights movement and cringed a little on the inside as I explained to them how blacks in the US were not allowed to do so many simple things – ride a bus, attend a white school, enter a restaurant, etc. I told them about my uncle and his partner of 15+ years, showing them this is personal to me. And then, to put it in terms they could potentially relate to, I told them – if for some reason, God thinks this is not ok, let’s just let him be the judge when the time comes and not make it our business in the meantime. Of course, this last stance is the least congruent with my views but they appreciated it.
We took many pictures, wrestling them with words to get them to smile. Half of our pictures look like band album covers, others look like mug shots, but with a little effort, some jokes and even a tickle here and there, I was able to capture on camera the smiles I know well in person. After a long afternoon together, everyone was hungry (especially our Muslim students who are fasting for Ramadan). We said our farewells and I won’t see many of them again while I’m here; but it was great to visit with them for this one afternoon.
For more pictures of this visit and plenty of smile shots, visit our Facebook page and click on the album entitled: Catching up with Our Students 2013.
