The trip that will change your life

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Do you find yourself complaining about the photocopier jamming again? Or perhaps the appalling coffee in the staff room? Or the gridlock on the way into school?

We know that every school from the UK to Uganda has its problems and we would never belittle them. But we would like to invite you on a trip of a lifetime - a ten-day adventure to the rural primary schools Build Africa supports in Uganda.

It's a trip that will "touch the roots of your soul":

“As I scanned each classroom, the cramped, dingy conditions left me in a state of shock. Eighty six children, sardined onto wooden benches lined the room, and my mind began flashing up images of our spacious, vibrant classrooms with resources lining the perimeter of the walls. It was then that something happened that touched the roots of my soul.” Cara, a teacher (after visiting a Build Africa supported school in Uganda in 2014)

What's on offer

Build Africa’s ten-day trip to the rural primary schools it supports in Uganda will open your eyes and heart and change your life in all sorts of ways. And you will be able to make a huge difference to the Ugandan pupils and teachers you meet. Using your experience, knowledge and skills as a qualified teacher in the UK, you will inspire and be inspired by the attitude of pupils, staff and parents at Ugandan schools who operate with woefully inadequate resources but enormous enthusiasm.

Uganda in Africa - Click to enlarge
(Image: japanafricanet.com)

“I have seen parents taking real pride in their local school, particularly when they have come together to form their own schools, because their children would have had to walk over 15km to the nearest alternative. Fifty parents came to meet us to talk to us about their school. I would certainly like that kind of parental support at my UK school.”

There are so many benefits for you and the Ugandan schools you will visit. It’s a cliché, but it really is a win-win situation. You will be part of a group of like-minded, qualified UK teachers who will be there to share and enhance your experience. And our exceptional Build Africa Uganda team will accompany you throughout your trip and help you make the most of every opportunity to learn about this very different culture.

Making a difference

It is one thing to read about exposed and dilapidated classrooms crammed to the rafters with up to 150 pupils at a time, classrooms with no computers and not enough desks or text books, but it is a very different thing to experience it first-hand. It is something that will really hit home when you witness it for yourself, we can guarantee you that.

“As I stood in the shell of a brick-built classroom with the children sitting on the dirty floor, perched upon stones or having to stand at the back in order to see the handwritten lesson held up on the wall by a small piece of masking tape, I truly appreciated how incredibly lucky we are within our schools at home and just how much we take for granted.”

People often chat about ‘making a difference’ but never actually do anything about it. Well this is your chance to do more than just imagine what it would be like. It is an amazing opportunity to exchange ideas on teaching methods, to experience a completely different culture and witness the daily raft of challenges that Build Africa’s Ugandan schools face. Perhaps you will become an advocate for our work as a result. We certainly hope so.

A unique insight into another life

“At lunch time, the children whose parents have contributed towards it will eat a meal of maize and beans, but the majority of pupils in the school will forage amongst the mango trees for fruit and, failing success, go without food all day.”

You will be getting a unique insight into a very different world, but you will be surprised to find that in spite of all the obvious differences between the two countries (particularly in terms of resources), there are also many challenges in common. The long hours and heavy workload may be depressingly familiar, but that does mean that you will be able to share your experiences of these problems with the Ugandan teachers - like-minded professionals who are deal with the same day-to-day issues as you.

You will have helped improve the lives of schoolchildren in a desperately poor part of the world and that experience cannot fail to enrich you too. When you return home to your centrally-heated classroom with its internet access and a mere 30 pupils, you’ll probably still have gripes about your life as a teacher. Of course you will – you wouldn’t be human if you didn’t. But having witnessed first-hand the challenges in our Ugandan schools, hopefully your perspective will have changed and the little things won’t grate quite so much.

Your help would be enormously appreciated and one thing you are guaranteed of is a warm welcome:

“The headteacher was incredibly welcoming and clearly very proud of her school and the education that her team were providing. The children giggled as we shared photos with them. There is a massive culture of music and we were subject to many beautiful welcome songs.”

Where do I sign up?!

The Build Africa Uganda Trip is self-funded, but by raising your own funds for the trip you not only help us to continue our vital programmes within Ugandan schools, but also those who sponsor you or help you raise funds for the trip will hear about and have an emotional investment in both your trip and our work.

Details of this once-in-a-lifetime trip are available on the Build Africa website, but if you have any further queries whatsoever, please contact the trip organiser, Deirdre Bruce-Brand on 01892 519619 or email deirdre@build-africa.org.uk and she will be happy to talk through any questions.

So what was it that touched the very roots of Cara’s soul – our teacher quoted right at the start of this article? We’ll let her finish the story: 

“In spite of all the deprivation, the deeply upsetting lack of resources and the 86 pupils crushed together in the shell of the classroom, the man teaching the class transmitted his love of learning to the children through his voice, facial expressions and hand gestures. Every child was engaged and then without warning, on a signal from their teacher, they turned to me and sang the most moving song of welcome. In the sea of little faces turned up towards me, I could see the light of hope in their eyes, but also something else, the fear … the fear of hunger … of a life of constant struggle, and I was moved to tears. I knew, I for one, would never be the same again and I was so glad I overcame my fears and came on the trip.”

So if you have a spirit of adventure… if you would want to escape the same old, same old… if you are ready for a profoundly rewarding experience that will change your life and the lives of those you meet, then please don’t hesitate. Get in touch with us and together we will get you started on the trip of your lifetime.

That staff room coffee will never taste the same again!

All images © Build Africa unless otherwise stated

Continents apart: Training new teachers in the UK and Africa

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Merv Lebor and Dr Paula Green used to work together teaching English as a second language in centres in inner city Leeds in the mid-1980s. Both now work as teacher educators – Merv still in Leeds, Paula in Malawi and South Africa. Here they discuss preparing teacher trainees for working in literacy classes in these two very different contexts.

Image: university.which.co.uk

Merv: So Paula, how do you prepare trainees in South Africa for entering the classroom for the first time? Are they quite nervous about being alone with the students?

Paula: My experience over 20 years in South Africa has been almost totally in in-service teacher training and support. The attitudes have obviously been diverse and broad-ranging but I would say that on the whole, teachers have been keen to learn strategies for teaching early grade literacy. It is often the least experienced teachers who are allocated to the lower classes, yet teaching children to read is complex and more difficult than teaching young people who have already grasped the skill. Does this have any resonance for you in your context?

Merv: My work is also in-service, mostly in West Yorkshire, helping trainees get their PGCE or Cert Ed while they are teaching older students literacy or other subjects. Trainees are working in a wide range of institutions, but we are finding that one of the greatest barriers to learning is the attitude of students. Our trainees often have to cope with disruption, distractions from mobile phones or just a lack of engagement in the subject. What are the main barriers to learning for your teachers?

Paula: In my experience, class sizes can range from 30 to 80 in South Africa, and in Malawi where I work at present, because of the success of strategies to get children into schools, they are regularly in excess of 100 students. So one of the main barriers is of course class size, but also where classes are this large, there are often no or few resources, with children seated to learn on the floor. 

Cell phones, ha-ha! Though having said that, cell phone ownership is widespread in both rural and urban areas here, and SMS messaging is increasingly being seen as a means of reaching teachers in remote areas for follow-up development and support. The only stumbling block is the cost of calls.

Merv: Our disruptive students are sometimes just disengaged from the learning process... it is not to do with numbers. I have observed classes of just eight students with a teacher and support worker in the room where considerable disruption was taking place, including ripping up of fellow student’s work, shouting out, some physical tussles, occasional violence and a general refusal to carry out tasks. Students were sitting in a small, windowless computer room with a table in the middle. They were supposedly doing literacy skills, but a couple had mobile phones and were engaged in calling friends… Needless to say, the session was later thoroughly dissected in the training class and the trainee had to be re-observed. 

But how do you prepare trainees for going into sessions? 

Image: learningspace.wayoafrica.com

Paula: The training takes the form of workshops, lasting two to five days at a time. The training that seems to be most successful in terms of translating into changed classroom practice focuses on a specific methodology in which teachers are trained. If the training is good, it involves group work and many opportunities for micro-teaching, both with participants role-playing as learners and sometimes with real learners. 

There is debate about the fact that this type of lock-step training fails to address knowledge development with regard to underpinning theories of literacy pedagogy. However, I have found that where training is more theoretical or not tied to a specific methodology, teachers are less able to apply what they have learnt in a general context. 

Merv: What is ‘lock-step’?

Paula: A ‘lock-step’ methodology is one which is controlled by the teacher, with responses from the learners. The feature of lock-step occurs not only in the classroom methodology, but also in the teacher training. We give teachers five days full-time training on how to implement the methodology – the training focuses more on implementing the methodology than on the underpinning theories. 

The most traditional teaching situation associated with a teacher-controlled session is ‘lock-step’, with all the students doing teacher-directed work, mostly at the same pace, engaged with the same activity.

Merv: But what about student-centred learning? How do we know whether students have internalised anything?

Image: www.unesco.org

Paula: When I first went out to South Africa in 1993 and first encountered this ‘lock-step’ type of training, I was not impressed, and found it very limiting. However, over the years, and now with a more nuanced understanding of the context, I realise that a highly scaffolded approach is appropriate for the context. Confident teachers can interpret and adapt a methodology, while less confident and competent teachers are given clear and definite guidelines as to how to implement what and when. 

When this 'recipe' approach is followed and teachers see improved learner performance, they then become more confident and ultimately able to deviate from or adapt the 'recipe'.

The context which you describe is almost 180 degrees different from the one in my experience. It’s interesting to note that both are described by the same term, ‘teacher development’. One feature though I think is probably the same in both instances is that there are challenges. And that to surmount these challenges the teacher needs the commitment to, and also I think love of, the young people they are working with. Would you agree?

Merv: The content of our training for in-service teachers is a focus on theories and practice of learning – which includes Humanist, Constructivist and Behaviourist approaches – then we tend to look at legislation, inclusivity, assessment and analysis of individual learners. Trainees also write a series of essays on curriculum and professional practice, keep reflective journals, undergo observations, lead actual lessons and attend a specialist conference. 

The students come to us one day a week for two years where the central concern is supporting them in their current teaching role and discussing how theory relates to what is happening in their classes. We often explore what is going on in their classes in terms of difficulties and challenges and how can these be met. Quite often, we look at case studies of what has happened to individual teachers during that week and then the class acts like a support/focus group trying to help resolve that trainee's difficulties.

I find this is a brilliant way of creating a supportive, non-competitive environment in the class, but can also operate as a safe place where trainees can work through problematic aspects of their role under supervision, but also role-play difficult situations until the trainee feels confident enough to go back into the situation and re-face a difficult or challenging class.

‘Love’ of the students or young people we are dealing with usually doesn't particularly come up in an overt way because we are very aware of emotional boundaries. However, feelings of empathy, warmth or trying to enter imaginatively into the world of the trainees and their students is critical – commitment is crucial. 

But how do your trainees cope with knowing individual students in classes of 100 pupils? It would be really useful if you could describe what happens in these classes where there are so many students. How does the teacher check that there is learning going on?

Image: www.africaclassroomconnection.org

Paula: Firstly, these are very young learners, and so they are crowded into a fairly small classroom, which means that the teacher's eye can quite easily be cast over the whole class, seated as they are either on the floor, or jammed three or four to a desk. 

The teachers are unsung heroes indeed, because most of them do manage to maintain a modicum of order in the lesson and in most cases, most learners remain mostly engaged. Of course, in a class of this size, there are always some learners who are either not following because they don't understand or because they are bored, or possibly hungry. 

Most of the teaching is lock-step, following a particular literacy methodology. The lesson is pretty much teacher-directed, with a great deal of chorusing and whole class echo reading, where the teacher reads a phrase then the learners read the same sentence.

Merv: We no longer use chorusing here. Even primary school classes involve teacher instruction, but then young people work through reading or workbooks and often research projects themselves individually on computers. There is also often circle time or facilitated discussion, depending on the age or level of students for expressing themselves.

Paula: By way of contrast, I see the value of prescribed programmes highly centred on lock-step methodology. This is because teaching learners to read is complex. It requires an understanding of reading pedagogy, an ability to reflect and evaluate the impact of one’s teaching, and to make adjustments accordingly. It also helps to have a variety of resources and a lot of reading material for learners to practise with. 

In South Africa, even now, the teaching of the early grades is often seen as less important than upper grades, and so these classes are usually assigned to the least experienced students, or are even seen as a demotion by teachers who prefer to teach in the upper grades. So, in this context, the provision of a highly scaffolded programme that provides the script for the teacher and all the necessary resources makes a lot of sense. Weaker teachers benefit from following the scripting, and more competent teachers can use the scaffolding and amend or add as they think is helpful. 

The other benefit of the scripted approaches I have worked with, is that they are effective, and this raises teachers' interest and motivation, when they can see the positive impact of their efforts. 

Merv: Obviously, there is a completely different cultural and economic context between where you work and our assumptions of individuality and questioning that is supposed to underpin education in the UK. But how do competent teachers deal with students who can't keep up or are struggling? Here, theoretically we have support assistants or where resources available, extra classes. 

Image: read-teacherzone.blogspot.com

Paula: Competent teachers will have assessed learners and placed them in pace groups. (I don't like to use the term 'ability groups' as it is too much of a label for learners so young and new to school, i.e. a slower learner can easily become a faster-paced one and vice versa). He/she is then able to provide attention at least at the level of each group. This can take place on a daily basis if the class is of up to 50 learners in number, but for a larger group, the work has to be largely whole-class work and then differentiated group work only on one of the five daily lessons in the week.

Merv: Is there any sense that some students can be stretched? 

Paula: Certainly. The above method of grouping learners can ensure that all learners are stretched to their own capabilities. Even a less competent teacher who does not manage this, admittedly difficult in large classes, can stretch the brighter learners, possibly at the expense of the average and weaker ones, by focusing more attention, and pacing the lesson at the level of the brighter learners.

Merv: What do teachers do about students who are not concentrating or are disturbing other students? 

Paula: This very much depends on the level of competence of individual teachers regarding classroom management. I have seen some who are amazing at retaining involvement of all learners with quiet competence and others who shout a lot and still struggle to maintain order. At this stage, children really cannot concentrate for more than about ten minutes at a time, so able teachers vary the activity and intersperse activities with action rhymes and songs, which the children love.

Merv: Do teachers ever question students individually? 

Paula: Yes – those we have trained in more learner-centred methodologies are aware of the importance of asking challenging questions and getting learners to respond as individuals. Teachers who are more wedded to traditional transmission methods appear to ask questions but they may just be getting rote responses from the learners.

Merv: How do teachers know whether students have learnt what they are supposed to learn?

Image: ubelong.org

Paula: Teachers have different means of observing and assessing progress. There has been a lot of emphasis on formalising assessment in most of the countries in Africa that I have worked in, and a great deal of emphasis on methods of continuous assessment in the lower grades, which is supposed to be the prime means of assessing progress. That said, I think that a lot is still down to teachers' gut feeling, or professional judgement – which, if the teacher is experienced and able, is a valid albeit informal means of evaluating learner progress. 

In South Africa, the emphasis on assessment has taken the form of introducing Annual National Assessments (ANAs) of all learners in all grades. This has generated much focus on preparing learners for the types of tests they undergo in the ANAs and many teachers give their learners ANA-type tests. 

Merv: We have been through much similar written assessment via Standard Assessment Tests (SATs) at various stages, but now only aged 11 and then GCSEs later… In Africa, is this a written assessment or is it carried out orally?

Paula: The ANA is a written test only. There is also wide interest and implementation of an oral reading fluency test in many African countries. There are a range of versions of one-to-one tests but it generally involves letter sound knowledge, decoding skills, fluency and comprehension. 

Merv: You keep mentioning competent and non-competent teachers – what is the difference in this context from your point of view?

Paula: Gosh, that is a difficult question, though I realise I have been using these terms quite a lot. I would say that the indicators of a competent teacher of early grade reading are as follows: prepares well for sessions, displays effective classroom management skills, understands the underpinning theories of what has to be taught/learned, has teaching/learning objectives, uses appropriate teaching and learning materials, is a reflective practitioner (that is able to assess learning and adjust teaching accordingly) but most important, the teacher must have a love of teaching and the learners.

Merv: Yes, that sounds pretty comprehensive… I would probably add excellent subject knowledge, which the teacher can effectively communicate to learners so that they are engaged, can enjoy or explore their learning and if necessary, produce required tasks or assessment.

Anyhow, this has been a fascinating discussion of differences between systems and cultures. Many, many thanks. Good to speak to you again after all this time!

Operation Playground - Free resources to stimulate active learning

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Have your pupils create their own outdoor playground games with this series of free lesson plans from Canopies UK, all designed to encourage active learning and creative thinking skills. Then enter your children's best game into Canopies UK's national competition and stand to win a bespoke outdoor canopy for your school worth up to £10,000!

Research has shown that children respond better in the classroom when they are able to enjoy short bursts of exercise or take part in lessons that encourage active learning.

Active learning allows kids to think for themselves, work individually or in teams, engaging and challenging them to think about different situations enriching their learning. It can come in many varied ways, from collaborative activities to setting them tasks to do. It could even be just as simple as taking them away from the normal environment of the classroom and getting them moving around. This can provide many benefits for them, such as building key everyday skills like communication and teamwork, as well as helping to reinforce key messages or learning aims.

In an effort to encourage more active learning to be incorporated into lessons at a Key Stage 2 level, Darwen-based Canopies UK has launched an exciting new initiative - Operation Playground.

What is Operation Playground?

Operation Playground looks to combine both exercising with learning through five different activities, as well as spending more time outside, all within the realms of the national curriculum.

The project sees kids working together to come up with their own outdoor playground game, either based on a game that is played already, or one that is completely new. The only rules are that games must be:

• safe to play
• inclusive to all pupils
• able to be played outdoors.

Youngsters often have vivid imaginations and so the concept allows them to put that to good use by thinking about how they can not only create games but how they can improve games they play already.

To facilitate this, five lesson plans with associated activities have been written for teachers or PE co-ordinators to use. All lesson plans have been tied to key subject areas and objectives that children are expected to learn as part of the curriculum this year. This not only balances the fun element in the classroom but also ensures that there is a clear, educational reason for taking part.

What are the benefits?

The initiative aims to deliver an accessible class project that gets pupils active and outside. From Physical Education to ICT, Operation Playground can be used in numerous different ways to increase knowledge and build many every day skills that are now fundamental growing up.

Communication is a major factor in the initiative not only verbally but also from a written perspective. Pupils not only contribute significantly in responding to questions asked by teachers but also by talking to their peers, valuing the contributions of each other. 

The lessons ask children to input throughout to build and develop their ideas in a positive manner. It tests their ability to listen carefully to instructions, as well as think about how instructions can be improved.

It is tailored to deliver a fun and enjoyable lesson that lets the pupils do the work and makes decisions themselves.

They are then expected to use their ideas to play the games and think about them further. By playing games, it encourages students to take part in physical activity, while also making them think about how they can incorporate movement and actions.

Schools who have already participated in the project, along with those currently in the process of creating their entry ahead of the closing date of 28th November, have expressed how enjoyable the activity was and currently is for their pupils.

Extra perks

Image: Canopies UK

Aside from the classroom benefit, each school that takes part and submits their best game entry created by the children will receive a certificate for their classroom for taking part. This will hopefully provide a sense of pride for those pupils whose game has been selected as the winning entry.

On top of this, those submissions will then be judged by a panel to win an outdoor play canopy for their school worth £10,000, which includes design, installation and manufacturing from Canopies UK. 

With this being an initiative the whole school can participate in, it can not only help to develop a friendly competitiveness within classes as they look to get the best entry. But it can also lead to healthy rivalry between schools as each one looks to be officially named the best game created.

This all sounds fun – how do I take part?

Schools wanting to take part can visit the Operation Playground page at the following link: www.canopiesuk.co.uk/education/playground/.

On this page, teachers can download the full teaching pack, which contains all the lesson plans and activities, as well as going into more detail on how to complete the entry.

There is also a map where you can see the schools in your local area that have already downloaded the pack and are taking part in the initiative.

Terms and conditions for entry are included in the teaching pack and the closing date for entries is the 28th November up to and including 11:59pm. 

For more information or to register to join (and download those free lesson plans!), visit: www.canopiesuk.co.uk/education/playground/.