Teaching the teachers

Teachers are very hard to come by in South Sudan.  In Nimule, there was a huge drain of qualified teachers to the refugee camps in Uganda early on in the current civil war.  They were enticed by the high pay offered by a major international NGO.  There is no sign that they are going to come back in the foreseeable future. 

These teachers are not being replaced as there is a lack of training facilities across the country.  To tackle this, the Ministry of Education allows secondary school leavers to teach at primary level.  The South Sudanese curriculum ends at Senior 4, the equivalent of GCSEs, so most teachers are complete novices.  This applies to all primary schools in the whole country, apart from Dinka areas where the required level is even lower. 

Since starting Cece Primary School we have tried on our own to help our teachers to learn how to teach while teaching at the same time.  However, they come with their own school experiences.  They tend to model their behaviour on their former teachers’ behaviour.  This includes corporal punishment, teachers spending most of their time in the teachers’ common room when they are supposed to be teaching, regular lateness and absence while moonlighting at other schools.  Another general issue is absence due to funerals, which are vastly extended and can mean that we don’t see a teacher for several weeks.

One way in which we try to address this behaviour is by expecting our teachers to sign a contract which includes a ban on corporal punishment and taking another job at the same time.  When the contract is broken, the teacher has to leave.  Unfortunately this is a very regular event.  We also deduct pay for absence which is not agreed.  However, this is not working.

It is remarkable that in spite of these problems we still manage to get far better educational results at Cece Primary School than at the other local schools.  I believe this is partly because my own, and the school governing body’s motivation is the education of the children.  To this end we emphasize literacy, which doesn’t even feature in the official South Sudan Curriculum.  Most other schools are run as money-making concerns with little or no care for the children’s education.

We have been racking our brains for a solution, and finally it has arrived.  A few months ago, I heard of an organisation called Solidarity with South Sudan.  This is a Catholic organization which is seeking to stabilize the country through training in various areas, such as sanitation, health and education. 

Our school management team, Mohammed (centre)
and his sister and her child.

about an organization called

I contacted them and asked if they would be able to assist Cece Primary School.  Their response was very positive.  Although they do not intervene in individual schools, they have a teacher training college in a town called Yambio where they have offered us places for two teachers to attend a two year training course.   They suggested that we send two teachers each year, so that our school can gradually achieve a full staff of trained teachers.

However, when they sent me the documentation, including a Code of Conduct that must be signed by all trainees, it became clear that they have exactly the same experience of teacher attitudes, as I have described above.  We thought about each of our teachers and realized that currently only one, a teacher called Mohammed Hafish, would be capable of fulfilling their expectations of finishing the course successfully. 

Mohammed Hafish, our first teacher trainee

Mohammed was educated in Uganda, where he was a refugee.  Ugandan standards are far higher than those in South Sudan.  He is very pro-active and even quietly organized football training and a friendly match without being asked.  Best of all, he is one of the first teachers to arrive each morning and doesn’t have to be pushed into the classroom.  He very ably assisted me with the school registrations in the last two weeks.

Solidarity with South Sudan has accepted him and he is currently on his way to Yambio.  On our part, our school management team has written a contract for him so that he is bound to teach at our school for at least three years on his return, on a higher level of pay than previously to reflect his training. 

Solidarity with South Sudan has their own sponsorship network, so we do not have to pay for his studies or his board and lodging.  Mohammed will however need to buy personal necessities.  We have agreed to pay him a monthly amount equivalent to half his usual salary.  I advised him to open an account in Yambio and keep as much as possible untouched so that he is ready for any unexpected expenses, in case of illness etc. 

As you can see from my description of the teaching environment in South Sudan, we are in urgent need of properly trained teachers in order to raise our teaching levels.  We hope that every year we will be able to send at least one, possibly two teachers, for training for two years.  This will greatly increase our capacity in the long term.  However for the next few years, we will be paying half salaries for teachers who are not present and will need to replace them to keep the school running.

Would anybody be willing to sponsor Mohammed?  

The cost per year will be £160.00.  I am happy to send gift aid forms to anyone interested.  My email address is rebeccamallinson1@hotmail.co.uk.  It is also now possible to make donations online through VirginMoney Giving.  Please be aware that it is necessary to put ‘Cece Primary School’ in the comments box, as Opportunity through Education also collects funds for other causes.  Virgin Giving charges a hefty admin fee on large donations, so please send direct to Opportunity through Education if you are considering sending over £1,000.