Education

'If real development is to take place, the people have to be involved' 

 - Julius Nyerere

The first 7 years of education are compulsory in Tanzania and ‘free’ for all students. However, there are large discrepancies between enrolment rates and school attendance. There is also a noticeable difference in rural and urban communities, nearly a quarter of all children aged 7 to 13 in rural Shinyanga have never attended school.

Secondary school education is not compulsory and all students pay some level of fees to attend. Fees can range from €20 to over €5000 per year. In a society where the average person lives on less than €2 per day, these costs are often prohibitively expensive. All secondary school subjects in Tanzania are taught in English (with the obvious exception of Swahili). Official state (NECTA) exams taken at the end of Form 2, Form 4, Form 5 and Form 6 are carried out in English.

A number of reports have been carried out relating to education in Tanzania, and include information relating to Shinyanga:

• 52% of people in our city are illiterate.
• The gross enrolment rate in ordinary level secondary schools is 44%. However in rural areas that figure is closer to 8%.
• Enrolment rates are much lower for higher level secondary education; with gross enrolment at 4.4%.
• 61% of students who sat the Form 4 NECTA exams in 2013 failed.
• In our region, 47% of households are located within 30 minutes of their nearest primary school. Only 4% of households are located within 30 minutes of a secondary school.
• One of the prominent challenges facing education in Shinyanga is a lack of teachers. In Shinyanga, there are 71 pupils for every teacher. Class sizes in our school range from 39 to 55.
• Further challenges include varying levels of proficiency and qualifications amongst teaching staff.

We are working with Bishop Nkola Secondary School in Shinyanga; a mixed boarding school run by AICT (Africa Inland Church Tanzania). Bishop Nkola Secondary School was started in 2009 and currently has 280 students. A quarter of places in the school are subsidised and set aside specifically for girls from surrounding villages who would otherwise be unable to go to secondary school.

Lack of Facilities and poor access to resources is a continuing problem for schools in Shinyanga. Our school has 4 pit latrines and 2 water storage tanks. When these tanks run out, students walk to a nearby pump with buckets to retrieve water for cooking and washing.

In our school, students do not have a common text book and so classes can become confusing with students referencing an example or definition found only in their publication. There are no photocopiers, computers, laminating, printing or internet facilities on site and power cuts are a regular occurrence.

Library Development is one of the ways we are trying to combate the 'book famine' among students in Bishop Nkola. We have started a library committee and are trying to mobilise and engage the teachers and students in this process. Our library currently consists of 10 generously donated and much treasured books. We're looking to expand in the coming months!