Quantity or Quality for Maasai and Samburu Education - can both be achieved?

I remember breathing a heavy sigh in our first year here when I realised the community wanted a new school... and I had thought we had our hands full supporting the existing government Primaries to improve their standards.  Did they  really NEED a new school? In the first year of opening 180 pupils had registered in the new Ngabolo Primary and 5 years on there are 400 pupils. Presumably Ngabolo has met a need for those 400 kids. Certainly some of these pupils have transferred from other schools, but the numbers in those schools have remained fairly constant with a slight growth.  Fair to say that the majority of pupils would not have been accessing education without Ngabolo Primary.  Last year we realised we had to begin again - by registering Nkiloriti Primary, for pupils unable to travel the distance to Ngabolo. Thankfully  (for our budget at least) this will be a less meteoric  rise in pupil numbers as the community there is smaller. At the same time we realised that we had now to build and finance the beginning of a cheap Day Secondary School...or else many of the Primary graduates would be left hanging: in the first year Kimanjo Secondary took in 29  of the poorest students... but this year it is prepared for 50...It is fair to say that NONE of these students would have gone on to secondary education without this new school.

2012 begins with our campaign to get more bottoms on seats; particularly in the samburu communities who currently do not access education as well as the Laikipiak Maasai. We have monitored the dropout in the Samburu nurseries, affecting the girls primarily, who do not proceed  to  Class One in equal numbers to boys. We are assisted in this campaign by the education department’s new and sensible 2012 campaign to stop children being held back  to repeat classes to raise their tests scores, as has traditionally been the case,  . That policy inevitably led to a high drop- out rate, especially for adolescent girls found to be in classes with much younger pupils. Crunch time: This focus on more kids starting school and on preventing drop-outs along the way will inevitably put more pressure on school quality.

What to do? Of necessity to continue to take a holistic approach to education. In order to get bottoms on seats the usual ‘incentives’ are offered.. uniforms is a major incentive here- as are footballs ! But the main way is (of course?!) education... educating families to see the value of education through the local Chiefs  and  Head-teachers, and through our Liaison Officers  and Health Workers (for education means better healthcare access) visiting each manyatta in turn.  And this intervention is virtually free (... can breathe a sigh of relief on that one then)... but how to keep up the quality of this education when government funds remain so small?  No magic solutions. Every community across the developing world is different, there is no one size fits all approach. Even here we have to monitor the differences carefully between the Maasai and  Samburu ranches and we must continue to rigorously collate data. The  solution paying the greatest dividends so far, is to identify our strongest and most dedicated Teaching Assistants to send for Teacher Training, is paying dividends. Whilst the training itself is affordable, we do, then have to pay larger salaries for them on their return, making a hefty increase to our ongoing teacher salary budget.  A constant classroom building programme is also essential, and very expensive.  Quality education needs classrooms of a reasonable standard. A water programme is also essential. School feeding is an important human right but our (admittedly very patchy) data does not show us that it adds significantly to attendance or test scores. Textbooks, electricity, computers,  desks, and resources are also important but  not as significant as other interventions.

Perhaps not surprisingly, the most significant factor for improving schools, after improving teacher numbers and teacher training is to have good Head teachers. The best of the Head teachers that we work with would compete very well with the best Head teachers anywhere in the Developed  world- and what Head teachers in the developed world  would work so enthusiastically for  a 14 week term, beginning at 7.30am, with no mid-term break living in remote and very basic conditions where you are lucky to get one bucket of water per day?  They have a huge management role, with no secretarial  or bursary assistance,  in addition to a heavy teaching commitment, and they work on a daily basis with illiterate parents to encourage, reassure, and assist them in getting their children to perform well.  Kenya, taking too much from its former Colonial Master , the UK, is assessment driven -still valuing test scores above all. But all the great Head teacher that we have the privilege to work with put as much focus on school ethos, pupils with Special Needs, individual student counselling, sport, school feeding, dance and drama and after school activities as they do on academic work. We are very privileged to work with them. It is these dedicated Head teachers who will have a bigger impact on raising quality in Kenyan education than any other single intervention we can make. 

Its never to young for a school uniform.. or a school book... the simpler                   interventions! Christmas Day Party for Nkiloriti Nursery children!

Education For All - a route to a future

In 2007, Kibaki's government promised free Secondary Education, following on from the universal free primary education policy rolled out in 2002. It has yet to be successfully implemented. The aim to provide children from poor backgrounds with fair access to education has been hindered by a lack of both government funding and government will. Without deviating from the topic into Kenya's issues surrounding corruption and tribalism, it is safe to say that a remote Maasai community, such as that around Ol Lentille, was never likely to be high on the list of priorities.

 

Consequently, many children from rural areas such as this have been unable to access secondary education. Primary education is often a struggle- there are no fees, but families are still required to supply uniforms, some books, there is often no food at school and in times of impending drought, pastoral families may move to better areas, or the father may be away with cattle, forcing children to stay home to look after the small livestock. Furthermore, with no electricity, water and firewood to collect, and parents who often did not have formal education, doing homework becomes impossible, meaning children from rural areas often struggle in school.

In the Lentille area, we have recently constructed a classroom, kitchen, latrines and store as the beginning of Kimanjo Mixed Day Secondary School. There is a fantastic teacher, Mr. Silanke (completing his B.Ed simultaneously), and a teaching assistant. The government are sending a headteacher (government partnership being at the heart of all our programmes to reduce aid-dependency). We are currently raising funds for a teacher/admin block and Class Two to allow the current crop of 25 Form 1 pupils to continue their education in 2012 and another form to be admitted. The next nearest schools are at Oldonyiro and Dol Dol, both of which are a public-transport ride or long walk away (several hours) and so children from Lentille area would have to board. This expense, on top of fees (which are high at the unsubsidised Dol Dol) is simply impossible for many families. At Kimanjo, costs are low, contributing only for lunch and the askari (security guard). This amounts to approx £25 per term and no child will be turned away for lack of fees.
In a letter to the primary donor, Mary, a Form 1 pupil wrote:

"Thank you for this golden chance, I could not have got education otherwise and would sit at home or become married. I now dream of becoming a secretary or a teacher when I finish and am a proud girl with my secondary education"

Jeremiah went one further with his ambitions- this is the sort of hope that this opportunity inspires in these youngsters:

“When I heard that the school was going to be built my heart melted with joy like butter exposed to direct heat. I want to be a politician and I promise that I will not be corrupt. All drug traffickers and corrupt politicians will rot in jail. I will fight hunger and poverty and kick HIV, malaria and cancer out of Kenya. I will work extra hard to make all of this come true”

So, why secondary education? Corruption and nepotism mean that the kenyan government are coming up short in several areas, so what made us focus on this for 2011? It is an extension of our support for Primary Education and Quality of Teaching and Learning, where we support 7 government primary schools with extra teachers, teacher training, resources etc., and we believe secondary education is crucial for the social, economic and political development that community members are striving for. Importantly, the decision to open a secondary school was taken by community members, including Kijabe Group Ranch chairman and Primary school head Mr. Monto, in partnership with the Ol Lentille Trust, and a lot of awareness raising and support gathering was done in 2010. It is a real community initiative, and here is why...

The Millenium Development Goals are an overview of the most important aspects of global community development. They specify Universal Primary Education (UPE) as a target for 2015 (Goal 2), but do not mention secondary education. However, it has been shown that secondary education feeds into many of the other MDGs.

Goal 1: Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger: Secondary education gives kids more opportunities in life including better chances at employment/higher income, better knowledge of how to access services and justice systems, and confidence/ability to interact in community and political systems, thereby increasing their potential to advocate for more services/food/development in their area.

Goal 3: Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women: education fosters confidence, knowledge and therefore empowerment. The more girls that can access secondary education, the more equal society will become. In order to improve access to education for girls, costs must be driven down so families can afford not to have to choose between children. Educating boys further in subjects such as social science also allows them to have an informed opinion on gender equality, and education often means access to more developed communities/cosmopolitan towns and cities where gender equality may be higher on the agenda than in rural areas. Educated women are far more likely to send their daughters to school. It is amazing to see the impact education has on Maasai girls' ability to participate in society as much as the men do.

Goal 4: Reduce Child Mortality Rates: This has been empirically proven by UN statistics- a mother with secondary education has 50% less chance of her child dying before the age of 5 than a mother with no education. Education also improves family and child nutrition, reducing incidence of malnutrition or disease and strengthening immunity. Secondary educated women are far more likely to immunise their children and seek medical care when necessary. Healthcare provision often has a huge stigma in traditional communities. The photo shows our healthworkers carrying out nutrition assessments in the community.

Goal 5: Improve Maternal Health: Again very well shown by UN stats. In the Ol Lentille community, Female Genital Mutilation was at a rate of 95% up until 18 months ago, despite being illegal. Now, girls with a good primary education and the prospect of secondary are choosing to say 'no' to FGM and pick an alternative ceremony instead. They see an alternative to early marriage, conforming to dangerous tradition and having many expensive children, as they believe further education can provide a better life for themselves and their children. It is estimated that each year of secondary schooling reduces fertility rate by 10-20%. The average primary school leaver in the Lentille community will have 4 children, for a woman with secondary education this falls to two. Secondary educated women are more likely to use appropriate contraceptives and seek pre and post-natal care. "It is estimated that an additional year of schooling for 1,000 women helps prevent two maternal deaths." (World Bank, 2009)

Goal 6: Combat HIV, Malaria and Other Diseases: As previously stated, education improves chances of appropriate access to health services. HIV, TB, malaria and hygiene are also key parts of the science curriculum in both primary and secondary school in Kenya, so the more kids are taught, the more likely they are to be able to prevent themselves from contracting diseases. Educated kids are more likely to access contraception, and are more likely to understand the economic and social impacts on communities and countries of pandemics such as HIV. Educated girls are less vulnerable, more able to say 'no' to sex and 'yes' to contraception, reducing HIV spread through extra-marital relations etc.

Goal 7: Ensure Environmental Sustainability: secondary education provides kids with the chance to integrate into a wider community, through ICT (including in Kimanjo secondary), teachers from cities with global knowledge and a well developed curriculum. This means they are exposed to global debates on things such as climate change. Children in Kimanjo Secondary are particularly exposed to this, since their school would not exist without the amazing conservation efforts of their community (conservation supports tourism which attracted the major donor to the school and provides the surrounding group ranches with a consistent income from bednights, conservation fees and rent from the investor/managers). There are wildlife/conservation clubs and the Solomon and David, KPSGAs (Kenya Safari Guides) impart their knowledge on environmental issues. The school is solar powered and rainwater collection is a primary concern. The children are sensitised to these issues and the importance of sustainable development, in the hope that they will advocate for 'green' ideas throughout their futures.

So, you see, Secondary Education is of utmost importance, particularly to the girls of Lentille and the girls and boys who would not otherwise be able to afford to continue schooling. These sorts of local community schools are key to providing education to as many of the poorest kids as possible, as the central government is financially unable and politically unwilling to become more involved in these communities.

If you'd like to support the cause, go to www.justgiving.com/teamlentille3p or for more information, download the '3 peaks info pack' from http://www.ol-lentilletrust.org/ which is packed with info about the programme, the charity and how you can get involved.

I'll leave you with a quote from Josephat, one of the Kimanjo students:

“When I finish my education I would like to be President of my country, so that I will be able to build more educational buildings for the poorest children like me, so that everyone will be able to learn just like me. Thank you Charlie and I hope that when you read this work of my brain you will be as happy as Sandyboy [I think he means the Sand Man]”