Maseru, Quthing, Matsieng, Pitseng & Semonkong – Week 11

Less of the Literacy Leaping this week and more of Lesotho Teacher Placement Programming …we drove back to Quthing to check on the arrangements for the Welsh teachers arrival in January 2014. We visited all the host schools and showed them a video of the new teachers much to their surprise and excitement.

I squeezed in a quick workshop in Mahloenyeng Government Combined School in Matsieng on our way back to Maseru. A patient audience even though it was their last teaching day of the term.....hopeful that I can return next year to share more strategies with them!

On Friday we visited a Dolen Cymru funded project in Pitseng, the wonderful inclusive school, orphanage and orchard project that is Pelisanong. 

And finally we treated ourselves to a mini-break at visited Semonkong Lodge with a 3 hour walk to Maletsyane Waterfall. What a way to spend your Saturday and Sunday….even if there were golf ball size hailstones (and Volcano shooters)!!  

B,B,B,B,B Bouncing back to Maseru – Week 10

Leaving Qacha’s Nek was not as heartbreaking as last time as we all know I will return next year. Bouncing along the new road to Maseru via Semonkong was a treat but also an endurance test, I still can’t believe how beautiful this country is, even in the long awaited rain. Returning to the big city was great…… wifi, skype, halloumi and thieves (but that’s another story!).

My first week back in the big smoke saw me hire a car from my man Sam and leave pretty quickly and touch base with some Link schools in Leribe, Roma and Mafeteng.

I ran a mini-workshop in Lesaone Primary School in Leribe.....

An impromptu 30 teacher strong workshop in Roma Primary School.......

  and I was an unexpected VIP at a graduation ceremony for the Reception class in Kingsgate Primary School, Mafeteng…..so cute, even if they didn’t have a clue what was going on!!

Lesotho Literacy Leap Qacha's Nek support sessions – Week 8 & 9

Grade 1 - Hermitage Primary School

         After working with more than 250 teachers from the Quthing district we headed back to Qacha with more confidence and devotion to making this project work for them. On my own now I decided to do a number of support sessions in the schools we all worked in during the Lesotho Teacher Placement Programme 2013. 

After observing one of my colleagues teach an excellent Phonics lesson to her Grade 1, I confidently chose my “dream team” of 5 teachers who are going to become my Lead Literacy Teachers in 2015 and help train the teachers in the more rural areas of the district.

Grade 2 - Hermitage Primary School  

Grade 3 - Hermitage Primary School 

Grade 3 - Hermitage Primary School

St Josephs Primary School 

Grade 3 - St Josephs Primary School 

St Josephs Primary School 

Most Holy Redeemer Primary School

Grade 2 - Most Holy Redeemer Primary School

Qacha's Nek United Primary School

Grade 2- Qacha's Nek United Primary School

Qacha's Nek Government Primary School

I was also very fortunate to do some more work with my lovely students in Hermitage Primary School. Class 6 kick started my children’s book project… “A Swallows Journey” (of course!) by creating storyboards in pairs about the naughty Swallow and how they were going to help him escape from the mouth of  a hippopotamus! 

Class 5 decided to create group stories to document why the Swallows left Lesotho for the Winter and Class 4 finished their adventure by helping find their lost friends in a snow storm! Watch this space for more Swallow adventures as I get Welsh students involved.

Lesotho Literacy Leap to Quthing – Week 6 & 7

A windy, bouncy, rainy and misty journey to Quthing saw us very happy to arrive at our guesthouse and our lovely little rondavel studio flat, our home for 2 weeks. We dove straight into our first workshop at Mphaki Education Centre on Day 1 and were faced with 75 teachers curious and eager to hear what we had to say. Our co-operative learning strategies went down very well indeed as teams got very competitive throughout the day, but were spoilt after the “sheep” cheated, baaaaa! The Education Officer was very happy with our work however and promised the teachers and ourselves that they will fully support our initiative, especially due to the fact that Quthing is one of the lowest performing districts in the country.

Workshop 2 was in the Mount Moorosi area of Quthing it was a highly successful workshop after initial trepidation when the class of teachers did not look impressed or interested in our presence! After 10 minutes of singing and co-operative learning team building they were smiling and enthusiastic!! All tasks went well and all groups worked with full enthusiasm, even the Education Officers were taking part! Ntate Serutla was so full of inspiration and praise after the workshop we are fully confident we can really work closely with him to raise standards in the whole district.

Dalawe centre was our difficult third workshop where the venue had to be changed at the last minute and poor weather severely effected play. We had to cut out the co-operative learning part of the programme due to time constraints and difficulties with the group. By the end of the workshop most teachers had an understanding of our aims and objectives, but due to the delayed start many were tired and unable to concentrate. Participation during the workshop was average and learning not as evident as in previous sessions. Overall feedback was positive and many want to implement the strategies shown to them, but further support sessions will be needed as a matter of urgency.


 

An excellent workshop was held in Makaoe, way up in the mountains and where time forgot  with maximum interest and participation by all teachers attending. The EO did not stay however and sadly showed no interest in the content of our workshop. The teachers understanding of Phonics was good and evidence of teaching letter sounds was present in the school. Also one teacher was writing an assessment on Co-operative learning and was very happy to see the theory in practice.

     An extremely large workshop was our final one in Moyeni with excellent attendance, however in hindsight should have been split into two sessions on two separate days. Despite the cramped conditions and the heat the teachers were keen and participated well in relation to our Co-operative Learning strategies and Phonics content. They all are very happy to accommodate the visiting Welsh teachers in January and most seem keen to implement our training. 

Literacy r/u/r/a/l leaping –Week 5

Ok so Day 1 was not so rural as we had re-scheduled our last partner school Makhalong for Monday. The school with a 1000 faces and lots of Grade 1, 2 , 3 teachers!! Not the best response from them sadly, but they are the best performing school in the whole district and are obviously doing something right! The children’s Reading test was evidence of this as even Grade 1 were pretty knowledgeable. This is fantastic news for them, but a harder sell for us to try and persuade them to use more interactive teaching methods….especially that they do have 120 pupils per class!! We will keep trying!

Day 2 saw us travel out to Patlong, a village on the way back toward Quthing. Patlong Primary School is a beautiful school with a very committed Principal who was waiting for our very late arrival along with and a group of teachers from neighbouring schools, all ready and waiting patiently for us. A special moment for us today was when they greeted us in Welsh and sang a song we taught them last time! During the pupil assessment I asked a little girl what the sound of “th” was, realising she didn’t understand I pointed to my thumb and asked what it was and she replied “shap”…..which is Sesotho for “alright”!

Day 3 took us up the valley toward Sehlabethebe to Rankakala Primary School. A favourite of ours from last time, a very poor school with very limited resources but the most enthusiastic and child centered teachers we have met. We squeezed into the office to run the workshop on borrowed chairs, with teachers from 4 other schools. They were very responsive with the most caring approach to the Pupil assessment tasks so far. To see a teacher get a tissue for a child with a runny nose is a new experience for me, I kid you not! The children were very scared of us, but by the end they were waving and smiling like the town children.

Day 4 sent us back up the same rural, bouncy road to Tsoelike Primary School where we had to pick up teachers along the way as they had been told to attend the workshop the day before!! A typical communication error when working with the Education department! We got most of them there however after an initial delay and to a fantastic reception. Two teachers in particular were so happy with what we introduced, they were like children the whole way through and took over the Pupil assessment themselves!!

Day 5 took us back to our local schools for some follow up visits and general smiles and hugs. I had to say a teary goodbye to my Class 7 who are finishing Primary School next week after their Leaving examinations. I hope I will see them in their High Schools next year when I visit. 

       

We made a very successful link meeting with Makaola High School who will be partnered with Ysgol Uwchradd Llanfyllin, near Bala. We were mobbed and sang to at Qacha’s Nek United! We visited St Josephs Primary School to help make Phonics resources and they had been collecting card, cartons and bottles all week to make sure they made enough for their 3 classes. What a special moment to see our work in practice!

Lesotho Literacy L/e/a/p – Week 4

              Week One of our now highly prepared Teacher workshops were finally here…...and of course on day one I was ill!! Aching head and body be gone…we had the world to change….oh how naive I was!! Qacha’s Nek United here we come….who are you, what workshop did you do in April, what resources, what Phonics?????????????????????? Arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!! We quickly reviewed that no Phonics had been taught in our absence and so we reconfigured our “follow up” “support” session into a motivational workshop on the importance of teaching Reading.

Day 2 was in my old school, Hermitage Primary School with my lovely colleagues (no bias!!) and it was an absolute pleasure to be sat in my old classroom developing my teachers knowledge and having a chance to discuss issues and concerns regarding teaching, planning and assessment. Of course, Phonics had not been taught fully so we reviewed, recapped and gave them new interactive methods of delivery.

Day 3 was a journey up the mountain to Qacha’s Nek Government Primary School with our Mosotho Mother, Mme Makopano. We had a larger workshop today as all the trainee teachers attended too. Sometimes its hard to judge if what your saying is of interest or concern sometimes…but the evaluations at the end always help…

“I hope to see our learners read fluently. …Thanks for the books, our learners will progress in English now….I think the learners will be very committed in their learning since the teaching will be child centred and more attractive”

Day 4 took us to St. Josephs Primary School where the smiles and hugs from the teachers are always a treat, along with seeing our little friends from the Orphanage. The teachers were the first to really, really interact with our reading workshop….we hope they can do this with the children with their new reading books!

Day 5 was a re-scheduled visit to our favourite semi-rural school….Waterfall Primary School. What a view, what a happy atmosphere and so good to see so many engaged teachers, not only with Phonics, but with the new Child Friendly School Policy. A welcome pilot project introducing caring, child centred approaches to school and class management without corporeal punishment. Our workshop was received with genuine warmth and commitment. A lead school for the Qacha’s Nek area me thinks!!