Education is a vital tool in the growth of any country’s economy. The current primary school population is estimated at 10.4 million children in both public and private primary schools. The enrolment in our schools indicates that Kenya is on track to achieve the Education for All (EFA) and the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) Commitments by 2015. But how does a country in desperate need to produce qualified professionals achieve quality education? Well, the answer is simply to target the lower classes students and train them well enough to make them superb scholars in future days. It is in this accord that the TUSOME program was initiated.
Narrowing the country wide scope down to Mombasa County, Dream Achievers Organisation (DAYO) received a Youth Grant from USAID through RTI for the implementation of TUSOME learning aid program, for APBET (alternative providers of basic education) pupils in class 1, 2 and 3 within the county.
Working in collaboration with the ministry of Education, DAYO is aiming at strengthening the link between; the teachers, student and the Parents of class 1, 2 and 3 through the TUSOME program. The programs main focus is training the pupils on how to read fluently, training the teachers on how to achieve the intended goal, and to remind the parents about their role in the pyramid.
According to the TUSOME evaluation study conducted on august 8th 2014, some of the major challenges that lead to poor educational yields in the lower classes are;
- lack of active learning practices
- low teacher to pupil ratio
- poor training or instructional practice as well has no standard measure point
- lack of basic resources
- De-motivated teachers with less in job training and proper teaching guides
- Lack of family or moral support due to lack of value for education
- Lack of textbooks all resulting in pupils inability to read fluently by the time they complete class 1, 2and 3.
DAYO is working with 15 schools within the Mombasa County. The Organization has, so far, donated lockers, painted beautiful talking walls, trained teachers on safe keeping and handling of reading material, and conducted reading exhibitions to showcase the pupils reading prowess after going through the TUSOMEprogram.
During the reading exhibition, students read out loud in front of their parents and panelists, there after remarks and corrections are noted down. Each student is then awarded a certificate of participation. On the other hand, the parents are involved in an interactive session where they are informed of their roles in their children’s education through short theatrical plays.
At the end of the program, it is DAYO’s hope to note;
- improvement of the school environment (the quality of teaching attitudes and parents engagement)
- To improve reading ability of 2,500 pupils in class 1, 2 and 3 from the APBET in Mombasa County by the end of September, 2018.
- An improvement of Reading culture at home for APBET class 1, 2 and 3 pupils
