NEWSLETTER JULY 2005

Charity number 1096152

We can now report that the fourth classroom has been completed to accommodate the increasing pupil attendance. Together with the head teacher, Saffie, and the newly formed Board of Governors of Yalding Nursery School, Farato, we are determined to keep class sizes to a maximum of 35. This means that the Nursery School is now complete and we are concentrating our fund-raising on building the new block that will form the Lower Basic School (for 9-13 year olds). This will create extended education for pupils currently attending Nursery School. On his visit to Farato in April, Derek Hudson met the professionals at the Physical Planning Office and gradually plans for upgrading of the school are taking shape. We hope to build a block of six classrooms separate from the present school but on the same land. Presently children from Farato share a Primary School with the next village and there are 80 children in a class with teachers  operating two shifts a day (morning and afternoon). There is a huge demand for more Primary school places in The Gambia, but we feel it is vital to ensure the highest quality of education for Farato pupils and, by keeping the class sizes at Yalding School Farato to 35 and employing experienced and well trained teachers, we will achieve this aim. The first Primary class will begin in September, using the fourth nursery classroom, whilst the fourth nursery pupils use an outdoor classroom until the first primary class is built.

Abibatou continues to develop as a very inspiring and enthusiastic teacher and will attend the next part of her course in August. Sainabou continues to work hard, but has had compassionate leave following the very sad death of her husband. Her sister Mary, has been supporting her. We are paying for her to start training in August as we feel she shows potential as an Early Years teacher. In April, we appointed Jainabou as the fourth teacher who will also start training in August. Gradually the teachers are gaining confidence in working at a more child-centred level which follows the guidelines set by the Gambian government.

Saffie Bob Jobe continues to give a well-organised and focused approach to the teaching team. She is highly respected by her colleagues, the parents and children and has been significant in organising a Parent Teacher Association which supports the work of the school and helps to raise funds through local activities. As in this country it is often left to the energies of the few to galvanise interest in the practical running of the school, but the parents who are on the committee have the enthusiasm and commitment of thousands! 

GamBLE recognises that greater benefit reaches more children if we concentrate upon training Gambian teachers rather than erecting school buildings beyond Farato. By focusing upon Farato we now have a "beacon" school that all Gambian teachers can emulate. So it is that we have established a strong link with the Gambian College which provides teacher training in line with Gambian government recommendations. At the end of this month Karen is going to run 5 days of workshops for the lecturers at the College in order to equip them with the knowledge and understanding to train teachers in Early Childhood Development. The College recognises that their staff are not experienced in this specialised field and the Principal is very keen to address the problem. The more meaningful and appropriate the ECD course, the more skilled and enthusiastic the teachers who graduate.

Seven people went out to the village over the Easter holidays. We arrived in staggered groups in order to say our farewells together:- Tony and Karen went out first and stayed for 3 weeks; Linda Gilbert (2^nd visit) and Jay Pressnell, an art teacher from Nettlestead came out for 2 weeks and Clare & Derek Hudson (2^nd visit) and Sarah Mann, a music teacher from Gillingham, came out for the final week. The main aims were to progress the plans for the new Lower Basic School; to advance teacher training and to work on maintenance of the school buildings and garden. Jay, meanwhile, arranged to work in the art department of the village secondary school. He stayed with a Gambian family and gained a fantastic  experience – as did his Gambian pupils.

To advance teacher training Tony, Linda and Karen visited 6 schools in the district that had been identified by staff at the Gambian College as being in most need of support. 2 of them had sent teachers to our previous workshop in December 2004 and we were following up their progress. The others varied in need from those that had buildings but absolutely no equipment whatsoever, to some that had only sticks for a shelter. We spent a morning at each school assessing their needs and introducing them to action songs, number games and art activities. We then invited them to a 2-day workshop at Yalding Nursery School. This was an extended version of the pilot we ran in December and 15 teachers took part. Linda, Sarah and Karen planned sessions to cover the making of teaching aids out of recyclable materials; water and sand activities; sports; working songs and rhymes into topics; organising the classroom into play "stations" and observation and demonstration of each others’ teaching techniques. Tony and Derek, together with the school caretaker, built a sound garden out of local materials which offered the children the chance to listen to and interact with each other. Meanwhile Clare spent hours with Adama who supervised the food for everyone. Shopping at the market and preparing hot food was a strenuous and extensive task. All the teachers gained a great deal from learning together with their colleagues and they expressed much enthusiasm and appreciation for the experience.

We spent long hot hours whitewashing the walls of the school – an area the equivalent to a football pitch. Members of the PTA helped and it was amazing to work with bubbling lime. It seemed very pale and watery at first but as soon as the sun dried it, the colour turned to brilliant white – on or off the walls! 

Watering the garden at this, the hottest time of the year, was an arduous practice. Some of the wells in the nearby compounds had run dry and we were happy to let villagers collect water from the school well, but asked that they should add a bucketful into a container that the caretaker could use to pour on the garden. The need for a pump is obvious and we hope that once the money for the new classrooms is secure, we can return to the plan to install a solar pump that will fill a tank, provide water on tap and thereby enable us to create handwashing facilities with the toilets. The rains last from June to September and this event will transform the garden into a profusion of flowers, fruit (such as papaya and mango) and vegetables. Now that the wall is finished, we plan to plant over 400 bougainvillea cuttings that will quickly form a prickly but beautiful deterrent to anyone who might be tempted to climb the wall to harvest illicitly!

In December 2005 we return to Farato with Beryl and Bert Boxall (2^nd visit), Ben Clifton (2^nd visit) and two students from East Kent.

The main focus is upon building the new Lower Basic School which, besides classrooms, will need an office, store room  and staff room, plus a new toilet block and, eventually, kitchens. Obviously, and most importantly, we require further teachers and we rely heavily on sponsors to enable us to pay their salaries, thereby keeping fees very low. Primary education is free in The Gambia, but all children are used to paying towards furniture and equipment, so it would not be exclusive to charge a small amount towards education. In fact, the villagers feel that a token fee strengthens commitment to the village school and education generally. The Trustees of GamBLE have given a great deal of thought and discussion to the direction of the charity and we feel strongly that it is important to focus on the very specific aim of enhancing the quality of the children’s education as a route away from poverty, rather than taking a broader approach. We, therefore, want to concentrate upon educating teachers and pupils to take responsibility for their own health and development. A recent article in the Royal Society of Health magazine pointed out that personal hygiene is fundamental to overcoming most human problems. Already hygiene and personal cleanliness are on the curriculum in Gambian schools and GamBLE can advance this awareness through an education based upon experience and understanding. Well-trained teachers working imaginatively and enthusiastically with small class sizes can provide their pupils with a keen interest in the development of themselves and their environment.

We would like to thank everybody who has contributed in funds & deeds over the last few months.