Community Education at Secondary Schools in Moshi, Tanzania

  Tanzania

Moshi

Durations of Program: 2-4 weeks, 5-8 weeks and 9-12 weeks
Typical Duration of Program: 5-8 weeks

Description: Despite being blessed with some of the continent's most instantly recognizable landscapes and wildlife, Tanzania's greatest natural resources are the children whose bright smiles will light up your time here. Unfortunately many young lives are blighted by poverty and a lack of education. The schools within this project aim to put a stop to this particularly vicious circle through a combination of education, care and counseling. Moshi stands in the shadow of Mount Kilimanjaro so if you match the landscape for inspiration you'll have made a lasting impression on the children here.

*Project details:
Lack of education and poverty, amongst other things, create a combination of problems that face the youth of Tanzania. The schools within this project aim to help Tanzania's future - it's children - through education, care, counseling and entertainment. Whilst some secondary schools receive government subsidies, most are privately run and as such are severely under resourced, with pupils often finding themselves in classes of up to 60 pupils as the schools cannot afford to hire enough teachers to cope with the numbers.

There is also a strange system within Tanzania education whereby much of the primary education is taught in Kiswahili and then switches to 100% English for secondary education. This causes chaos for the pupils who are forced to switch language instantly!
During March, June, September and December the schools are on holiday. If you are here during these times you can often provide holiday tuition or work on one of the less formal projects such as nurseries or orphanages.

*Why the project needs volunteers:
The 80s and 90s Tanzania suffered from economy instability and education suffering as a result. Targets were set for universal free education with the hope that social development and economic development would follow. However government funding for school staffing and resources remains extremely low, and even privately funded schools are under-resourced.

Volunteers can play an essential part within Tanzania's education system by contributing their time, support and enthusiasm to the schools and your contribution will enable schools to take one step closer to giving all children throughout Tanzania free, accessible education.

Highlights:
* Working to make a real different to the lives of teenagers in Moshi, Tanzania
* Experiencing life to the full in this bustling East African town
* Getting an insight into a totally different way of life

Qualifications: What kind of skills you need to go on this type of project:
Patience, flexibility and initiative are crucial to the position, both in the classroom environment, and when dealing with the more bureaucratic aspects of teaching in an African country. Any skills that you can contribute both in academic fields, such as English, Math, Science or Health Education, or in more vocational skills, can be utilised to the advantage of both children and staff. Also any skills in extra curricular activities such as arts and craft, sport, music and dance will provide the children with some creativity and enjoyment that they otherwise would miss out on completely.

Your role as a volunteer:
Working in any of the schools in the Moshi area, you could be teaching English in potentially large and enthusiastic classes, coaching sports and extra-curricular activities, or even helping share new ways of teaching with the other teachers. It is likely that you will be assisting directly with the curriculum and may be asked to take other subjects as well.

Fresh ideas and activities will be welcomed at all projects. The level of English teaching in secondary schools is at a more advanced level, as the students must learn all subjects in English. As such these projects provide a greater range of teaching opportunities for those with other interest areas and skills outside English teaching.

The hours are flexible in these projects and will be determined by the timetable you agree with the teachers. Time permitting, there are a variety of additional afternoon projects you can participate in if interested to help the community in other ways. These include activities such as:

* sports coaching
* health care and sanitation
* conservation
* adult education

Cost in US$: USD 1645.00 for 2 weeks, USD 275.00 for every week

* Accommodation: Shared dormitory room in volunteer house. Single room upgrade also available, please give us a call for more information
* Food: Breakfast and dinner
* Airport Pickup: Included on arrival date. Ask us for details if you're arriving early!
* Training: In-country orientation
* Support: Pre-departure helpdesk, Local in-country team and 24hr emergency support

Experience Required: no

Age Range: 18-80

This Program is open to Worldwide Participants.

Post-Program Services Include:

• Alumni Network

i-to-i Meaningful Travel's Mission Statement: i-to-i is an award-winning organization providing unique opportunities for you to travel, work and live abroad. Thousands of travelers aged 18 to 80 have joined our volunteer vacations and over 50,000 have learned to Teach English as a Foreign Language through our tailor-made TEFL courses. With over 400 projects on 4 continents, you can join the worldwide i-to-i volunteer community on an extended adventure in areas such as teaching, community development, sports coaching, conservation, building or internships in tourism, marketing, journalism, or health.

Year Founded: 1994