Ntcheu, Malawi … Education is believed to be a key to unlocking the future of all human being. Children are advised from early age to take education seriously, and that if they miss the opportunity to be educated, they will be at the tail end of all people economically. It is not surprising, to see a large proportion of kids registered in school. Government introduced free primary education with the aim of giving the opportunity for all children to be educated. Many children had been denied access to education because of poverty, since they could not pay the school fees, and many dropped out of school as a result.
However, with the gains from this program also came fresh challenges and opportunities. The number of pupils in schools swelled up. The introduction of school feeding programs by the World Food Program and the Malawi Government has encouraged even more pupils to remain in school. Classroom space is becoming increasingly inadequate. Teaching and learning materials are scarce. There are not enough trained teachers. The list of challenges goes on and on, and need solutions.
Almost two decades since the introduction of free primary education, the challenges have not been successfully overcome. Visiting many schools today, one often finds pupils sitting under trees because of classroom shortages. During the rainy season, classes are suspended, or pupils are squeezed into a single classroom. In many schools, pupils do not have libraries, but must depend on a teacher’s textbook that is placed in front of them, and read aloud for all to learn.
Wilson Tembo reports, “My visit to Msayaludzu Primary School in Ntcheu revealed the great impact that a textbook can make to pupils. With 23 teachers, the school has a total enrollment of 1,176 pupils. Of these, 38 are special needs pupils. Some have partial vision; others are totally blind while still others have hearing problems. They are drawn from all parts of the country, mostly from the central and southern regions. The school is one of very old institutions and was opened in 1967. It had very few government provided books before a donation of 100 textbooks was given to its pupils. This donation is part of a large lot of textbooks donated to the District’s Education Manager for Ntcheu. Though the school has beautiful classroom buildings, like many other schools, it has limited resources. Teaching and learning materials are limited as confirmed by the head teacher Mr. Daison Joseph Mmangeni.”
Blind Child Learns From Books Donated
One of key beneficiaries of this book donation is a 9-year-old Khalidwe Fletcher. He is blind. His teacher describes him as hard working and passionate about knowing new things. Since he cannot read, his friends read for him. Khalidwe is in an introductory class, and he and his friends are being introduced to brail writings. His teacher, Mrs. Mpekasambo is happy with him because he is a fast learner. In her remarks, Mrs. Mpekasambo thanked Namikango Mission and her partners for donating to the school. “The books you donated will make a very big impact to these kids”. She requests continued support such as brail paper /books, HIV/AIDS information in large print, hand frames, and stylus to help these kids learn better. Though some of these kids are completely blind, others have partial vision, and can read large print books.