Education in emergencies; Shamil is back to school

By Charles Kabena

For the whole month of January, Chingoli Full Primary School in Mulanje district has failed to provide education to learners following the collapse of class rooms at the school. Floods damaged the school blocks to the extent that the Ministry of Lands and Quantity Surveying declared the structures unfit for occupation.

10 year old Shamil Jentina and many of her peers thought their dreams were over as days turned into weeks, then a month, but the school could not open. For those seating for grade eight national examinations, hope was slowly fading.

Children remained home, teachers left for their homes far away, not sure of what the future held for their children. The community really got worried as their children’s future was in jeopardy.

But aglimmer of hope was restored when World Vision Malawi, in partnership with United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) teamed up to provide education for some learners whose schools were swept off or destroyed by the recent flood. Chingoli Primary School which has nearly 3, 500 learners, including Shamil, has benefited from this partnership and she is back to school, although in a tent.

“I was afraid that schools would not open again,” said Shamil, whose other option would have been Chilembo Primary School which is at a distance of nearly five kilometres way too much for a child of her age.

“I am happy we are back to school, I missed my friends,” said Shamil who enjoys playing some local games with her peers during break time.

The partnership of the two organisations has also mobilised teachers, among whom some had lost hope and went to their home villages since they were also affected by the flood.

Shadrick Saison, one of the teachers at the school, says the destruction left no hope among teachers. This was worsened by the fact that the community has no other structures that would have been temporarily used as a school in order to teach the willing children.

“Having exhausted all ideas as teachers, we gave up and some began going home since they had also been individually affected by the wreckage,” he said, pointing out that the school’s head teacher had to be evacuated after his house was swallowed by water up to the window level, losing most of his belongings in the process.

Seeing the children walking around was painful as we knew national examinations are close and there are those early grade learners who need to know how to read and write, said Shadrick who also serves the schools as the head for the senior school section.

But more painful to Shadrick, learners were still coming to the school and spent much of their days walking around, hoping that a miracle would come and that the teachers would perhaps just teach them under a tree.

World Vision and UNICEF have mounted four tents at the school, mobilised teachers to come back and lessons are back in progress.Since the school re-opened last February, teachers have committed themselves to their learners, especially those about to seat for examinations considering that they have already lost over three weeks of lessons due to the damage.

While worrying that the tents are not enough, hence forcing them to resort into morning and afternoon shifting of students, they are happy to be back, working with their children at the school. “We are optimistic that with the measures we have put in place, the learners will do better,” he said, adding that World Vision has also supported the school with lamps that are being used by the grade eight students for their night studies.

Patricia Njazi, a 13 year old girl in grade eight and bracing for exams in April hopes that other school blocks will be provided in time at the school so that their siblings coming behind them should benefit from the school.

“In most cases, when you travel long distances you arrive at the school late or very tired and as a result you do not concentrate on your studies,” says Patricia.

As they make temporary use of the tents provided, communitymembers explain that they have already identified a place where they are expected to build a new school structure since the older place has been fully condemned by Ministry authorities.