Curriculum Development Fellows Orientation Meeting 1 April 27, 2016

Agenda 10:30-10:45 – Introductions 10:45-11:15 – Project Overview 11:15-11:45 – Presentation about education in TZ 11:45-12:00 – Wrap-up & next steps

Introductions Who are you? Why are you here? What are you hoping to learn?

Project Overview What are we doing? How? Develop curriculum modules for primary school teachers in Milola and Naitolia that support the use of playgrounds and sports fields as learning spaces. How? National syllabus as a starting point Working in collaboration across disciplines

Project Overview Timeline 4/27 – Initial meeting, orientation 5/3 – 1-4pm – Follow-up meeting Focus on curriculum development and work in teams 6/8 – 10-11am – Zoom meeting to check in Around this time, send an update to Bethany, including one module already created 6/30 – Deadline to submit modules to Bethany (via email)

Project Overview Deliverables 5-10 curriculum modules Lesson plans and descriptions of accompanying activities Any additional information teachers need to teach the lessons 2 journal reflections

Project Overview Focal areas & proposed groups Numeracy – Standard 1 & 2 Molade, Lucas Health/Environment – Standard 1 & 2 Christa, Lauren English – Standard 3-7 Michelle, Jessica, Christine

Tanzania Partnership Program (TPP)

A brief history of TPP 2007 – Partnerships for Sustainable Community Development established at MSU Tanzania is the first location selected under this initiative Tanzania Partnership Program established 2008 – Two pilot communities identified Milola and Naitolia Participatory needs assessment 2009 – Program implementation begins Access to water top priority in both villages

The approach Focal areas: Community empowerment Water Education Human and animal health Food security and economic development

TPP Partners Milola Village Naitolia Village Michigan State University Institute of Resource Assessment (IRA), University of Dar es Salaam Dar es Salaam College of Education (DUCE) Aga Khan Foundation (AKF) Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA)

Education Activities Infrastructure Pre-primary classrooms School kitchen and teacher housing Latrines Playgrounds (Milola in 2015, Naitolia in 2016) Teacher and School Leader Professional Development Health and Nutrition School feeding programs Sanitation and hygiene Student Health Assessment School gardens

Education Activities Moving forward: Girls Education Curriculum development (that’s you!) Additional PD Pre-primary Education School gardens

So what do we need to know about education in Tanzania?

History Lessons Former German, then British colony Independence – 1961 Mwalimu Julius Nyerere Education for Self-Reliance Swahili

Education System Combination of public (called government) and private institutions Primary school (public) free after introduction of Education for All Secondary school is fee-based Structure: 1 year pre-primary 6 years primary(?) 4 years Ordinary Level secondary 2 years Advanced Level secondary 3 years university

Education System Language of instruction Teacher education Swahili in primary school, with English as a subject beginning in Standard 3 English in secondary school Teacher education Pre- and primary school teachers – 3 year diploma program Secondary school teachers – 3 year degree program

Education System Curriculum Recent change in Standard 1 & 2 – move away from 7 subjects to 3 R’s focus Focus across grades and subjects on participatory learning

Challenges Limited resources Large classes Lack of infrastructure for information dissemination Low pay and high teacher absenteeism Centralized approach Low rates of transition to higher levels of education Financial barriers to participation Stark differences between government and private schools

Next Steps To-do for Tuesday Familiarize yourself with the syllabus with which you’ll be working Identify a few competencies you might begin with Familiarize yourself with the website and resources, esp playground photos