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This interview was conducted by Basilina Levira, Question: In which COBET Centre are your facilitating? Answer: I am a facilitator in Msanga Sokoni COBET-centre in Kisarawe district. Q: What is COBET? A: COBET means Complimentary Basic Education in Tanzania and it gives primary education to children between 8-18 years old who have either dropped out of school or who have not been enrolled in primary school.  Q: What are some of the current interventions by the Ministry that you think have made a difference to your professional career and classroom teaching? A: The Ministry of Education and Culture has given me the work as a teacher to teach learners, and I have tried my best to use my skills to teach so as to improve my country. Also the Ministry of Health has given me the task to use my teaching knowledge to educate. For example, I teach neighbours and other people around my village about health. Q: What do you think should be done in your school that will enable teachers to meet children with respect and ensure that they have a conducive learning environment? A: I think more teaching aids should be provided and teachers should also be given more seminars and courses. It is also important that the teachers and learners know how to make the environment loved by all. Q: Whom do you think will educate learners and teachers in how to make environment to be conducive? Whose responsibility is this? A: We as teachers we are supposed to do that. Q: Only teachers? What about Learners? A: We as teachers we are supposed to educate ourselves and also to educate the learners so that they understand and are able to educate others. Q: What is the responsibility of the Ministry of Education and Culture, for example, to make the environment conducive to learning? A: The responsibility of the Ministry of Education and Culture may be to help us to give the schools books and any other things which cannot be found in the areas. Q: How relevant have you found your teacher training in you daily work as a teacher? A: Some of the subjects which are taught in the Teacher Training College have been relevant for me as a primary school teacher. Psychology has helped me to come closer to the learners so that I know them and can help them in school and with their problems at home. Q: Do you have any suggestions for improving teacher training? A: In the Teacher Training College, all subjects are taught in Kiswahili except for the English subject. But I think it would be better to use English in all subjects. The teacher should use Kiswahili when teaching the learners, but if he or she wants to sit the form six examination in order to upgrade his or her education, it is difficult when you don’t know enough English. Q: In the school, what changes would you make to improve children's participation and learning at the classroom level? A: I think I would use teaching aids and demonstrations more so that the learners understand the subjects better. I would also try to make the learners be near me so that they can explain their problems and if I can, I will help them or give them suggestions about where they can go for counselling. Q: Are there other methods which you can use which you think will make the children participate more, apart from discussions, questions and answers? A: I think I can use the questions and answers, but in a different way. For example, I can give them a question which they bring with them home to ask their parents. The next day they will come with the answers which they will share with the rest of the class. All children can learn and all children have something which they can teach. Another teaching method is to write a topic on the blackboard and then give the learners a chance to volunteer to teach about that topic while the teacher goes to the back of the classroom and listens to the lesson. Intro · Delaide Daniel · Delfina Lusuva · Rashid Chua Chua · Sedet Bulaya Would you like to read other interviews with practising teachers? |
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