Leading from the heart, teaching at the right level: Shamsa’s story

In Baidoa, inside the modest walls of Al Camaara Temporary Learning Centre, something special is happening, one lesson at a time. At the heart of it is Shamsa Adan, a teacher who believes that every child, no matter where they come from, should have the chance to learn, grow, and reach their full potential.

Shamsa has been with the school since its inception three years ago. From day one, she has helped to open its doors, not just physically, but emotionally, for hundreds of children from displaced and marginalized communities. She teaches Somali, Arabic, and Mathematics, wearing many hats in a two-classroom school that runs double shifts to accommodate 195 children, 90 of them girls. But it is not just the number of subjects she teaches that stands out, it is the difference she is making.

“When we started using the Teaching at the Right Level approach, I noticed something change in my students,” Shamsa says with a proud smile. “Children who used to stay silent began to speak up. Those who struggled with reading began to read full sentences.”

Shamsa is among 712 teachers, 165 of them females, that have been trained under the Teaching at the Right Level (TaRL) pilot project that has been implemented in 99 Accelerated Basic Education Level One schools in Somalia since the 2023-2024 academic year. With support from Finland, the Government of Japan and the German Federal Foreign Office, and in collaboration with UNICEF partners and regional education authorities, the initiative has reached over 23,000 children, including more than 10,000 girls and 527 children with disability.

In Baidoa, 13 schools, including Shamsa’s, were part of the pilot, helping more than 2,200 children catch up on foundational Somali literacy and numeracy through a six-month learning cycle. The aim was to ensure internally displaced and vulnerable children aged between 8 to 17 years can access the basic skills they need to succeed in life.

At Al Camara, the impact is deeply personal. “We love our teacher, she is kind, patient, and makes learning fun,” says Bilal, a student at Al Camara Temporary Learning Centre in Baidoa. “She always listens to us and helps us understand.” His face lights up as he talks about the joy of being in her class, a safe space where every child feels seen and supported.

For Shamsa, being kind is a choice she makes every day. “Many of these children have gone through tough times like conflict, losing their homes, or losing loved ones,” she says. “Kindness helps them feel safe, heal, and learn.”

As she moves between makeshift desks, crouching beside a child to help with sums or softly encouraging another to try again, Shamsa embodies the very spirit of what TaRL seeks to achieve.

Looking ahead, Shamsa hopes the approach can be scaled up across more schools in Somalia. “This program works. I have seen it. Our children are learning because we meet them where they are.”