September 5, 2017
Recently, I was able to spend an afternoon with some of our Secondary Scholars at Usa River Academy. We were able to introduce Haruni, our new team member, to the scholars. We also introduced Shellagh, a TFFT volunteer who is from Australia. It is always great to have a check-in with the scholars and hear updates about what is going on in their personal lives, in school, any challenges, and their latest academic progress. TFFT Alumna, Irene, studied at Usa River Academy, and also accompanied our team on the school visit. She provided valuable insight to our scholars about life at school and how to make academic improvements.
I enjoyed observing Irene speaking candidly to the scholars. Since she studied in the same environment, she had a powerful impact on them. She performed very well on her Form Four National Exams, and then she joined Arusha Modern School for her advanced studies. Now Irene is studying Information System Management at Ardhi University.
Irene really inspired the scholars she spoke with when she explained her determination to be in the top five of her class. She shared that she used to struggle in math, so she decided to practice solving at least 25 math questions each day in order to improve. The scholars present admired her approach and expressed interest in using similar techniques and commitment to make any necessary improvements in their own studies.
Each team member also gave advice to our scholars. We suggested how working together can be helpful. Scholars who perform well in a subject can assist their peers who are struggling. We also suggested productive ways to seek help from teachers if they fail to understand what was taught in class.
After our discussion, the went to play sports. Every Friday afternoon at Usa River Academy, the scholars play sports with their peers. Most of our male scholars play soccer and girls play netball. The Friday that we visited, they had a soccer competition organized with a nearby school, Maji ya Chai Secondary (a government school). It was exciting to see our scholars’ excitement for the game!
