Page 32 - Keble Review 2014

The Keble Association
The Keble Association this year continued its efforts to support Keble students in making the most of their time at College.
KA grants enabled students to pursue academic studies through
visits to archaeological sites, archives, conferences and biodiversity sites in the UK and abroad. Humanitarian projects too were funded, including educational initiatives teaching orphans in Kenya and running a children’s summer camp in Albania.
The arts also benefited from KA support, with money given toward Keble participation in a tour by Oxford’s Alternotives a cappella singing
group, performing with some of the best a cappella university groups in New England, and of course continued support for Arts Week.
The KA has continued to fund internships for students who need experience to enter and compete in the job market but who could not otherwise support themselves through such opportunities.
We welcome all Keble members who wish to join the Association and contribute to its work supporting Keble students.
Angela Fox (1993)
Chalkboard Kenya 2013
tProject Report
hanks to support from the KA, at
the end of August 2013
I travelled to Western Kenya
for 7 weeks to teach mathematics and science to the children of Mama Orphans Children’s Home. Chalkboard Kenya was set up early in 2013 to develop the learning potential of Kenyan students, and I was part of the third placement. The project is intense, with a focus on promoting novel and creative teaching styles and techniques.
The orphanage is situated in Busia, a
few hundred metres from the Ugandan border, and is on one of two main roads connecting Kenya and Uganda. Long delays and lorry queues are common
at this main traffic corridor, which arguably accounts for the particularly
high prevalence of HIV/Aids in Busia, and consequently the high number of orphans. The exposure of these children to the devastation of HIV, the abusive upbringing many of them had prior to the orphanage, and their survival on the streets made
me even more committed to help provide them with high-quality education and a route to a fulfilling future.
Living within the orphanage was tremendously beneficial, and enabled
me to make as large a contribution as possible. I awoke every morning at 5am to the sound of the children singing in their dorms and in the yard. Teaching began soon after. We had a full timetable, with any spare time being used to prepare the lessons. Homework class followed after school, and the evening was spent on personal tuition. The scope of the Kenyan education system is very narrow, with negligible focus on creativity and self-sufficiency – I found rote-learning to be the main skill and the majority of the children were unable to apply their understanding to unfamiliar problems. The evening tuition was incredibly beneficial in tackling this major problem. The children excelled during the one- on-one tuition, something which they have never previously experienced. They were keen to accelerate their learning and to be challenged. Tuition was given
to a full range of abilities, with special attention given to weaker students who had possibly been neglected throughout school due to an undiagnosed learning
disability. It was rewarding to see the vast improvement in their creativity and ability after only a few weeks.
In the typically resourceful rural Kenyan approach, we constructed all of our teaching props from simple items around the orphanage; the class and I made wind- vanes, air-thermometers, soil-drainage meters, baking-soda and vinegar rockets, and many other measuring instruments.
I was delighted to see how these lessons rapidly developed the childrens’ curiosity - it didn’t take long for them to probe other such phenomena and ask intelligent and insightful questions.
My teaching experience in Kenya was exceptionally challenging, demanding, and required great patience and commitment. However it was phenomenally rewarding and has encouraged me to pursue further educational development projects with the Chalkboard team. I am very grateful to the Keble Association for allowing me to participate and to contribute towards the education of Mama’s orphans.
Seamus O’Hagan
Physics 2009
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The Keble Review 2014