Our Library Project fundraising is in full swing, and we’ve raised over $700 thus far! Now it’s time to introduce you to one of the wonderful people behind the day-to-day operations at St. James Primary School, in hopes that you’ll feel even more compelled to support its growth for years to come.
Zalwango Josephine is a grade five to seven English and Social Studies teacher at St. James. With over 130 students, from ages 4 to 16, she no doubt has her hands full at times. Here’s what keeps her passionate about helping St. James continue to grow!
**UPDATE: As of July 5th, 2017, we hit our target $2500 for St. James’ Library. However, the more donations we collect, the more resources the library will have, so don’t stop giving!
How long have you been a teacher at the school? Why did you decide to teach at St. James School?
I have been a teacher at st. James for eleven years. The reason I chose to work at St. James was that most parents in our community are low income earners, and St. James had a vision of helping children whose parents had little money.
Why did you become a teacher? Why do you continue to work in the field of education?
I decided to become a teacher because I saw that most Ugandan children did not have a chance to go to school. I continue teaching because I have a real passion for teaching.
How has the partnership with Pangea Educational Development (PED) helped to improve St. James School? How has the school changed over the last five years?
PED has helped St. James a lot, as we did not have stable structures before. The structures have (and a library will) attracted many parents to bring their children to St. James. With a library, our pupils will now be able to read daily.
What is your vision for St. James?
I want to make it one of the first class schools in our community. I want my pupils to excel academically, to be smart, and to speak good English.
What challenges do your students and community face in achieving this vision of yours? How are you working to be a part of the solution?
The challenges we face are that the parents often fail to pay the children’s school fees, which makes it difficult for us to run the school. To help, as a school, we offer some bursaries or scholarships to the pupils.
There is also the challenge of inadequate textbooks, especially for upper primary classes. You may often find that a teacher has only one copy, so we try to write or draw the papers so that learners can understand the subject matter.
Why is the construction of a library important for St. James? How will the library promote learning?
The construction of a library is important due to the fact that we are lacking some textbooks, yet they’re are important to the children’s education. It will help learners gain more reading skills, and there will finally be enough text books.
How will you as a teacher utilize the library?
As a teacher , I’ll make sure that during my lesson I can get the textbooks, record them, and after using them take them back so the resources last. We’ll also help the students incorporate what they are learning in class with the books that they are reading.
How do you think the library will benefit your pupils at St. James?
The library will help benefit the pupils in that if it comes to teaching a particular topic, we the teachers will have enough textbooks to use in the classroom. The students will also be able to research more and increase their level of understanding of each subject.