November 2013

Issue No . 2

The Project of Strengthening School-based Collaborative Teacher Training

Teacher Development and Management

Rwanda Education Board (REB),

P.O. 3817, Remera, Kigali

Facebook: Rwanda SBCT Project

~Action for better Lessons!~ RWANDA EDUCATION BOARD

Japan International Cooperation Agency

SBCT

Let’s disseminate SBI culture in our schools!

by Claudien Nzitabakuze,

Teacher Development and Training Unit, TDM-REB

What do you do when you have trouble teaching a specific topic? What do you do after you attend training outside the school? From now on, SBI is the answer.

As our readers might know by now, SBI stands for School-based In-Service Training. Any school-based activity aiming at improving students’ academic performance which involves more than two teachers is SBI. No teacher can succeed alone in addressing complex problems faced while teaching students. Collaborative teacher training promoted through SBI is one way to encourage them to tackle these problems through collaboration and mutual learning.

SBI plays a crucial role in building confidence in teachers through sharing knowledge, skills and experience with their fellow teachers. I am convinced by this because of the reports I received from various schools which have already implemented SBIs. Just to give you one example, a teacher from Rwamagana said “From the date SBI kicked off, all teachers along with the supervisors sit together one Saturday every month. Those who have had a chance to attend trainings before share what they learned from different trainings. SBI has become part of our culture”. (Mr. Theogene Nshimiyumukiza, Teacher and head of Chemistry department at St Aloys Rwamagana)

This is what we need in Rwandan schools; an SBI culture. SBI does not only contribute to lesson improvement, but also has a positive impact of creating good atmosphere inside schools. I believe every teacher has something he/she can share to improve students’ academic performance. For example, a way of developing a teaching aid which can facilitate a specific lesson, preparation for national exam, how to prepare a good lesson plan for a specific topic, etc. I would like to call upon all DEOs and SEOs to spread and implement SBIs at schools in their respective districts and sectors. I would also like to request school leaders to spearhead SBI practices to be part and parcel of their school culture.

Participants during the 1st Induction training in Nyarugenge District.

SBCT Project took one step forward by implementing a three-day district-

level Induction Workshop for Nyarugenge at College Saint André from 2nd to 4th October, 2013. It was the first district-level induction workshop under the SBCT Project. It aimed at introducing School-based In-service Training (SBI) in schools with S1 – S3. Participants were the District Education Officer (DEO),10 Sector Education Officers (SEO) of the district, and two representatives from each schools. The total number of participants was 62.

At the beginning of the program, Mr. Claudien Nzitabakuze, from Teacher Development & Training Unit, Rwanda Education Board (REB), welcomed the participants and explained the objectives of the workshop which were to ensure that school leaders (HT, DoS, or senior teachers), SEOs and DEO understand and support the SBI concept including the planning and the monitoring/reporting process. He also expressed the importance of SBI and encouraged the participants to implement a School-level Induction Workshop to formulate an SBI Action Plan at their school.

The Workshop program was divided into three sections, 1) Importance of SBI, 2) Making SBI plans, and 3) Monitoring system. Two guest speakers from SBI pilot schools also shared their experiences on implementing SBI with the examples of conducting lesson study. All participants were actively involved in the discussions after each session. By the end of the Workshop, all schools set a tentative date to organize their School-level Induction Workshop in the 1st term of the School Year 2014 after examinations and holidays.

At the end of the Workshop, all participants filled the self evaluation forms. Majority of participants were confident about their understanding of concepts and importance of SBI; however, their confidence regarding the monitoring process was relatively lower than other topics. This result suggests that more participatory approach, such as role-play of the monitoring process, may be needed. This will be taken into consideration when we revise the program.

In the self-evaluation session, one of the participants, Mr. Vedaste Mboniragira, Head Teacher at GS Nyarufunzo, said “I will implement what I have learned from this workshop as soon as I go back to my school. I saw SBI can be implemented with resources within our school and can contribute to improve our lessons. When we tried to organize training for teachers who didn't have that opportunity, we were stuck with the means. I am so happy since this kind of In-Service Training intends to address the problems at my school aiming for better teaching and learning”. Other participants also expressed how they have been struggling to get off-the job training. After the Workshop they recognized that SBI can be implemented among colleagues in the same school and also in the same sector. Now they are contented to share experience of what they learned from the Workshop with their colleagues at schools.

We hope for successful implementation of SBI at participating schools. We are also waiting for stories on SBI implementation from your schools. Last but not least, our deep appreciation goes to College Saint André for their hospitality and for hosting the Workshop.

~Experience of SBI Pilot School~

In this edition, we would like to share the SBI experience of different schools. The first featuring school is GS Kabuye (9YBE) in Gasabo District which is one of the two pilot schools of the SBCT project. The SBCT project conducted an Induction Workshop at these pilot schools from July to August this year. Currently, the project is closely working with them to improve the training programs and materials so that it can be easily disseminated to other schools in Rwanda. As a pioneer, GS Kabuye shares their experience to give you some ideas on how to implement SBI in your school. Let’s take a look at what they do at their school!

After conducting the Induction Program, GS Kabuye started three SBI programs; 1) Lesson Study, 2) Development and use of teaching aid, and 3) Better use of homework. These SBI activities really influence teaching and learning. According to the teachers, Lesson Study gives teachers opportunities to share different ideas which help improve their lessons. The newly developed teaching aids are well appreciated by students. Some of the students even develop their own materials. In addition, the school encouraged teachers to use the homework for more effective students’ learning as a tool to check the students’ understanding of the previous class. The impact of this activity will be reviewed by teachers at the end of the term.

According to Mr. Joseph Nizeyimana, a biology teacher, SBI changed the atmosphere of their school. “Teachers have become very collaborative and freely talk about different things. Without setting formal meetings we can share ideas and give comments openly. Also, now we share information on how effective and useful the teaching aids/materials are.”

An English teacher of the primary section, Ms. Theodosie Mukandahiro, said “Before the SBI workshop I used to teach things that I only knew but now I can teach something that I learn from my colleagues through SBI. I can even ask questions to secondary teachers in my school. Also, since the introduction of SBI in my school, the school-based mentor observes all my lessons. It really encourages me.”

So, what do you think? None of these programs are special or expensive. They use their own resources, teachers and existing materials/teaching aids. They carry out SBI planning during their regular meeting time. As you can see, SBI is very simple and easy to implement. Please start by sharing your experience with your peers!

Instruction

Find and circle the words defined in ‘HINTS’ below. HINTS

1: It holds the flower to the stem.

2: It protects the inside parts of a flower. Brightly colored ones attract insects and birds to the flower.

3: It protects the flower when it is still in a bud stage

4: It receives pollen grains. When pollen grains fall on it, they stick to it

5: It protects ovules inside.

6: It is a structure through which pollen grains pass to reach the Hint #5.

7: It contains the male reproductive cells known as pollen

grains.

8: It is a stalk on which Hint #7 is supported. Together with Hint #7, it forms the male part of flower.

9: The male part of a flower. It consists of Hint #7 and Hint #8.

10: The female part of a flower

11:Transfer of pollen grains. It takes place when pollen grains land on the Hint #2.

After SBI our school atmosphere has become very collaborative.

Now I have no hesitation to ask questions to my colleagues.

Contents of Induction Workshop

The final objective of this workshop was that schools can develop their own SBI annual plan, which is monitored by SEO and DEO. Therefore, the workshop was structured to provide participants with necessary information and skills to do so.

On the first day, participants were introduced concept and methodology of SBI. Then, the result of the baseline survey was shared with participants so that they understand the importance and impact of SBI. They also reviewed the result of the national exam of their school, and learnt how to analyze the result.

The second day focused on how to make SBI action plan. There are some examples of SBI introduced to participants including some sample resources online, and possible collaboration with school-based mentors.

Then, on the third day, they learnd monitoring and reporting of SBI. It emphasized the role that schools, SEOs and DEOs should play for SBI to be monitored effectively.

This week’s theme is FUNCTION OF FLOWERS!

The First SBI Induction Workshop was conducted!

1. 2014 SBI Calendar ~SBI Planner~: Together with this SBI News, we are

distributing SBI Calendar for 2014. We encourage all schools to use it in order to prepare the SBI plan for the next year.

2. SBI News 1st Issue: Have you received the 1st issue of SBI News? Did you put it on the wall where all teachers of your school can read? Did it help you to understand what SBI is and how it can be implemented in your school?

Contact: Mr. Jules Simon MUSABE (REB/TDM) Phone: 0788452183 Email: musajules@gmail.com

Mrs. Berthine GIKUNDIRO (SBCT Office/TDM/REB) Phone: 0788628698 Email: bgakire@yahoo.fr

Editors Note

We are pleased to inform you that the 2nd issue of SBI News is now out! In this issue, we focused on the first SBI Induction Training. For the districts where our program has not yet reached, we hope you are excited to attend when your turn comes.

We appreciate your collaboration for this SBI News. Thank you very much for all the useful information you have been sharing with us so far. We extend special thanks to GS Kabuye for this issue’s ‘SBI @ MY SCHOOL’. We are looking forward to finding out more about SBI activities at your school. Please feel free to contact us for any comments or suggestions.