Recognizing that access to education is one of the most effective means of breaking the cycle of poverty and creating brighter futures, TCF is dedicated to providing free high-quality educational opportunities to all students in our community.
In 2007 TCF began a partnership with the Tanzanian government to manage Gyetighi Primary School (GPS). At the time the school was a collection of crumbling buildings with a student-to-teacher ratio of 56:1. The school's pass rate for the all-important National Exam was 57%, making it one of the lowest performing schools in the district.
With TCF's investments, the student-to-teacher ratio is now 19:1, and the school now has a pass rate of 98% on Standard 7 National Exams. We are very proud to say that when the 2014 school rankings were announced, Gyetighi Primary School was the #1 government school in the district, and is in the top 4% of schools (public and private) nationwide.
In order to achieve these improvements, TCF has provided resources and training to help both students and teachers. In addition to renovating seven classrooms and hiring nine additional teachers, five assistant teachers, and six student teachers, we have also brought a full-time English as a Second Language teacher on staff. TCF also provides textbooks and classroom materials, a nutritious breakfast and lunch to all students, and access to free medical care for all students and faculty. The successful partnership between RVCV and Gyetighi is ensuring a bright future for the children of Oldeani Ward, and is having a significant impact on the whole region. To learn more about this impact, click here.
The incredible progress at Gyetighi Primary School (GPS) created demand by the local community for a similar intervention at the secondary school level. On November 5, 2013 we signed a five-year contract to co-manage Oldeani Secondary School (OSS). The goal of this partnership is to expand the successful strategy we developed at Gyetighi Primary to Oldeani Secondary, with an aim toward making the school a model that can be replicated by other organizations in Tanzania. As we did at GPS, TCF is providing the leadership, resources and infrastructure improvements needed to make this school the top performing secondary school in the district and the region.
Each year we select five high school graduates to participate in our Student Teacher Program. During their year of service, student teachers live in our children's homes and serve as role models for our children, leading study group sessions and assisting teachers in the classroom. Upon completion they receive a two-year scholarship for higher education.
Preschool is held every morning, Monday through Saturday at the Children's Village. RVCV preschool students range in age from 4 to 6 years old. RVCV's preschool teacher uses monthly themes to introduce the children to reading, writing, and math.
Children at RVCV receive one-on-one and small group tutoring sessions designed to help students who are struggling and to provide enrichment activities for students who are excelling in school. During these sessions, volunteers assist our younger students with English, math, or penmanship, while our student teachers tutor older students in Swahili, Social Studies, and Science.
TCF also provides English Confidence Classes for local primary, high school, and college students. Classes are taught by RVCV volunteers who are native English speakers and cover a variety of topics including greetings and idioms. In a country where tourism is a major industry, fluency in English can be the difference between unemployment and a promising career.