Educate and Nourish 50 Students in Rural Malawi

Thanks to the generosity of you, our donors, EKARI Foundation was able to purchase laboratory equipment so students can now effectively conduct science experiments while participating in our Tutoring Program and have a better chance to pass their year-end exams, which allows them to progress to the next grade level and continue on with their higher education. Many classrooms in Malawi are overcrowded, teachers are overwhelmed and occasionally apathetic, and schools cannot afford to purchase laboratory equipment for their science classrooms. Most students must perform laboratory experiments on their year-end exams when they have never seen or used laboratory equipment during the school year, but only heard about the equipment from their teachers. This leads to failure on the exams and often leads to students dropping out of school.

During our most recent tutoring session in late March/early April, one of our students, Jenipher said that she “appreciated being able to actually see what a beaker looks like, and to see what it’s used for.” Blessings, another student shared that his life will completely change since he started using the laboratory equipment because he will not have problems during exams. In addition, if EKARI Foundation’s Tutoring Program was unable to provide the supplies, students wouldn’t be able to afford to purchase chemicals for experiments.

Additionally, there is a major shortage of science teachers, which has forced schools to ask teachers who are experts in other subjects to teach science lessons. A high school student Mackford, a participant in our Tutoring Program, said that “this is contrary to how students should be managed because the temporary teacher is not an expert and may discuss a subject incorrectly, which leads to students to not take teachers seriously.” This why the presence of John, the local physical teacher that we contract with to teach physical science during our Tutoring Program, is so important to our students. Our Tutoring Program is able to cover topics in depth that are not covered in the classroom or are only briefly mentioned.

John, the physical science teacher, mentioned that he appreciates the new laboratory equipment and chemicals because “most of the topics we cover, including Biology and Physical Science require practical experience. The doors to success in these areas should be open to all, and because we have this new equipment, EKARI students will now pass these subjects.” John also asserted that he and the other teachers whom EKARI Foundation contracts with during our Tutoring Program are ready to work to their maximum capacity to ensure the students easily pass their final exams.

We look forward to sharing another update with you soon, and in the meantime, check out our blog which has bi-weekly updates on what’s happening with EKARI.

Thank you!

Links:

• EKARI Foundation Blog and Updates