Help 80 Secondary Pupils in Niger Read and Write

Dear Friends,

You can be proud! Here is the news that you have all been waiting for!

We are thrilled to announce the fabulous news that 68% of our scholarship students in Hampaté Bâ Middle School succeeded in obtaining the BEPC Diploma in July 2018. This is an incredible score as compared to the national average of 55%, especially for students like the ones we support, coming from very underprivileged backgrounds. The BEPC is an important diploma in Niger as it gives students the right to graduate from Middle School and continue on to High School or qualify to attend one of the many Professional Training Institutes.

Our students’ merit is indisputable as they worked hard constantly and made earnest efforts to get this diploma. It is indeed an amazing accomplishment for them, as the majority have illiterate parents and therefore no one to help them with their studies at home.

In fact, a big part of their success story is due to the SPECIAL TUTORING PROGRAM that our Association put in place several years ago thanks to your donations. This program provides our scholarship students with a support system to study after school under the guidance of qualified tutors for major subjects like Maths, French and Physics/Chemistry. We have made sure that the number of students in these classes remains small, never more than 10 –15, allowing them to get individual attention and be able to ask questions and get answers! Without this tutoring opportunity, obtaining their diploma would have been much more difficult, and perhaps not possible at all.

This project has evolved over time. We especially remarked last year that the students’ academic grade level increased noticeably each month and we believe it was a result of our tutoring program. How about some statistics as proof? The statistics are concrete: last year 87% of our scholarship students’ grades moved up between 2 & 5 points during the year in the subjects where tutoring was given. This was especially true of the students who regularly attended the tutoring classes. A student with 8/20 as an average at the beginning of the year, typically ended up with 10/20 and some even reached 13/20 at the end of the year. We checked this out with a total of 30 students, both weak and strong, and the survey showed a gain of significant points and an important rise in grades in the report cards of 27 students out of 30.

Let’s backtrack ….Did we get good results right away at the start of the Tutoring Classes some years ago? Unfortunately not! In the beginning, very few students attended the classes, there was no roll call, and the students were clearly not motivated to stay after school, especially for subjects that were difficult for them. Gradually, the students recognized the worth of remediation tutoring in small classes with clear explanations, they suddenly began to understand the basics of difficult subjects, they felt comfortable with the specialized teachers who patiently persevered and promoted skills development in reading, writing and maths and they were proud to reply «here «to the roll call every single day. The high-level students felt penalized that they weren’t included in these classes, so a special class opened for them.

A Taste of Success! The most convincing proof of this current enthusiasm is the revitalization of the Tutoring program which is helping to turn mentalities and beliefs around. 3eme Students (9th grade) are so impressed with the fruitful tutoring program, that INSTEAD OF STAYING ON VACATION, THEY HAVE REQUESTED TUTORING CLASSES THE WHOLE MONTH OF SEPTEMBER BEFORE GOING BACK TO SCHOOL IN OCTOBER in their two weakest subjects: Math & Physics, They want to get a head start for the BEPC exam in June. Focus is on improvement and understanding. Of course, we agreed!

The Magic Wand of Mr. Gogo : Our Tutoring Program provides excellent pedagogues who encourage each student to improve and reach his potential, One tutor, in particular, Mr. Gogo has supported the students many years, has given them confidence, and found a way to motivate and inspire them in 2 very difficult subjects: Maths & Physics. In turn, the students’ curiosity stimulates him.

« The students promised me I would be proud of their results on the BEPC and when they announced their success, they were jumping up and down and hugging each other » related Mr. Gogo concerning the successful BEPC results.

« We learn, we succeed, we are proud of ourselves, it’s agreeable, it feels good, it’s fun, we want more ! » declared Aminatou, speaking of the tutoring.

« I’m really good at Maths, but Physics is a mystery to me. In tutoring, we can ask many questions, and Mr. Gogo answers them and puts examples on the blackboard. We also correct all our tests afterwards with him. We wait every week for our Tutoring Class and love how he challenges us», remarks Fatimata.

Your generosity and support in providing scholarships and private tutoring for these deserving, impoverished students have served a wonderful purpose and has made their dreams come true to get a quality education leading hopefully to a career of their choice! Please help us continue financing and extending more Tutoring Classes as this is an important key to their success and you can proudly feel you are making a difference. Thank you so much! 

Dear Friends,

 We came, we met them, we met their families, & we met their needs!

Who are we talking about? We have an amazing story to tell about 9 of our scholarship students at Hampaté Bâ School who are presenting their baccalaureate this year. We had the honor of meeting them during our recent trip to Niger in February.

Some years ago… We founded les Amis de Hampaté Bâ to provide a quality secondary education to unprivileged youth in Niamey, and especially girls, who had no access to secondary education, without our help. We fully supported the Hampaté Bâ School’s philosophy to give more to those who had less and we wanted to give girls opportunities for a brighter future than being married at 12.

And so our adventure began… with giving scholarships to a group of young students with low levels of reading and writing skills and with illiterate parents who couldn’t help them with homework. Thanks to you all, we were able to provide school fees, books, uniforms, meals and especially high-level tutoring classes taught by motivated, trained teachers in small groups to bring the students up to level and avoid drop out. This same group of students who barely knew how to read and write, has now acquired excellent literacy skills through our accelerated tutoring programs at our Middle School and also through our newly opened High School in Niamey. Attending Hampaté Bâ has become a game-changer for them!

Here is the good news: After almost 7 years of perseverance and diligent hard work, we are proud to announce that 9 of our current 60 scholarship students have reached their Senior Year of High School and are presenting their baccalaureate in July 2018! Seven years of pursuing remediation classes after school have paid off! And 8 of the 9 students presenting their baccalaureate are GIRLS! Many other scholarship students are feeling encouraged by the testimonies of these 9 who have succeeded in reaching their senior year thanks to their after school remediation classes. Mission well accomplished!

Courage and Drawbacks : Getting a baccalaureate in Niger is not easy. Only 27% of those who apply, actually succeed. We congratulate heartily our 9 students for their hard work and bravery to have come this far despite the many drawbacks: the 45 degree heat, the long distances on foot, no electricity to study at night, strikes by student unions cancelling classes. The road to success demands, indeed, lots of courage. Next step: one full month of intense, relentless, concentrated preparation, requiring energy and hope. We wish these amazing students good luck and the excellent results they deserve.  

Encouraging Actions taken on site: We could not remain insensitive to the many needs of our 9 baccalaureate candidates on the last leg of their long road to graduation. To help them out, we immediately took action to provide exercise books, upscale private tutoring 7 days a week, orientation counseling, evaluations to target weaknesses, solar lamps to provide light at night to study, and shared transportation to get to remediation classes every day.

Thank you so much for your support. The students wouldn’t be where they are today without you!

Thank you all for participating in this worthwhile and uplifting cause and believing in us and the students! We are very encouraged by what we have seen during our trip this year, and there is still a lot to be done! We are also setting our sights on the next few years, as the challenge is still on for 51 more scholarship students currently in Middle School and the first of years of High School. Thanks a million to all of you who encourage these students to realize their dreams and seek a more productive life. Their future success will be possible because you continue to support them. Your donations count!

Our scholarship students applying for their baccalaureate are determined and grateful. As Fatchima expressed with great pride: “This is my 7th year here and I am now a candidate for the Scientific Baccalaureate. I WILL SUCCEED this exam. It is the least I can do to thank you for everything you have done for me. I am proud to be a scholarship student at Hampaté Bâ School.”   

You, our many donors, can be proud too!