Bumpeh Chiefdom now has six new college-educated teachers!

Thanks to Sherbro Foundation’s teacher training scholarships, six instructors in Rotifunk schools completed three-year Higher Teachers Certificates.

After passing the government certification exam, they’ll qualify to become government-approved teachers earning regular monthly salaries. And Rotifunk schools are starting to fill their ranks with trained and qualified teachers.

Four of the graduate teachers, above, smile after completing their certification exam. L to R: Salamatu Fofanah, Abul Aziz Bendu, Kadiatu Sesay and Idrissa Smart Kanu.

Long journey to qualified teacher

But that’s just part of it for these dedicated local teachers like Abdul Aziz Bendu, 30. After finishing high school in 2009, Aziz started teaching lower primary school and worked his way up as a Rotifunk secondary school teacher. Many teachers in rural areas have even less education and no training to properly teach the state curriculum.

Without funds for college, it took Aziz 14 years to reach this point where he proudly holds a secondary school teaching certificate. That’s not uncommon. He’s committed to keep teaching in Rotifunk.

“We were born and raised here,” he said. “If we can’t make this a better place, who would?”

Aziz has sacrificed to stay in this rural area. Without certification and government approval, teachers are considered “volunteer.”

Schools must come up with extra funds to pay them, maybe 400 or 500 Leones per month. That’s about $25 with Sierra Leone’s sky-rocketing inflation, and perhaps a third of a certified teacher salary.

And yet, he is supporting a younger brother and sister still in secondary school; they share two rooms with him in a Rotifunk colleague’s home.

Left, Aziz teaches geography and social studies.

Aziz was the seventh of nine children born to one of his father’s four wives. Most of his father’s children have no formal education. His father was a subsistence farmer who grew rice and peanuts in one of the most “deprived sections” of the chiefdom.

His mother died when he was young and he was raised by an older sister. “She didn’t go to school, but she had a passion for education,’’ he said.

He took that passion and ran with it, mastering English and dreaming about advancing his education. He now is one of the first from his home area with a college education.

Dedicated teachers, despite many challenges

With a three-year Sherbro Foundation scholarship, Aziz traveled an hour away for teacher training classes over school holidays. There aren’t textbooks and teacher trainees pay to download assignments at computer cafes.

His school principal pays volunteer teachers stipends with funds gathered from the government and parent donations. “But I can’t even buy a bag of rice for the month with it,” Aziz laments. In his spare time, he grew two acres of peanuts to earn extra money to live on and support his two siblings.

With Sierra Leone’s stunning 30% – 40% inflation rates, food and survival are his focus. Small pleasures are no longer affordable.

He lets his young siblings occasionally play games on his phone for fun. For holidays, he tries to get them clothes. “But now, the focus is on food. I told them they have to use their old shoes for school this year,’’ he said.

The youths have never been to a city because travel is too expensive. Aziz doesn’t visit Freetown either. It costs $8 round trip to catch a minivan ride to the Capitol. The official price of gas just jumped from 20 to 30 Leones per liter – or $6 a gallon in US dollars.

Local teachers work as change agents

Still, Aziz said, “I’m proud to stay in Rotifunk, to be a ‘village boy’. I have a passion for teaching and love for my chiefdom. In the future, I want my name mentioned as one of those who worked hard to develop the chiefdom.”

“We have so many challenges,” he said. “Most schools don’t have the required infrastructure. We need qualified teachers and learning materials. We need computers and IT education.”

But Bumpeh Chiefdom is luckier than most. “We are fortunate to have a paramount chief committed to education,” he said.

It was Paramount Chief Charles Caulker’s vision that created Rotifunk’s nonprofit Center for Community Empowerment and Transformation. CCET-SL leads the innovative programs Sherbro Foundation helps fund, including teacher training scholarships.

“We are making progress. And with support, we can change,’’ Aziz said.

They are changing. Rotifunk schools achieved goals that were just a dream a few years ago. Nearly all students in CCET-SL tutorial programs now pass to the next level, from primary school to junior high to senior high. Many graduates now qualify for higher education. 

Teachers like Aziz are change agents in rural communities. Sustainable progress will continue when local teachers are developed from within the chiefdom. They plan to stay and help children from their families and neighbors go further in education than ever before.

Sherbro Foundation just funded CCET-SL to award thirteen more teachers with scholarships for three-year primary and secondary school teacher certificate courses.

Your support strengthens the leading edge of education and progress in Bumpeh Chiefdom.

We believe stronger teachers make stronger students – and stronger communities. We’re thankful that you do, too. Support more teachers with training scholarships here.

Chris Golembiewski
— Sherbro Foundation VP