VIEWS Volunteer Service Overseas (VSO)


Teaching in the foothills of the Himalayas


Since retiring from her teaching career three years ago, Anne Law from Inverness has been volunteering with leading international development charity, VSO, as a Teacher Trainer in Nepal. Anne reflects on her journey so far.


“I’m based in the beautiful, hilly district of Surkhet where the climate is wonderful. I work with twelve schools scattered around the town of Birendranagar, which are mostly reached by bus or jeep and an invigorating walk through stunning countryside. I train teachers in gender


sensitivity and child centred education for VSO’s ‘Sisters for Sisters' project. Through mentoring, training and advocacy, vulnerable girls stay in school and others - who may have dropped out - are encouraged to return to their studies. This is achieved by older school girls ‘Big Sisters’ mentoring younger school girls ‘Little Sisters’ and helping them with their homework and playing games with them. I train teachers to deliver the ‘Sister for Sisters’ programme and help parents and communities become more engaged with girls’ education. Schools in Nepal generally lack resources and often classrooms are bare.


Class sizes vary from under ten to over one hundred students. Teachers tend to use a ‘lecture’ style of teaching with students listening followed by them completing exercises. This makes the inclusion of less able students very difficult. Lesson planning is not evident and students are left unattended and unengaged for long periods. Communication is also difficult because of the lack of power and the distances students have to travel to get to school. I realised that compared to the teachers in Nepal, I’ve had a lifetime of


learning through training and experience, but these teachers have had very little training, if any at all. Many of them teach the way their teachers had taught them. One headteacher told me he had had no training. He had only passed his school leaving certificate when he started teaching. Despite these challenges, the District Education Office and the headteachers are keen for their schools to develop and are most welcoming. Many talented teachers are also enthusiastic about developing their skills, but are simply frustrated by the lack of opportunity. So where does one begin? I began by assessing the current teaching and


learning methods. Then I introduced lessons in each school which demonstrated child centred strategies. I used examples from text books to demonstrate that with some planning, lessons could become more interactive. Having planned a two day training programme, I met with staff from the


District Education Office and headteachers to share the plan and get their feedback. With their approval, I invited three teachers from each school to take part in the training which included simple lesson planning and making low cost/no cost resources. In between training sessions I visited the schools and gradually saw an


improvement, e.g. some headteachers have now introduced planning diaries for their teachers and all schools now keep a daily attendance record with some even requiring parents to send in notes explaining absences. I’ve witnessed that child-centred teaching and learning can be achieved in


Nepal with a little planning and the use of games, art, drama and music make lessons so much more interesting for the students. All schools are rich in natural resources which can be used to make subjects more stimulating. I gave each school a file containing dozens of low cost/no cost ideas including speaking and listening games. I’m currently creating a teacher training pack so hopefully teacher training


can become more sustainable in future. This year, the schools have requested more training in school rather than residential training so I’m spending a few days in each school identifying who wishes to continue with the training. I believe I have helped to lay a foundation of good practice in these


schools, and with more accountability and regular training, conditions will continue to improve. I have learned a great deal here and have thoroughly enjoyed the challenge. To be a volunteer in Nepal is to continue to do what you love, to share your experience and skills and to meet wonderful people in a most beautiful country.


uwww.vsointernational.org/educationroles October 2016 British Educational Suppliers Association (BESA)


The teacher shortage requires innovation


This month, BESA Director Patrick Hayes looks at some innovative ways of dealing with the current teacher shortage.


While she is only weeks in post, it is highly likely that Education Secretary Justine Greening will already have had conversations with officials about one of the most pressing issues facing the UK schools sector at present: the teacher shortage. While it is true that there are currently


more teachers teaching in UK classrooms than ever before, the problem is that increasing numbers of pupils coming through the system mean more and more teachers are required. There is an air of negativity around this issue that it’s important to


avoid. It’s often been called a “perfect storm”. This natural analogy is frustrating, however, because it implies that all you can do is batten down the hatches. There are, however, constructive solutions currently being devised


to tackle the shortage. One such solution is called Try Teaching. The aim is to give


graduates the opportunity to undertake a paid internship for a term at a school to see if teaching is for them before committing to undertaking Initial Teacher Training (ITT). The initiative has been founded by Dr. Nicholas Breakwell. He was


inspired to set up Try Teaching because, as he puts it, “in September each year, 25-30,000 people start ITT courses but, five years on, fewer than 50% are still in the profession”. It is, he says, “an incredible waste of resources, for graduates, schools, universities and government alike”. Try Teaching aims to remove all barriers to entry and, significantly,


at zero cost to graduates, already burdened with considerable student debt. Indeed, they are paid at least minimum wage on the scheme. Just a few months in, 1,500 graduates have already signed up. Breakwell’s vision is for the Try Teaching approach to become a


mainstream route into the profession. While it’s early days, it seems he could have hit on a winning formula. Another innovative initiative making waves at the moment is one


looking at bringing some of the vast numbers of qualified teachers not currently teaching back into the profession. Herts for Learning has been tackling this issue head on. Herts for Learning’s flagship recruitment initiative was the launch of


a recruitment fair where former teachers from around the country could come and have a face-to-face interaction with schools from across Hertfordshire to find out which opportunity might best suit them. Launched in 2015, and growing bigger and better this year, the


intricately organised event attracted over 500 attendees, with 166 Hertfordshire schools represented on the day. It was an overwhelming success - 88% of schools followed up with contacts they made. Initiatives such as this not only help the situation in Hertfordshire,


but help shine a light on the kind of creative thinking needed to address the teacher shortage. Let’s drop the doom-mongering around the recruitment crisis


and embrace fresh thinking, such as that embodied by Try Teaching and Herts for Learning. These are exactly the kind of initiatives needed to ensure the teacher recruitment “storm” passes sooner rather than later.


uFor information from BESA contact: uPatrick Hayes u020 7537 4997 upatrick@besa.org.uk uwww.besa.org.uk


www.education-today.co.uk 7


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