Paul Ochen, Grade 11
UWCEA (Arusha)
The morning scenery at Pamoja Secondary School was spectacular. I could see the snow-clad peak of Mountain Kilimanjaro to the left and the steep crest of Mountain Meru to the East as a crisp forenoon breeze swept across my feet. A shrub and thicket of vegetation permeated the terrain around the school. The ground was rugged and worn. Looking at the clear sky, it did not appear as it would rain soon; in fact, this region of Tanzania receives only a few drizzles through the course of the year. The school was a private education institution started and managed by a non-profit organisation in Tanzania, with the principal goal of providing affordable quality education to the poverty-stricken Maasai high school students in the area. Maasai is a Nilotic ethnic group, with a community of just over 2 million people, making up the majority of the local population in Northern Tanzania.
I sauntered into the dormitory in which I had slept the night together with other D1 students from UWC East Africa. As one project under the UWC umbrella, my college had organised this trip to Pamoja where we would spend the weekend and carry out voluntary activities jointly with the local students there. The previous day, since my college - which just opened recently in August 2019 - is the 18th UWC institution, students from my campus in Arusha trekked 9kms to Pamoja whilst students from Moshi also climbed 9kms from their campus to the school. A cohort of light-hearted students welcomed us that evening as we strolled through the school’s tumbledown gate. They led us to their concrete-floored common room where they treated us to a mesmerising Maasai folk dance and delightful Maasai folk songs. Subsequently, we roasted beef with the Masai students on sharpened hand-picked sticks, a local dish that many East Africans have dubbed muchomo.
After having a cup of nutrient-dense Kericho tea and scones for breakfast, I put on my farm gloves, wore my gumboots and made my way to the quadrangle. Mr Phil Bowen, my principal, a handful of other teachers and the rest of the students joined us. We were designated into communal workgroups; I would take part in tree planting. Among the voluntary activities we did included sweeping the school compound, washing utensils and digging trenches as foundations for the construction of new classroom walls. The Maasai students accompanied us in the sundry day’s duties.
In uniting to work together, I made friends with several local students and learnt innovative farm practices such as the use of a cow dung compost system to provide manure for food crops and planted tree seedlings. As one aim of this visit, we shared knowledge and skills with the local students. Besides being a community service activity, this trip was a learning opportunity for UWC and Masai students alike.
As the United World College movement seeks to make education a force to unite people, nations and cultures for peace and a sustainable future, the Pamoja trip gave me an opportunity to interact with teens from a dissimilar educational institution and background, and carry out deliberate activities that would ultimately improve the learning environment in their school. In the act of gratitude, the Masai students and their teachers gave us many-hued hand-crafted dream catchers, one of the magnificent materials that represent the rich Masai culture. It was an unforgettable moment when the cross-cultural community of my school interacted with the native Masai youth at Pamoja. Decisively, the trip aimed at enhancing the learning conditions at the school to provide inexpensive quality education, an indicator of a sustainable future. Speaking to and working towards making better the welfare of unfamiliar people taught me just how UWC enriches the lives of many individuals across the globe - even the necessitous learners who cannot make it among the elite students who win UWC scholarships annually.
I sauntered into the dormitory in which I had slept the night together with other D1 students from UWC East Africa. As one project under the UWC umbrella, my college had organised this trip to Pamoja where we would spend the weekend and carry out voluntary activities jointly with the local students there. The previous day, since my college - which just opened recently in August 2019 - is the 18th UWC institution, students from my campus in Arusha trekked 9kms to Pamoja whilst students from Moshi also climbed 9kms from their campus to the school. A cohort of light-hearted students welcomed us that evening as we strolled through the school’s tumbledown gate. They led us to their concrete-floored common room where they treated us to a mesmerising Maasai folk dance and delightful Maasai folk songs. Subsequently, we roasted beef with the Masai students on sharpened hand-picked sticks, a local dish that many East Africans have dubbed muchomo.
After having a cup of nutrient-dense Kericho tea and scones for breakfast, I put on my farm gloves, wore my gumboots and made my way to the quadrangle. Mr Phil Bowen, my principal, a handful of other teachers and the rest of the students joined us. We were designated into communal workgroups; I would take part in tree planting. Among the voluntary activities we did included sweeping the school compound, washing utensils and digging trenches as foundations for the construction of new classroom walls. The Maasai students accompanied us in the sundry day’s duties.
In uniting to work together, I made friends with several local students and learnt innovative farm practices such as the use of a cow dung compost system to provide manure for food crops and planted tree seedlings. As one aim of this visit, we shared knowledge and skills with the local students. Besides being a community service activity, this trip was a learning opportunity for UWC and Masai students alike.
As the United World College movement seeks to make education a force to unite people, nations and cultures for peace and a sustainable future, the Pamoja trip gave me an opportunity to interact with teens from a dissimilar educational institution and background, and carry out deliberate activities that would ultimately improve the learning environment in their school. In the act of gratitude, the Masai students and their teachers gave us many-hued hand-crafted dream catchers, one of the magnificent materials that represent the rich Masai culture. It was an unforgettable moment when the cross-cultural community of my school interacted with the native Masai youth at Pamoja. Decisively, the trip aimed at enhancing the learning conditions at the school to provide inexpensive quality education, an indicator of a sustainable future. Speaking to and working towards making better the welfare of unfamiliar people taught me just how UWC enriches the lives of many individuals across the globe - even the necessitous learners who cannot make it among the elite students who win UWC scholarships annually.
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