The visiting team for the 2015 International Friendship Visit to the Humanist Schools in Uganda comprised: Steve and Hilary Hurd (UHST), Andrew West (BHA/UHST), Trisha Rogers (Vice-Chair BHA), Ed Schmidt (Chair, Ethical Society of St. Louis) and Peter Furness (Director, Australia Humanist Aid). The picture shows the group as we crossed the Equator.
We were warmly welcomed at both Mustard Seed and Isaac Newton Schools and took part in a range of teaching and other activities at the schools. Here is a link to the Friendship Week Programme.
The students as always were a delight to be with. They are enthusiastic and attentive and we were all struck by the happy and purposeful atmosphere of both schools.
After touring each school we could all see what huge progress they have made in recent years. The infrastructure has greatly expanded and it is difficult to imagine that both schools started 8 or 9 years ago with a single classroom.
The students treated us to a lively music and dance performance. At Isaac Newton School, the students performed a version of a traditional dance that was used historically at circumcision ceremonies. It should be noted that the boys in each school have been participating in a national programme of circumcision, which is one element of Uganda’s successful campaign to combat HIV/AIDS.
Hilary with Mustard Seed girls
Hilary gave two talks to bring to the school the latest knowledge on what causes the symptoms of malaria and the latest scientific methods to stop its transmission. Steve gave talks on climate change, the economics of energy markets and set up a debate on urban rural migration. The students are accomplished debaters and follow a strict format with chairperson, time-keeper, critic and adjudicator. Perhaps, somewhat surprisingly given the rural location of each school, both sets of students rejected the motion that “This house believes that the Uganda Government should spend less money on congested cities and more on rural areas”. This perhaps reflects the aspirations of many of the students to move to the towns and cities for jobs once they complete their education.
Ed and Trisha ran a series of lessons to get the students to think more deeply about the nature of mathematics and why they were studying it. Trisha, an experienced mathematics curriculum developer and researcher, spent time with the teachers in each school running a workshop on new developments in mathematics teaching. Ed conducted a fascinating demonstration of pendulum swings using chains of students making wave motions.
Girl debating rural development
Although the schools are run by Humanists most students and, indeed teachers, are religious believers, mainly from different Christian churches but also a proportion of Moslems. It is quite a challenge to prepare a talk on Humanism in this setting, but Steve, with support from Peter, did precisely this by presenting Humanism according to the 2002 Amsterdam Declaration principles as a set of beliefs that can be embraced by all. It clearly worked as many students and teachers said afterwards that, although they had not realised before, they are happy to embrace Humanism. In fact so positive was the response that the meeting ended with the setting up of new Humanist Society at Isaac Newton School with the intention of helping less fortunate people in the villages around the school and providing a forum for the discussion and debate of pressing issues facing their communities and humankind in general.
Andrew by the River Nile
Andrew was every present as group photographer. He was pursued by students throughout, who all wanted him to take photographs of them with their friends. He took so many stunning photographs and we are planning to place a link to them on the website.
The visit ended with the presentation of re-usable sanitary pads to the girl students by Afripads. This started as an initiative of Central London Humanists and we have co-funded the provision of pads with them for the past two years. On our last day in Masaka we were taken on a tour of two of the Afripad factories (this will be the subject of a separate blog).
At the end of the various activities were were all sad to leave the schools. If you think you might like to join a future visit to the schools please let me know at stevehurd@uhst.org.
International Team Visits Humanist Schools
Posted: June 24, 2015 by Steve Hurd
The visiting team for the 2015 International Friendship Visit to the Humanist Schools in Uganda comprised: Steve and Hilary Hurd (UHST), Andrew West (BHA/UHST), Trisha Rogers (Vice-Chair BHA), Ed Schmidt (Chair, Ethical Society of St. Louis) and Peter Furness (Director, Australia Humanist Aid). The picture shows the group as we crossed the Equator.
We were warmly welcomed at both Mustard Seed and Isaac Newton Schools and took part in a range of teaching and other activities at the schools. Here is a link to the Friendship Week Programme.
The students as always were a delight to be with. They are enthusiastic and attentive and we were all struck by the happy and purposeful atmosphere of both schools.
After touring each school we could all see what huge progress they have made in recent years. The infrastructure has greatly expanded and it is difficult to imagine that both schools started 8 or 9 years ago with a single classroom.
The students treated us to a lively music and dance performance. At Isaac Newton School, the students performed a version of a traditional dance that was used historically at circumcision ceremonies. It should be noted that the boys in each school have been participating in a national programme of circumcision, which is one element of Uganda’s successful campaign to combat HIV/AIDS.
Hilary gave two talks to bring to the school the latest knowledge on what causes the symptoms of malaria and the latest scientific methods to stop its transmission. Steve gave talks on climate change, the economics of energy markets and set up a debate on urban rural migration. The students are accomplished debaters and follow a strict format with chairperson, time-keeper, critic and adjudicator. Perhaps, somewhat surprisingly given the rural location of each school, both sets of students rejected the motion that “This house believes that the Uganda Government should spend less money on congested cities and more on rural areas”. This perhaps reflects the aspirations of many of the students to move to the towns and cities for jobs once they complete their education.
Ed and Trisha ran a series of lessons to get the students to think more deeply about the nature of mathematics and why they were studying it. Trisha, an experienced mathematics curriculum developer and researcher, spent time with the teachers in each school running a workshop on new developments in mathematics teaching. Ed conducted a fascinating demonstration of pendulum swings using chains of students making wave motions.
Although the schools are run by Humanists most students and, indeed teachers, are religious believers, mainly from different Christian churches but also a proportion of Moslems. It is quite a challenge to prepare a talk on Humanism in this setting, but Steve, with support from Peter, did precisely this by presenting Humanism according to the 2002 Amsterdam Declaration principles as a set of beliefs that can be embraced by all. It clearly worked as many students and teachers said afterwards that, although they had not realised before, they are happy to embrace Humanism. In fact so positive was the response that the meeting ended with the setting up of new Humanist Society at Isaac Newton School with the intention of helping less fortunate people in the villages around the school and providing a forum for the discussion and debate of pressing issues facing their communities and humankind in general.
Andrew was every present as group photographer. He was pursued by students throughout, who all wanted him to take photographs of them with their friends. He took so many stunning photographs and we are planning to place a link to them on the website.
The visit ended with the presentation of re-usable sanitary pads to the girl students by Afripads. This started as an initiative of Central London Humanists and we have co-funded the provision of pads with them for the past two years. On our last day in Masaka we were taken on a tour of two of the Afripad factories (this will be the subject of a separate blog).
At the end of the various activities were were all sad to leave the schools. If you think you might like to join a future visit to the schools please let me know at stevehurd@uhst.org.
Category: News