A report by Moses Kamya, Headteacher & Director of Mustard Seed Humanist Schools.
Uganda schools reopened on 10th January, and we are now well through the first term. Things are going well. Children and staff are happy to be back.
At first, students were slow to report back. Covid-19 cases were still prevalent in their communities. Families were unable to get their produce to market and had no money for school fees. They couldn’t even buy shoes for their children, let alone school stationery and pens. Additional funds from UHST enabled us to help needy children by giving them uniforms, stationery and the writing and drawing sets they would normally have to provide themselves. 487 of our original 600 children have returned.
An appeal to UHST supporters raised money to buy the neighbouring Muslim primary school, bankrupted by the Covid lockdown. It has now been refurbished and reopened as Mustard Seed Humanist Primary School. The school has already attracted 162 children. Some of the original Muslim children stayed with us, but most are new recruits.
When the term started, we were completely devoid of funds but fortunately UHST supporters came to our rescue. We were able to give our teachers money to return to school and pay for rented accommodation. UHST helped us to buy food stocks, control Covid with masks, hand washing stations and cleaning fluids, give all our girls packs of Afripads (reusable sanitary pads) and buy books for the new national curriculum.
We have worked hard to restore morale among students and staff and are beginning to re-establish the high standards of welfare and education that we had achieved before Covid struck. Our protection measures have been successful. There have been no Covid-19 cases among learners or staff in our schools. However, very many children have suffered high fevers due to malaria. Fortunately, our school nurse has help them with simple tests and medicine.
We are re-establishing popular out-of-school activities. Our Humanist Club has helped to cement our relationship with the community by conducting voluntary cleaning and tidying work in and around the new local health centre. The Director was so pleased with our efforts that he came to thank the children personally.
Football is popular at Mustard Seed. We have teams for boys, girls and staff in both the primary and secondary schools. As a team building exercise, primary and secondary teachers have played each other, staff have played children. Everyone is enjoying being able to participate in sport again. Both girls’ and boys’ football teams have performed well in competition against other local schools, and they are doing well in the regional tournaments, having just reached the semi-finals.
Mustard Seed boys with their coach at the semi-final of the Regional Coca Cola Cup
Mustard Seed School has been in existence for over 16 years, and we are beginning to see the results of our efforts. The school has given many local children a decent general education. Many have moved on to further and higher education and then returned to put their talents to use helping the community from which they came. A quarter of our teachers are home-grown talent. In January, two more former students returned to Mustard Seed as staff members.
The picture left was taken at the Senior 6 leavers party. Hellen Namaganda (left with cap) returned as senior teacher of Agriculture, after gaining a B.Sc. in Agriculture from Kampala University. Jamilla Namulondo (with sunglasses) qualified with a Diploma in Accounting and returned to be the bursar at our new primary school.
Although we feel we are doing well, we know there will always be challenges. Generating enough money to pay our staff is always the number one concern, but we need so much more. A few weeks ago, the roof of our old kitchen blew off in a storm. UHST has just sent money so we can begin work to build a modern kitchen on our new main site that makes more efficient use of firewood.
Temporary cookhouse used after storm destroyed the old one.
With global heating storms are becoming more powerful. Lightning poses a growing threat to both children and buildings. We are making our children lightning aware, but we also need to consider the installation of lightning conductors should funds become available.
The new national curriculum moves towards developing competencies for the information age. We have some computers but need more, so that children can access the wealth of on-line materials, and we need to introduce our primary children to the use of computers in their learning.
We could so easily have gone under in January, but for the extra help we received from Uganda Humanist Schools Trust supporters, and we are grateful to every one of them for saving us. Working together we will surmount the many challenges we face and succeed in our mission of using education to create a better society based on reason, compassion and tolerance.
Mustard Seed School regains its pre-Covid momentum
Posted: March 14, 2022 by Steve Hurd
A report by Moses Kamya, Headteacher & Director of Mustard Seed Humanist Schools.
Uganda schools reopened on 10th January, and we are now well through the first term. Things are going well. Children and staff are happy to be back.
At first, students were slow to report back. Covid-19 cases were still prevalent in their communities. Families were unable to get their produce to market and had no money for school fees. They couldn’t even buy shoes for their children, let alone school stationery and pens. Additional funds from UHST enabled us to help needy children by giving them uniforms, stationery and the writing and drawing sets they would normally have to provide themselves. 487 of our original 600 children have returned.
An appeal to UHST supporters raised money to buy the neighbouring Muslim primary school, bankrupted by the Covid lockdown. It has now been refurbished and reopened as Mustard Seed Humanist Primary School. The school has already attracted 162 children. Some of the original Muslim children stayed with us, but most are new recruits.
When the term started, we were completely devoid of funds but fortunately UHST supporters came to our rescue. We were able to give our teachers money to return to school and pay for rented accommodation. UHST helped us to buy food stocks, control Covid with masks, hand washing stations and cleaning fluids, give all our girls packs of Afripads (reusable sanitary pads) and buy books for the new national curriculum.
We have worked hard to restore morale among students and staff and are beginning to re-establish the high standards of welfare and education that we had achieved before Covid struck. Our protection measures have been successful. There have been no Covid-19 cases among learners or staff in our schools. However, very many children have suffered high fevers due to malaria. Fortunately, our school nurse has help them with simple tests and medicine.
We are re-establishing popular out-of-school activities. Our Humanist Club has helped to cement our relationship with the community by conducting voluntary cleaning and tidying work in and around the new local health centre. The Director was so pleased with our efforts that he came to thank the children personally.
Football is popular at Mustard Seed. We have teams for boys, girls and staff in both the primary and secondary schools. As a team building exercise, primary and secondary teachers have played each other, staff have played children. Everyone is enjoying being able to participate in sport again. Both girls’ and boys’ football teams have performed well in competition against other local schools, and they are doing well in the regional tournaments, having just reached the semi-finals.
Mustard Seed School has been in existence for over 16 years, and we are beginning to see the results of our efforts. The school has given many local children a decent general education. Many have moved on to further and higher education and then returned to put their talents to use helping the community from which they came. A quarter of our teachers are home-grown talent. In January, two more former students returned to Mustard Seed as staff members.
The picture left was taken at the Senior 6 leavers party. Hellen Namaganda (left with cap) returned as senior teacher of Agriculture, after gaining a B.Sc. in Agriculture from Kampala University. Jamilla Namulondo (with sunglasses) qualified with a Diploma in Accounting and returned to be the bursar at our new primary school.
Although we feel we are doing well, we know there will always be challenges. Generating enough money to pay our staff is always the number one concern, but we need so much more. A few weeks ago, the roof of our old kitchen blew off in a storm. UHST has just sent money so we can begin work to build a modern kitchen on our new main site that makes more efficient use of firewood.
With global heating storms are becoming more powerful. Lightning poses a growing threat to both children and buildings. We are making our children lightning aware, but we also need to consider the installation of lightning conductors should funds become available.
The new national curriculum moves towards developing competencies for the information age. We have some computers but need more, so that children can access the wealth of on-line materials, and we need to introduce our primary children to the use of computers in their learning.
We could so easily have gone under in January, but for the extra help we received from Uganda Humanist Schools Trust supporters, and we are grateful to every one of them for saving us. Working together we will surmount the many challenges we face and succeed in our mission of using education to create a better society based on reason, compassion and tolerance.
Category: News