ICSEE Projects

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Science Education Institute

Innovation and impact in education in science, mathematics, and information technology for Africa

African Societies need individuals armed with the knowledge and self confidence to bring their societies into full development through innovation, engineering, and marketing, locally and internationally. Where are they now, these essential people? What experiences must they live through to prepare themselves for their new and exciting role in life?

They are among us, those who will lead us. They are our children. We know who they are and we must help them prepare. One of the most important things we must do for them is to provide good schools.

The need for education is science, mathematics, and information technology

The weaknesses and impediments to a good education in our schools must be addressed and eventually overcome.

• There are teacher shortages in the schools.
• Classes are large and supplies are scarce and equipment is in poor repair.
• Teaching methods and curriculum are crippled both by tradition and practical realities.
• Principals have to balance many needs with little available funds.
• Girls are discouraged in science, mathematics and information technology.
• Boys and girls do badly on crucial national examinations.
• National polices are not fully in tune with local needs.
• Physical facilities are bleak and uninspiring learning environments.

The ICSEE plan for successful intervention

The two things that make practical progress and effective intervention difficult are

• the size of national education systems, and
• the adherence to practices that impede alternative strategies.

The ICSEE president has had the privilege of working with the Zanzibar Ministry of Education and the Faculty of Science of the University of Dar es Salaam, to design and mount the Zanzibar Science Camp Project.

The camp sessions and the associated workshops became opportunities to try new methods and curriculum and the students, because of their inherent curiosities and love of learning, demonstrated to the participating adults from all levels of the educations system, that they thrive on more intellectual freedom and respond to learning through inquiry and investigations.

It was because the camp was not conventional and was not being held during the normal school year that the authorities were persuaded to let the experimentation go forward. As long as the camp project continued there were instances of change in particular schools, but once the project ended, transfer to schools came to a stop. The Zanzibar Science Camp Project teaches us the need for permanent institutional settings for continued experimentation, innovation, and stimulation of the education authorities.

The specifications of the institutions now required

Both the needs of African societies and the lessons learned point to the characteristics of the new institutions that are needed and that we propose to create.

• The institutions are permanent
• They are dedicated to ultimately helping to bring the best of education to the governmental education system.
• They are independently managed and funded, accepting resources from government sources, but always maintaining independence and setting their own priorities, designing their own programs, and continuing to innovate.
• They remain closely linked to government educational agencies and provide training and curriculum development services, advice and consulting on all aspects of education, links to physical resources, and information about international efforts and practice.
• They focus on human resource development but provide guidance for material resource development as well.
• They involve students in their programming, students who impress the participating education authorities with their capacity to thrive and participate actively in their education.
• They are in diverse locales in Sub-Saharan Africa, but be closely linked to one another and to international educational development efforts, and managed by persons with good relationships to local governments who share the vision on which they are based.

The first example: Kericho Kenya

The first institute will be in the Kericho district of Kenya and is already under development in cooperation with local non-governmental organizations and faculty members of Egerton University.

The program of the Kericho Institute is still being planned, but will include these elements.

Mounting Workshops

• Teacher training workshops in science, mathematics, technology and computers
• Training and mutual education workshops for science teachers and principals
• Joint teacher, inspectors, and examination officer workshops.
• Workshops for curriculum development and the design and trial of inexpensive and appropriate teaching materials
• Retreats and workshops to analyze curriculum and examinations and their implications for good pedagogy, including the evaluation of the national

Sponsoring meetings and conferences

Mounting special events and projects

• Science camps, especially for girls
• Professional development retreats for teachers, principals, ministry officials
• Receiving and disseminating educational materials from international sources

Funding from non-governmental and governmental sources

There will be a need for major donations from foundations, individuals, and corporations for the first years of the project. There could be bilateral aid possible for this effort as well. Once the value of these institutions is clearly demonstrated, and their essential independence understood and valued, local governmental support will be obtained.