-
Secure environments, where children can
learn and play in safety
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Stimulating environments, where teachers
are well trained and have adequate materials for their
classes and where students can have a voice about issues
that affect them
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Healthy environments, where children
have access to safe water, basic health care, and at least
one nutritious meal a day
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Nurturing environments, where every child
will be encouraged to reach his or her full potential
|
 The
concept of community involvement is still very alive in Africa,
and this concept acts as the backbone of the SSZ program model.
A key word in the SSZ program is “participation.”
That participation may come in the form of teachers attending
workshops on positive teaching methods, students actively involved
in school clubs, or private companies donating physical supplies
towards a school’s building project. The SSZ program marks
a joint effort between CWS, teachers, parents, students, and
a number of other stakeholders, including NGOs and the private
sector, who all have a role to play in improving the learning
environment of Kenyan schools. Overall school safety will be
achievable only if all parties understand that creating a positive
environment for education is a shared responsibility.
CWS’ primary role in the SSZ
program is to build the capacity of communities. By
training school management committees how to identify their
local school’s needs and how to search for local solutions
for their problems, CWS encourages communities to move away
from a feeling of helplessness towards a feeling of empowerment.
The SSZ model encourages networking between schools, private
businesses, and NGOs, increasing a school’s access to
development partners and financial resources.
At the end of 2006, the SSZ program began
an expansion phase, increasing the number
of focus schools from ten to sixty. The expansion has been
carried out through the creation of “school clusters.”
In these clusters, an original SSZ pilot school is partnered
with other schools in its surrounding area. Creating these
school networks will foster collaboration and solidarity amongst
schools in an area. It also will allow the pilot schools to
take a leadership role, acting as model schools for the others
in its cluster and multiplying the impact of CWS’ original
involvement during the pilot phase.
As the program moves into 2007, CWS has focused
on enabling the SSZ model to have a wide-reaching
impact across the country. With approximately 20,000
primary schools in Kenya, it is impossible for CWS to have
direct involvement in every school. In order to expand the
program’s reach, SSZ has focused on the creation and
distribution of a Safety Standards Manual. This manual, supported
by the Kenyan government’s Ministry of Education, will
outline basic safety standards and indicators for schools
across the country. By providing schools with access to this
information, these manuals will better enable schools and
the government to hold one another accountable for school
safety. Once again, the SSZ pilot schools and their larger
cluster groups will serve as models that other schools around
the country can visit and emulate.
If the SSZ program model proves successful
in Kenya, CWS may explore broader expansion across Eastern
Africa and the continent. |
