FOCAL TEACHERS TRAINED IN SAFE SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT

    

focal teachers after the training

A two days training of focal teachers was conducted on Safe School Environment and was attended by 24 teachers (11m, 13f) in Kibiito town council at Travellers nest. The training was attended by the DEO, DIS and other experts in safe school environment as facilitators.

 

focal teachers during training

On the first day, the DEO presented about the components of a safe school environment and the facilitator of the day kaliba Charles presented about the corporal punishment description and effects, government position on corporal punishment and understanding children behavior. Participants were tasked to identify the negative and positive consequences of corporal punishments Consequences of corporal (physical, social and emotional ) Physical harm, increased dropout, trauma, hatred, law performance, aggressiveness, death, indiscipline, social misfit/lack of sense of belonging were some of the negative consequences of punishment given. From the discussions on negative and positive consequences of corporal punishments members realized that corporal is bad and this was based on the points of negative consequences that overshadowed the positive consequences.

 Followed by the Remarks from the inspector of schools on the second day of the training who highlighted about the positive teaching and learning environment to the focal teachers, the district’s effort to promote good school environment by providing enough classrooms, paying teachers, orienting committees on their roles and responsibilities, recruiting qualified personnel in the education department. The facilitator the day Ms Harriet Masika trained about positive discipline within safer school, steps for creating a safe and violence free school, alternative techniques to corporal punishment. It was agreed from the training that the focal teachers are to train the non-teaching and teaching staff, form clubs, guide children to develop talking compound messages and hold VAC sessions in their respective schools.

focal teachers presenting their specific action points

RADIO TALK SHOW ABOUT STATUS AND REFERRAL PATHWAYS OF VAC IN BUNYANGABU.

 

It all started with the project staff informing the target community how the project is progressing. The activities so far carried out were identified and these were baseline survey, training the CBFs in the PFR model, Training of the peer educators about safe spaces, the orientation of the head teachers about the safe school environment, and the quarterly meeting with the key stakeholders. The activities that were to be implemented were also suggested.

During the talk show

The DCDO Bunyangabu gave the statistics of the boys and girls that are being affected by different forms of violence from July 2020 to April 2021 and these were sexual violence (10M, 43F), Physical violence (20M, 33F), Neglect (34M, 44F), Emotional violence (4M, 10F) adding up to 68 boys and 130 girls hence 198 children being affected by violence in Bunyangabu district. She further added that there is a free toll line of 116 to call in case of any form of violence happening in the villages. The community people were advised to always get psycho-social support from the CDOs, VHTs, and the government structures like the labor probation officer. She added that the sub-counties mostly affected by early marriages and defilement are Kateebwa, Kabonero, and Kyamukube and rwimi sub-county affected by child labor.

The CFPU Bunyangabu shared the linkage and networking people to run to in case of any forms of violence for example the police surgeon working with police for sexual harassment and encouraged the people to always take the victims of sexual violence to the hospital because no changes are made. She said the police is very ready to work with the people but the witnesses are not willing to give evidence and this makes helping the survivors of VAC hard. She further added that the survivors should not fear to report because they are attended to privately and if they report they will be helped easily.

from Left to Right The Project Officer, DCDO, CFPU, Project coordinator and the moderator

TRAINING HEADTEACHERS IN A SAFE SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT

 

ED RIC-NET explaining the outcomes of the project

The head teachers of secondary and primary schools in Kibiito town council agreed to create a safe school environment for the students and pupils upon embarking on a safe school environment training from Rwenzori Information Centers Network (RIC-NET) and RIDE AFRICA (Bunyangabu cluster) to prevent violence against children/adolescents in schools. This was pointed out during a one-day orientation meeting at Travellers nest hotel in Kibiito town council, Bunyangabu district. Regardless of the many existing laws concerning the rights of children and their upbringing, violence against children in all its forms has continued to prevail in society and schools leaving the children at the Centre stage of vulnerability.

A headteacher giving her view about safe school environment

The project was introduced to the head teachers by the ED RIC-NET John Silco and all the outcomes of the project were explained and especially outcome three which is “A safe school environment that enables children to complete their primary and secondary education cycle strengthened.” The activities under this outcome were further explained to the head teachers and these were Conducting an orientation meeting for head teachers on the creation of a safe school environment in the selected primary and secondary schools in Kibiito TC, Conducting training of 2 days for focal teachers in a safe school, Focal teachers organizing learning and reflection sessions on safe school environment targeting teaching and non-teaching staff, Supporting schools to form children clubs and train children leaders as platforms of learning and peer support, Holding 2 days training of SMC/PTA in developing and enforcing school rules and policies that promote safe school environment,  Supporting Schools to organize learning forums, sessions such as debates, MDD, discussion groups, School Management committees organizing meetings to develop and popularize policies. The head teachers appreciated the program and were willing to work with the Bunyangabu cluster to create safe school environments in Kibiito town council.

The DEO making his presentation

The DEO Bunyangabu district Mr. Rubalema Moses Sunday as the chief guest made a presentation about a safe school environment according to the ministry of Education and called upon the head teachers to avoid violence against children because it dehumanizes them. He further encouraged the head teachers to have idea boxes to track the problems the pupils and students are experiencing in the school and there should be specific teachers with the key to this idea box so that the children and students can express themselves freely. He sounded a warning to everybody who mistreats a child and condemned violence in all its forms.