Ukifanya juu chini uvuke booodaaaa!!!...

Sometime you got to admire how things work in some places to really appreciate the circumstances you have back home. It is never that straightforward, and as the saying goes, "The grass is always greener on the other side". I have had the chance of interacting with various groups of people in the greater Eastern Africa region and have basically marveled at the various elements of behaviours that mark our differences (hopefully these will be restricted to the non-violence type of differences).
The lifestyle of my brothers across the border in Tz has always had me curious. Kenyans are generally viewed as aggressive and impolite (...wankosa nidhamu hawa ndugu zetu!). I do agree with their sentiments to some extent, but get baffled by their behaviour as well. Truth be told, they are not the paragon of virtues they are presented to be. Like our society in the +254, they do have their bad apples and moments...it's only that they are more polite about how they handle or deal with it, and they have shorter memories than the Kenyans. The justice system there is slower than a slug, and the public officials are as corrupt, but more polite and non-confrontational as the brothaz in the +254.
Anyway for days I had been shuttling from my adopted place of work to the hotel and in meetings around Dar, and couldn't help noticing the beeline of kids from skool at around 2pm headed to what I figured was home. Now this brought my lower primary skool memories when skool ended at 1pm and the afternoon was left for extra-curricular activities in the hood. However with time I noticed that it wasn't just the young 8 and under who were going back home at 2pm..apparently across the border, skool is from 8/9am to 2pm, then everyone goes home at 2pm..this applies from kindergarten to form 6....I mean these guys should be major sportsmen and artists...what on earth do you do with all that time?....
The other thing I learnt is that they also start learning English in High skool (form 1... after class 7). And proceed to be instructed in English when learning all the other subjects (Bio, Chem, Physics, History, etc)..Imagine having to learn Spanish in form 1 and then all subjects thereon being taught in Spanish..I have mad respect for these guys, but it is not a pain worth inflicting on yourself.
This kinda explains their struggle with English even at advanced ages. Not being out to judge them, they would learn a thing or two in overhauling their system and getting children learning English at a younger age. Also not being out to judge and remind them of their apparent hesitance to join the EAC wholeheartedly, learning from the neighbour isn't such a bad thing. We can learn to be polite and they can learn a bit more industry and effort in their approach to everything.

I also happened to visit one of their treasures on the Indian Ocean, Mbudya Island. For $10 and a TZS 10k 30 minute boat ride, it is a place worth visiting.

The next instalment will be continued.....sina mutisha at the moment as they say!

8-4-4 = zero education?...

I know it's been a minute, and I felt time was ripe to write something (not corruption or theft related). I was recently drawn into a debate on the education system in Kenya and how it is not designed to be fair and to recognize the diverse talents individuals possess. The most vocal people appear to be the Artists who believe they have been sidelined by the 8-4-4 system of education.

Perhaps a trip down history lane would do some good before we shred the merits and demerits of the system. I think the system began in 1985 or 1986, and the philosophy behind it was to try and arm an individual with all round basic life skills. That is why we had such practical subjects as Home Science, Craft, Art, Music, et al.The view at the time was if one stopped at class 8, you'd be able to use your skills for example to be a carpenter, metal worker, etc....Clearly there were good intentions and who knows how it would have ended up had we stuck to the ethos of the system.
Fast forward to 2012, and the system now is set to be scrapped. "It has not achieved it's purpose", they say..."We are better off with the old system"....So what went wrong?
It is my personal belief that whichever system we employ, the results would be the same, whether it is the old 7-4-2-3 system or the American system. We Kenyans have a knack of messing up whatever systems we place to make our lives better. For instance the Master Plan for Physical Planning done in the 70s..it had envisioned the by-passes, expansion of the city to Kiambu and expanding the airport to have two runways. Plus the zoning was done properly...well 30 years later, we have a mess of a city. The 8-4-4 system has been messed by the competitive nature of Kenyans. The advent of academies and burdening poor kids with 40 books, homework, extra classes in the evenings,weekends and holidays has turned children into academic machines. How do you explain a 4 or 5 year old child being up by 4am and in school by 6.30am to "study"?....I mean what the hell (excuse the swearing) would a kid that age be grasping if up by that time? The kid then gets home at 6pm..I mean at that age they should have 60% of their time playing and getting to know the world around them...But no everyone wants their kid to be number 1 in class, go to a National School, join Med school and be a rich and successful doctor....Dreams they were unable to attain while young. Intentions are good, but we seem to be out of touch with reality....We can not all be academics, we cannot all be number 1.
Imagine for a second what would have happened if Oliech or Mariga's folks forced them to go for holiday tuition...Now like the proverbial kiosk owner in the village who appears to make so much money everyone wants to start their own kiosk forgetting they are the customers,...now everyone wants their kids to excel in football so that they make the same tons of cash. (I still think education is important....helps manage that windfall you get!).
I think this business of ranking kids and drumming it into their heads that some careers are better than others has messed up the good intentions of the education system. I am a product if 8-4-4 and was lucky to have skipped majority of the current ills (weekend classes, holiday classes, early morning preps, sack full of homework et al)....I had extra time for just random discovery and getting to know my bearings and interests....I can say I was the last one off the field at 7pm after checking out of skool at 4pm and class started at 8am not 6am. I made rock slings, had a garden, made bird traps, etc....all what a young boy is expected to do. Now the only knots some kids know how to tie is the shoelace and school ties...
Anyway enough about my rant. What we need is major change in our attitude, yes stay competitive, but in moderation. Let the kids develop "normally"....roll in the mud, have a few bruises, make wire, carton or other self created toys...it's part of growing up as a complete person. The much derided "Art" based careers are not as bad as they are set out to be. Advise your kids on all that is available, and assist them in attaining realistic goals and dreams. We are all different in some way and the differences are our strengths. If you couldn't invent something as complex as a particle accelerator, a much more simple but practical paper clip can do.