Katie Robinson, Ghana – VSO
27 May 2010
Teacher Katie Robinson has recently returned from a two year
volunteer placement in Ghana, West Africa, where she worked towards
improving the education of children with special needs. Here
she shares with us professional and personal challenges and the
major life changes the experience of volunteering with Volunteer
Service Overseas (VSO) has brought about.
Volunteering in Ghana
I have recently returned from a 2-year VSO placement in Ghana,
West Africa, working towards improving the education of children
with special needs. I was situated in Bolgatanga, which is a town
of about fifty thousand people, and is the capital of the Upper
East Region - one of the poorest regions of Ghana. Bolga, as
the locals call it, is about a 17-hour bus ride from the capital
and the coast, up near the Burkina Faso border. My job title
was "Special Education Support Officer", and I shared an office at
the Regional Ghana Education Service, working in a two-person team
with Mr Musah Sulemanna, the Special Education Officer for the
region.
My job in Ghana is the best that I've ever had. I loved my
work - it was rewarding, enjoyable, fulfilling and challenging,
yet, I couldn't say that it was ever easy. I faced many
challenges along the way.
When I arrived, the Regional Special Education 'department'
consisted of Sule, myself, one table and one chair - we didn't have
funding for paper, let alone petrol to actually travel to all of
the districts in the region we were responsible for. My first
few months were spent writing funding proposals to local and
international NGOs and government organisations, and applying to
our Director for the use of vehicles and resources.
A huge part of my job involved teacher training, and a big
challenge there was the lack of motivation of the teachers - many
of them were untrained, poorly paid (needing to supplement their
income through farming), teaching huge classes (some of over 80
students), in poorly resourced schools without electricity.
There had been a flood the year before I arrived, which devastated
crops meaning that many children were going hungry.
Add to this the problems specific to the area of Special Needs
Education - for example the fairly common belief that disability is
the result of witchcraft, the woman's infidelity or the family's
curse and that many children with disabilities are hidden at home
and not allowed to come to school at all, and you have a very
difficult situation.
Despite these challenges, Sule and I achieved a lot during my
time in Ghana. One big achievement happened when we applied
for, and received funding to run two-day workshops for between
35-55 participants in each of the eight districts in our
region.
The training workshops were targeted at school principals,
school supervisors, District Special Education Officers and key
teachers, with the expectation that each participant would pass the
knowledge and understandings gained onto the teachers they work
with.
Through the workshops, myself and the other facilitators, worked
to shatter the myths around the cause of disability, encourage
inclusive education strategies - such as the use of teaching and
learning materials - and provide information about the legal rights
and responsibilities of people with disabilities. Sule and I
also ran regular in-school teacher training, community education
through participation in Parent/Teacher Association meetings, and
support of the local School for the Deaf, and the schools for
children with severe intellectual disabilities.
Working in Special Education in northern Ghana is very different
to working in Australia. Many of the reference books that I
would have used at home were useless because the teaching
strategies revolved around technology and expensive
equipment. Many of the children I worked with couldn't afford
glasses or hearing aides, let alone computers to help them with
their education. In fact many of the disabilities that I saw
were caused or exacerbated by poverty, for example through poor
nutrition or insufficient medical care. Resources of any kind
were difficult to access, and it required a lot of flexibility and
ingenuity to find ways of working without them.
Working in Ghana has benefited me in many ways, both
professionally and personally. It allowed me to work at a
much higher level, and in a much more varied capacity than in
Australia. It has given me a new perspective of the world,
and a deep appreciation of life. I've gained confidence,
skills and lasting friendships. I've learned the importance
of patience, and that small changes can make a big difference.
by Kate Robinson
Read more about the VSO/AVI partnership here.