Zanzibar teaching and community project in Tanzania
| country: | Tanzania |
| location: | Zanzibar |
| departures: | 2010: 5 Apr, 19 Apr, 3 May, 17 May, 7 Jun, 21 Jun, 5 Jul, 19 Jul, 2 Aug, 16 Aug, 6 Sep, 20 Sep, 4 Oct, 18 Oct, 1 Nov, 15 Nov, 6 Dec, 20 Dec |
| price: | From £730 - £1865 (2 - 8 weeks) excluding flights |
| more info: | Price includes accommodation, 3 meals a day, transfers to and from Zanzibar Airport, orientation program, daily transfers to and from project and weekly laundry service. 4 week option from £1100, 6 week option from £1480. Minimum age 18 |
| vouchers: | Gift vouchers can be used with this holiday |
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introduction to Zanzibar teaching and community project in Tanzania
Volunteer Involvement in local Pre-schools
There are 4 pre-schools in Jambiani. Volunteers support the local teachers in educating and playing with children. TEFL graduate volunteers are most welcome! They get involved in:
Please be advised that when it rains the nursery school children do not always turn up for school. The power also sometimes turns off during the rains which can affect some of the work that we do at the training centre. If you plan on volunteering during the rainy season please bring a raincoat with you.
There are 4 pre-schools in Jambiani. Volunteers support the local teachers in educating and playing with children. TEFL graduate volunteers are most welcome! They get involved in:
- Teaching English to children, teachers and local adults (a TEFL qualification is useful, although this is not an absolute must)
- Singing and dancing with children
- Developing the children’s creative skills through crafts such as painting, drawing and colouring
- Playing developmental games with the children
- General upkeep of the school to keep it a pleasant environment in which to learn
Primary and secondary schools
Working in the primary and secondary schools, with too many children to accommodate at one time, and shortages of staff and facilities, often two school sessions are run per day. You will find that most of the schools have meager and ill-equipped facilities, but a wealth of children with a desire to learn. As a volunteer, you will assist teachers and contribute to our effort of providing children with a better education, especially by aiding them in the English language (again where a TEFL qualification would be really useful for your volunteer project). These are the ways in which you will assist in the schools:
Working in the primary and secondary schools, with too many children to accommodate at one time, and shortages of staff and facilities, often two school sessions are run per day. You will find that most of the schools have meager and ill-equipped facilities, but a wealth of children with a desire to learn. As a volunteer, you will assist teachers and contribute to our effort of providing children with a better education, especially by aiding them in the English language (again where a TEFL qualification would be really useful for your volunteer project). These are the ways in which you will assist in the schools:
- Teaching in the classes (qualified teachers only and pre arranged before trip)
- Organise and coordinate sport afternoons with the scholars
- Help maintain and even repair the facilities, most of which are quite run down
Local Tourism Training Institute
In general, tourism is considered to be the sector of activity with the most potential in Zanzibar. There is a drive through the tourism sector to deal with the issues of poverty reduction, education, youth, gender and the environment amongst others. The Tourism Training Institute was established to address these problems and to tackle the issue of many 'foreigners' (mainly from Tanzania mainland and Kenya) being employed in the local tourism sector, instead of local villagers. The training school aims to train local villagers from Jambiani until they are themselves able to gain employment at nearby hotels and tourism facilities. Volunteers depending on experience and qualifications get involved in multiple areas to help with the training of these aspirants:
- Teaching English
- Teaching keyboard skills
- Life-skills teaching
- Training students in basic administrative tasks
- Training students in basic computer skills e.g. CV writing
- Assist and supervise students in cooking classes and food & beverage management
- Assist and supervise students in practical classes ('role-play', handling money, etc)
Please Note: The Tourism Training Centre is seasonal and does not run all year round.
Environmental programme - JAMABECO (Jambiani Marine and Beach Conservation)
The community of Jambiani is very reliant on its natural resources available to them, especially the ocean (fish, crabs, seaweed, etc) and partly local crops that can be grown in the area. JAMABECO is a locally run NGO that we partner with to help sustain the marine and land environment in Jambiani. Volunteer involvement often depends on current projects on the go in the village, and it can often be hard, but very rewarding work. Activities can include:
The community of Jambiani is very reliant on its natural resources available to them, especially the ocean (fish, crabs, seaweed, etc) and partly local crops that can be grown in the area. JAMABECO is a locally run NGO that we partner with to help sustain the marine and land environment in Jambiani. Volunteer involvement often depends on current projects on the go in the village, and it can often be hard, but very rewarding work. Activities can include:
- Litter clean-ups along the beach and within the village
- Planting trees
best time to go
As with most other countries in the equatorial belt, seasons seem to merge into one and are not distinctly different. Zanzibar’s climate is determined by the monsoons, and so there are typically hot and humid conditions all-year round. The main rains are generally from March to May, and there is also a short rainy season in November and December. Please be advised that when it rains the nursery school children do not always turn up for school. The power also sometimes turns off during the rains which can affect some of the work that we do at the training centre. If you plan on volunteering during the rainy season please bring a raincoat with you.
a day in a life of a volunteer
| 7:00: | Get up and start getting ready for your project. |
| 8:00: | Breakfast at your base. |
| 8:30: | Lesson preparations for your classes. |
| 9:45: | Head off on bicycle to your project placement. |
| 10:00: | Start work at your one of our local nursery schools. |
| 13:45: | Leave school and cycle back to your base for some sun and time out. |
| 15:00: | Lunch break. |
| 17:00: | Return to your placement or your allocated ward. Do some manual labour such as some painting, gardening, litter pick ups or repairing. |
| 19:00: | Home time. You will make your way back to your base just a few minutes away. Now you will be able to cool down with a swim, have a cold drink, visit the internet cafe, socialize with the locals and other volunteers or just relax and unwind on the beach. |
spare time
Volunteers will have the weekends off to do tourist activities at an extra cost. These are not included in your volunteering fee, but our project managers are able to assist you with making the necessary booking arrangements. Zanzibar and Tanzania offer a variety of tours and safari options, which are perfect for a weekend getaway, or a post/pre-project safari. Our office in Zanzibar is able to put together a number of different getaways and safaris according to your preference, which include trips to various parts of the archipelago (spice tours, historical tours and Jozani Forest) and even into Mikumi National Park, Ruaha National Park, the famous Serengeti National Park, the unique Ngorongoro Crater, climbing the mighty Kilimanjaro and much more!
You will be able to sit outside at the tables in your back yard in the shade for meal times. A cook will be provided to prepare regular meals in our kitchen, which will be enjoyed at a communal outside eating area overlooking the sea. You will have house keeping and laundry done on a regular basis. Bedding will be provided but you should bring your own towel.
Our project manager will be living on the premises and the office will also be based there. There will also be a resource room to keep items needed for project work and this can be used as a great space for lesson preparation. With the added backyard space you will be able to sleep outside on the beach recliners on really hot evenings should you wish to do so. You will get some amazing star gazing opportunities!
There is an internet cafe located at the accommodation (just outside the living premises) which volunteers will be able to use for a fee; please discuss this with your project manager upon arrival. Please Note: There is no hot water for showering in; most places in Zanzibar do not have hot water.
accommodation
During your time on the project you will be staying in Jambiani at the project base in shared accommodation with other volunteers. You will be based in beach bungalows in the local village. The bungalows are set just off the beach, but you can see the ocean from the front door and the beach is literally on the doorstep. Volunteers will room with 2 or 3 others and each bungalow has an en suite bathroom. Rooms will be fully furnished and you will be sleeping on bunk beds. We have mosquito nets and fans in the rooms.You will be able to sit outside at the tables in your back yard in the shade for meal times. A cook will be provided to prepare regular meals in our kitchen, which will be enjoyed at a communal outside eating area overlooking the sea. You will have house keeping and laundry done on a regular basis. Bedding will be provided but you should bring your own towel.
Our project manager will be living on the premises and the office will also be based there. There will also be a resource room to keep items needed for project work and this can be used as a great space for lesson preparation. With the added backyard space you will be able to sleep outside on the beach recliners on really hot evenings should you wish to do so. You will get some amazing star gazing opportunities!
There is an internet cafe located at the accommodation (just outside the living premises) which volunteers will be able to use for a fee; please discuss this with your project manager upon arrival. Please Note: There is no hot water for showering in; most places in Zanzibar do not have hot water.
volunteer travel - what's it all about?
Are you looking for an adventurous trip with a purpose, or on a gap year or career break? If you want to make a difference in some of the world’s most important conservation areas - and in community projects - then volunteer trips are for you! Volunteers tend to have a sense of adventure, and come from a range of different backgrounds and from all over the world. Edward Abbey said 'sentiment without action is the ruin of the soul'.
how this holiday makes a difference
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Community
On our Zanzibar volunteer project we work very closely with the community. We assist by helping the local schools and training institute which have a shortage of staff and facilities, but have a number of students who are full of energy and an eagerness to learn. Our volunteers also assist and encourage the local community in beach conservation which is of great value to the island's tourism industry. The help of our volunteers in the local community are of great value and we have built up an amicable reputation within the Jambiani community. Our volunteers have completed the painting of all classrooms and blackboards at Jambiani High School (approx. 20 classrooms), which has made the school look so much brighter and a place where the children are proud to be associated with. At the end of October 2009, we commenced a special educational needs implementation plan within Jambiani High School, working with two blind children, two children with learning disabilities and one child with a hearing disability. We are currently working with these children and the teachers every morning. We now have a very good relationship with the local volunteer teachers at Sirajati Nursery School and have started a programme of teaching the teachers English each morning - a very rewarding role, as this will empower these teachers to continue and to build on our English classes with the children. Our volunteers have designed and made good the play area at Sirajati Nursery School. The volunteers have also dug a 'shamba' on the school grounds so the teachers can grow fruit to sell for school funds and an area for each child to grow their own plants and fruit. We are currently setting up a youth football team of 22 teenage boys. The aim is to give the boys a common goal, team work, social skills, awareness and a purpose, plus they must attend 2 evening English classes with our volunteers every week. The accommodation where all our volunteers stay is locally owned and all the food provided for our volunteers are purchased on the island in Stone Town. Unfortunately, Jambiani village does not have good soil to grow its own produce that can be purchased by our project. We also employ local people to cook, clean and assist with coordinating our volunteers on the project. Environment The community of Jambiani is very reliant on its natural resources available to them, especially the ocean (fish, crabs, seaweed, etc) and partly local crops that can be grown in the area. We work with a locally run NGO to help sustain the marine and land environment in Jambiani. Volunteer involvement often depends on current projects on the go in the village, and it can often be hard, but very rewarding work. Activities can include litter clean-ups along the beach and within the village and planting trees. Volunteers ride bicycles everyday to get from their accommodation to get to their volunteer projects. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |
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