SOS Schools in Congo

SOS Nursery School Bukavu, Congo

By the end of 2008, the SOS Nursery School Bukavu is peopled of 130 children instead of 125 for its 5 class rooms. The 130 children spread as follows:

• 25  three aged children in the Low Level commonly called Pluie ( Rain)  including 2 SOS children (a girl and a boy)

• 52 four aged children in the Middle Level with 2 classes commonly called Arc-en-Ciel (Rainbow) and Etoile (Star) including 7SOS children (4 girls and 3 boys). Each class is loaded with 26 children.

• 53 five aged children including 10 SOS children(7 girls and 3 boys) in the Upper Level with 2 classes commonly called Lune (Moon) peopled with 29 children  and Soleil ( Sun ) peopled with 24 children. In sum 19 SOS children and 111 children from the community are registered for the school year 2008-2009.

The SOS Nursery School Bukavu remains the best equipped educationally speaking within the area. Not only is the SOS Nursery School Bukavu exciting but also its children out door games interest more people that even adults envy play upon the children’s games and happen to damage them unfortunately.    

In order to minimise some cooking expenses and enhance food conservation, the nursery school is supplied with its own fridge and a cooker since 2008.

Visualisation of some lesson activities is no longer done due to the theft the school was victim of last February. Moreover, nowadays there is much power shortage since our power cables were struck by thunder.

A lot out door classes have been organised for children according to different themes about animals, dispensary, professions, market, shopping, and means of transport.

National inspectors recommended some teachers training exchanges teams in each school. Such a team is already operating within our school. A nearby school commonly called Asteria-Ushirika organised training upon “learning through games”. The nursery school teachers attended it. The out coming is that they use this technique in their lesson plans.

Children at the SOS Nursery School as well as those of the SOS Primary School always paid visit to a sick friend or their friend's family who happened to lose a family member. Often, they are escorted by a teacher after collecting aid from each pupil.

The tiling of external school walls activity which began in 2005 went on in order to minimize yearly painting expenses. In sum, the office and 3 classes have already been tiled. This activity should end in 2009 if the budget allows it.

SOS Primary School Bukavu

The SOS Primary School opened in 1989.  By the end of December 2008, the SOS Primary School Bukavu is peopled of 427 pupils for its 12 classes. Its pupils are spread as follows:

• 72 in the 1st forms (36 in each class) including 18 SOS children from the SOS Children's Village Bukavu (11 girls and 7 boys)

• 72 in the 2nd forms (36 in each class) including 16 SOS children (10 girls and 6 boys)

• 75 in the 3rd forms (38 in A and 37 in B) including 22 SOS children (4 girls and 18 boys)

• 80 in the 4th forms (40 in each class) including 14 SOS children (4 girls and 10 boys)

• 68 in the 5th forms (34 in each class) including 11 SOS children (5 girls and 6 boys)

• 60 in the 6th forms (30 in each class) including 9 SOS children (2 girls and 7 boys).

In sum, the school is peopled with 90 SOS children and 337 children from the community.

The total numbers of children were steady and respond to the quality norms in the 1st forms despite the parents’ pressure who want us to go beyond 36 children provided that their children were registered. 427 pupils by the end of 2007 and 427 by the end of 2008. In the upper classes however, the numbers of children are still high because of pupils who resumed the year. By the end of 2007-2008 the success rate was of 89.88% against 84.7% by the December 2008 for 2008-2009 school years.

A lot of parents from the community go on seeking for registration of their children in our schools at all coasts even if no room for them; all our children passed the final national exams where the top (a girl) got 91%; and more, they passed recruitment tests in high schools where they are studying. In other words, the school is among the best private schools and may be the best.

As the new policy is to favour vulnerable children get room in SOS schools; we have given much chance to them this year be it at the SOS Nursery School or at the SOS Primary School. Otherwise, the Family Strengthening Programme was just supplying only 2 needy children within our schools with school fees since 4 years.

The school has organised out-door classes and excursions for pupils to help them match up some theoretical learned skills with realities. Then:

• The 1st form pupils visited the 3 communes which make up  Bukavu

• The 3rd and 4th form pupils visit Kavumu airport located at 33km  in the North away from  Bukavu

• The 5th and 6th form pupils went on excursion to places called MUMOSHO to visit a hydroelectric dame and to NYANGEZI to visit the Mount CALVAIRE considered to be the 1st catholic evangelisation site in Bukavu; all located in the South at around 15 to 22 km away from BUkavu.

• The second forms did not go out due to lack of consequent means.

The school has not failed to organise catching up lesson activities in favour of children who were found to have some gaps in their education. This activity has not taken place at the 2008-2009 1st term because of lack of sufficient means.

In matter of research; the school participated in training about action research in family and school education. As result the school is seeking to set up a learning book on Language structures and another on Spelling for beginners. Teachers have also been trained in teaching French using the Competence Approach i.e the main theme being a text.

The tiling of the external school walls activity which began in 2005 in order to minimize yearly painting expenses went on.   If the budget allows it, 1st form and 6th form walls should be tiled in 2009.

SOS Nursery School Uvira

In 2008, the SOS Nursery School Uvira which counts only 3 classes registered 86 pupils of whom 37 from the SOS Children’s Village Uvira. This effective is identical with that we had last year. The parents demand remains very high.  Each year we receive more than 150 new demands, whereas 25 only are available in the 1rst form the unique class for recruitment in nursery school. This situation of being unable to satisfy many parents creates us enormous difficulties. Unfortunately, many of those are friends and partners of SOS and are ready to accomplish whatever condition we ask them (example: to pay daily the transportation fees whether their children are inscribed at our nursery school.

In 2008, our school has initiated the campaign of increasing parents from near round the SOS Children's Village to let their children study in our nursery school. Only 2 children from the near round area were inscribed. Those parents want us to give them assurance that their children will study gratuitously. We have asked the FSP (Family Strengthening Programme) to propose us the candidates. However, our other pupils are children from Uvira town at about 15 km from our school.

In 2008, the SOS Nursery School of Uvira has accomplished many activities. The important ones are:

• The installation of 2 ceiling fans in each classroom

• The equipping of the nursery school with teaching material, for example with the sacs of Lego boxes

• The organisation of 3 class-exploration for the concretisation of many studied themes.

• The organisation of the birth day ceremony in favor of pupils born in the 1srt term period.

• The organisation of amazing and cultural activities.

• The organisation of intellectual and socio-affective activities

• The participation of 4 of our female educators at training organised by the inspection

The contact between our pupils and their colleagues from other schools has allowed us to discover that our pupils are very intelligent.

Comparing with other nursery school, our school is more highly organised, equipped and developed. This is why the parents’ dream is to see their children evaluate in our school.

SOS Primary School of Uvira

The SOS Primary School Uvira which counts six classes, registered 200 pupils in 2008. Among these pupils, 64 are children from SOS Children’s Village and 4 are taken in charge by the FSP (Family Strengthening Programme). We have passed from 193 pupils registered in 2007 to 200 pupils inscribed in 2008.Our school is very attracted and we are unable to afford the high number of demand inscriptions from parents. Some times, parents address us their requests one year before in order to expect getting place for their children at the SOS Primary School. Indeed, our school is the reliable school thanks the quality of its teaching.

The school results registered in 2008 is presented as follows: in July 2008, 176 pupils out of 190 have succeeded therefore representing 92.6%. This is a good progress of 1.6 % comparing to the results of 2006during which we got 91%.

Our finalists at the National Test in 2008: 19 pupils out of 19 have succeeded. This represents 100% like in 2007.  All of those finalists have been inscribed in different schools of Uvira or in Bukavu where they evaluate well.

In 2008, our school has accomplished many activities. We name here some of them:

• The equipping the school library with adapted novels (about 200 novels) and different reading books. This has allowed us to start the reading lectures for pupils and their teachers. The library will be open to the public next year in 2009.

• SOS teachers retraining in Bukavu during 5 days. This retraining concerned the methodology of teaching French language efficiently.

• Teachers’ participation to the training about social and familial pedagogy of searching.

• The building of a wall before urinal of boys.

• The installation of 2 ceiling funs in each of the 6 classrooms we have.

• Installation of water leading on the roof-edge of our classrooms.

• The planting of 357 tree plants in the school yard.

• The competitive examination concerning the French language for pupils of 5th and 6th form.

• The organisation of sport competition with pupils.

• The organisation of English Day for reinforcing the pupils’ spoken English acquisition.

• The organisation of exploratory-classes in Kalundu port and in some Uvira hotels.

Comparing to the other local school institutions, our school is regarded with envy in this area. This is due to its modern infrastructure, the variety of its teaching material, the quality of its teaching, the high level of its organisation, the high level of its objectivity.