Madventurer.com

Home » Search Results » Tanzania - Community building and teaching

Tanzania - Community building and teaching

Challenge:: Building and Teaching
Destination:: *Tanzania, Africa Combos
Departure Dates From:: 31/07/2010

Teaching English and Building health clinics / School - toilets and classrooms in rural communities

Based in the foothills of Mt Kilimanjaro, the highest free standing mountain in the world, Madventurer offer rural placements in a breathtaking location of unparalleled beauty. Tanzania is the largest country in East Africa and one of the most diverse; from the spectacular grasslands of the Serengeti, the glacier-capped peak of Kilimanjaro to the palm fringed beaches of the mystical spice-island of Zanzibar.

Please note that Tanzania Immigration have recently increased the cost of the additional visa for those wishing to do any kind of volunteering to US$500. We are expecting many volunteers to sign up to our Kenyan Projects (which start on the same dates) instead due to this additional cost that has been imposed in Tanzania.

Call Mad HQ for more details on 0845 121 1996

Building

We try to plan projects such that there are a range of activities for Venturers to get involved in; those less keen on heavy building work usually take up the lighter, but equally important, work such as painting or plastering.

The key to any MAD building project is the partnership between our team and the local community. As well as bringing essential funding to the project (see above - Mad Foundation), the presence of a team of Venturers in the village community can be a great motivator to local people. In some cases it takes time for villagers to get used to the idea that Venturers - especially girls - actually want to help with manual labour, and initially you may find people trying to do all the work for you. Once you explain that you genuinely want them to teach you the basic skills (e.g. how to mix cement or lay bricks), however, the partnership really begins to develop, allowing everyone to get stuck in.

Teaching

Village education in Tanzania is under resourced, and usually follows quite old-fashioned methods involving lots of repetition.

Although the government pledge free primary education across Tanzania, most of the building structures are up to the parents and community to provide. There are sometimes small grants to schools, they are slow in the process, and rural schools such as this one tend to get overlooked.

Classrooms are usually quite basic, comprising brick walls, a tin roof and simple wooden desks. Windows may be simply holes in the wall, or may be fitted with frames and glass. Resources available to teachers and students are limited, with a blackboard and a few textbooks for the class to share being about all many schools have. Some receive funds from churches or other donors, giving them access to more books and occasionally a few computers.

Term times in Tanzania differ to our own in that the new academic year begins in the first week of January. There is then a break at Easter of around 2 weeks until mid June when the first term finishes. The second term begins in mid July and, with a week break in the beginning of September, goes through until the beginning of December when the school year finishes. If your project coincides with the holiday times and you still want to become involved in teaching, the Crew will be able to arrange some extra curricular activities for you.

At what level, and to what extent, Mad teachers get involved is up to each individual. During the first week of the project, the Madventurer Crew Leader will introduce Venturers who want to teach to the Principal of the local school to discuss the Venturers interests and skill areas, and how these fit in with the school's needs.

Tanzania Visas

Please note that you must obtain a Tourist Visa on arrival into Tanzania (UK Citizens US$50 and US/Canadian Citizens US$100). In additional you must purchase a Class C Work Permit for US$500 but you must fill in the paperwork at least 2 weeks in advance of your arrival by sending the relevant documents to our Tanzania Crew by email which we will advise you on, and send payment to Tanzania which you can do via the Madventurer UK office.

If you do not have all the paperwork completed within 2 weeks of the Project start date you can still join the group on day one of the Project but as the Work Permits take up to a week to prcoess you will not be able to actively volunteer during those days until Immigration have given you your Permit. These Class C Work Permits are the Law in Tanzania if you want to do any kind of volunteering even if only for 2 weeks.

Some volunteers who do not manage to complete the paperwork and pay for the Class 2 Work Permit at least 2 weeks in advance may still stay at the Mad Project accommodation and be supported by us but we cannot reimburse for the downtime should you not have your Permit processed in time. You may however, if it is easier for you, to fly into Tanzania at least a week early before the project starts and submit your Work Permit application then travel independently before joining us on day one of the Project.

Please find below the forms and instructions for applying for your Tanzania Work Permit, this all needs to be done two weeks prior to your departure. All forms should be completed in BLOCK CAPITALS in black ink.

Application form, to download click here. Please see below for what sections should be completed
Sections 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 14 should be completed with your personal details.
Sections 4, 10, 11, 12, 13, Part II, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24 and 25 should be left blank
Work agreement, Download here - Fill in your name and then sign and date it.
CV - a Summary of 1-2 pages is more than adequate.
A Digital photo - Shoulders and above on a plain Background.
Scanned copy of your Passport photo page
The fee of £94.00 pound sterling to be paid to the UK office by cheque or card.

Feedback

Michelle Joiner (28) Nkawaga in Tanzania in July 2007;
'The experience has been the most rewarding and humbling time of my life. Looking back at the building on the last day and seeing so many happy, grateful faces made me realise this is definitely the best way to help anyone in need. Thanks to the crew leader there we managed to do so much more than i expected. He was always trying to get us to try new things, whether it was singing and dancing with the mama's, playing football with the locals or doing a overnight camp at weru weru river on the weekend. I already want to do another project, the impact madventurer have made is obvious!!!'

Further Links: