Erica Byenkya, who is a fourth-year student at Saint Mary’s University in Halifax, Canada, is a graduate of the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa. Since leaving the Academy in 2014, Erica has been pursuing a Bachelor of Commerce degree at the university with a double major in marketing, and computer and information systems. She is expecting to graduate from the university in May 2019.

“I think that my Academy experience was vital in my success in university so far,” Erica says confidently.  The Academy, she says, nurtured within her a love of volunteering that helped her make connections and friends, and also ensured that she remained connected to her local community.  “I think that we were definitely more focused on encouraging independence and community service than the schools attended by other students,” Erica comments. The experience of living in residence at the Academy, she says, also helped her become more self-sufficient and taught her how to take care of herself – this was useful when she moved to Canada for higher education.

At the university, Erica has worked through three work terms as part of the cooperative education programme. In these three terms, she has worked as a marketing coordinator for a software development company and at a non-profit organization focused on encouraging students and faculty in the sciences. She has also taken up volunteer work, including with a local after-school youth programme and as the public relations representative of the Saint Mary’s African Student Society (SMASS). She is currently preparing for her second year with SMASS.

Erica is also doing well in her academic work. She received an entrance scholarship from Saint Mary’s University, which was increased last year due to academic achievement. Erica commends her counselors at the Academy: “I had a very hard time writing my personal statements for my university applications and I know that without the help of my counselors I wouldn’t have been accepted into all the universities I applied to.” 

At the Academy in Mombasa, Erica was one of the founders of a service group that aimed to support local farmers in the area by consulting with them about their families’ needs and fundraising to help meet those needs. Through their efforts in the first year they helped one family send their youngest children to school, build a small shop to sell their wares and buy new seeds. The service group also helped pay the exam fees of the entire graduating class of a local school so that they could all sit their final exams. 

One of the many things Erica misses at the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa is her wonderful friends. “I’m still in contact with some of them online but being able to spend so much time with them was a gift I’m very thankful for,” she says.  Her most unforgettable experience at the Academy which she is very proud of was learning to play the violin, which according to her was the most difficult to learn among other musical instruments. She fondly remembers her teachers: Mrs. Mwandawiro, her dorm mother and chemistry teacher, and Mr. Dudi, whom she calls “my wonderfully dramatic English teacher.” “They both pushed me very hard because they had high expectations for me, and while I did not perform as well as I’d hoped in chemistry, their expectations always encouraged me,” she says.  

Erica chose to participate in the International Baccalaureate (IB) program because she felt, and still feels, that it offered her greater flexibility in her choices for the future. “With the national curriculum you are restricted to three subjects in your final two years but I was unsure about the career path I wanted to take and so I really appreciated being able to further study interesting subjects in the IB program while deciding what I wanted to do with my future," she remarks.

Erica says her future plans after graduating from the university is to stay and work in Canada for a while and then eventually make the decision about whether to pursue a post graduate degree. “I do see myself coming back to Uganda but before that happens I would like to travel more.” When asked what would she focus on to improve the lives of people in her country if she had all the resources at her disposal, Erica hoped that one day she could contribute to the renovation of the Ugandan library system so that it could benefit all the citizens of Uganda, especially the young students whose schools may not have large libraries or who seek safe and productive spaces to spend their free time.

In 2015, Titus Mutemi joined the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa as part of the Teacher Preparation Programme (TPP), which aims to train teachers to become transformative International Baccalaureate educators in their communities. This became a turning point for Titus' career as he has since further developed his extensive knowledge and skills and forged a pluralistic view of the world.

 

For Titus, the priority has always been to ensure that students have the best learning experience. As a result, he reviewed and vertically aligned the mathematics programme to ensure that there were no existing gaps between mathematics knowledge, concepts and skills across all the grade levels in his role as a Homeroom teacher. This step brought about a significant improvement in the students' performance of the subject.

Titus’ proudest moment at the Academy was to see the students he taught from Year 1 successfully complete their Primary Years Programme (PYP) Exhibition. “It was my pride to see them demonstrate their understanding of the world around them; to make more informed choices and confidently express themselves. In their projects, they engaged in discussing issues that require deeper and critical thinking skills, in the effort to make the world a better place.”

As the new PYP Coordinator, Titus looks forward to collaborating with the teachers to continue to develop effective teaching practices, which will give students the best learning experiences. He also plans to continue supporting students to help them realise their full potential.

Expressing her pride and excitement for Titus, Junior School Principal Annia Dear said, “Titus has come into his new role in an exciting, albeit challenging time, but has without hesitation accepted and moved forward with all that his role demands. His knowledge and understanding of the needs of students and teachers at this crucial time has been invaluable. His calm nature, positive attitude and commitment to achieving ongoing success with students, parents and teachers is an asset.”

Having been a part of the Academy for over five years now, Titus appreciates being part of a supportive community that is united by a common mission and vision to develop the leaders of tomorrow. As he expresses, “There is no greater joy than nurturing young learners and witnessing them grow into more responsible, reflective and increasingly independent individuals.” 

At the Aga Khan Academy Hyderabad, Sujana Veeramachaneni holds more than her official titles of biology teacher and Assistant Coordinator for the Diploma Programme (DP), science teacher for the Middle Years Programme, and dorm parent. Sujana also ensures her students see her as a friend, mentor and pillar of support.

“They should always feel that I’m there for them, no matter the situation, or condition or time of day,” she insists. “Sometimes I get midnight phone calls! They don’t hesitate to approach me.”

Since the majority of DP students live on campus, “My job doesn’t end in the school,” she explains. “We see them as students, and the dorm is like a home for them – so it’s like seeing them at school and at home – same child, different behaviour. Sometimes it’s difficult to draw a line, because we see them here as well as in the school – so that emotional role is with us, also."

“Of course, I have to draw the line – otherwise maintaining discipline is quite difficult – but at the same time, that line is flexible. It’s not firm – but of course, there is a thin line.”

From her side, Sujana believes that she and other staff can learn from the students’ impressive ability to control their emotions at school. “These are all teenagers,” she reflects. “We see them here, inside and outside. Sometimes, even we lose control – but the students don’t have tantrums in front of their teachers. That’s what I learn from them – how to control our emotions.”

Sujana remembers what she went through at her students’ ages, and understands the pressures they face, especially those approaching graduation from the Diploma Programme, who face multiple deadlines, university applications, and academic and personal challenges. “I always put myself in their shoes,” she emphasises, and shares with her students her anecdotes on how she dealt with stress as a student. 

At the same time, she acknowledges times have changed. “This generation is under more pressure – we were not exposed to so many kinds of media or diversions. They are dealing with many things at the same time – compared to them, when we were students, we had less complexity in our lives.”

The demanding IB curriculum motivates Sujana as a teacher, even though her switch to a career in teaching was first supposed to be temporary. Sujana holds an MSc in life sciences, with a specialisation in endocrinology, and a PhD in plant physiology. Her research focused on the physio-biochemical parameters of the post-harvest life of roses, after which she worked in post-harvest floriculture in Bangalore. In 2002 she relocated to Hyderabad and started working as a teacher in an international school.

She was drawn to the demanding and challenging nature of the International Baccalaureate curriculum and in 2013 joined the Aga Khan Academy as a biology teacher. Her career at the Academy has been a learning trajectory: “I’m definitely enjoying the professional development here.” She highlights the different positions she has held over the years, as well as gaining confidence over the years in teaching, helping, and guiding Special Education Needs (SEN) students, and the training, support and resources she has received from the SEN specialist at the Academy.

She also appreciates that the Academy itself is always developing – every year different projects, opportunities and ideas are introduced or planned for the future, and she praises the community service that the school ensures students experience:  “It is inculcated in the students – the mission itself is very good and strong.”

The Academy is also always learning from its students; if, for example, some students stand out at drawing or music, the staff will learn from those strengths, and apply what they learn with students in the next batch. The curriculum is reviewed every year, and coordinators and deans take sessions every year to improve and upgrade their skills.

Academically, Sujana especially appreciates the opportunities students have to explore their own interests and to learn independently – “That is the beauty of the Extended Essay.” 

“It’s very dynamic,” she explains, and she describes the Extended Essay as a “piece of research work, where the student will find their passion” and submit an essay akin to a mini-thesis.

Because “the curriculum has the scope to identify the strength of the student in different ways” and “the student will design their own labs,” independence and the opportunity to follow one’s own interests is important: “Every student’s choice is different,” she says.

As their teacher, Sujana enjoys the intricacies of guiding the students individually and tailoring her teaching style to their interests and strengths. This year, she is supervising six students, whose self-selected Extended Essay projects explore a range of topics including hydroponics, the greenhouse effect and carbon dioxide concentrations, mushroom cultivation, seed germination, and the effect of music on the growth of plants.

Sujana enjoys being able to show her dynamic, expressive side at the Academy and the freedom of teaching styles and resources that is not always available at other schools. But she finds even more satisfaction in mentoring than in teaching, and it is most rewarding when her students achieve their goals – obtain university admission, get their diploma, or overcome an obstacle when they thought they couldn’t cope, but were “able to achieve something with our guidance.”

She emphasises the need to be adaptable and compassionate towards her students, both for academic and emotional support. “You have to tailor yourself to the needs of the students because some students, you really have to encourage them, motivate them, and some students – at times you have to be firm, strict,” she explains. “I change myself, as per their needs.” 

When asked what she envisions for her students’ futures, Sujana replies that she wants them to identify their passions and to continue doing what they like. “I want them always to be confident.

By Natasha Pirani