First Choice Education Link- FCEL

We are preparing something new for our clientele. Watch this space!

Part of the speech given by the FCEL-Director Mr. M. A. Roberts on Monday 23rd Feb 2016 during the launching of the EDUCATION FOR SUSTAINABLE LIVELIHOODS IN TANZANIA campaign in Moshi.

"If we don't stand up for children, then we don't stand for much"- Mariam Wright Edelman

World reports show that a child dies every three seconds from either malaria, HIV/AIDS or extreme poverty; often before their 5th birthday. 75 million children are out of school around the world, a figure equivalent to the entire primary school-age population in Europe and America. And majority of those are in Sub-Saharan African countries. Child survival rates jump 40% if girls are educated at least for 5 years.
So it all zeroes down to education. As Kofi Annan once put it, education is a human right with immense power to transform the world. On its foundation rests the cornerstones of freedom, democracy and sustainable human development.

But when we talk of education, we must be meaning quality education. Because, education is not just the filling of a pail, rather the lighting of a fire. If every child received quality education, more than half the population of the entire world and Tanzania in particular would be lifted from poverty. Quality education unlocks the door to success in life; it is essential to development and health, and it opens the way for democratic participation and active citizenship. The current African leadership challenges would be addressed once and for all if our governments decisively invested in education as a liberation means.

Therefore, us from FCEL we envision a Tanzania and the world in which all children can pursue quality education, reach their full potential and contribute to their communities and the world.

As the year ends, we are so much obliged to remember some breathtaking moments we experienced in 2015. We wish all our friends/colleagues/members/followers a merry Christmas & Prosperous New Year

We just heard the President of the United Republic of Tanzania H.E Dr. John Pombe Joseph Magufuli's speech opening this year's government. It has been a solid speech with a candid message.
He has talked of so many issues that his government needs to address. Most important of all he has talked of transforming our education system and offering free education to some levels.
It is good news. However, free education should not be free of knowledge. It shouldn't be the type of education where the graduands cannot even read or write. It shouldn't be an education where the graduands carry certificates but they lack the required skills in the job market. It shouldn't be an education whose graduants are not self reliant.

Besides, the education sector has so many challenges that need to be addressed. It should not be an issue of fees only. Toilets, classrooms, books, laboratories, teachers, teachers' residences etc. all need to be looked at.

When we talk of education, we don't only look at those students/pupils at school. We are talking of education for the entire society. It may be a political hoax just like any other that we have heard, when our governments tell us of their ambitions to raise the economy or alleviate poverty if they do not tell us of their deliberate intentions to provide quality education to every child in our society irrespective of their background.

The education that we are advocating for, is one that can help the graduates to be self-reliant. One that can help our youths to face today's world challenges without fear. For graduates to create their own jobs relevant to their own levels of education attained.
It is unbecoming for a child to spend minimumly eighteen years in school (2-7-4-2-3 system) only to come out & start another rather more tiresome exercise of job-hunting!! It is rather absurd for a child who perhaps because of some unavoidable circumstances fails to finish the last three years phase to remain unemployed or without any professional engagement hence putting all the other years spent in school to waste!!

Education being referred to as a key to a better life; then itself must be of a good quality. East or West governments are talking of free education. "World Prefects" are advocating for free education. Our governments haphazardly have provided that "free education" but it is "free" indeed, free of knowledge!! Free education that produces graduands who cannot read or write, those who do not know anything about their professions; graduands who carry professional titles with unprofessional behaviours & minds!! Those who put on jackets of professionalism only to cover illiterate minds!!

Well we understand that giving free education answers the question of affordability and hence increasing the enrolment. We also understand that building schools in every village answers the question of accessibility & that for every service to be called a good service, it must be accessible. But we posses this unparalleled understanding that; affordability & accessibility of education should not be allowed to compromise its quality.
It doesn't make any bit of sense to build schools everywhere in the country that do not have teachers, scholastic materials, furniture etc as these will negatively affect the quality of education provided in such schools.

To be continued.......

We are profoundly humbled by the support you people have shown us. Thank you for supporting education & change in our society. A couple of days ago, we posted requesting your suggestions on the necessary changes to improve the quality of our education. Again, we thank you for your contributions. Those who did it privately, and even those who chose to use this very platform.
One member suggested that in order to improve the quality of education, we need to improve first the teachers' working conditions as primary stakeholders. That was/is a candid argument.
From our research we realized that most schools lack libraries. There are a few or barely no teaching and learning materials in our community schools. Students in such schools have a right to good quality education as it is the case with the privileged students in first world schools.
We appreciate the government's contributions to the education sector. For building these schools and now on a campaign to build laboratories but these won't help when the buildings lack books, desks, & well motivated teachers. These challenges have resulted in massive academic failures of students in the recent past and it's our responsibility to bring about the change that we desire.
FCEL is now undertaking to bring about remarkable changes in this field. We are fighting to set up a learning center for all students. Somewhere they can gather & attain knowledge freely with people who can help them on some topics. It should be remembered that the whole of Kilimanjaro region boasts having only one not fully furnished library for which a child must pay 1000Tsh a day or Tsh. 20000 a month to access its services. This is way too costly for the ordinary people and therefore denies most students the right to knowledge.
We request you dear colleagues to support us both financially & morally to accomplish our goals for the betterment of our society.
Remember distance is not a barrier, you can share the little you have with the poor. It doesn't matter how much you wish to give even if it is as little as a dollar, it can help one child excel in her/his studies.
Thank you so much for your support once again.

During the interschool debate competition finals on 2/05/2015

As Africans and part of the human race, we at First Choice Education Link are deeply saddened by the massacre at Garisa University College in Kenya this week. There must not be any interests of anybody that is worth the blood of anyone. 147 innocent students dying in cold blood at the hands of a coward terrorist group is quite astonishing.
However, we would like to see the unity of African leaders against terrorism like we saw recently in France when journalists were killed. The whole Europe rose up and joined hands in a match that sent a strong message that "this land shall not take any terrorism lightly", but in Africa, we hear only voice calls yet they all go to the OAU or AU summits & claim to be united. Why can't I see the convergence of African presidents from Cairo to Cape Town flying in to mourn with Kenyans?? Why , Why does it have to be a passive concern yet it affects all of us & when it's our noble cause to fight this terrorism together? We still lack something in this area of cooperation. Amazing the heads of states from the East African block are just issuing statements but we don't see them call for national or better still regional mourning! Not even the Somali president has not turned up yet?!
When shall we have patriotic tendencies to our causes? We salute the Europeans and their alliance against these murderers
And we insist a lot more co -operation is still need
God bless Africa. Our thoughts & prayers are with the people of Kenya during this trying moment.

We request you colleagues to give us your suggestions on what should be done to improve the quality of education in our country.
Thanks in advance

The Kilimanjaro inter-schools annual debate competitions finals are slated for 18/04/2015. Four schools are in for the battle after winning in their preliminaries. The schools are;
1. Bendel Memorial Sec. Sch
2. Mother Thereza of Calcuta Sec.
3. Joyland Girls &
4. St. Stephen Boy's Sec. Sch

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It was quite hilarious at the 2015 interschool debate competitions first round. Congratulations to all the participants & winners. Together we can transform our nation.