Travel Blog

By Charlotte Broom Subjects studied English – Handwriting and reading for Nursery, French, Kinyarwanda, Maths, Science, Social Studies, Traditional Dance and Music, Sport, Drama School Ethos To produce a well-rounded child with not only a great academic education but also an education about good inter-personal skills along with wide ranging inter-curricular activities that are not solely academic based. This gives the students an all round education which allows everyone to find success in different areas of school life. This also contributes to the future and can make each individual an upstanding community member thus contributing to community spirit. Voluntary opportunities When visiting Rwanda I not only wished to see all the fantastic resources available for tourists to get involved with, but I wished to get involved with the community in a more direct way. By asking Rwanda Eco tours (www.rwandaecotours.com) what opportunities were available and along with other voluntary opportunities I decided that Volunteering at Excella school would be the most ideal option for me to not only get a great experience but also to give back to the community and hopefully leave a lasting impression other than just my financial investment. While volunteering at Excella School , you will be welcomed not only by the children but also by the staff of Excella. The atmosphere is warm, caring and happy. I have never met so many children that cannot wait to begin school on a Monday morning and this was so refreshing. The teachers matched the enthusiasm of the children through their teaching as well as pastorally caring for the students. This positive attitude to education and striving to be a success will be mirrored in later life and therefore provide more positive, well rounded and successful pillars of the community. As a volunteer I shadowed several teachers over a couple of school days before sitting down with the headmaster to discuss how many days a week I felt comfortable teaching, and how many hours of those days I would teach. As well as this, I was given full rein as to what I wished to teach! I chose Drama as a start, so I could first assess the students’ English abilities and then from there we could pick topics of interest that would be most appropriate to the students’ lives. Not only will you furthering their education by assisting the students but also the teachers in turn will learn from your methods. Having a foreign influence at Excella will not only allow the school to gain a great experience from having voluntary input but also will also help subsequently produce positive, educated and successful communities. My experience shows just how much control of your teaching experience you are able to have at Excella. If you wish to only be there one or two days a week for morning lessons this is fine or if you wish to be there five days a week teaching as many hours as there are free, then Excella can offer this too. If you choose to just support or shadow a teacher, this can be arranged or if you choose to take classes individually on a subject of your choice then this is also a choice you can make. The staff and children at Excella believe in the importance of an all round education and they believe that a part of this can come from volunteers from other cultures. The invaluable input that international volunteers can have on moulding the students of Excella, by adding to their development as people, will be immeasurable. Voluntary Benefits Accommodation, transport and what you can be involved in can be organized by Rwanda Eco-Tours A genuinely fantastic experience for those maybe looking into whether they wish to go down the educational career path or for those well experienced and qualified teachers that want a change. This experience will contribute directly to the students and staff of Excella school and will also contribute to the development of future generations in Rwanda.