Zambianisms

Having now lived in Zambia for over a year and a half, I notice that I have picked up some of the cultural habits and expressions. In fact, I sometimes notice myself slipping into a Zambian accent when speaking English! Although I teach in English, it’s sometimes easier to use broken English to communicate with children at school here or with Zambians who don’t speak much English.

Lecturing at Kaniki Bible University College - most probably with a Zambian accent!

I like the way that Zambian people say "Sorry, sorry!" if they see someone hurt themselves. They don’t do this to admit responsibility for doing something wrong, but rather to say they are sorry on behalf of that person. When I first moved here I used to automatically tell the children at school not to worry because whatever happened wasn't their fault, but now I find myself automatically saying “sorry, sorry” instead.

With some of the pupils from Kapumpe

I have also learned to talk about where I stay rather than where I live. We have taught the children at school to ask and answer the question, "Where do you live?", but in general conversation here, people recognise “Where do you stay?” much more easily. Similarly, I used to find it irritating that the children at school would say their head was “paining” rather than saying their head hurt or they had a headache. Last year I tried to teach them to change how they described having a headache but I think it’s a habit that’s hard to break.  As they say, “If you can’t beat them, join them”… so I have embraced the “paining”.

“Beating” is another word that is both overused and used incorrectly here, according to our British understanding. If a child gets punched, kicked or even just tapped on the arm, they will say that they have been beaten. As some of the children at school do get beaten at home, we want to make sure they understand the difference between this and something more insignificant.

Children at playtime

Playtime at Kapumpe

Another rather lovely Zambian tradition is the way they greet everyone they come across, whether they know them or not. Zambians always take the time to ask how someone is, if they’re talking to them or even if they are just walking past. It could be in the supermarket greeting the cashier at the till, meeting a policeman at a roadblock or bumping into a familiar face. The answer is always “Bweno”, which is just like saying “I’m fine”. Here it is only polite for me to greet everyone I meet so it takes me longer to walk anywhere than it would at home.

Aside from the language, there are a number of other local customs that I have adopted. My sister Rachel will probably disown me for admitting this, but I have embraced the not-so-stylish Zambian trend of wearing socks with flip flops. I wouldn’t consider doing this back at home but it turns out to be quite practical when it's warm in the day and colder at night. I should just add that I would only ever wear socks and flip flops like slippers, when inside during the evenings in the cold season. I still ban my Dad from wearing socks and sandals at home!

Sporting the Zambian socks and sandals look

All Zambian women seem to own several chitenge, which are pieces of bright coloured fabric that have many different uses. Ladies use them to protect their clothes whilst working, to cover their legs/knees when walking around in rural areas, to sit on the ground outside, to carry a baby on their back, as a towel...I even found it could be a makeshift shower curtain! They are very handy to have and I am building up a nice collection.

Chitenge shower curtain

Hope Church Winchester Team embracing the Zambian chitenge

Seemingly every Zambian eats nshima (maize), which is the staple food here. Initially I wasn’t too sure about the idea of eating it with my hands rather than using cutlery, but it turns out that nshima tastes a lot better when you roll it in your hand. It has been explained to me that it is deemed inappropriate to do this with both hands, and that it should be done only with the right because the left hand is used for going to the toilet!

Eating nshima

There are some traditional customs that I haven't embraced yet. I haven't worn a wig or a weave in my hair, which is something that most Zambian ladies do. I haven’t tried eating chicken feet and I haven’t mastered the ability to carry things on my head. I think it might take me quite some time to be able to carry a 25kg bag of food on my head like the very skilled local ladies do here.

Local woman showing off her skills

Arise & Kapumpe Newsletter - Term 2 2016

Term 2 has been both a positive and productive few months for the Arise project and at Kapumpe Christian Primary School. Here is our latest newsletter to give you a glimpse of some of the things that we've been up to this term...

Click here to open the most recent newsletter

Thank you to everyone who has supported Arise and/or Kapumpe this term. We are really grateful for you showing interest in what we've been up to and also for supporting us either financially or in prayer. We are looking forward to what next term will bring. 

Finally, here are a few more photos from term 2...

Enjoying playtime at Kapumpe

Kapumpe sports day race

Charlie who taught Kapumpe's first class in 2014
returned to visit and see the girl she sponsors

Visiting a bush church in Misaka near Kaniki

Zambian Election Fever

Thursday 11^th August marked an important day in Zambia as the country went to the polls to elect a new President and government. Zambia is led by a President and a government which are elected every five years. Elections are decided by a ‘first past the post’ system like in the UK, although for the first time this year a candidate had to win more than 50% to avoid a run-off.

In Zambia there have been six presidents since 1964 when the country gained independence. In 2014, President Michael Sata sadly died during his presidency, so extra elections were held in January 2015. This resulted in President Edgar Lungu being elected to complete his predecessor’s term of office.

PF Candidate Lungu

This year, it was expected to be a tight race between President Lungu of the Patriotic Front (PF) and Hakainde Hichilema (known as HH), representing the United Party for National Development (UPND).

UPND Candidate HH

Zambia has been awash with colour in the build up to election day; posters, t-shirts and banners, in green for PF and red for HH. The build-up has been hard to miss and the noise unmistakable! Many vehicles have been driving around carrying supporters and blasting loud music. It’s quite interesting to watch compared to our more traditional, British way of politely arguing or badmouthing other parties. Political paraphernalia in Zambia appears to be mostly billboard posters and articles of clothing, including chitenges (traditional bright fabric that women wear) rather than printed leaflets. The best way to find out information about the election appears to be asking different people what they know and assimilating what you find out.

One of our Arise guardians wearing a PF chitenge 

Adults over 18 are eligible to vote in Zambia if they have an NRC (National Registration Card). Polling stations are open all day and queues are long, which means it can take hours to cast your vote. Each voter was given five ballot papers this year – presidential, parliamentary, mayoral, local government and a referendum. The nearest polling station to us was at the local government primary school and many staff from the Bible College had the day off to enable them to vote wherever they are registered.

A key issue in the election has been Zambia’s struggling economy. Interestingly as the election grew closer, our 8 hour a day load shedding (power cuts) was significantly reduced to only four hours, a few times a week. During election week, there actually seemed to be power all day every day! I’m told that it is due to the President drumming up support from voters. I am slightly concerned what will happen to the power when the election fever has died down.

One of the interesting tactics that the current President has used as part of his campaign, is to grant people free entry to some of Zambia’s football matches. I attended a couple of these matches and I have never seen the 49,800 seater national stadium so full. There were people running to get in, and armed officers at the entrances letting in PF supporters. I couldn’t really imagine the Tories hosting a free football match and not allowing Labour supporters to attend it!

Supporting Zambia Football Team

It is common that people in Zambia vote according to tribal lines. President Lungu is from the Eastern Province which is part of the Bemba region. This mean that PF’s main support comes from the Eastern Province, the capital Lusaka, the Copperbelt (including Ndola) and other Bemba speaking regions.

Winning parties in 2015 election

The Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) gradually released the results from each constituency between Friday 12^th and Monday 15^th August. Where we live in Kaniki it was 600 in favour of PF and 400 for HH. Considering it is predominantly a PF dominated area, the opposition gained a lot of support. Overall, the vote turned out to be close, with Lungu securing 50.35% of the vote and retaining his position as President of the country.

There have been rumours of electoral malpractice, such as missing votes. UPND are alleging fraud, saying that the ECZ colluded with PF to rig the result, so the party has withdrawn from the ballot verification process.

Although mainly peaceful, it has been a tense time in the country. There have been a few reports of trouble even nearby. When driving in to town one evening recently, we went past a couple of open vehicles full of supporters, beeping horns and playing loud music. One of our neighbours told us that two people were killed that evening among the commotion.

Please pray for continuing peace in Zambia.

Raising the Zambian flag at school

Lovely Lawrence

My sister Rhi is an Occupational Therapist. During her five months here in Kaniki she's been using her skills to help and support a boy that we all love, Lawrence. She's introduced an exercise programme for him and led training for his Dad and the staff at Kapumpe. I asked her to tell you some of his story...

When I look back on my trip to Zambia I will definitely remember Lawrence. Lawrence is 9 years old and in Grade 1 at Kapumpe Christian Primary School. He loves coming to school and I don’t think I have ever seen him without a smile on his face.

Always smiling

Lawrence and his twin were born three months prematurely. They were kept in an incubator at the hospital but sadly his twin died. His dad told me that when the twin died, they discovered the incubator had been too hot so it had to be cooled down before baby Lawrence was put back in. 

In December 2015 Lawrence’s father cycled to Kapumpe Christian Primary School to ask if his son could attend the school. He spoke to Rosie and explained that because Lawrence couldn’t walk, none of the local schools would accept him. Lawrence has cerebral palsy and Ellie and Rosie weren’t sure whether they would be able to support such a physically disabled child whilst the school was still in its early stages, but they went away to discuss it and pray about the situation. As Grade 1 teacher, Rosie felt prompted to welcome him into her class in the new school year. She didn’t know what to expect but trusted that somehow God would enable the school to support him.

Lawrence when he started at school

Lawrence's cerebral palsy mainly affects his legs, which means that if he is sitting at a desk you might not notice any difference between him and the other children in the class. A container of donated items from Denmark arrived in Kaniki in January 2016, which happened to contain a four-wheeled walker. Ellie and Rosie took the walker, hoping that it might be suitable for Lawrence. Rosie encouraged him to use it to try to walk, and soon he was walking around school in his own way, albeit falling over frequently but quickly getting up, smiling and walking on again. 

Lawrence with the four-wheeled walker

When I came out to Zambia in March I brought with me a children’s walking frame which had been kindly donated by a local children’s therapy department. The frame enabled Lawrence to walk in an upright position, and as children’s frames are open at the front he is also able to use it to play football, join in class activities and run up and down the dirt track next to the playground. He is such a bright and friendly boy who absolutely loves learning and playing.

Playing with the parachute alongside his class

Playing ball with his friend

A couple of my friends are paediatric physiotherapists and were kind enough to suggest some exercises that might help Lawrence. We’ve been doing these exercises with him on a daily basis and his posture and flexibility has improved. 

Doing his daily exercises

Lawrence’s Dad recently told the staff how grateful he is for the help and support his son has received at Kapumpe and the positive impact it has had on Lawrence’s life. He reflected on how Lawrence had been unable to walk before January this year and how grateful he is to Rosie and the team for making the bold decision to accept him into the school and giving him the opportunity to walk.

Lawrence lives in a town called Soweto which takes nearly two hours to Kapumpe by bike. His father and brother take turns to bring him to school on the back of their bike each day. They then return at the end of the day to collect him. Lawrence’s father recently shared his concern about Lawrence missing days at school when there is a problem with the bike, which can happen quite frequently due to the local potholed roads.

Getting picked up from school on the bike

A few weeks ago during a staff meeting, I was able to teach the staff about cerebral palsy and the types of challenges that Lawrence faces. Lawrence and I then demonstrated his exercise programme to enable other members of staff to be able to do these with him. We invited his Dad to this meeting and he told us afterwards that he had never been given any information on cerebral palsy before. He informed us that he had taken Lawrence to a number of hospitals when he was younger to ask for help, but was told that they would not give him any exercises until he was 15 years old. 

Lawrence’s Dad also informed us that Lawrence was still unable to walk at home as he did not have shoes to wear or a walking aid to use at home. We provided him with a pair of boots for Lawrence to keep at home and purchased a pair of crutches for him to start practising with at school. Lawrence took to the crutches straight away, although we found that he still needed the frame when playing sport and when he was tired. We were able to get hold of a second pair of crutches from the local hospital and gave these to Lawrence to use at home. 

Lawrence was given advice on using the crutches by one of our teachers

Lawrence loves his new-found freedom and can sometimes be seen running along the path at school with his frame, seeing how fast he can go! At our recent sports day he was so delighted to be able to join in every group activity and to represent his team in the sprint. The other children were very supportive and patient with him, which was great to see.

It has been incredibly humbling to work with such a positive, happy boy and to see the lengths that his family go to in order to support him. It is amazing to see how such small interventions have had such a significant impact on his life and his future. I am so grateful that Rosie was keen to include Lawrence in her class, and both her and our Zambian teacher in Grade 1 continue to ensure he has the support he needs whilst treating him as an equal member of the class.

Being used to working with adults, this has been my first experience of paediatric therapy, and it has definitely been a positive one!

Lawrence is just one of the children who attends Kapumpe Christian Primary School. For more information and updates visit our Facebook page:

Kapumpe Christian Primary School Facebook Page

* This story has been shared with the permission of Lawrence's family.

Who’s teaching who?

I’m a teacher by trade and I really enjoy coaching and mentoring others. It has been a really interesting experience to try doing both of these things out here in another culture. It has also convinced me I am learning far more myself here than anything I am passing on.

Staff training day hosted by Kapumpe

This term at Kapumpe we have been looking at how we can make our school more Zambian. I have visited a number of other Zambian schools which has got me thinking about the ways in which we do things and how we make decisions about what is best for the children we teach.

A private school in Ndola

A community school in Kitwe

The easiest way to do something is to do it the way you have always done it. For example, when I started teaching Grade 2 at Kapumpe last year, I set up my classroom in a similar way to how I would in the UK. I used planning formats that I had previously used, and a behaviour system which had been successful back home. Soon after term began, I was asked to mentor a Zambian teacher and share class responsibility with her. This meant that I was able to show her my way of doing things whilst providing encouragement and feedback to broaden and improve her teaching skills.

My grade 2 classroom last year 

On reflection I think that I assumed that I knew how to teach and that I was the one with skills to pass on. Since then however, I have had quite a change of mindset. I’ve learned that a method or strategy that is effective in one environment or culture does not always transfer well to a different context. Our best resource here at Kapumpe Christian Primary School is definitely our Zambian staff. They have a deeper knowledge and understanding of the local children and culture that I will never have. If I were to take on a similar challenge again, I would approach things a different way. First, I would ask about how things are done in Zambia.

One of our members of staff who I have learned a lot from

In my work to develop the school, I have introduced systems that will help us monitor and improve our performance - a school improvement plan, lesson observations and performance management appraisals. Each time I started to introduce one of these systems which I thought might be new and innovative at a staff meeting here, I found that the Zambian teachers were already familiar with it. The process might look different (for example, I’ve heard that lesson observations over here focus on identifying the teacher’s mistakes!), but they are still carried out for similar reasons.

I am confident that some of the teaching strategies we have introduced at Kapumpe have really helped to improve the quality of the education that the children receive. We recently invited parents and guardians to attend a meeting with their child’s class teacher to discuss their progress and see their work – like parent’s evening but in the afternoon. It was lovely to hear so many positive comments. Numerous parents and guardians came to find me so that they could tell me how pleased they were with how their child was getting on. Many of them mentioned that they have noticed a distinct difference between children who attend Kapumpe and others in the community. I myself have noticed this difference in terms of confidence, spoken English and thinking skills.

Looking at children's work before teacher-parent meetings

One area that Zambian schools seem similar to those in the UK is the challenge of government demands. The government expectations for teaching and learning in Zambia are further ahead of where I expected them to be, yet many teachers tell me there is a big focus on statistics. Completing a census form about Kapumpe for the government took us two meetings and several additional hours, yet we’re not sure what the data collected is actually used for. I’ve heard that teachers have to re-write their register every time a new child joins the class (a frequent occurrence here). At many local schools there are over 70 children to a class and most teachers do not have a computer so will write everything by hand.

As a school, we at Kapumpe are very much learning as we grow. It is my hope that next year all our classes will have a Zambian teacher who we can mentor, support and learn from. The different knowledge, skills and experience that each member brings will only make us a stronger, more effective team.

Our current grade 2 teacher