Meet Ibrahim, Head Teacher at Mbazzi Primary School

The new school year started in Uganda on Tuesday 6th February and we were thrilled to welcome around 150 new primary school students. 

They are beginning a life-changing education journey with School for Life. And this can bring a mixture of excitement and nerves!

But for students joining Mbazzi Primary School, they are fortunate to have a passionate Head Teacher leading the way.

Meet Ibrahim Bayondo. 

His journey to School for Life

Since starting at Mbazzi Primary School, Ibrahim has helped students achieve some outstanding results. 

In the recent Primary Leaving Examinations (PLE), 30 students received first grades, including 20 distinctions in mathematics - the subject he teaches.

But he didn’t always want to be a teacher. He was studying ICT in college when he took a job at a school teaching morning classes. It was this experience that led to his love of teaching. 

“I decided I now needed a degree in education and had to choose between primary and secondary education. I settled on primary because I was most interested in teaching young children.”

Ibrahim became Head Teacher at Hidden Treasure Primary School where he met Janepher, School for Life’s Director of Community and Welfare. He was teaching mathematics and Janepher’s daughter, Nicole, was one of his students. 

Janepher could see the impact he would make at School for Life and asked him to join in December 2018. 

We count ourselves lucky that he said yes!


His passion for education 

Ibrahim is now Head Teacher at Mbazzi Primary School, teaching both mathematics and science. But he admits that mathematics is his true passion. 

He has a philosophy of teaching “real-life mathematics”. He introduces students to the origins of each concept, why they need to understand it and how it can be applied. 

This makes lessons more accessible and engaging as the students learn how to use the concepts in the real world. 

And he finds the students respond well to ‘learn and teach others’ (LATO), a teaching method he wants to focus more on this year. “Whenever they teach, they learn more. It promotes their interest so that they know more when they teach others.

Another focus this year is the recovery from lost learning experienced during the pandemic. 

Even though School for Life continued teaching during the school closures via at-home learning packs and virtual classrooms, there is still work to be done. 

“We had to go back to the drawing board. We needed to understand what they’ve achieved and what they haven’t,” says Ibrahim. “We’re now trying hard to minimise the impact of lost learning. We have about 20% left to recover.”

 The recent PLE results are a true testament to his dedication, and the dedication of all the teachers. They are already helping students close the gap in their education. 

“Education is important. It makes us what we are supposed to be.”
— Ibrahim Bayondo, Mbazzi Primary School Head Teacher

His hopes for the future

One of the things Ibrahim values most about working at School for Life is the opportunity for growth. 

“You can’t be the same each year,” says Ibrahim, “and that’s what I like about School for Life - they facilitate our development. They care for the teachers.”

Providing ongoing capacity building is one of the key pillars of our holistic education model. Each term, teachers have access to training and development sessions including ICT, effective instructional planning and report writing.

Ibrahim is also one of 24 members of the School Leadership Team who take part in ongoing coaching and mentorship from the Uganda Management Institute. They learn from experienced leaders on topics such as strategic planning, effective communication in the workplace and managing targets. 

“For me as a school leader, It helps me effectively lead the school.” 

But it also helps him in the classroom too. Ibrahim is able to mentor his students and promote their leadership skills. He hopes this will have a lasting impact as they move through their schooling life and go on to chase their dreams. 

For now, he’s focused on getting the best out of his students over the next school year. And he’s set his sights on achieving even more first grades in the end-of-year exams!

School for Life teachers are critical to providing the best education to students. If you would like to support a teacher like Ibrahim and help make a difference, make a donation today.

Success Stories
Goretti

Sweet and shy Goretti lives with her aunt, uncle and cousins in a small house in the local village. When Goretti was younger, she moved in with her aunt and uncle because her parents could no longer look after her. She was one of our first students at Katuuso Primary, starting in 2011 when she was just 4 years old. Now, Goretti is in Senior One at Mbazzi High School, and is relishing the honour of being a high school student in her community - something that is taken for granted in Australia, but in Uganda, represents freedom and opportunity. Goretti also loves attending School for Life because she hopes to one day become a pilot in Uganda - a dream which she knows can only be reached with the help of a good education.

Violah

Violah has been at School for Life since since she was six years old. Sadly, Violah has experienced hardship no child should ever deal with. Her Dad passed away three years ago, leaving her Mum without the financial means to support her family - so she left Violah and her siblings with their elderly grandmother. Every day, Violah has to wake up at 5am to fetch water, cook meals and make sure that her younger sisters are properly looked after. Then she walks half an hour to get to school. Despite this adversity, Violah has flourished at school and has made many friends. She loves that School for Life is "helping me to build a future". After finishing school, Violah hopes to become a teacher to help other children.

Umar

Umar is one of our best performing students at Mbazzi Riverside High School - but life has not always been easy for Umar. His father abandoned the family in 2015, leaving his mother to struggle to support her five children on her own. School for Life has provided Umar with opportunities that may never else have eventuated for him. Umar begun his journey with School for Life at Katuuso Primary School, where his academic ability was quickly revealed. Now, he is a thriving member of our Senior 1 class and a formidable wing on the football team. With a love for mathematics, Umar is set on studying electronic engineering after finishing his senior studies - a goal which he is the first to admit is now within reach thanks to the skills and resources provided to him by School for Life.

Rose Nambooze

Rose is a 32‐year‐old single mother of one. She started working with SFL in 2013, after taking part in our tailoring training program. Prior to working with us, she was unemployed and living in her father's home helping to care for her father, who had cataracts, and his farm.
Thanks to her full time employment, Rose was able to save enough money to pay for an eye operation and restore her father's sight, allowing him to return to work as a mechanic. Now, Rose has moved into her own home and no longer relies on her father financially. 

Joseph

Joseph is one of our Special Needs teachers at Katuuso. After surviving a severe case of malaria at age four, he was left permanently deaf. He was raised by his single mother and attended a nursery school for the handicapped and later transferred to a school for the Deaf in Kampala. He eventually mastered sign language and pursued a university degree in education. Joseph decided to become a teacher so that he could give the gift of education to others who are hearing impaired.

Teddy Namatovu

Teddy is a participant in the Kumi Tailoring Program and four of her five children attend Katuuso Primary School. She and her husband farm two acres of land, which supplies fluctuating revenue. Participation in the Kumi Tailoring Project has secured income to reliably pay for school fees, nutritious meals and renovations to the family home. Teddy has gained a great deal of self-esteem from her ability to support her family and she takes pride in independently financing the education of all five children. Teddy has also been working on her numeracy and administration skills. She was appointed Treasurer of the tailoring group and will be responsible for keeping records of their savings.

Flaviah Nassaazi

Flaviah Nassaazi started working at Katuuso Primary and Vocational School in 2011. Prior to cooking at the school, she and her husband were subsistence farmers. They worked tirelessly for small yields and minimal income to support their family. Flaviah's cooking job not only enables her to pay school fees for her children, but she has also invested in a local barbershop business. She is now passing her cooking skills onto her eldest son Frank, who has also joined the school's cooking staff. Flaviah and her husband attend the adult literacy classes offered weekly at the school. Her English and reading have improved immensely, as well as her confidence.

Rachel

In 2010, Rachel began as a cleaner at Katuuso Primary and Vocational School. She was working to save money to study to be a teacher at University. Thanks to Barrie and Simone Goldsmith, her dream of studying came true and she is now fully qualified.