|Charity Malama is a 17-year-old, grade 10 pupil in Zambia’s Kalulushi District. She is the only girl in a family of seven children. From a young age, Charity accounts that she felt like she had fewer choices over her quality of life compared to her brothers. |
“My parents always told me not to join school clubs like math clubs, and they didn’t want me to participate in school quizzes even if I was good at them,” she lamented, “They claimed that technical subjects are meant for boys.”
When Charity passed her grade nine national exams, she was selected to a local high school where she was placed in a “pure class,” which means a class oriented toward math and science. Here, Charity’s love for science grew even more.
“It’s like I was thirsty for a long time and I was finally given water. I began to learn all the endless possibilities of how science could change the way we live,” said Charity.
However, the school laboratory was not equipped with the necessary tools to help Charity and her class to conduct experiments. According to Abraham Chansa, Charity’s teacher and a Funzeleo-trained teacher:
“It was difficult to teach science concepts without experimentation materials, but when Funzeleo came, they helped me with materials that I could use to demonstrate and conduct classroom experiments with my pupils.”
With the use of Funzeleo teaching techniques and the science materials that Funzeleo provided, Charity is able to learn through a more hands-on way.
“I always look forward to the experiments. It is easy for me to remember certain concepts easily when I can see and touch. Sometimes when materials are enough, all my classmates get their own materials to experiment with, unlike just watching the teacher,” said Charity.
Charity thanks her teacher, Mr. Chansa, for giving her an environment through which she is able to become more than what her parents told her, and she believes in her potential to succeed.