TESCEA

HoloEx Project

Aflatoxins Project

Transforming Employability for Social Change in East Africa (TESCEA) 

Growth requires assessment of the status quo and purposeful engagement in change.  It is for this reason I have been extremely taken by the design and development of pragmatic solutions to meet the challenges and opportunities facing Kenya today.  According to Peter Mortimore, ‘pedagogy is … any conscious activity by one person designed to enhance learning in another’. Since education is vital for any sustainable economic development, enriching the learning experience of students goes beyond simply encouraging a good learning experience, but is at the heart of economic stability of a country.  To this end, I actively participate in transformative learning sessions and facilitate design thinking sessions to empower others to recognize their inherent potential to innovate.  

With regards to participating in transformative learning, I am part of a DFID funded three and a half years project that is strongly focused on changing how learning happens.  This project has seen me being part of a team that is introducing transformative learning in four universities, two in Uganda and two in Tanzania.  My involvement in this project has also seen me revisit who I am as a learner and encouraged me to critic how I facilitate learning – I am now asking questions about myself, my students/co-learners, and the system within which learning is facilitated.  How can I ensure that the learning that is taking place is also encouraging self-reflection, and helping co-learners engage with their underlying assumptions so as to ensure the transformative learning cycle is re-enforced [Concrete Experience -> Reflective Observation -> Abstract Conceptualization -> Active Experimentation]?  On reflection, this project is not only enriching my learning, it is also providing opportunity for a lot of personal growth. It is my hope that as part of the team facilitating this project I keep seeking the occasion to improve myself.