(This article was first published in the New Vision on April 6, 2022)
By Andrew Masinde
Standing in the middle of the Primary One classroom, Teddy Nambuya is holding cardboard placards of the alphabet and the pupils repeat after her. She instructs the pupils to write the letters in their exercise books, after which she moves to the front, sits in the middle of eight pupils on the front row and repeats the letters for them. These children have disabilities.
Six of them have hearing impairment, while two cannot speak. Their teacher, Nambuya, has to pay them special attention to keep them at par with the rest.
Cathy Betty Nafuna, the deputy headteacher of Buwamwangu Primary School in Bukonde sub-county, Mbale city, says before Nambuya came to the school, special needs children were ignored as other teachers considered them unable to study with the rest, but that changed.
“With every lesson, she repeats the content for those with special needs. Some of the children were violent when they joined the school, but Nambuya has calmed them down,” Nafuna says.
Teaching Career
Nambuya’s teaching career began in 2004 at Bulweta Primary School, where she observed that children with special needs were marginalised.
“I put myself in the shoes of learners with special needs and those of the parents, imagining how I would feel if they treated my child as useless,” she says.
So Nambuya was moved that she started attending to the special needs learners and was officially requested by the school administration to be in charge of the pupils.
However, since she had no training in handling children with special needs, she faced challenges, for example, communicating with them.
Nambuya then enrolled for a diploma in special needs education, after which she returned to Bulweta Primary School, where she ably supported special needs children, with many now leading independent lives.
Michael Wamimbi, a long-time friend of Ali Wanda, who has special needs and was taught by Nambuya, says his life was transformed. Wanda used to drool non-stop and could not walk well and Nambuya trained him. Today, he is independent.
“He owns a grocery shop in Bugwele market in Mbale, is married and has children without disabilities,” Wananda says.
One of the teachers who taught with Nambuya in Bulweta says when she enrolled for a diploma in special needs education, some of her colleagues thought she had lost her mind, but today, they admire her work.
In 2015, Nambuya was posted to Buwamwangu Primary School in Bukonde sub-county, Mbale city.
Stephen Kizangi, the director of studies at the school, says when Nambuya joined the school, her first request was to be put in charge of children with special needs.
“No teacher had expressed such interest because these children were regarded as not worthy. Her class has more than 170 pupils and eight of them are children with special needs,” he says.
Kizangi adds that the special needs children are excelling.
How She Handles Learners
Nambuya ensures that all children with special needs sit in front so that they can see the blackboard, lip-read the teacher and she also uses sign language.
When the pupils are promoted to other classes, Nambuya organises lessons for them during her free time.
She has also trained other teachers on how to handle children with special needs.
Nambuya also uses learning aids to help children with special needs keep up.
During the Parent-Teacher Association meetings, Nambuya always speaks to parents, especially those with special needs children to bring them to school. She also visits homes, encouraging parents to enrol their special needs children in school.
Nula Nabugwere, a parent with a special needs child in Primary One, recalls that before enrolling him, community members discouraged her, saying he would not succeed in school because he has a hearing impairment and is violent.
“Today, that violent behaviour is reducing, he can read sounds and write. He is also the class monitor,” Nabugwere says.
With her class having a population of over 170 pupils, Nambuya divided the learners into small groups where she supervises them and explains whatever they do not understand.
Owing to Nambuya’s effort, the number of special needs children at the school has increased.
Fazila Masiba, the chairperson of the Parent-Teacher Association, describes Nambuya as a dedicated teacher.
“As parents, we call her ‘mum’ because of the way she handles our children. She is always encouraging us in school meetings to bring children despite their disabilities,” he says.
Nambuya is also in charge of welfare, hence she ensures that the school is organised, clean and that both teachers and pupils have meals.
COVID-19 Interventions
When schools reopened, during the first meeting, parents requested them to return their children with special needs to school.
Since many children who have reported had never been to school, Nambuya also provides nursery lessons to ground them in the basics.
For the older learners, Nambuya encourages them to ignore their age and focus on their studies.
“When schools reopened, many did not want to sit in class with young ones, fearing that they would laugh at them. However, I remind all children that the older learners are in Primary One because of disruptions caused by COVID-19 and, thus, should respect each other,” she says.
In addition, Nambuya always helps the learners observe the standard operating procedures such as washing their hands and advises parents to provide masks for their children.
Nambuya says when schools reopened, some children did not return and she followed them up.
Gift, not real name, had not returned to school after her mother took her to work in the market, selling vegetables. She recalls that her friends would come to the market and ask her to return to school.
“One day, teacher Nambuya came and convinced my mother that school is better than selling vegetables at my age. The following day, my mother sent me back to school,” Gift says.
She describes her teacher as a mother who cares for every child, not only in her class, but in the whole school.
Asad Walufu, the Mbale district inspector of schools, describes Nambuya as a committed teacher. He says her going back to specialise in special needs shows how committed she is towards helping the children.
“All teachers should love their work the way Nambuya does if the education system is to improve. Go an extra mile to see that all your learners are at the same level irrespective of their disabilities,” he says.
Co-Curricular Activities
Being a Primary One teacher, Nambuya is always taking her pupils for physical education lessons every morning, where she uses locally made play materials. She says this helps to avoid incurring costs on the school meagre finances, but also helps the children to learn hands-on skills.
“Special needs children are always the most active because they socialise with the normal children,” she says.
Challenges
As a Primary One teacher, the number of pupils in class is big, yet she has to move from one corner to the other.
She also faces a challenge of lack of enough teaching materials. However, she always picks local materials.
Who is Nambuya?
Born in 1979, she joined Tororo College Primary School, Tororo district where she sat her Primary Leaving Examinations in 1995. She then joined Elgon High School and completed Senior Four in 1999 after she joined Sancta Maria Primary Teachers College in Mukono for her Grade Three training in teaching, which she completed in 2003. She proceeded to St Mary’s Primary Teachers’ College Bukedea for a diploma in special needs education. Today, she is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in special needs education at Kyambogo University.
Plans
Nambuya plans to complete her higher education and continue helping the special needs children. She also has a dream of setting up a special needs centre to help learners and train other teachers on how best to handle special needs children alongside others.
