Arusha Campus News – 10 Mar 2024

What a frenzy of excitement! All action at the recent NTSAA Secondary Swimming Gala held at Arusha Campus. 

Mon 11th – Fri 15th Mar  – M5 On-screen exams

Mon 18th – Fri 22nd Mar  – PYP MAP Testing

Fri 28 March – Last day of classes Q3

Mon 15th March – First day of Q4

Yesterday the campus played host to rugby teams from far and wide including Nairobi, Iringa and Dar to compete for the annual Arusha Rhinos Tournament. 

A lengthy newsletter this week so I shall use very few words.

The events that have taken place over the past two weeks are almost too many to write about! All have been successful and memorable for those attending and every single one was organised or led by our teachers and parents, This morning, I was on campus and witnessed Miss Jessica clearing up the field after her amazing rugby tournament, Maral and Carolynn and Virpi and Nathalie and Mads tidying up the Performance Area after last night’s PTA event and that is before I mention Mr Frank and Mr Khalid returning exhausted after their OP trip to Mt Longido. Miss Caitrin arrived back a few minutes later with her swim squad from Tanga……

The point I am trying to make is that behind our amazing school are a team of incredibly committed people who give hours and hours and hours of their time to make UWC East Africa the place it is! Thank you to all my colleagues and parents. I feel priviliged to work alongside you.

Asanteni sana.

Phil

World Book Day 2024

This annual celebration of authors, illustrators, books and the joy of reading is one of the highlights of our year. This year was no exception (see images above and below). The students thoroughly enjoyed dressing up as their favourite characters and participating in 6 stations including charades, drumming, story telling, puppets, draw along and Who is it? photos.

World Book Day provides a fantastic opportunity to focus on reading for pleasure, supporting children’s autonomy in book choice, and embedding a habit of reading that brings a wide range of benefits.

Miss Amanda, PYP Co-ordinator

The Nursery and EC class visited Shanga (see image above) to learn about how different people use their senses to help them in everyday life.

The image above shows the UWC East Africa contingent that visited Thailand to represent East Africa!

Miss Anoek and I were given the opportunity to attend the UWC Congress in Thailand last week. We met up with members of the wider UWC community with representatives from all 18 UWC’s.

In our group we discussed the UWC education model suggesting changes and the importance of questioning and innovation while continuing to be a value driven education model. The UWC Movement will share information over time.

Amanda, PYP Co-ordinator

“Education as a force”—this was a powerful theme of the UWC Congress 2024, where for 3 days student delegates from all 18 schools, national committees, staff members, and donors were discussing the achievements and future challenges of our movement. I was proud to represent my campus there in person, at UWC Thailand, while my fellow student Ammar engaged virtually.

What did we do?

– Together with other student delegates, we established the Inter-UWC Student Group, which would connect our student governmental bodies all around the globe (indeed, we barely know what is happening in other United World Colleges, so we need to accentuate the word “united” here!).

– I got a chance to tell other Congress attendees about the Cultural Nights, one of the most vibrant projects on campus aimed at celebrating diversity, and receive feedback.

– Table-group discussions and workshops with donors, volunteers, teachers, and students who are passionate about bringing our mission to life helped us formulate intentions for the next 6 years.

Ammar and I will share our learnings in more detail; we are excited to do this soon!

Viktoria D2

A day in the life of a D1 Music student

Yotam (above), working hard on exploring the Star Wars Orchestration by John Williams for his upcoming “Exploring Music in Context” portfolio. Good luck D1s!!

The swim team made the intrepid trip to Mwanza for the Mwanza Swim Gala. They have just arrived back as this newsletter goes to press so we will find out more next week.

Our Junior sports teams made the short trip to St Constantine’s this weekend to play hockeyt against the other NTSAA schools. The U11’s perfromed heroically but it was the U9’s (pictured above) who maintained their winning streak by conquering all before them to win the championship outright. They have won their hockey, football and rounders competitions.

Well done to all the players – and to their coaches Mr Jonny, Miss Adele and Mr Samwel!

The Cheese and Wine evening on Saturday was a roaring success with a wonderful turn out in spite of the other events going on this weekend. Enjoy the montage above – if you didn’t make it this year look out for next year’s event!

Tuesday March 12th at 6 am…

…EVERYONE is invited to the 2nd edition of the Operation Water Challenge at UWC East Africa, Arusha Campus, in collaboration with the Operation Water organization. This consists of an exercise in empathy where people from around the world, including 10 UWC schools and colleges, will walk at least a mile (1.6 km) carrying water buckets while reflecting facts around clean drinking water accessibility or, rather, lack of accessibility.

The plan for Tuesday March 12 at 6 am:

6:00 – Meet in front of the OP Store and briefing
6:15 – Start the walk around campus carrying buckets of non-drinking water
Until 7:00 – As we walk, we water down newly planted trees around campus and listen to facts and stories about water accessibility.
7:15 – End of the exercise in empathy, beginning of new reflections.

Facts around water accessibility may not sound new, and it may feel far from us… Our intention in engaging in this exercise in empathy is to remind ourselves of the privilege we have, the community of UWC East Africa, to have access to clean drinking water while our very neighbors, people living in Kisongo, Ngaramtoni, Mateves and others very close to us do not share this privilege. The groundwater accessible in Arusha has shown to be contaminated with an excessive amount of fluoride, which the frequent and prolonged consumption can result in health issues: dental fluorosis, skeletal fluorosis, as well as brain functional impairment.

We are aware that this is not a measure that will directly solve the issue… However, indirectly, we believe that education and raising awareness can contribute in the long-term.

Karibuni!

Mr Oli, Experiential Learning Co-ordinator

Some Residential students made the short trip to Schwari this weekend to work on their assignments with Miss Nangini and had a very peaceful and productive time.

This weekend some students engaged in the Mindfulness OP trip with Miss Cassandra.at Amani Light. They enjoyed fabulous views of Mt Meru and Mt Kilimanjaro!

M4: Paving the Path Ahead

The M4 students are preparing themselves for the challenges of their higher MYP years by exploring their future pathways. Under the guidance of Ms Cassandra Ford, our dedicated school counsellor, they are equipping themselves for the road ahead. This quarter, they embarked on a journey to discover many career options, and they have been introduced to the Maia Learning University application platform. This week, they had the opportunity to gain invaluable insights from our former MYP students who are now in D2 – Valerie, SeungGyu, and Mahen. These seniors shared their wisdom in a session where they offered tips for navigating the MYP finals years and preparing for success in the DP years.

Pictured above, M4 Guest speakers, Valerie, Mahen and SeungGyu

M5: Students Embark on Career Exploration

Our M5 students are currently exploring diverse career options, including the exciting world of entrepreneurship as a potential path. Ms Ford has been training them on how to use the Maia Learning platform for university applications. Alongside preparing for their future endeavours, they are now considering their subject choices for their forthcoming IB Diploma journey.

Some of our students have already secured work placements for the upcoming Work Experience Week, which will take place from May 20th to 24th. This experience will provide them with valuable insights and practical skills that are relevant to their career aspirations.

Students still looking for placements that align with their interests are encouraged to share their preferences with their parents and carers to find suitable options.

Stay tuned for further details about the Work Experience Week, which will be shared on Toddle. Exciting opportunities await our M5 students!

D2: Transition Skills and Celebrations

As the D2 students approach the culmination of their IB journey, they are developing essential Transition Skills. From drafting their bucket lists to identifying key skills for post-secondary success, they are fully immersed in preparing for life beyond high school and UWCEA.

Reflecting on the profound experiences they have garnered throughout their time at our school, our D2 students are eager to showcase their most impactful projects.

The Life Skills Team is pleased to announce that the D2 Legacy Project Exhibition will be held on March 18th from 11:40 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. We warmly invite all to join us in commemorating their achievements.

Miss Delphine, Life Skills Co-ordinator

On Friday, M4 and M5 students attended the D1 Project Week fair, organized by Mr Oli, during which each D1 group presented their Project and answered questions from the students, particularly from the M5 who will be designing their own project next year, or take over from one of this year’s group. Project Week is an opportunity for students to demonstrate leadership and organization skills, while applying the UWC values outside school. It also gives students the option to come up with a service related or expedition based project and travel in Tanzania..

Below, some information from a couple of D1 students about their Project:

My experience during project week at Tumaini La Maisha, the cancer ward for children, located in Muhimbili National Hospital, Dar es Salaam, was a mix of challenges and rewards (see image above). Working alongside my group members Melissa, Marco, Grace, Fares, and Daniel, our objective was to assist the children in developing motor skills for daily activities. Despite encountering a few setbacks, the connections formed with both the children and my group members were deeply meaningful. When I saw the joy and excitement on the children’s faces as they engaged in simple activities like playing musical chairs or tossing a ball into a basket, it reminded me to appreciate the little things in life and to live in the moment. At the end, we all felt satisfied to have made a positive impact in these children’s lives, or even put a smile on their faces. I wish I could reverse time and do it all over again!
Heena, D1

For our CAS project we decided to help Chupis, an Australian based organization led by Celi Harper in distributing reusable pads across Tanzania (see image below). Our work was primarily in the background, being centered around setting up communication with the organization and subsequently creating culturally sensitive posters in Swahili about menstruation and its various aspects with the consultation of Swahili speakers. Later on, during the actual project week we traveled to Mto Wa Mbu with Celi and a team of students from France to distribute the pads in a local school. For the distribution, we narrowed our focus to girls that were post the age of menarche. Alongside distributing the pads, we also took the help of a Tanzanian menstrual health awareness worker to give directions on usage.

The experience was a great learning opportunity and helped us learn a lot about the cultural nuances of Tanzania. Moreover, the project was conceived this year and has a lot of potential for scaling and development in the future!
Amber, D1

Our “Kilimanjaro project” attempts to rebuild biodiverse ecosystems in an area severely affected by deforestation. It was located in Moshi’s WeruWeru (see image below). We got the chance to discover, research, and learn about the various stages of tree growth and seeds as well as discovering the plantation area. We spent the first three days learning about seedling care and irrigation, and on the last day, we planted 100 trees restoring biodiversity in the area which has been damaged by human activity. We were able to use all of the knowledge we had learned. It was a very remarkable experience that combined group  efforts and collaborative work with nature.

Sana, D1

D1 Parents – Post-Secondary Planning Part I on 13 March at 7:30 PM

Now that most of the D2s have a clearer sense of their plans for life after UWC East Africa, the focus has shifted to the D1s who are underway with their post-secondary planning process. D1 students have begun their one-on-one planning meetings, and reviewing documents along with conducting research that will allow them to finalize their next chapter early next school year. This takes time and a collaborative effort that includes families who are an essential part of this process. In order to ensure we are all on the same page, parents and guardians of the Class of 2025 are invited to participate in part one of a two part series to guide you through the next year and a half of your child’s IBDP journey. Looking forward to seeing many of you at this virtual event, and feel free to bring lots of questions.

College and Career Planning Across from M4-D2

This has also been a busy time across our high school level cohorts for a multitude of reasons, but it has been great to delve into career development in Life Skills and exploring options for D1s and D2s in DSS. Our M4s were introduced to what lies ahead for them when three of our former MYP students who are now in D2 talked about what to expect over the next three and a half years. Their presentation was excellent and honest, with lots of essential information for M4s to consider as they prepare for the not too distant future. Both M4 and M5s logged into Maia Learning, as an introduction (M4) and extension of the career work they have been engaged in (M5). D1s have begun to use Maia Learning to build their “Considering” list of institutions, and D2s are keeping their outcomes updated as they receive application decisions.  Be sure you are checking Toddle to see lesson resources that have been uploaded after class to stay aware of what we are covering this quarter in the realm of college and career.

Lastly, thank you so much to the members of our Arusha community who have signed up for the 2024 Careers Symposium taking place on 21 March. We are so excited to welcome you, and your expertise to campus as our students learn about the changing world of work. More details coming soon.

In the meantime, here’s what else is coming your way…

UPCOMING College and University Events

13 March: 7:30 PM EAT D1 Parent/Guardian meeting: Preparing for the pursuit of post-secondary opportunities (Part I) – virtual
14 March: 11:30 AM EAT Hong Kong Baptist University Presents a virtual overview of their free online summer program (link on UWCEA Careers website calendar)
21 March: 7:45-10 AM M5/D1 Careers Symposium and D2 hosted Post-Secondary Planning Fair
24 March: 8PM – 1AM NACAC Virtual Fair (major online event, register in advance)
26 March: 1-4PM CIS University Exploration Fair (Africa) – virtual (advance registration required. Link: https://www.cois.org/for-students-and-parents/students/events/cis-university-exploration-day-africa-middle-east )

Don’t forget to take a look at all of the upcoming events and registration details on the UWCEA Careers website calendar

Take care and enjoy your weekend!

Cassandra Ford
College and Career Counselor
cassandraford@uwcea.org

 

WANTED! Plastic or wooden toys (easily washed) to share with the children at Selian Lutheran Hospital. The children are generally under 5 years of age. Any small cars, rattles, building blocks, “my little ponies”, balls, small plastic animals, and like items would be most appreciated. Many of the children are malnourished and spend considerable time on the wards and on their beds with their mamas. Any African dolls would be well loved. We would kindly decline stuffed animals because of the difficulty to keep them clean both at the hospital and home. Many items we would keep and use in the inpatient ward and during the outpatient clinic but we would love to be able to send a toy home with a child at discharge. Thank you so much for your consideration! A box will be set outside the UWC Office for collection.

Thank you!!