Grade 6 reading aloud a poem the chidren made. They reached the television with this poem!
How to enhance the development of DERA Brightway Academy by making it more sustainable: for a better future of the pupils!
In brief:
The (privater) school was founded in 2017, bottom up, adding one school grade a year.
The school was founded by Emmanuel Masha Wanje. He was able to study because people noticed he was very bright and paid for his education.
This is the reason why Emmanuel started a school in a very poor area in the northern part of Kilifi, to give educational chances to other deprived children.
DERA Bright Academy now has about 180 children from PP1 up to grade 8. Following the changes in the educational system, the school has started with Junior High school as from January 2024, at the moment the Kenyan school year started.
More than 30 orphans attend the school. The school also provides meals for all children and housing for these orphans.
The parents have a rural background, hardly have any education and part of the year there is no work at all. So the school mostly depends on gifts from sponsors.
Because of the investment in well trained teachers and little children per class, the learning results are great: the exam results of grade 6 are very good, Because of the good results, now Dera Breightway Academy is one of the only 65 private schools that get some form of subsidy from the Kenyan government
Also in sports and other areas like dancing and poetry, Dera Brightway Academy reached very good results, both in de local region as well as in the eastern part of Kenya. The school was allowed to attend national games and in September 2024, they reached nationwide the third place!
So far, gifts mainly come from a few people that are working for or associated with the Inspectorate of Education in the Netherlands. And also a fund with roots in Dutch education system in 2024 gave € 4000 for the buiding of classrooms!
What has been established so far?
Most of the progress has been established in the past three years.
In the beginning of the school year 2022, the school only had 5 wooden classrooms and 4 toilets, and hardly had any learning materials. Each year had its own teacher.
DERA Brightway Academy now consists of 10 years. In Ferbruary 2025, the school has 9 solid brick classrooms that fulfill all standards of the Kenyan Inspectorate. Also a library has been built that also serves as an administration office. A temporary classroom has been build because of the extension with the grade 8 of the school. Two classrooms are not finished yet, because of lack of money.
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The Kenyan government recently has acknowledged the school. The school now has a one year license, and a 5 year license starting from 2025 onward.
The school establishes great learning results that hopefully will attract parents from further away who can better afford the school fee.
The school also excels in other activities, like sports. In September 2024, 56 pupils of Dera Brightway Academy attended games at a national level! They became third, a huge accomplishment!!
The most essential learning materials are available. Grade 6 now even has 18 laptops to learn about ICT and do exams in the subject.
Teachers follow courses to be able to give the Competence Based Curriculum.
Toilets for pupils and teachers have been built and expanded later.
The school is connected to the electricity net and has its own watersupply for toilets etc. The government pays for the drinking water.
A huge mango tree that stood in the way provided for many timbers that were used to build school furniture. The Kenyan government provided special furniture for the 4 and 5 year old., ans also for the other grades as the school grew.
All children attend a food programme, which is paid by the Kenyan Government. The reason is the recent drought: crops could not grow. The parents of the Dera Brightrway Academy are extremely dependent on good weather, to let grow their crops.
Dera Brightway Academy has professional teachers. The quality of the teaching is very important. That is why the teacher salaries are mostly paid by the sponsors. Efforts are still undertaken to convince parents that they also should contribute and invest as much as they can in the future of their children. But choices for them are very hard given the circumstances. Parent hardly have food for themselves.
The formal status as a school made it necessary to extend the schoolarea. The required additional acres have been bought.
The Kenyan government has noticed that the school performs very well in many fields. Dera Brightway Academy is one of the only 65 schools that will recieve some kind of subsidy. Incidentally, the school gets learning materials and materials for exams. In december 2024, teachers salaries were paid by the government.
How can the development and the sustainability of DERA Bright Academy be enhanced?
Urgently needed:
First of all: housing for the teachers at thge school premises are needed to reduce costs of rent. Almost 4/5th of the teachers salaries now goes to the rent.
If there are teacher houses, to start with two dorms for the female and male teachers, this would reduce the costs of the school tremendously!
Fot two dorms, about € 3500,- is needed.
Present situation:
The school cannot afford to pay the teachers salaries including their rent.
In the near future:
- Buiding additional classrooms voor grade 8 and 9 (grades of the Junior High School) and an administration office.
In 2024 and 2025, two additional classrooms needed. The grades 7, 8 and 9 are the replacement of the former junior highschool and now will become part of fundamental education.
- Building of a Practice classroom/Science lab
- Building of an ICT classroom by the end of 2025
Present situation:
The buiding of two classrooms has started in December 2024, but is not finished yet because of lack of money.