Volunteer Uganda: NQT Inspire Programme

NQT Inspire gives twenty PGCE students the opportunity to come to Uganda for one month during their summer to teach in VU partnership secondary schools. The programme gives successful applicants the opportunity to have a tangible impact in a context where education can be truly pivotal in determining life outcomes. Through collaborative planning and teaching, NQT Inspire teams apply innovative and progressive teaching approaches to provide lessons and learning opportunities of an unprecedented standard in the Bwindi region. The programmes positive impact goes beyond the classroom. The initiative not only challenges and inspires students, but also the region's teachers, with whom participants work closely as part of our certificated Win-Win Teacher Development scheme. This unique CPD opportunity gives successful applicants a platform to develop both their teaching and classroom leadership skills. On their return to the UK, alumni of the programme become recognised NQT Inspire Ambassadors, equipped with the skills and invaluable wider insight needed to make them better classroom teachers and give them a broader head start in their future careers within education.

What Is The Need?

Education is widely recognised to provide the best path out of poverty for Uganda's population, 85% of whom survive on less than a $ a day. The rapid growth of the country's population, combined with the fact that over half of Ugandans are under the age of 15 highlights the desperate need for drastic improvements to its education system. Delivering high-quality secondary education is one of Uganda's most pressing developmental challenges. A badly limited infrastructure with little teacher training and low teacher salaries, coupled with a lack of collaboration and resources currently prevents Uganda's teachers from unlocking the full potential of their students. NQT Inspire aims to give expertise and impetus to local teachers through a programme of close collaboration, helping drive Ugandan education forward from within.

Our mission: To overcome educational poverty in the Bwindi region by providing unprecedented learning opportunities for students and by sharing modern and progressive teaching approaches with local teachers.

Who Can Apply For NQT Inspire?

NQT Inspire is only offered to new teachers with good team-working skills and aspirations to use their new skills for maximum positive social impact. Applicants are considered from backgrounds in a range of degree programmes but all must apply during their PGCE year.

In 2012 the team of twenty will comprise of eight participants specialising in English, six in Maths and six in Science. As explained in more detail below, each subject-specific team will have its own particular aims whilst in Bwindi, collaborating closely both in preparation and delivery of lessons as well as during the Teacher Development partnerships with local teachers.

Alongside immersion into Volunteer Uganda and Bwindi's community, successful applicants get an opportunity to experience an unforgettable adventure which includes White Water Rafting on the Nile, Big Game Safaris and first-hand experience of a vibrant, exciting local culture.

The NQT Inspire Uganda Programme Structure

NQT Inspire is a four week programme packed which combines high impact volunteering with truly unforgettable experiences and adventures.

Week 1: Team Building (White Water Rafting), Induction, Orientation

Having bonded over action-packed white-water on the River Nile and enjoyed a taste of Kampala's nightlife, the team heads south-west to our base in Bwindi. For the rest of the week, NQT participants receive local language lessons (Rukiga) and briefing sessions on the area's culture. In addition, volunteers will also observe and assist in local teachers' lessons in order to gain an insight into current educational practice in Uganda.

Week 2: Teaching Placements

Here the project really gets up and running, with participants spending the week teaching in local secondary schools. We teach a curriculum of our own design, promoting thinking skills and testing out our own teaching strategies in a Ugandan context.

The curriculum is designed to address specific areas of educational poverty and cultivate the skills needed for employability and job creation.

• Science (team of six): Problem solving and practical investigation
• Maths (team of six): Vocationally applicable mathematics, money management and probability and problem solving
• English (team of eight): Group work, creativity, thinking skills, presentations

As well as being an amazing experience in itself, this week is crucial preparation for the Win-Win Teacher Development (WWTD) courses that lie ahead. After a week of teaching, we spend the weekend finalising our plans for the partnerships in Weeks 3 and 4.

Weeks 3 and 4: Teaching Placement Alongside Local Teachers

The second half of the project is key: participants spend two weeks working closely with local teachers on our Win-Win Teacher Development initiative.

NQT Inspire participants are "buddied" with local teachers for two weeks (two NQT Inspire participants with one local teacher). The trios will team-teach lessons and take part in informal mentoring sessions. This initiative brings together people of diverse backgrounds and experiences, united by the common purpose of giving their students the best possible start to life.

Naturally strong bonds are forged between both Ugandan and UK teachers involved in the programme. Participants have the chance to share their own development and experience as UK trainee teachers. They are able to pass on the modern pedagogy, strategies and tools that are applicable to a Ugandan context. Working closely together, both participants and local teachers have the chance to test out and develop their skills by completing a bespoke programme of teacher development, which culminates in accredited WWTD certification.

Finally, the team head back to Kampala for one last night out to celebrate their achievements. On return to the UK, participants launch into their own teaching careers supported by their new status as NQT Inspire Ambassadors. They will find themselves freshly equipped to tackle educational challenges irrespective of context.

What You Will Gain

Invaluable Experience

NQT Inspire participants will play a vital role in strategic problem solving in the Bwindi region, whilst developing their leadership, teamwork and classroom teaching skills. NQT Inspire is a unique challenge, whose ambassadors stand out to prospective employers as innovators and leaders. Successful applicants not only experience genuine Africa at its most inspiring, but have a chance to have a long-lasting, tangible impact in one of the poorest and most in-need areas of the world.

Unrivalled Fun & Travelling Experience

Volunteer Uganda combines high-impact volunteering with invaluable and unforgettable experiences that can't be found elsewhere. To strike the balance between impact time and wider adventure there are opportunities to go on Safari, White Water Rafting, Chimpanzee and Gorilla Tracking as well as a guaranteed fantastic social life.

Our enthusiastic team of staff run all sorts of social events, and there is a wide consensus among our volunteers that at 70p/beer, the VU Lodge Bar guarantees the best party in Africa!

How Do I Apply?

To apply, select menu options "Enquire & apply" -> "Apply to volunteer". For any questions or to find out more send us an enquiry or give us a call to speak to one of our dedicated and friendly team.

Due to the high volume of applications we recommend applying early to avoid disappointment.

Join in. Stand out. NQT Inspire.