About
In 2019, the READ Initiative, now Accessibility Institute, partnered with McGill University’s Faculty of Education and its International Institute of Education (MIIE) to complete a needs assessment for St. Francis School for Able and Disabled Children in Moshi, Tanzania. St. Francis School is an elementary school dedicated to the best possible opportunities for children with disabilities, albinism, and orphans.
Through this initial assessment and outreach with St. Francis School, a partnership was formed with educators from the University of Dar es Salaam and Patandi Teachers’ College, in Tanzania. Together the McGill-Carleton and Dar es Salaam-Patandi Team are developing professional training courses with a curriculum that is focused on the needs of students with disabilities.
Mission
The faculty and administration at the University of Dar es Salaam and Patandi Teachers’ College are working to strengthen local expertise in teaching students with disabilities. The next phase of the partnership will focus on working with local experts in Tanzania to design workshops for current and new teachers. The partnership places a priority on the long-term sustainability of course content and emphasizes supporting local experts to build a critical mass in the educational community.
Additional objectives include the development of a practicum experience at St. Francis School, exploring relevant technology and resources, and support for on-going collaborations between the University of Dar es Salaam and Patandi Teachers’ College
Check out this article from McGill for further details.
Team
Tara Flanagan, Ph.D., Project Co-Lead, Ph.D. Associate Professor, Educational Psychology
McGill University, Canada
Sophia Madaha, Coordinator, Hearing Impairment Department
Patandi Teachers’ College, Tanzania
Eunice Ndomondo, Lecturer, Faculty of Education at Mkwawa University College of Education (MUCE)
University of Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania
Boris Vukovic, Ph.D., Project Co-Lead, Director, Accessibility Institute
Carleton University, Canada