Mama Joyce

I feel like only die-hard Bravo fanatics (like myself) will get the pun of this post's title, but nonetheless, I shall forge ahead.

The "Mama Joyce" in question here is not the sassy (s)mother of No Scrubs songwriter Kandi Burress, but rather Tanzanian Education Minister, Joyce Ndalichako.  Appointed as such by President John Magufuli when he took office in early 2016, Mama Joyce was quoted in The Citizen yesterday regarding special education funding.
 

You'll recall I have written about this formidable woman a couple times before (http://toanafasi.blogspot.com/2016/01/dear-joyce.html, http://toanafasi.blogspot.com/2017/02/joyce-to-world.html), mostly because she is a bona fide beast on the floor of Parliament!

While I don't always agree with her pretty radical ideas, I am always amazed by them.  And by Mama Joyce herself.  A woman of this caliber of mind and action is a rare thing in the patriarchal society of Tanzania.  So, go, Mama Joyce, go!  Get that SPED $$$$!!

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Ndalichako Clears the Air On Challenges Facing Special Education Teachers

The provision of education to children with special needs faces a lot of challenges including poor and unfriendly infrastructures, which is a situation that thwarts the teachers' goals.

This was said today by a representative of teachers of children with mental disability and autism, Ms. Mariam Halfani, during a training seminar for the teachers.

The seminar was on the guidelines about how to teach lessons on communication, health, math skills, upbringing, physical training, and craftsmanship.

Ms. Halfani explained that teaching children with special needs requires friendly infrastructures including proper teaching aids and a conducive environment to teachers.

She requested the government to improve the environment by providing teaching and learning aids and constructing teaching centers for such children.

Responding, the Minister for Education, Science, and Technology, Prof. Joyce Ndalichako, said the government has already started to better teaching environments for effective provision of education to such children.

She also said the government had already carried out a feasibility study at schools for children with special needs, with the aim of improving teaching environments and infrastructures.

Besides, she said the government had already bought teaching aids worth 3.6 million Tanzanian shillings for such children, adding that the facilities have already been distributed to 213 primary and 22 secondary schools across the country.

The minister further said that the government had purchased and distributed mental assessment equipment with the aim of identifying such children as early as possible and providing medical care for those with treatable disabilities.