Introducing Montessori to pastoral peoples in East Pokot, Kenya
October 2023
The East Pokot initiative supports young people from the Pokot community to become early childhood Montessori teachers and gain a nationally recognized teaching qualification. Skilled and motivated teachers from the local community are key to increasing access to quality education in the region. They understand the culture and context, speak the language, and live in the region. By supporting the children from their community, they can contribute to creating more chances for families living in the remote and under-resourced East Pokot region.
The East Pokot initiative now includes 10 teachers and over 200 students in their Montessori programs spanning 4 villages. 7 of the teachers are trained in the national certificate while 3 are in training preparing to head to their teaching practice. Future plans include adding more teachers to the program as most early learning center teachers in the region do not have Montessori training.
Parents of the students praise the program because of the results observed in the engagement of the students, more consistent attendance, and an improvement of a broad set of skills both academic and social. The local government has also requested that more teachers receive training in the Montessori method which will improve the educational environment of East Pokot.
Montessori trained teachers in early learning centers provide the children with a foundation for life.
May 2021
MGGF funded one of the first three teacher trainees from East Pokot. This was a joint effort by Educateurs sans Frontières and MGGF. EsF reported that Evelyne, Maureen and Linet, have completed two terms of training. The first term began in January, and it was a time to learn something new and there was a lot of excitement from the trainees about being in college for the first time. “At first the concept was different and new to me, but after a while I started to understand the method and philosophy. I enjoy being in a Montessori training college and I can’t wait to eventually start sharing my knowledge with the children from my community,” shares Linet.
During the second term, the trainees made the materials that they will use to set up their Montessori environments for the children in their community. “Making the materials is tedious, but they will support the child to learn and be independent, which is what we aim for as Montessori directresses. I am motivated to make the materials because I now understand their purpose,” says Evelyne.
As part of their training, the trainees went to visit the Corner of Hope school for their observation week. Corner of Hope is a Montessori school set up in an Internally Displaced Person’s (IDP) camp. Visiting Corner of Hope was an exciting and educational experience for Linet, Evelyne and Maureen. “The calmness and concentration of the children while working with the materials is very captivating,” Maureen shares, as she remembers how different it was when she went to school as a child. She is impressed by the independence the children show and the way they are learning. She shares how after secondary school, she dreamed of joining university to pursue a degree in education. The Montessori training is like a dream coming true for her and she is hopeful that in the future she will continue with her Montessori diploma and a bachelor’s degree.
