Bagoole borrows textbooks from other teachers to prepare work for his classes

By Stella Nassuna

Many people’s childhood dreams and hope of making it in life die in infancy. But not so for Isma Bagoole, a teacher from Lwangosa village, Nakasoma sub-county in Bugiri district.

Bagoole held onto his childhood dream of becoming a teacher against all odds until he succeeded about six years ago.

Discovering what you want to do is one thing, but achieving it is another issue. Bagoole’s journey to the classroom started at Buwunga Primary School.

“Since my primary school days, I dreamt of becoming a teacher. Every time I watched my social studies teacher, Grace Tenywa conduct classes, I was always inspired. From then on, teaching was all I ever wanted to do,” reminisces the 26-year-old.

After his primary school, Bagoole joined Bukooli College in Bugiri for his O’level. Unfortunately, he did not join a teacher’s training college right away after completing O’level as he could not afford the fees.

Bagoole then ventured into a small business, selling second-hand clothes. To keep his dream alive, he also enrolled as a volunteer teacher in many primary schools in the area.

After saving enough money, he enrolled at Bishop Willis Teacher’s College, Iganga for an in-service teachers training programme.

Since the programme was conducted during the holidays, he continued working as a volunteer teacher in three schools and running his business. He graduated in 2009.

In January 2012, he was posted to Buppala Primary School in Iganga as a P6 and P7 mathematics teacher. Bagoole has only been at Buppala for seven months, but he has transformed the school.

He established an AIDS awareness club, the Presidential Initiative on Aids Strategy for Communication to the Youth (PIASCY) that he heads. Every Monday evening, he meets upper classes pupils (P5-P7), whom he sensitises on sex education, including issues like how to avoid rape or defilement.

“I encourage them to always walk in groups as they return home from school to avoid being targets of rapists,” Bagoole explains.

Challenges
Bagoole notes that teachers are encouraged to draw charts for their specifi c subjects and hang them in the classroom to help pupils learn. He says he has done it three times, but all the charts were stolen.

This, he says, kills morale. He adds that parents cannot afford to buy their children scholastic materials like geometry sets or graphbooks to help ease the learning process.

“I have often been forced to buy one or two graph books, from where I tear out pages and distribute to the students. I also encourage those who don’t have geometry sets to share with others,” he says.

He says the school does not have mathematics textbooks. “I often borrow textbooks from fellow teachers in other schools and copy the material to use later.”

Bagoole says the school has limited space, with only four classrooms that are supposed to accommodate about 50 pupils each, yet the school population is 572. Many classes are conducted under trees. This is not a good environment for learning. When it rains, the pupils miss class.”

He says Buppala does not have a staff room, where teachers can rest or keep their work plans.

“We have to carry the work to school every day, yet we stay very far from the school. It is very tiresome,” Bagoole points out. He also says pupils do not attend classes regularly as parents prefer having them work in rice fields.
Also, many pupils study on empty stomachs

WHAT OTHERS SAY ABOUT BAGOOLE
Erisa Byakatonda, a pupil, Bagoole is a very good teacher. He cares for both our studies and wellbeing. If he discovers that we have not grasped what he is teaching, he gives us time to refresh. He also often buys medicine or takes pupils who fall sick to the clinic for treatment using his own money.

Andrew Mutyaba, the director of studies, Bagoole is a dedicated teacher. “When the students refused to buy graph books for the geometry class, he did not abandon them or the topic. He bought graph paper for the entire class of 52 pupils.”

David Kakaire, a pupil, Bagoole is a good teachers, which has led many of us to love mathematics. It was my worst-performed subject, but for the past few months, I improved.”