When it comes to putting faith in the Gospel, our Lord tells us it is better to believe without seeing (Jn 20:29). When it comes to increasing your faith that HEAL is fulfilling its mission of educating poor and marginalized children, the opposite is true – seeing is believing!
I’ve recently returned from my 6th visit to Nigeria and I’m happy to report that the students of our K-12 school in Akpim village are doing quite well. When I arrived on March 14th, our students treated me to a welcoming reception that left a great impression on me.
Rev. Leo Okonkwo and I sat in the center of a large classroom with the entire student body seated in rows of chairs to our right and left. Then, one small group of students after another took center stage and confidently demonstrated the knowledge they had acquired in class.
The students taught me things I never knew or I had long forgotten and even entertained me in the process! But, their knowledge wasn’t just superficially recited lines by rote. They really knew their subjects.
Each year, Nigerian primary and secondary students take national exams that must be passed to advance to the next grade level. In 2022, 18 of our senior secondary students took this exam. All 18 passed it, with 17 passing mathematics and 11 passing chemistry with distinction!
With all the adversity in Nigeria and the challenge of covering the high costs of keeping our school open, you might be wondering how our students keep performing at such a high level. It’s partly thanks to a unique learning method mandated by our teachers and practiced by our students.
“In what I call the self-driller mode of education, each student is exhorted to not only study for tests and finish homework assignments but to actively research and discover more about their classroom subjects”, says Rev. Leo. But, self-drilling is more than just extra study!
Every morning before classes begin, students and teachers gather in the school courtyard to pray and sing the school anthem and national anthem. Then, two students get up and make a coordinated public recitation of what they learned in their self-driller subject research.
Over an entire school year, each student makes two of these morning recitations with an audience of their teachers and peers. A chance to shine in the spotlight and to avoid embarrassment motivates them to prepare and present themselves well.
Besides this uniquely effective teaching method, we credit our school’s performance to following the Path of Christ. “I train my teachers to empty themselves like Jesus, the master who wants every child to approach Him and be tutored in the truth”, Rev. Leo says in reference to Mt. 19:14.
While HEAL continues to deliver quality education for our students, we need your support to keep going. We must pay our teachers, supply power for lighting, clean running water, and cool air, and serve daily nutritious meals for our 400 students.
These recurring needs cost $2,000 per child per year, or just over $160 per month. Now that the children have come to the Lord, help us to keep them in His presence and learn at His feet.
May the Lord bless and keep you!