The theme for this year's Training Institute depicts "Collective Leadership" and it was evident in the continuous flow of activities from Day 1 to Day 18.
10 High Points From My Internship Experience As A Project Coordinator With Teach For Nigeria.
1. HAVING ESTHER SPEAK AS A PANELIST AT THE OPENING CEREMONY.
This gave me great fulfillment to see how better she's becoming with her public speaking skills and being vulnerable to share stories that matter. I can tell the number of times I had some goosebumps while she shared and I almost told her to stop from afar.
I appreciate the feedback I got from Folawe, the coaches, and the fellows. Many people have asked me, what's the next step we are taking to support her education and her dream to live beyond the obvious in her community. I have always reflected on this because I know it takes a lot to support just #onechild.
2. WORKING WITH A TEAM OF 8 PROJECT COORDINATORS.
It's amazing how we all became a family within a few hours of meeting one another. For some of us, it was the first time and it made a lot of sense. We were challenged and we did our best to keep the flow of effectiveness and productivity. One encouraging thing is how the fellows do call us "coaches" even when we insist that they call us Project Coordinators (PCs).
I understand that it's probably because they've learned one or two things from our impact stories and the support we were able to give when they needed it. The truth is that we all learn this from our coaches and alumni of #TFN, and it's a culture to pay it forward.
3. I FACILITATED A SESSION ON PROMOTING LEARNING WITH LIMITED RESOURCES
This happened to be a unique experience for me and it gave me the platform to share practical experiences from what I do in Ilagbo Community as a Teach for Nigeria fellow and a teacher who takes advantage of the limited or no resources to create an effective and efficient learning experience for my students.
At times, we complain so much about the unavailability of teaching and learning resources, but how well have we harnessed the little for more? I remember how I started using my laptop to engage my learners, watching videos and sharing some educational content with them.
My principal observed how I struggled to manage one laptop during the group activity. He called to inform me about the school projector which I doubt has ever been used in the school. With this, I began to use a wider screen to project my lessons in the classroom. What if I refused to use what I have, and waited for the government to buy me a laptop to teach my students? Even with your phone as a teacher, you can do better.
4. NETWORKING WITH GLOBAL EDUCATORS.
The experience I had with about four invited facilitators was like a meet-and-greet event for me. I had the privilege to meet Mr. Olasunkanmi Opeifa, Kemi Ogunsanya, Tunde Onakoya, and Adeola Adefemi.
These are people I've been following on social media.
Mr. Opeifa saw me and said he could recognize me with my name. He said Afeez Olalekan is written on my face. I was glad to hear that. That's one of the influences of social media. Kemi Ogunsanya also had such an impression when she heard my name, likewise, #thatpublicschoolteacher, Adeola Adefemi.
5. COLLECTIVE LEADERSHIP WITH TEACH FOR NIGERIA HEAD OF TRAINING, SENIOR COACHES, AND ALL COACHES.
In the last 10 years of my commitment to education development and impact in Nigeria, for the first time, I had a unique experience working with a large group of leaders as an Intern in the logistics and operation department to ensure that the Institute Training becomes a success. It was a challenging one for me and at the same time, I enjoyed every moment I spent, working for almost 15 hours a day, responding to some technical issues, and supporting my colleagues to ensure successful operational activities.
At a point, I began to wonder how strategic Teach for Nigeria would have been to bring these young and awesome leaders together. Kudos to the CEO and the Head of Training for creating a safe atmosphere for people to learn and grow.
6. I SHARED MY LIFE MAP.
Life Map they say- helps one to deeply reflect on one's journey, the high points, low points, and the learning points of life. It also helps to connect deeply with ourselves, and know how to understand one another, reflecting on our strengths and weaknesses. For the second time, within the TFN network, I shared my life map a bit more with the Ruby Group at the Institute. This helped some of the fellows and coaches connect with me on a different level. My life map is deeply rooted in the purpose of the work I do today.
I had felt lost at some point in life when I accidentally joined a network marketing business, trekking many distances away from home to sell my products. I had been embarrassed by some security men around Ota Ogun State. Once I introduce myself to them, their responses would always be - we know you- your people have come here before- you GNLD people. I remember how bad I used to feel but I didn't give up on moving to the next company. It was that crazy. I was emotionally down at some point too because I was served a very hot breakfast but still, I had to stay strong, while facing other embarrassments from my GNLD journey.
I remember how I had to sleep at Ojota Central Mosque so that I could get to school early while teaching in a private school. At times, I had no breakfast but still get to school to conduct morning drills with my learners. I did all these for some time before a colleague came to my rescue. I took a strong decision in 2018, I left the job and set myself on a journey to become a better version of myself. I am still on that journey today. It led me to Teach for Nigeria and I've been able to influence my students and the community positively. I am on that journey to ensure that children in low-income communities have access to resources that would help them harness their literacy potential for personal success and global peace.
7. RELATIONSHIP FOR CONTINUOUS LEARNING AND GROWTH WITH THE 2022 FELLOW.
I feel excited and humbled to finally meet some of these fellows in person. Some of whom we've been connected to either via LinkedIn, Facebook, or WhatsApp at a point during their application and recruitment processes. It feels good putting faces to those names. I wish you all Good Luck on your leadership journey.
8. DEBRIEFING.
This is one of the most important sessions that I experienced during the Institute Training. It's more of a daily strategy session, where we have the opportunity to share the high points and low points of our daily activities. We also get constructive feedback that prepares us to do better the next day. All these could still be on till some minutes to 11 pm at times and I wonder where some of these coaches get their strength from getting to work as early as 5:00 am the next day. Some of them are already with their laptops, planning, and re-strategizing. Someone like Coach Jemima is sitting firmly on this.
9. ANOTHER MOMENT I HAD WITH SOME OF THE FELLOWS A NIGHT BEFORE THE CLOSING CEREMONY.
I had a short but informative session with a group where we discussed the challenges I had and how well I managed some of them when I got to my placement community. Just like I had several ideas in mind before I moved in, I remember the advice we got during our virtual institute- that we shouldn't go to our placement school with pre-conceived problems and solutions. We should not see ourselves as Messiah, but as a change agent who is ready to learn and collaborate with the stakeholders to influence the change we want to see in the world. I also shared some of these points with them, just as a reflection on what they've been taught so far at the institute.
10. I FEEL PRIVILEGED TO HAVE EXPERIENCED WHAT PHYSICAL INSTITUTE TRAINING IS.
During our time, it was COVID 19 period and we had our summer institute virtually. I had a good feeling about the strong bonding between the fellows during the institute which I believe will help them even after the training. It was reported that some of the school leaders and existing teachers testify to how empowering the 2 weeks training had been for them, and I believe the power of physical events like this made it more impactful to them. I'm not saying that impacts are not being made virtually, but physical sessions still serve better.
Gratitude to all who made my 2 weeks journey a fruitful and fulfilling one for me. It's an experience I will never forget in my leadership journey.
Afeez Olalekan SAKA ©2022
#sakaspeaks
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