Michael Corio's English Fluency Program Experience
Visiting the SEGA Girls’ School for the first time as part of the English Fluency Program in 2022 was an experience I’ll never forget. As a first-timer to the beautiful country of Tanzania and with my own school days in the rearview mirror, I didn’t know what to expect.
When we first arrived at SEGA, we were able to attend the graduation ceremony of the Form 4 students, which was an exciting moment for all the girls and their proud families and friends in attendance. It was a real celebration—all the students had big smiles, their excitement palpable after countless long days and nights of studying. Their families were in attendance, dressed in smart shirts and colorful clothing, and the Maasai warriors gathered around in their intricate beadwork, all inside the Big Banda for the celebration.
I have never been to a graduation ceremony that was so full of life and excitement. To the loud thump of music, it was a parade of dance shows, skits, and speeches from notable figures like the headmistress, teachers, and others who all played an integral part in inspiring and walking with the girls on their journey. It was quite the welcome to SEGA and the vibrant culture of Tanzania.
Settling into the Visitor’s House, we greeted the new pre-form students on their first day at SEGA. They came from all different parts of the country, ages, and walks of life. Many were understandably shy and coming to terms with the big change of moving out of their family homes to a new boarding school without knowing any of their fellow classmates or faculty.
Our goal was to facilitate social activities with the incoming students and their peers to allow them to get comfortable with their new school and classmates. In addition and most importantly, our goal was to lead activities and lessons with the girls to help them practice and learn English. In Tanzania, primary school is taught in Swahili, but the median of instruction changes to English in Secondary School. The program is designed to prepare the girls for this change in the months leading up to high school at SEGA. To that end, we played games, made up silly dances, practiced basic vocabulary, and did group activities. At first, some of the girls were shy and didn’t raise their hands often to participate, but as the first few days passed (and a few goofy dances later), I saw more and more smiles and excitement as they became more confident in themselves and their surroundings.
The best part of SEGA was walking around and seeing girls who didn’t talk to any of their classmates in the beginning, laughing and playing games together as they settled into their new life and friends at the school. I’ll never forget their infectious smiles, laughter, and enjoyment of living in the moment. Racking my brain for fun games I used to play as a child, I taught the girls the macarena. We had to start and end most days with the macarena, a class favorite. A highlight was the girls challenging the volunteers to a soccer match- I couldn’t hold a candle to their skills and intensity on the field!
The experience at the school made me realize how numb I had become in my daily life—caught up in work or other mundane “problems.” The students reminded me of what’s most important in life—living in the moment and appreciating the people who make the journey special. Leaving the school was tough, and many girls were sad to see me go. They gave me a beautiful page of drawings and their names and made me promise to come back soon.
Nurturing Minds and SEGA offers many girls an amazing opportunity to get a quality, holistic education and be part of a lifelong community of people and social networks for the rest of their lives. The work of all the Tanzanian faculty and staff to create such an amazing institution and support students who are building a strong foundation for the rest of their lives was incredibly inspirational. I can’t wait to go back to teach, visit, and dance with all the girls I met during their first year and see what exciting things they are doing now.
Written by Michael Corio, Nurturing Minds Board Member and 2022 English Fluency Program Participant