Dr. Mandela Ogada

Today, on World Teachers’ Day, I would like to celebrate the teachers who have impacted my life, especially those who shaped me during my formative years.

Bob Talbert once said, “Teaching kids to count is fine, but teaching them what counts is best.” There is profound wisdom in those words. The formative years of a child are not merely about learning how to read, write and count. They are about learning values, discipline, responsibility, honesty, curiosity, kindness and the dignity of hard work.

This is why the Bible, in Proverbs 22:6, reminds us:

“Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.”

Looking back at my own childhood, I realise that some of the most important lessons I ever received were taught to me before I was old enough to fully understand their significance.

Mrs. Obiero and the beginning of my journey

My entry into the academic system was entirely incidental.

I was never formally taken to school. I simply followed my friend Awiko to Kandiege Primary and joined his class. That is how I joined Standard One when I was barely three years old.

When Mrs. Obiero came to teach Mathematics that morning, she could not have imagined that there was an unexpected pupil sitting in her classroom.

And when the time came to submit assignments, I imagine she must have wondered which class she had walked into. I had borrowed my friend's exercise book and attempted the assignment. I completed it among the first pupils in the class and proudly took my book to her for marking.

She looked at my work.

Then she put a big X on it.

She looked at me, asked my name, took me by the hand and walked me to the Nursery class, where she handed me over to the ECDE teacher.

In retrospect, Mrs. Obiero had done something profound.

She had recognised that I did not belong in that classroom—not because I was incapable, but because I needed to begin my education at the right stage.

In a sense, Mrs. Obiero was the person who admitted me into school.

She redirected my journey and placed me on the right footing.

For the rest of that term, however, my attendance was rather sporadic. I could not understand why I was not in the same class with Awiko.

Fortunately, my family relocated from the town center to our village home at the beginning of the second term. My mom then took me to school and handed me over to two wonderful ECDE teachers at Onego Pre-Primary School: Mrs. Ameda and Mrs. Onono.

And that is where the real foundation of my education was laid.

In my first examination, I emerged position 12 out of more than 50 pupils. The class was later divided into two, with each having roughly 25 pupils.

By the third term, I was position 1, sharing the position with my friend Nathaniel.

My report recommended that I be promoted to Standard One.

That recommendation marked the beginning of a journey that would take me through every level of education and eventually lead me to where I am today.

I spent only one year in Nursery before joining primary school at the remarkably young age of four.

The lessons that stayed with me

When I reflect on that experience today, I realize that Mrs. Obiero, Mrs. Amed, and Mrs. Onono were not simply teaching me how to write, read and count.

They were teaching me how to learn.

They taught me diligence.

They taught me honesty.

They taught me discipline.

They taught me to follow procedures.

They taught me commitment.

Most importantly, they taught me with patience, love and gentleness.

They took a toddler who knew very little about the processes and procedures of formal learning and gradually transformed him into a child who could read, write, count, learn and excel.

Those lessons stayed with me.

Years later, when I changed to Wikondiek Primary in Standard Eight, the Headteacher, Mr. Ochuodho, thought I was too young to be in Standard Eight. He threatened to demote me to Standard Four if I failed in the first exam in Standard Eight.

Little did he know that although I was young, I had already been equipped with something far more important than age: a strong foundation. I went ahead to emerge the second-best pupils in the first Exam I ever did in that school, firmly stamping my academic authority in the new territory.

The values instilled in me during those formative years continued to guide me throughout my education.

They contributed to the diligence, discipline and commitment that eventually shaped my academic journey.

Today, as I look back, I cannot separate the person I became from those early teachers.

The forgotten heroes of our education system

Yet, for many years, the contribution of ECDE teachers remained largely unrecognised.

Before devolution, many ECDE teachers operated under extremely difficult circumstances. In some communities, they were effectively doing voluntary work. Parents contributed as little as KSh 30 per month to support teachers' remuneration and purchase learning materials.

Imagine that.

The people entrusted with laying the foundation upon which our entire education system would be built were often among the least recognised and least supported members of the teaching profession.

And yet, they showed up.

They taught.

They encouraged.

They corrected.

They nurtured.

They cared.

They continued to shape generations of Kenyan children.

The teachers who did some of the most important work in education were often the ones who received the least recognition for it.

Devolution began to change the story

The advent of devolution brought an important opportunity to change this reality.

County governments assumed responsibility for Early Childhood Development Education, creating a framework through which ECDE teachers could be more deliberately recognised, employed and supported.

Kisumu County has made important strides in this regard, including the employment of more than 800 ECDE teachers on permanent terms.

I commend the current leadership for taking these important steps towards recognising and mainstreaming our ECDE teachers and providing greater security for their livelihoods.

But our work cannot end there.

There are still ECDE teachers who served our children for many years under difficult circumstances and retired before devolution transformed the management of ECDE.

Their contribution must not be forgotten.

A Regenerated Kisumu will honour its ECDE teachers

My vision for a Regenerated Kisumu is a county that recognises that the future of our children begins in the ECDE classroom.

We cannot speak about transforming education while neglecting the people who introduce our children to the world of learning.

We cannot build a knowledge economy while failing to invest in the foundation of knowledge.

And we cannot expect teachers to build confident, disciplined and capable children if we do not give those teachers the dignity, tools and environment they deserve.

My administration will therefore make the strengthening of ECDE a deliberate development priority.

We will work towards making ECDE teaching a respected and rewarding profession in Kisumu County.

This will include:

1. Supporting the welfare and dignity of ECDE teachers

We will strengthen policies that safeguard the welfare, professional dignity and working conditions of ECDE teachers. A teacher who feels valued is better positioned to create an environment in which a child feels valued.

2. Supporting professional development

Teaching young children requires specialised skills. We will invest in continuous professional development so that our ECDE teachers remain equipped with modern approaches to early childhood learning, child development, inclusive education and psychosocial support.

3. Improving ECDE learning environments

A child should not have to learn in a dilapidated classroom simply because they were born in a particular village.

We will work towards safe, child-friendly and stimulating ECDE centres equipped with appropriate learning materials, sanitation facilities, water and other basic infrastructure necessary for effective learning.

4. Equipping teachers with the tools to teach

We will strengthen the provision of age-appropriate teaching and learning materials so that ECDE teachers are not forced to depend on their own personal resources to educate our children.

5. Recognising the veterans who built the foundation

We will develop deliberate policies and programmes to recognise and support veteran ECDE teachers who served Kisumu's children before the advent of devolution and the current employment frameworks.

Their years of service must become part of our institutional memory—not a forgotten chapter.

6. Building a clear pathway for professional growth

We will work with the relevant institutions and stakeholders to strengthen career development, mentorship and opportunities for ECDE teachers so that a young person entering the profession can see a future in it.

Because the first classroom matters

The story of my education began in an unusual way.

I walked into a Standard One classroom when I was barely three years old.

Mrs. Obiero saw that I was in the wrong place and redirected me.

Mrs. Ameda and Mrs. Onono then welcomed me into the right place and helped me begin the journey properly.

Years later, I would become an oncology pharmacist, a biomedical researcher, and a professional working in precision medicine and oncology.

But long before I became any of those things, I was a little boy in an ECDE classroom learning how to hold a pencil, how to count, how to read, how to listen, how to follow instructions and how to learn.

That is the power of an ECDE teacher.

They may teach a child for only a few years.

But the lessons they plant can last a lifetime.

Today, therefore, I celebrate Mrs. Obiero.

I celebrate Mrs. Ameda.

I celebrate Mrs. Onono.

And I celebrate every teacher who has ever held the hand of a child and patiently shown them the way.

To all our ECDE teachers in Kisumu and across Kenya: thank you.

You are not merely teaching children.

You are laying the foundation upon which the future of our society will be built.

And in a Regenerated Kisumu, we will make sure that the people entrusted with building that foundation are themselves respected, supported, empowered and celebrated.

Happy World Teachers’ Day.