What Teachers Really Want from Students

Student success starts with all parts of “self” i.e. self-discipline, self-control, self-confidence, self-motivation, self-awareness, self-concept, self-actualization, and the biggest of all, self-esteem! Thus, student’s success needs a lifelong process of authentic self-esteem and a strong moral compass.

“Children with a healthy sense of self-esteem feel that the important adults in their lives love them, accept them, and will go out their way to ensure their safety and well-being.” (NAEYCE, 1998).

Teachers are the most influential adults in the life of a student and they go out of their way to help students learn successfully. They are lifesavers of their students. In fact, teachers reach out to students to not only teach, mentor and tutor but also to parents when the need calls to.

Teachers take students to faraway lands, places they might have never known without their teachers’ helping hand. Teachers give students tools to succeed that otherwise they might have never found, and they make students feel better about themselves than they might have if teachers hadn’t believed in them.

As teachers, we are concerned human beings first and always. Teachers want to act and manage their classrooms harmoniously and efficiently, appropriately in a stressful situation; teachers show grace under pressure and they respond insightfully; teachers do not like to react impulsively, and above all teachers want to teach students and positively impact their world, that is our main goal!

All teachers work hard to respond to children’s demands and need endlessly and tirelessly.

However, teachers don’t want to spend time and waste energy on battles that can be avoided, on behaviors that are unwanted, or on assaults that can be prevented!

The destructive power of unwanted behaviors acts, and inappropriate comments in everyday classrooms are the daily setbacks that can be prevented or avoided when teachers and students are at their BEST practice. Therefore, it’s no surprise that for both teachers and students to succeed, they “must work together” with a common goal of meaningful learning, and “not against one another”.

We all should come to school prepared! Teachers prepare their lesson plans and the classrooms so that they can teach students effectively.

Teachers don’t want students to come to school to disrupt their teaching plans, or to ruin their lessons, and infect their classes.It takes both teachers and students to create a climate of learning, and a harmony in a classroom.

Therefore, teachers really want their students to have:

1.   Responsibility and Commitment

Teachers want students to know that they are solely responsible for their learning process and that they should take the ownership of their learning, i.e. personal responsibility and commit to active study as learners. Personal responsibility as it relates to knowledge acquisition and skills gain is taking charge of one’s own learning. This includes complete assigned assignments on time, sufficient practice study and gets prepared for tests, accept consequences for the mistakes or failures students creates and learn to correct them, and put on an effort in your learning process to the best of your ability.

Students have the responsibility to abide by the Student Code of Conduct-good conduct that does not disrupt, distract, or interfere in any way with teaching and learning process. The school and classroom policies, rules, and procedures are set to light and guard, to teach and guide, and so to help students stay out of trouble.

Recent studies reported an increased number of students with behavior problems in the classroom and the problem is on the rise, that there are more students with behavior problems that interfere with teaching.

Teachers want to spend less time disciplining unwanted behavior and more time preparing their lesson plans and collaborating with their collogues for effective teaching and learning to occur.

The other part of student responsibility is to arrive at school and in all classes on time and embrace the “student-centered learning”, i.e. each student is an individual who has unique learning needs and interests and he/she need to be part of the solution. Read more about personal responsibility and strategies for effective learning at www.ewa.org, and http://www.studtgs.net/.

2.   Engagement and Active Participation

Teaching and learning require enormous dedication. Teachers want students to show up and engage in an active learning by taking advantage of the learning resources available-access to quality educational tools, materials and programs designed to help the students learn better and effectively.

Studies show that students who are engaged in active learning are more likely to perform well in class, improve grade scores and the learning ability.

Teachers also want students to fully participate in the process of learning during classroom sessions. Practice active listening by giving full attention to your teachers and classmates. Sharing knowledge is part of earning too, so students should take time to share lessons they have learned with others in school or at home. Both teachers and your peers will appreciate student’s willingness to not only actively participate but also contribute to the class. The goal here is to understand one another especially during classroom sessions and recognize that a school is a place for learning and growth.

Teachers also want students to know that attendance and punctuality matter!Keep attendance up, tidy up, and be punctual; in addition, coming to classroom prepared and ready to learn. Arriving at school and classrooms on time keeps everyone on time and make things run smoothly.

Teachers want the students to know that when they miss classes, they miss learning. When students come to classes late, they not only miss part of the lessons taught but also, they cause some disruption and delays in the class.

National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) asserted that “Every school day counts in a child’s academic life…. A missed school day is a lost opportunity for the student to learn…Research shows that attendance is an important factor in student achievement.”

3.   Expectations and Accountability

Teachers want students to perform high and above the expectation set for high achievement and one way to beat the expectation set is to work on your learning ability-set expectations for your learning and behavior towards learning, set goals for things you want to accomplish, use your learning time wisely, and study plan/strategies-thus, just be accountable for your learning achievement success.

Learning effectively matter! School success matter! And knowledge is power! Former President of South Africa, Mr. Nelson Mandela once said, “Education is the most powerful weapon we can use to change the world.” That means to value the education and the time for learning, for education entails how mind and intelligence develop and serves as a means to facilitate the development of the whole person physically, mentally, socially, and emotionally.

Embrace and value education because it teaches us not only how to think, but how to think critically and creatively, not only how to react, but how to react analytically; and it gives us imaginary power. Education has no limit, don’t limit yourself!

Teachers want the students to remember that future belongs to them and especially to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams. Dream big, aim high, and work hard-plan your study daily, weekly, monthly, and for the year with the help of your teachers, your peers, your mentors and or parents.

Teachers also want the student to do homework because homework:

4.   Electronic Devices / Technology

Education-technology is the way forward in the 21^st century and has benefitted both teachers and students and student should take the lead in daily learning with the support of the technology gadgets. No doubt that technology has boosted the student engagement in learning immensely, i.e. technology improves all aspects of the student learning experience…the rise of mobile learning (Smartphones), the chrome books (laptops) has allowed many students who otherwise would not engage and participate to become fully engaged, actively participated and improved their learning greatly.

Learn more about Edu-tech research findings:

https://www.mheducation.com/news-media/press-releases/mcgraw-hill-education-2015-workforce-readiness-survey.html,

On the other side, the use of these electronic devices needs to be controlled to ensure the balance of its use, especially in the school environment.

Schools/teachers priority is also to ensure and protect your child’s health and safety. Students may use their electronic devices during designated periods at School which is a privilege for the students, not a right; and it is increasingly proving to be not a good decision to allow "personal electronic devices" in the classrooms in the first. It is important for all students to follow the guidelines for safety, responsibility, and respect for other people and school environment. 

                                                             

Students with devices that are used to aid in the completion of homework (laptops, tablets, e-readers, other devices) may be utilized during the scheduled homework time in designated areas ONLY and MUST remain SECURED on the table.

Students should refrain from the use of gaming devices that are not permitted in school. Personal cell phones are not to be used at school and MUST remain in the student’s backpack always.

There is an increase in the use of personal cellular phones by students during school program hours!  Students need to know that they may not be  permitted to:

Communicate on any social media (including, but not limited to, social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat,

Take and or post photos and /or videos with or without the consent of the student involved and the adult-teacher.

Visit video-sharing sites such as YouTube during classroom sessions, Email, blog, visits chat rooms or post on bulletin boards!

Some teachers have been so lenient on this issue of the use of electronic devices to the extent of allowing the use of "personal electronic devices" during classroom sessions as an incentive for students to calm down…have they forget that students are smart manipulators and actors too…that they will disrupt the class intentionally so that you can allow them to use their devices…some students rushed to finish their assignments so that the remaining time they can use their devices because some teachers allow it as a reward that when students finished his/her assigned work they can then use their devices!!! 

As a parent, I struggle with my children with the same issue of the use of electronic devices at home, and I have to tell their teachers to take away their phones should they make poor decisions to use their phones during classroom sessions…Students should learn to use these devices with moderation as they are now becoming too addictive and harmful…too much of anything is harmful.

On electronic games- students are now playing games which involve violence, profanity, etc. etc. How these are supposed to entertain and or teach young children values and or morals? These games are deemed inappropriate by school and teachers, yet they surface in the schools' environment. Off course, if students are caught in such acts they will be reprimanded but how many time you will catch them before they infect others and the school? Is there a better alternative than allowing them to bring them to school lockers and or keep them in their backpacks?

Now some students allow other students to listen to the music contained on their personal device including, but not limited to, iPods, iPads, MP3 players, etc. They are students sharing as we teach them to share, but it’s the contents of what is being shared that worries many adults! 

I did not have any of these electronic gadgets when I was in school and came out school well grounded...perhaps the time is upon us to rethink the pros and cons of allowing personal electronic gadgets in school!

Tech devices are good when used appropriately and when needed especially in the school environment but now students have access to connect any electronic devices at any time and even during the program hours!!! This is a BIG problem awaiting to explode…and as it is now it is interfering more and more with student learning.

5.   Honest, Trust, and Truth 

It is wise to direct your anger towards the problems, not the people; also focus your energies on answers, not excuses. Trust is the first chapter in the book of knowledge Trusting your learning process is a part of building a stronger you and good relationships between student-teacher and student-parent should be honest and trust their teachers' interests in their learning.

Trusting your teacher and be honest with then especially when there is a situation that you need to address whether academic or behavior issue

Teachers are in schools to teach and mentor. They are interested in how the student learns and what kind of a person you are and going to be. Teachers get up every morning thinking about their students first or more thank about their own children. They are ready to help students learn successfully, improve learning in the classroom and make each student happy and eager to learn.

Therefore, when teachers give students their knowledge, wisdom, and dedication, they want students to give them back your discipline, character, and integrity!

Air your dislike and or argument amicably. Thus, for example, instead of a student throwing a tantrum, speak out your need or your displeasure!

Teachers may not see all and time may not allow it either. Our intentions are always good ones, to teach our students effectively and see them succeed in school and beyond.

If you feel you are left behind you can also take charge and be a self-advocacy of your learning needs which includes speaking up for what you need, know your strengths and weaknesses; and find the support you need from teachers or others-from your peers or your parents!

Getting Your Child Back-to-Learning Again!

Back-to-school season paves the way for new venture-new schools, new grade levels, and new teachers and friends, but getting your child back-to-learning again happens all the time and it consume us all-parents are constantly concerned whether their children are mastering their learning while children worries are not necessarily focused on school and learning as it is on other stuffs-like friends, fit-in, being cool and staying cool, etc.

Whether you are a teacher, a parent or a student getting ourselves into the learning routine should be an all-time thing!

However, back-to-school season is a time of reflection that encompasses excitements-looking forward to be with and see new friends, teachers and or entering a higher-grade level, anxiety-due to the uncertainties about what you going to experience and conquer, and anticipation-the feelings of possibilities that lies ahead to be bestowed.

For me, as I leap into a new-school-year I hope to continue to be resourceful not only to my children but also to my students I am entrusted to teach, inspire and guide as they navigate their world of learning.

So, as we all prepare for back-to-school again let me share my Ten Golden Rules of getting-back-to-learning again to help ease the butterflies and calm the jitters:

1.   Get organized- the new beginnings, the changes, and the challenges of the back-to-school requires organization. Being organized minimize chaos, last minutes rush, and stress. Getting organized play, a great part of being healthy. It leads to healthy and happier family, “a happy child is a happy family”.

2  . Get involved-as the new school year approaches emotions build up, so what can parents do to make the transition smooth for themselves and their children especially if a child is attending school/college for the first time or going to a new school? In a simple term. Get involved from the start to the finish. Get all the paperwork done, review the checklist to make sure all you need is known and plan how to accomplish it. Let your child get involved in the planning (this season my teenage boys are chipping in to help themselves-it the best way to get involved and learning how to be part of the planning).

3.   Stay Connected-being on the same page keep things into perspective between you and your child, but also between you and the school and other families with children in the same school. Establishing mutual understanding and share common goals help to build friendships, trusts, and help you become familiar with the school system.

4.   School manners and habits-be the best and in your best behavior! Managing schedules start from home and all the way to school. As summer starts winding away, gradually begin charging the schedule early-2 to 3 weeks before school resume through reminders about going to bed early and getting up early.

5.   Balanced expectations-anticipate unknown or unforeseen by being thoughtful and mindful of the anxiety the first-three weeks of starting school as a transition and an adjustment period! There are so much to catch up within those 2 to 3 weeks that it overwhelms both the students, teachers and parents.

6 .  Make “His” / “Her” Plate- pack nutritional and healthy balanced lunches and snacks. Preparing healthy meals and eating enjoyable foods has been a priority in my family and I encourage my boys to eat healthy to stay healthy. So, your child’s lunch should include fruits, vegetables, grains, proteins, and dairy which are the basic five food groups and required components of the National School Lunch Program.

7.   Empower, Inspire, and motivate- confidence rule the world! When kids feel confident and ready to learn they become good. When they are good they become good socially, builds emotional competency, they set goals. Make responsible decisions, communicate effectively, resolve conflict independently and more. Take about the future, about planning for high school and college, and about aiming to a high level of education and career.

8.   Make Home Comfortable and Learning Place-make it and keep it healthy- a healthy home supports healthy living and healthy learning. Eat well, sleep well, routine excise, manage and balance homework/school activities at home and home chores-students should learn to manage their rooms and set up a learning time and space in the house for study School and homework comes first before play. Your home should encourage learning.

9.   Keep it in Moderation-Overstimulation, multiple-extra-curricular activities overwhelm both children and parents. Let a child be a child first. Overdoing things or trying to live your dreams through your children often produces negative outcomes. In fact, pushing your child to do too much or get involved in too many activities can turn him or her off and cause emotional problems. On the learning part, show confidence in him or her. Let your child know you trust him or her ability to learn and succeed.

10. Brainstorm often-have a one-on-one session on how things are going and validate their feelings-their worries or fears they may encounter. Teach them failure is part of life and the possibilities of try, try and try again to get it right. Let them learn that quitters never win and winners never quit.

In conclusion, getting through the process of preparing your child for school, or prepare yourself as a first-time teacher or a returning to school teacher allows both to become ready for school. There are so many resources and ways both parents and children can utilize to stay healthy, make good choices during the coming school year. Check out the suggested books to read to beat Back-to-School blues:

Back to School with Pete the cat by James Dean

                        Kindergarten Rocks by Katie Davis

                        First Grade Jitter by Robert Quackenbush

                        Alvin Ho: Allergic to Girls, School, and Other Scary Things

                        by Lenore Look

                        Back to school, Mallory by Laurie B. Friedman

                        Smile by Raina Telgemeier

                        Mr. President Goes to School by Rick Walton

                        This School Year Will Be the Best! Kay Winters by Dutton,

and The Star Wars: Jedi Academy trilogy, by Jeffrey Brown.

Enjoy the reading and the learning/lessons you draw from the books!

What to Do When Learning is Not So Fun?

Returning to school from holiday breaks has its challenges.

DID YOU KNOW?

The average student loses up to 3 months of academic knowledge during the summer break alone per research studies! That means, they lose even more academic knowledge when you include the holiday breaks.

The school breaks learning skills loss is real. When students break from the daily learning routine and the structured learning environments it can have a tremendous setbacks effect on student learning.

When students are out of school and not actively involved in learning their brain loses the skills they have learned-the sluggish brain-sleep mode brain that won’t easily remember or retain the skills they were taught. 

And for the students with learning disabilities or naturally, struggles with learning they have even a “harder time” to adjust and cope fast enough to catch up with their peers. And so, they continue to fall behind and eventually lack the learning enthusiasm.

Here are some strategies to put the fun back into learning and help your student restart school with positive and enthusiastic attitude:

Parents Step-up

When parents’ setup into their children’s learning, good things happens-you optimize their learning, you build their self-confidence, you enhance performance, you reduce their stress and boost their learning focus.

Parents can help your child get back on track and stay there by giving your child the pleasure of your company. Children become excited and love it when their parents are involved in their learning world.

Support your child’s learning by being part of it, on top of it, and know what is going on in your child’s school-become your child’s home substitute teacher, guide, mentor, and pre-teach skills/subjects he or she need to master and closely monitor his/her progress.

Discover Your Child’s Interest and Nurture it

Much as parents would like and wish their children could do it all-i.e. to be smart not passive, to like the school but they do not dislike school, to love learning not hate learning, etc. children too have those moments-they have their own sets of interests, likes, and dislikes. Help your child to realize his/her interests, likes, and dislikes.

Learning doesn’t occur naturally or easily to others, nevertheless don’t force learning either-it may backfire, instead cultivate it strategically and develop the passion one step at a time; and in doing so you will help your child learn to his/her full potential-it will help both know how to improve his/her talents, abilities, creativity, and or find new one.

If you can afford them specialized programs that can expand your child’s horizon, instill knowledge, self-confidence, and improve his/her skills and nurture his/her interests go for it, e.g. if your child is interested in drama, there is a drama class that will cultivate his/her curiosity. 

Know When to Get Help

Early intervention matters and can make a tremendous difference!

If your child is having learning difficulties find out what resources needed to help the situation. Seek professional experts-from tutor who can intervene through various instructional strategies and programs proven to deliver results, improve skills, boost learning and performance, skills occupational therapists who can evaluate a child’s sensory and cognitive development, speech-language pathologists who can evaluate social communication and interpersonal skills, etc.

Therapists and teachers can also provide specific strategies to further facilitate your child’s learning interactions and involvements when needed.

Early intervention will turn your child into a right path quickly and easily rather than deny that the problem exists and delay to act in a timely manner, and by the time you decide to act the damage has been done making it hard to reverse the course!

Nurture Growth Mindset

According to Carol Dweck, a psychologist and an author of a book, Mindset: The New  Psychology of Success, a Mindset is a self-perception or self-theory that people hold about themselves. For example, believing that you are either smart or unsmart is a mindset, a mindset about your personal or professional life is like, “I am a good teacher” or “I am a bad parent”. People can be aware or unaware of their mindsets, and this per Carol Dweck theory can have a profound effect on learning achievement, skill acquisition, personal relationships, professional success, and many other aspects of life.

When you are aware of who you are and what makes you, you and or how you can be what you want to be, you are likely to be just that because you are open and willingly to see and seek what it takes to get where you want to get or be what you desire to be-you give yourself a room to grow!

For example, if I believe I can be a good teacher and nurture the traits and strategies of being a good teacher, surely, I will be a good teacher. And so, as a student! If a student set his/her mind to seek knowledge diligently, he/she is sure to achieve his/her desired learning goals.

So, “In a growth mindset, people believe that their most basic abilities can be developed through dedication and hard work-brains and talent are just the starting point. This view creates a love of learning and a resilience that is essential for great accomplishment,” asserts Dweck.

 Students who embrace growth mindsets can believe that they can learn more or become smarter if they work hard and persevere-they may learn more, learn it quickly, and view challenges and failures as opportunities to improve their learning and skills. 

It is crucial therefore to nurture growth mindsets when teaching and supporting children in their learning journey-encourage learning, value education, bring learning home.

“There are many little ways to enlarge your child’s world. Love of books is the best of all”, said, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.

The biggest difference lies in our attitude towards learning-once you build that positive attitude towards learning, learning will take place, and most likely effective and successful learning.

Contrary to a growth mindset is fixed mindsets which we have to work against because “In a fixed mindset, people believe their basic qualities, like their intelligence or talent, are simply fixed traits. They spend their time documenting their intelligence or talent instead of developing them. They also believe that talent alone creates success without effort…students who have adopted a fixed mindset, believe that they are either “smart “or “dumb” and there is no way to change this, for example, they may learn less than they could or learn at a slower rate, while also shying away from challenges…fixed mindsets also tend to tell themselves they can’t or won’t be able to do it (I just can’t learn Algebra), or they make excuses  to rationalize the failure (I would have passed the test if I had had more time to study)”, suggested Dweck’s  findings.

Therefore, when we motivate, when we inspire, and when we lead by examples we nurture the growth mindset which is a tool to help children learn. Never stop learning, for every day there are new things to learn, and learning and or acquiring knowledge (education) has no limit.

What Courage Can do to Your State of Well-being!

Courage is perhaps the most used word when one intends to lift someone’s spirit; get someone out of these emotions such as despair, fear, anger, frustrations, and all the other negative traits! But what this seven letters word, C-O-U-R-A-G-E really mean? How do you seek it, find it, and keep it?

So, what is courage? The meaning of courage is best defined by the Cambridge English Dictionary as “the ability to control your fear in a dangerous or difficult situation…and is synonymous with brave…courage is to be brave and confident enough to do what you believe in”.

To some, courage comes naturally without putting much effort, to others it takes some time to gather the courage to act upon something!

Certainly, life isn’t designed to be free of challenges or without ups and downs, otherwise, it would have been too monotonous and therefore too boring, too exciting, and or too crazy!

Terry Fallis in his book, The High Road, wrote, “A life without challenge, a life without hardship, a life without purpose, seems pale and pointless. With challenges come perseverance and gumption. With hardship come resilience and resolve. With purpose come strength and understanding”.

Looking back on my life struggles and challenges, and there are many of them-whether drawn from my twenties when I was learning and searching for the world away from the world I grew up and eventually  got it and find myself in America; or in my thirties when I got into the parenthood club and real life started getting where it belongs; and then, I entered into my forties thinking I have seeing it all, I have done it all, I have been everywhere and gone nowhere; and no man, nobody, and nothing that would have moved my feet or give me a shiver when I put my thinking cap on and into it-I was courageous, I was brave! And I was determined!

 And now, what happened with the time? I’m here really! In my fifties wondering where the time went and where my life had been? Am I living backward instead of forward, otherwise who is in control of my life? 

As I analyze life challenges, hardships, or trials and how to overcome them or to try to make sense of it, I am reminded that life is really what you make of it!

You must choose not only how you desire to live your life and therefore how to navigate through it by all possible means you can bestow, but that doesn’t make it easy or guarantee safe landing-that everything is going to be alright!

From my experiences, what makes life challenges more challenging isn’t lack of courage per se to face the challenges but rather the forces that accompany you and the challenges you are facing. Those external factors that you have no control of. And the worse of all, they come from fellow human beings…man destroy lives…the biggest enemy of man is a man!!!

However, I will not fear man for he is not my creator!  I will always choose courage to get me through, to overcome my life challenges as possibly can. That is right! You heard it right! But, easy saying than doing, nevertheless, for the sake of my psychological well-being I will always choose courage in place of fear!

The fear only remains or resurface when everyone becomes an expert on how you should or should not live your life, how you should or should not handle and tackle your own challenges. Thus, people’s intentions (good and bad) may add more pressure to you -some may scare you more, and some will confuse you greatly, yet others will doubt and criticize you for not acting on their suggestions or pieces of advice, and on timely manner (as they may detect time too!) …so much so that they sometimes forget that it’s still your life, not theirs, and they know nothing about it so far! We all need time to reflect, to digest all that has been thrown on our lives before we could move and or act.

The most famous and revered former South Africa first black president Nelson Mandela, who also became one of the remarkable heroes of the 20^thcentury after fought for his country’s freedom from apartheid regime and endured 27 years of brutal imprisonment yet negotiated and lead his country to a peaceful end of institutionalized racism and truth reconciliation, said these words about courage, “I learned that courage was not the absence of fear but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers the fear”.

As you can see, courage does not eliminate fear but it inspires you to be aware and or raise your consciousness to help yourself make decisions and then take actions.

As always, every one of us has certain ways of reacting and responding to our own life challenges and hardships-some are quick to react and others are slow, some are too cautious and yet others are risk takers and daredevils.

In all accounts, the key to ease and manage life challenges and hardships is first to accept them as they come and realize you are not alone because you don’t own all the problems in the world; and to remember that those who have failed greatly, have come to achieve great success. Why? Because they were willing to take that leap of courage and believed on their abilities, talents, creativities, and their dreams.

Rather than just seeing your failures as an obstacle that could define you, you should make a choice to fight back, to trust what you were left with-your knowledge, your talents, and your creativity to keep you going, to help you turn things around.

Taking a leap of courage begins with believing in yourself, and believing that there still goodness in the world that comes in  different forms and levels -there are ways out there, and there are someone good people out there that will guide honestly and help you sincerely to navigate your world, to make your dreams come true; to find optimal, logic, solutions to your daily challenges you might be facing; to make choices, changes, and continue fighting a good fight.

Roger Crawford asserted that “Being challenged in life is inevitable, being defeated is optional”.

 And, “It always seems impossible until it is done”, Nelson Mandela.

Growing up in Kilimanjaro region in Tanzania, I am always reminded of the stories my grandfathers used to tell me, the Chagga folklore which still sleeping in my memories.

I am a Chagga by ethnicity. So, the WaChagga (plural) are the ethnic people of Kilimanjaro where the tallest, free-standing and a permanent snow-capped mountain in the world (5,895 m –19, 341 ft) is found.

Mt. Kilimanjaro facts are as fascinating and mysterious as its name and will share just a few facts-it’s one of the world’s most iconic peaks: Kibo, Mawenzi, and Shira-Kibo being the highest peak.

There so many Chagga stories about Mt. Kilimanjaro and its three peaks, however, today I will only relate courage with one fact about the Mt. Kilimanjaro-its name and the determination to climb it. This is where I first started learning about courage and the art of building courage.

I learned from early years of age not to give up easily, and so you won’t be surprised to learn that I have climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro twice, which defied my grandfather’s and the

WaChagga legends center on what they believed then as their ‘Ruwa’ and their Mt. Kilimanjaro as their highest power and assistance.

WaChagas believed on ‘Ruwa’ as a liberator and provider of sustenance; and so, as their Mountain which provides rich volcanic soils that support agricultural crops such as coffee, banana, maize, beans, and varieties of fruits, and the biggest of all, tourism revenues. So, from time immemorial the Mountain represents a powerful life source for the WaChagga who lives in the foothills of the Mountain.

Since WaChagga traditionally lives on the foot-slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro I wanted to climb it, to reach the top! The stories then were that anyone who attempted to conquer Mt. Kilimanjaro will die because the god of the mountain will get angry! So, why one would take a risk to make the god of the mountain angry and in turn to die when you can see the mountain from the window of your bedroom? Back then, it was a taboo drawn from the meaning of its name, ‘difficult to conquer’, that no one should attempt to climb it!

WaChagga contended that Mt. Kilimanjaro’s name means, ‘difficulty to conquer’. It must be that those attempted to go to the top of the mountain then and never came back could be that they didn’t have all the gears and clothes that are necessary today to protect themselves as they ascend the Mountain and neither did they knew about high-altitude sicknesses nor the physical fitness to be aware of when you plan to climb the Mountain.

Anyway, fast-track the story, undeterred by my grandfather’s stories about Mt. Kilimanjaro, I attempted to climb the mountain anyway, and surely, I failed to reach the top! It was my first time ever to have experienced such physical toucher-the hours of hiking and climbing the Kilimanjaro terrain passing through almost every kind of ecological system and vegetational zones to trek to the top was not only tiring but unbearable physical pain at times.

I remember crying and being left behind so many times-hiked from cultivated zone at the foothills of Mt. Kilimanjaro where banana and coffee plantations are found, then turned into rainforest zone, with the  evergreen tangled tree branches roots waiting for you to greet them as you struggle to hold onto the branches, stem/trunk to find where your next footstep will land; then the  heather and Moorland zone as the land opens into this vast land with countless species of plants that covered the horizon as I could with my eyes-there were plenty of wildflowers that were attractive-the colors, the texture, even their unique scents, which helped to ease the tiredness and pain I was enduring, at least for a short while; and then, we trekked into the  alpine desert zone-here the wind intensified and the land gets rocky and there is sandy too so looking where you were coming from and where you were heading as the winds accompanied you was a challenge by itself; and finally an Arctic summit, an experience of real cold, deep into low winter temperatures. So, from rainy, hot, windy, sandy,  and to a serious cold, you will experience it all. 

 They say climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro is like traveling from the tropical equator to the north pole, just like life itself-a path of adventure, with mountains to conquer, caves to explore, secrets to keep, and a lifetime of experiences that only you, you can discover it as you live it through!

Due to physical exhaustion and the high-altitude sickness I could not climb to the top instead, I was descended immediately to serve my life and therefore my attempt to conquer Mt. Kilimanjaro failed. Though the stories from my grandfather still lingered in my mind and wondered whether there was any truth to their beliefs about the Mt. Kilimanjaro, I still wanted to show and prove to them that it can be conquered. That the 'Ruwa' of the mountain had never gotten angry at them. Maybe people have gotten angry at the mountain they were so scared to conquer, as it will swallow them if they attempt!

And so, I set myself for a second attempt the following year, and this time, sure enough, I nailed it! I reached the summit of Africa! I reached the Uhuru peak (the Freedom Peak), the highest summit on Kibo’s crater rim! Nearly every climber who has summited Uhuru peak has recorded his or name and or thoughts about the accomplishment in a book stored in a wooden box at the top.

You see, the courage to try again even though it was not guaranteed that I would have made it the second time taught me a lesson about persistence, perseverance, and determination!

When you want to set yourself for something, sometimes just gather the courage and go for it. Don’t think about what might be going wrong, rather think about what could go right.

After all, you would have never known if you would have made it or not if you won’t try, and try, and try again!

They say, “…and until you spread your wings, you will have no idea how far you can fly”.

Thus, if I had my mindset fixed that I could not reach the Mountain top, I could not have made my second attempt. But because I made a choice-tuned my mind that I am going to try again to conquer it and fight my way up till I make it; I did it and made it to the summit.

So, what I learned from my experience of climbing the tallest, free-standing Mountain in the world twice is that challenging yourself whenever you are challenged build resilience, persistence, and determination-refuse the status quo...

“The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide that you are not going to stay where you are”.

And perhaps as Viktor Frankly put it, “When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves”.

 So, keep looking forward as there always will be an option to move you to a right direction.

We all can, therefore, agree that taking a leap of courage can pave a way to a beautiful ending and beyond our beliefs.

 Thus, “Difficult roads often leads to beautiful destinations”.

Gather your courage and take it with you wherever you go, wherever it takes you, and act upon it as it deemed to be fit.