Maximising Volunteer input at Navunisea District School

Fiji Hub Achievement Report June 2015

The GVI Education Enrichment Program at Navunisea District School (NDS) has now been
established for two years and it continues to evolve in order to meet the needs of the pupils and
teachers. The relationship between GVI and NDS is growing ever stronger, however the project is at
a crucial stage and with reforms being implemented by the Ministry of Education it is important to
demonstrate how the support provided by GVI will contribute to long-term development at the
school. This will further strengthen the partnership and enable GVI and NDS to work together to
shape the future of the school.
There are a total of eight year groups and a
Kindergarten

at

NDS.

Traditionally

volunteers have been attached exclusively

to one of these classes during their time on
project. GVI volunteers provide one-on-one
support for pupils struggling with literacy and
numeracy, as well as carrying out individual
reading sessions and support in the delivery
of P.E, Art and Music lessons (PEMAC). The
number of GVI volunteers on the project
fluctuates

between

four

and

eight

throughout the term and their duration on project varies from two weeks to six months. As a result
classes may be subject to a high turnover of volunteers and in some cases periods without
volunteer support. It is therefore critical that the systems are in place to provide consistent support
for both teachers and pupils at the school. This term GVI have taken key steps towards enhancing
the support provided at NDS. The GVI team have critically evaluated the role of the volunteers in the
school and implemented a re-structured approach to the support provided. This includes the
creation of new timetables that re-evaluate the daily time management of the volunteers. Under the
new system volunteers will primarily be placed in Classes 1 to 6. Based on current volunteer
enrolment this can be maintained throughout the school year. Within these classes volunteers will
continue to deliver one-on-one literacy support, numeracy support in-class, reading support, and

PEMAC teaching. In addition to this, volunteers from Classes 1 and 2 will be paired to support Class
7, those in Classes 3 and 4 to support Class 8, while those in Classes 5 and 6 will also assist with
Kindergarten.
To enhance and differentiate our literacy support, volunteers will also lead literacy groups for each
class and writing workshops for the upper school. By diversifying the literacy support provided the
aim is to develop phonics, literacy and composition work, which have been identified as critical
areas for improvement across the school. Literacy programmes have been developed, drawing on
key areas of the Fijian syllabus and
volunteers will be able to focus on the
development of writing skills in the
upper school where they are most
needed.
The new timetables will make best use
of volunteer time and ensure maximum
contact with pupils through one-on-one
support, group work and whole class
teaching.

Enhanced

structure

and

systems for recording progress will

ensure that the time volunteers spend with pupils can be even more productive and beneficial. The
new volunteer timetable also includes specific time for planning and creating teaching resources.
These can then be shared with teachers and added to the GVI resource library.
Overall, these changes will improve the consistency of support provided at NDS, helping to ensure
that teaching and learning flows smoothly from one volunteer to the next. In sharing this new
approach with the teachers GVI have further clarified the role of the volunteers in the classroom and
reinforced a long-term commitment to the development and success of the school. The schemes of
work and resources can be shared with teachers in order to enhance teaching and learning across
the school. On-going opportunities for feedback have been provided and as a result the program
continually evolves to maximise the impact at NDS.
For more information on GVIs projects in Fiji please visit www.gvi.co.uk
For more information on our global impact visit www.gviworld.com
To make a donation to our projects in Fiji please visit www.gvi.org for more details