As an intern at KenSAP during the summer of 2024, I helped a group of thirty Kenyan students from low-income backgrounds through the necessary preparatory work for applying to university in the US.
I taught various academic skills workshops on topics such as plagiarism and citations. These sessions were meant to prepare students for academic expectations at US universities. Since many of the students came from rural schools around Kenya, they were unfamiliar with ideas of plagiarism, citing sources, and even using computers in some cases.
During my internship, I provided individual support to students who had difficulties with technology or American academic conventions and co-taught group skill sessions to a class of thirty students. I was also responsible for preparing students to score highly on the math section of the SAT. I cotaught ninety-minute classes twice a week to cover the topics that come up on the math section (geometry, function transformations, radicals/rationals, etc.) To prepare for the class, I developed thorough lesson plans and curated presentations. On most days of the week, I would also hold office hours for a couple of hours during which students would come in groups or alone to go over questions that they may have found difficult or to review concepts with more individualized attention.
I would also help administer an SAT practice test once a week and grade/review responses to identify areas that need the most attention. Most of the students were already proficient in math but required help in becoming familiar with American conventions.
Finally, I was also responsible for teaching a ninety-minute anthropology elective once a week. I covered topics on colonialism/post-colonialism, masculinities, critical theory, etc. To prepare for class, I would spend many hours putting together a presentation as well as reviewing the reflections that students wrote for the assigned readings of the week.
The fifteen students who chose to take my elective had never come across anthropological readings before and were interested in learning more. I tried to make these sessions relevant to both their lived experiences and what they may come across in the US. The discussions we held during class were vibrant and challenging – and particularly memorable for me.
I was also responsible for collecting media that KenSAP may need. I took several portrait photographs of each of the students for their college profiles as well as documented hiking trips and other groups activities. I also filmed interviews with many of the students and plan on producing a documentary film before the fall term begins at Princeton.
By the end of my time at KenSAP, almost all the students were scoring significantly higher on the SAT math section. A few students even managed to receive perfect scores on the last few practice tests. I also noticed that students in my Anthropology class were able to articulate their points of view with confidence as the classes progressed as well as grasp core concepts of the weekly reading with more proficiency in their written reflections.
