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Building Capacity for High-Quality Practices in School for Children with Disabilities in Tanzania

Published: May 29, 2025

Country: Tanzania

Dr. Megan Roberts’ Outbound Fellowship Experience

Dr. Megan Roberts is a US Outbound Fellow in the FY2023 Professional Fellows Program (PFP) on Inclusive Civic Engagement. This program is sponsored by the US Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and is administered by the Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI) at the University of Massachusetts Boston in partnership with Humanity and Inclusion (HI). The following blog post was contributed by guest author Dr. Megan Roberts.

Dr. Megan Roberts is an Associate Professor at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, where she directs the Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (LEND) program. In December 2024, Megan traveled to Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, as a US Outbound Fellow to provide technical assistance to her PFP Fellow mentee, Eva Chuwa, about building capacity for inclusive practices in schools and promoting community cohesion. Eva is a Special Needs Education Teacher at Al Muntazir – AMSEN Special Education Needs, specializing in educating children (ages 4–7) with autism to prepare them for inclusive settings.

Megan partnered with Eva in Tanzania to expand on Eva’s work to build capacity among teachers and school administrators, helping them provide high quality educational services to children with disabilities in Dar es Salaam. During Megan’s visit, the pair focused on meeting with school administrators and conducting trainings to promote practices for children with disabilities. Eva had laid the groundwork by providing workshops for special educators on communication strategies and the use of visual supports for students with disabilities. These efforts included writing proposals for teacher training in general education settings, ensuring that Eva’s work could be sustained and expanded. One key objective of Megan’s visit was to connect with a university-level teacher preparation program to elevate Eva’s work and create opportunities for future collaborations.

During the two-week outbound effort, Megan and Eva conducted training workshops for special education teachers at the Al Muntazir AMSEN Special Education Needs campus (Figure 1), general education teachers at the Early Childhood Education campus, and teachers in private schools in the Dar es Salaam area. These workshops also included meetings with school principals to discuss how the inclusive strategies could enhance learning for all students. The teachers on the AMSEN Special Needs campus shared how impactful the communication and visual support strategies had been for their students and expressed excitement about learning more strategies in future trainings. The Principal of the Early Childhood Education campus invited Eva to conduct additional future trainings for her teaching staff.

While in Tanzania, Megan and Eva met with Professor Didas Kimaro, a longtime advocate in the Moshi area (Figure 2) as well as the with the CEOs of Aspiration for Vulnerable Rehabilitated Families (AVUREFA), a nonprofit supporting the education of children with disabilities in the Arusha region. They visited several families with children served by this organization and shared ideas for continuing and improving educational practices in rural areas of Tanzania. Their discussions laid the foundation for future collaborations to provide teacher training and other support in the region.

Back in Dar es Salaam, Megan and Eva conducted a seminar at the US Embassy, bringing together PFP alumni, disability advocates, and organization leaders (Figure 3). This event allowed participants to discuss the progress made in inclusive civic engagement across educational settings, communities, and policies. The seminar fostered networking opportunities, strengthening relationships, and creating a platform for future collaborations.

Megan and Eva also presented a seminar at Aga Khan University Institute for Educational Development on the use of assistive technology in education. Approximately 80 graduate students attended the event in-person and 40 educators attended online. The session included solution-focused discussions, with participants eager to learn more about the strategies Eva had implemented in her own work. A reception after the seminar allowed for additional networking with some attendees from Kenya and Uganda, extending the impact across East Africa.

In addition to these professional activities, Megan experienced Tanzania’s rich culture. Highlights included trying local foods, engaging in conversations with Maasai individuals at the Maasai Cultural Museum in Arusha (Figure 4), and even riding a camel for the first time. Megan was intrigued by the Maasai’s strong cultural traditions and how they have maintained their way of life despite modern changes. She also found it enlightening to discuss the challenged of preserving cultural practices outside the mainstream.

One of Megan’s most memorable experiences was walking along a river in Arusha while watching a community of monkeys swing through the trees — an experience she wouldn’t have had back home. The visit to Eva’s family farm in the Moshi area was another highlight, where Megan learned about the family’s livestock, the crops they grew, and even sampled fruits fresh from the trees. It was a wonderful glimpse into rural farm life and the deep sense of community and family it fosters.

This visit marked Megan’s second visit to Tanzania, which allowed her to strengthen connections with past PFP Fellows and local community members. The activities she and Eva designed brought together PFP alumni, including Fall 2022 PFP alumna Fides Uiso and Spring 2018 PFP alumnus Gamariel Mboya, two of Megan’s past mentees. It was heartening to see these relationships develop into lasting friendships and professional collaborations (Figure 5). 
Megan’s time in Tanzania also provided a chance to continuing learning Swahili and to connect with individuals and organizations that open the door to future collaborations between her US-based LEND trainees and Tanzanian professionals. Eva, too, gained confidence in her role as a presenter and leader, expanding her advocacy network far beyond what she had initially envisioned.

The biggest challenge of the outbound experience was coordinating the many activities in a short amount of time. Scheduling across multiple partners was complex, and funding for travel and food for training participants was not always available. However, through the support of school and university administrators, Megan and Eva were able to successfully carry out their goals.

Moving forward, Megan and Eva plan to continue collaborating. Megan will support Eva’s ongoing efforts by offering feedback on future training seminars and workshops. They are hoping to arrange virtual learning sessions, allowing Megan to continue engaging with Tanzanian educators. Additionally, Megan plans to provide opportunities for her LEND trainees to give virtual presentations, creating more opportunities for cultural experience. Megan looks forward to returning to Tanzania in the future, whether for future professional engagements or as a tourist one day, to continue deepening her connections and experiences in the country.

A group of 10 women, including one American woman (center) and 9 Tanzanian women, in a classroom, posing for a group picture. 
Figure 1: Megan (center) and Eva (third from right) meeting with special education teachers at the Al Muntazir AMSEN Special Education Needs campus.
Two people, one older Tanzanian man (left) and one American woman (right), seated on chairs on a veranda, talking with each other.
Figure 2: Megan talking with Professor Didas Kimaro, a longtime disability advocate in the Moshi area.
Two women, one American woman (back right) and one Tanzanian woman (back left), presenting to an audience in front of a conference room. A TV screen is visible in the back, with a row of computer desks along the wall. People are seated on chairs in the audience. 
Figure 3: Eva and Megan presenting their outbound project at an event held at the US Embassy in Dar es Salaam.
An American woman posing for a photo with two Maasai men.
Figure 4: Megan with two Maasai men at the Maasai Cultural Museum in Dar es Salaam.
An American woman posing for a group photo with two Tanzanian women.
Figure 5: Megan (right) with her fellow mentees, Eva (left) and Fides (back).