Abstract
The Irente Rainbow School was born from parents’ will and desire to find a way to educate their children with disabilities. They sought the support and help of the Lutheran Church in Tanzania. This chapter tells the story of the planning and implementation for the school. It introduces to readers the teachers, teacher assistants, other school staff, and a selection of students. These individuals will be integral in telling their story of the Irente Rainbow School in the following chapters.
Inuka maana shughuli hii yakuhusu wewe.
Let us arise, for this matter is your responsibility.
—Ezra 10: 4
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- 1.
All names from this point forward are pseudonyms. This anthropological convention is used to protect the identities of the people and avoid misinterpretations. Although most subjects asked me to use their names, I am choosing to keep them hidden to protect them from unwanted attention. In some cases, I have changed other information in the stories to protect individuals’ privacy.
- 2.
The term Mama before a name is a term of respect in Kiswahili and is equivalent to Mrs. In this case, the name Mama for both teachers is used with their last names. In most cases, the name after Mama will be the name of the first child. For example, my mother would be Mama Angela. It is rare to refer to women with children by the mother’s first name. Men are referred to as Baba and their last name.
- 3.
An modified version of the story of Musa first appeared in Stone-MacDonald ( 2012 ).
- 4.
An modified version of the story of Grace first appeared in Stone-MacDonald ( 2012 ).
References
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Evangelical Lutheran Church of Tanzania Northeastern Diocese. (2004). The problem. http://www.elct-ned.org/index.php/institutions/18-rainbow-school-background-and-plans/25-stating-the-problem. Accessed 25 Jan 2007.
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Stone-MacDonald, A. (2014). Irente Rainbow School. In: Community-Based Education for Students with Developmental Disabilities in Tanzania. SpringerBriefs in Education. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-7320-2_3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-7320-2_3
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