National WSWM Student Peer Educators’ Workshop held 24th August -28th August 2009 at Gayaza High School

The World Starts With Me (WSWM) is a Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) program implemented by SchoolNet Uganda in partnership with the Dutch World Population Foundation (WPF) and is currently implemented in 150 secondary schools in 39 districts across the country.
The 5-day residential National WSWM Student camp was organized and conducted by SchoolNet Uganda and WPF in partnership with the participating schools. Each of the participating schools was responsible for setting the selection criteria for the student who represented the school but the criteria included among other things, a student who has a passion for WSWM, knowledgeable about the WSWM curriculum, having good interpersonal and communication skills and practices what WSWM stands for. In additional, the schools were also responsible for transporting the student to and from the camp.

SchoolNet Uganda and WPF were responsible for the accommodation, feeding and training costs (materials and facilitators) for one student from each of the invited schools. Where a school sent two students, the school was responsible for the additional cost of accommodation and meals for the second student.
Participants of the National WSWM Students’ camp 1 reported on the afternoon of Sun 23rd August 2009 and departed on the morning of Sat 29th August 2009.
The trained WSWM Student Peer Educators were to be responsible for mobilizing students for WSWM activities and lessons, assisting the WSWM teachers in conducting some of the WSWM lessons under the teachers’ guidance and for mobilizing students for the WSWM exhibition – Lesson 14

The National WSWM Student Peer Educator’ Workshop Objectives:

The camp was conducted in such a way as to achieve the following objectives:

1. To provide the WSWM students from different schools across the country an opportunity to interact both formally and informally for the purpose of networking and knowledge sharing.
2.  To provide WSWM students an opportunity to brainstorm some of the SRHR faced by the youth in schools and out of schools, share possible consequences and possible solutions to the SRHR issues with purpose of building their capacity to avoid risk behavior and situations, make independent but informed healthy decisions about their lives.
3. To provide students with an in-depth knowledge of some of the Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) issues covered within the WSWM curriculum in particular Sexuality and Love, pregnancy and Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs).
4. To clarify the myths and misconceptions regarding youth Sexual Reproductive Health particularly with regard to pregnancy, STIs and HIV/AIDS prevention. 
5. To develop and enhance students’ ICT skills and capacity to use Internet as a learning resource and a resource for health information. 
6. To introduce the WSWM student peer educators to the WSWM online support centre (http://www.schoolnetuganda.sc.ug/wswmonlinesupport/  ).
7.  To build students’ knowledge and skills in communication, public speech, script writing, skit acting, video filming and editing.
8.  To involve students in developing and producing multimedia youth friendly Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) materials
9. To provide career guidance to the students and build their self-esteem through the use of role models and inspirational talk by young people. 
10. To provide answers to students SRHR questions and provide counseling on a need basis.
11. To get students’ suggestions and ideas of how to improve the WSWM program in schools both quantitatively and qualitatively.
12. To create a national network of WSWM students who will continue collaborating using ICT even after the camp.
13. To do a rehearsal of a WSWM exhibition.
14. To collect WSWM student voices and testimonies

Schools in attendance

Thirty two (32) out of the 50 invited schools sent students to be trained as School-based WSWM Student Peer Educators. The schools that attended the National WSWM Student Camp 1 included Ndejje Secondary School (Luwero), Jinja Secondary School (Jinja), Entebbe Secondary School (Wakiso), Kyeizooba Girls Secondary School (Busenyi), Lumino High School (Busia) , Busia Secondary School (Busia), Pope John Paul II College (Gulu), St. Henry’s College Kitovu (Masaka), Muntyera High School Kitunga (Ntungamu), St. Mary’s Ediofe Girls School (Arua), Dr. Obote College (Lira), Stella Maris College Nsuube (Mukono), Gayaza High School (Wakiso), Pilkington College Muguluka (Jinja), St. Peter’s College Tororo (Tororo), Bukomero Secondary School (Kiboga), Fatima Aloi Girls School, Bwikya Secondary School (Hoima), Kiira College Butiiki (Jinja), Luwero Secondary School(Luwero), Moroto High School (Moroto), Aggrey Memorial Secondary School(Wakiso), Bukooli College School (Bugiri), Buhobe Secondary School, Bwera Secondary School, Lubiri Secondary School (Kampala), Mbarara Army School (Mbarara), Mt. Rwenzori Girls Secondary School (Kasese), Lira Town Council (Lira), Kitara Secondary School, St. James High School.

A detailed narrative report can be downloaded using the link below

Report of the National WSWM Student Peer Educators’ Workshop held Aug 24th -Agust 28th 2009 at Gayaza High School