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At St Jude鈥檚 Primary School, social studies is a favourite subject for many students. With a teacher like Mr Ombeni, it鈥檚 easy to see why!

鈥淭here are so many reasons social studies is important for younger students. For a start, in primary school, we are building the foundations for their future education,鈥� explains Mr Ombeni.

Mr Ombeni was recently promoted to Head of Social Studies after five years of showcasing hard work, dedication and passion and oversees five teachers in his department.

Explaining what social studies entails, Mr Ombeni says, 鈥渟ocial studies combines history and geography to educate students about the world in a holistic way. It is taught to all pupils from Standard 3 to Standard 7 for three lessons each week.鈥�

鈥淚 teach Standard 4 and Standard 7 social studies, which are both national examination years, so a key part of my job is preparing students to sit and succeed in their national examinations,鈥� he adds.

Keenly explaining to students, Mr Ombeni believes wholeheartedly in the importance of social studies and knows that a social aware student can make a real impact.

鈥淔or example today鈥檚 lesson is about longitude and latitude. I鈥檓 teaching the class on how Earth鈥檚 360 degree rotation corresponds to a 24 hour day. This lesson falls under one of the four key topics of social studies.鈥� Mr Ombeni says.

Mr Ombeni鈥檚 favourite topic to teach involves Tanzanian culture and history.

鈥淚t鈥檚 about promoting Tanzanian culture, building good cooperation in the community, and also honouring our heroes鈥� people like the late Julius Nyerere, the founding father of our nation and the late Bibi Titi Mohammed, who helped bring independence to Tanzania. As you know, the mission of our school is to educate future Tanzanian leaders, so when the students learn about those leaders, they become excited. You can see it in their faces鈥� it gives motivation and inspiration to the students,鈥� smiles Mr Ombeni.

Mr Ombeni financially supports his mother and father with different needs and also supports his sister who is about to sit for her Form 6 National Examinations with school needs. He enjoys interacting and assisting students with their lessons whenever they need him to.

鈥淚 like working at St Jude鈥檚 because it鈥檚 a unique non-profit organisation that helps my fellow Tanzanians to achieve their goals and become future Tanzanian leaders,鈥� Mr Ombeni states.

鈥淪t Jude鈥檚 has also given me the opportunity to interact with many people with diverse knowledge, skills and ideas. I get great joy interacting with the students and knowing that I鈥檓 making a difference in a student鈥檚 life,鈥� he adds.

It鈥檚 easy to see that the students are enjoying the lesson, listening intently to Mr Ombeni as he explains how Earth鈥檚 360 degree rotation corresponds to a 24 hour day. They raise their hands eagerly when Mr Ombeni asks a question and confidently write their answers on the board.

One such student is Rosemary, in Standard 7. Rosemary is an enthusiastic social studies student.

鈥淢y favourite part of social studies is learning about the environment and how to take care of it,鈥� says Rosemary.

鈥淢r Ombeni is a great teacher, whenever I have any questions, I can ask him and he helps me to understand more.鈥�

With a strong foundation in social studies, students, like Rosemary, will move into secondary school ready for more advanced studies in history and geography, thanks to the passion and guidance of Mr Ombeni.

As he reminds us, a key part of the St Jude鈥檚 vision is an educated community of moral and intellectual leaders. With strong knowledge of their country, its history and geography, and the exceptional Tanzanian leaders of the past, St Jude鈥檚 students have the perfect foundation to fulfil this bold vision.