Igbo School Story
Our Mission
To create a conducive learning environment that promotes understanding of Igbo language literacy through reading, writing, and speaking engagements and to preserve Igbo culture and traditions in Edmonton and its surroundings.
Our Vision
To provide a platform for empowering the Igbo people of Edmonton and beyond on the use of Igbo language in the areas of listening, speaking, reading, and writing, as well as familiarity with the traditions, culture, and customs of the Igbo Nation.
Over the past 10 years, efforts were being made to institute the teaching and learning of the Igbo language among Igbo community of Edmonton and its surroundings as it was obvious that most of the younger generations with a few adult members lack the proficiency in the understanding, reading, writing, and speaking of the Igbo language.
Unfortunately, the sustainability of such initiative never materialized for several reasons including difficulties finding a central location so that people will have equal access to the school, transportation of students to and from the school, absence of institutional learning structure for support, lack of teachers with sound knowledge of Igbo language and difficulties with placing learners in the appropriate class and creating pathways for graduation to other classes. Despite these challenges, a trial program started in 2018.
The program operated in person on a biweekly weekend basis prior to Covid-19 pandemic with an average enrolment of 45-55 students and two volunteer teachers. The program was suspended in Spring of 2020 due to Covid-19 health restrictions that resulted in closure of schools in Edmonton. Consequently, the ICAE board set up a committee to develop an online modular framework for continuity. The committee met online over several months and formulated a workable online curriculum, ethical document, and bylaw for the Edmonton Igbo School. The committee was later transformed into the Edmonton Igbo School Board with the mandate to oversee the running of the Edmonton Igbo School program.
In January 2022, the board indicated readiness to test run the online teaching platform on a weekly weekend basis for 2 hours and thereafter, opened the door for enrolment. About 85 students registered out of which 56 indicated that they would prefer online over in-person sessions. Three tentative classes sub-categorised based on student ages were created and one teacher and two volunteer staff were recruited. Three Zoom licences were purchased for this purpose. The trial classes started in February of 2022 and lasted until June 2022. The online trial period was an important step for the school board to gather more information, understand the challenges ahead, review the limitations of the online platform and to effectively plan for technological infrastructure that will ensure that the Igbo Language learning continues and reaches a wider audience.