Dressed in her cherished green graduation attire, eyes decorated to let out the sparkle and a smile that cancelled her anxiety about facing the crowd, Liza Martha was all armed for a crucial moment in her life.

The six-year-old nursery pupil was accompanied by two of her classmates, confidently, to give her speech and send a memorable parting shot to the parents.

Martha who completed her pre-school at Darling Wisdom Primary and Nursery School in Juba, praised the teachers for assisting them in learning to read and write which she considered a major accomplishment in her life.

“I know [that] when I joined baby class, it was not easy for me to do anything, but my teachers teach me,” she said.

Martha encouraged her pre-school classmates to continue their education up to the university level to attain their goals.

“I say this for justice, peace, and prosperity,” Martha explained.

Okelo Kenneth Obote, the headmaster of Darling Wisdom Academy Nursery and Primary School, said the children earned their final step at nursery level and it will enable them to use their newly formed knowledge and experience for further studies in primary education.

 “As per this graduation, we have prepared 75 pupils who are graduating from the primary one, among whom we have 32 girls and 43 boys,” he said.

Call to parents

Merrio Jimmy, the chairperson of the Parents Teachers Association, advised parents to stop assaulting teachers who teach their children.

“The parents came to the school and fought with the teachers [a few times]. Is this a great thing, he asked the parents. Let us stop fighting and instead focus on celebrating happy occasions like tonight, where we can see our children’s accomplishments, ” Jimmy said.

“Another parent also came to the school, invaded the classroom, and beat a child. “Leave it if you’re one of them who’s doing it,” he said.

The school administrator, John Madhor, said it is always difficult to manage children when they are first brought to school.

He said they often cry because they believe their parents have abandoned them.

“For the first time they were crying, and I was told this is a crying week, and they were given two weeks for crying. “There is no teaching and today the ties when they were crying and those ties are now joyful,” said Madhor.

Madhor warned parents not to give their children everything they want, especially when they ask for money so that they do not get spoilt. He urged the parents to always feed their children well to keep them healthy.

 “The child will grow up that every day there is money and [by] that time if you don’t have money, your child will be taken up by the peer group,” he stressed.

Nobel Arem Riak, the director of Darling Wisdom Academy, said he has been in a refugee camp in Uganda for 17 years and has gathered a lot of life lessons.

He said he did not want what he had experienced to happen to any child.

Arem also stated that the funds raised by the school will be used to upgrade it to a modern boarding school and expand it across all ten states.

“We must have a target as South Sudanese because we cannot send all our children outside. Children must study at home at the secondary level, primary and nursery levels, and maybe at university level if you wish, you can send your child outside because the child is grown up,” Arem said.

“I worked on my dream. That is why I built this school so that our children can study at home. I have not dropped my dream.

 “I want in 10 years to come, there must be Darling Wisdom Academies in 10 states, and I will continue to employ good teachers even if they are Kenyans or Ugandans,” he added.

The school director has offered free education to Liza Martha, the head girl nursery, and Esther Shala, a primary two pupils until they complete their primary.

The parents of the two girls have been urged to provide only school requirements.

Senior Inspector in the national ministry of general education and instruction, Odera Charles Opoka, commended the school administration for the success accomplished in its first five years.

“The director of Darling Wisdom, I would like to assure you that the effort you made will not go in vain, but it will be a memory and legacy you have created for this nation,” Mr. Opoka said.