How to Build a Class Room
The Kasulu Bible College Campus currently consists of two dormitories, a library (which needs more books) a computer room, a principle’s office, a teacher’s lounge and four class rooms. The Bible College usually has a student body of a little less than 80 students. In order to hold more concurrent classes they decided to build two more class rooms, which are currently under construction.
As is traditional for almost all buildings in Tanzania, including most houses, the class rooms are being built out of brick. The brick is made locally; the dirt here is basically clay, so dirt is dug, formed into bricks and placed into large cairns that are built in the form of ovens. Fires are built under the cairns to “fire” the bricks. Often, if there is enough space, the bricks might be made and fired in the same location as the house or building.
Cement or concrete is very expensive here, so it is used sparingly. After the foundation is built, the bricks are laid using mud to hold them together. This works well, but will not last for very many rainy seasons if not protected.
Basic window frames are installed as the bricks are laid. These are wood with horizontal metal bars placed every 6 inches or so. Later screening and a heavy open metal mesh will be installed on the outside of the bars, and if there is enough money glass or plastic window that can open will be placed on the inside. (House holds that have less money often install wooden shutters.) After the windows were installed on the classrooms, the bricks and windows were capped with about 8 inches of concrete. Another foot or so of bricks will be laid on top of the concrete before the roof is added.
Roofing is one of the most expensive parts of a building. Wooden trusses are erected and then corrugated metal provides the actual roof itself. Poorer households will use thatch, which does not do as good a job of keeping out the rains and needs constant repair. It is not unusual, when traveling between Kigoma and Kasulu to see men with rolled up tubes of corrugated roofing material strapped to their bicycles.
After the roof is put in place, a cement floor will be poured. Every part of making cement, except for the water, must be brought in from other areas, which makes if very expensive.
Once the floor is poured, the inside walls will be plastered and painted, electricity must be wired, and finally, to protect the walls, which are basically held together with mud, from the seasonal rains, the outside must be plastered with a layer of cement. Some doors, desks and chairs, and you have two new classrooms.