Roseta Wekesa, a Kenyan teacher of Biology and Chemistry has attracted attention on social media after her move seeking to set a record for having taught the longest science lesson in the world.
Wekesa, who works at St Austin’s Academy, set her eyes on a target of teaching science for a minimum of 50 non-stop hours.
On Thursday, Friday 15, Rosetta crossed the 50-hours mark in her lesson and even went on to attempt 60 hours.
“By the grace of God we have crossed the 50th hour mark. Now we are heading to the 66th hour mark,” Rosetta announced in an Instagram post on Thursday evening.
According to Wekesa, the motive behind her attempt is her observation that many people in the country view science as a “giant” or complex field.
She explained that many people had failed to achieve their potential due to the way in which teachers of science in Kenyan schools approached the subject.
As such, she wanted to impact the society with her record long lesson to make them view science in a different perspective.
Wekesa also explained that she aims to change people’s perspective on the teaching profession through her lengthy lesson.
“So many people have not achieved what they would have achieved in this area because science was presented as a giant, as a difficult science lesson. Sciences were packaged,” She noted in one of her videos.
“I want to show a different side of science that is enjoyable and that you can indeed understand science. I also realized that none of my students want to be teachers, because they think teachers are not esteemed highly enough.”
What it took Roseta Wekesa to break Guinness World Record
But achieving such a feat is not just a mere walk in the park.
Wekesa and her team have been preparing for her lesson in the past few months since late 2023, working with various partners to make it successful.
To facilitate the lesson, Wekesa partnered with the Multimedia University (MMU) which offered to host the lesson and other well-known institutions in Kenya including the Sonko Rescue team and St Johns Ambulance.
Her lesson also needed a well-equipped laboratory and a wide range of stationery- a testament to the big task she had to take on.
Also Read: Kenyan Chef Breaks Guinness World Record
For her students, Wekesa had partnered with a team of people with interest in science and managed to convince them to become part of her project.
In her recent video, Wekesa explained that a person seeking to attempt must work to find volunteers seeking to sit and follow the lesson for the entire duration.
After months of intense preparations, her attempt to preside over the longest lesson started on Tuesday, February 13, and extended on Thursday to achieve the ambitious feat.
Dressed in a white lab coat, Wekesa walked into her lecture room, armed with her pen and all other equipment needed for the science lesson.
Kenyans follow Wekesa’s lesson to witness history
Her lesson was streamed live on social media handles including Instagram where fans and other interested persons followed the events as they unfolded.
Her hope was to feature in the Guinness World Records as the teacher who taught the longest Science lesson.
Also Read: Popular Kenyan Chefs that Shook the Internet in 2023
By 9am on Wednesday, Wekesa and students had already endured some 16 hours of sitting down and following the lesson. Later in an update on Thursday, February 15, Wekesa shared an update at around 11.00 am announcing that she had clocked 42 hours in her lesson, just less than 8 hours to her coveted feat.
The mood from the lesson was lively and students as seen in the photos and videos taken from the lecture room.
Wekesa would, like any other teacher, walk around the room, checking the work of his students to ensure they were all on the same page.
The Guiness World Records is known for documenting the incredible feats found on its book and various TV Shows, social media and live events.
In 2023, Kenyan famous chef Maliha Mohammed set a new record for the longest cooking session in an endeavor that saw her cook for 150 hours, 11 seconds, to breaking the previous record of 119 hours, 57 minutes, and 16 seconds set by Irishman Alan Fisher.
