Every year, teachers across the country unanimously request the government to increase their salaries. But, given the government’s technical explanations, these promises by government may take a generation to be fulfilled. Worse still, some comrades plying their trade in private schools are earning even less than what the government is offering their counterparts. But on a more serious note, no amount of salary increment will satisfy a human being, even when its increased 10 fold.
Read also: 10 business ideas for teachers of ICT
So, what does a teacher do?
When you realise early that your life cannot solely rely on a salary, adding to your sources of income becomes inevitable. That is why you find teachers working in 3 different schools just to make ends meet. But this has its short comings. The quality of work automatically goes down due to fatigue and missed lessons.
However, this shouldn’t be the case for teachers of ICT. In my article, 10 business Ideas for a teacher of ICT, I shared some ideas that teachers of ICT may look at in order to diversify their income without necessarily jeorpadising the quality of their work. The problem though is that not many teachers may be able to raise the capital needed to start a business. In this article therefore, I discuss one option that will not need more than 50,000/= in capital.
How to start a web design business for free
Every teacher of Computer Studies knows that web design is one of the topics on the O’ Level teaching syllabus. This implies that the basics of web design are well part of the teacher. Now that the basics are done, learn how to create professional looking pages – FREE. How?
Attend a Word Camp near you: Word Camps are a 2 day event where you are taken through WordPress, the worlds most used Content Management System. During such camps, you are given free domains and hosting and taken through the steps of your first professional website. Knowledge and advice here is given free of charge from the start to the end of your website. Personally, I attended only 2 days of Word Camp Kampala 2018 and I already have 6 websites under my portfolio in the space of 2 months.
Read also: An amateur's experience at a WordPress meetup
On the 29th of March 2019, the first Word Camp of its kind in Entebbe was hosted at Nkumba University where attendees got to meet like minded and generous people who took them through their first website free of charge. The Nkumba event is second to the Kampala event that usually takes place at the end of every year.
Create your own business page: After attending a WordCamp, polish your website with cool themes and attractive pictures just to get used to the Word Press environment. After a few tries you will notice that you can make a website even in a day. If still in doubt, eZone Web Services can offer you free domains and hosting just in case you needed more time to polish your newly acquired skill. One such page is that of Mr. Atwine Solomon, a young enterprising teacher of ICT at Nsambya Hillside High School which can be found here. Mr. Sadik Sebi, a teacher in Koboko with whom I attended the Word Camp Kampala of 2018 also has his page here.
Read also: A day in the life of a computer repair technician
Promote your business: After mastering the word press environment, promote your new business on facebook or whatsapp (Which are also incidentally free). The first days may not bring in your client but you shouldn’t give up. The first page I made earned me cash worth 3 times more than I used to earn at my former place of work – tax free. The screen shots below show just 2 of the websites I have worked on.
The good thing about web design as a business is that you don’t have to leave your school. You can actually spend the whole day at school using free power and internet while attending to your students whenever they need you. In this way you capture the trust of your bosses, parents and students while working on your extra income.
____________________________
Stephen Dumba
E-zone School of Computing
+256 772 111 223 / +256 752 111 223
