Found out today that my phone, which gives me internet and hence blog postings, will not work in zimbabwe or botswana (no surprise really). So i will sign off for now, and when I return i will have finally realized my childhood dream of playing Sheena at the culminating victoria falls scene (imdb it!). Im bungee jumping too. Luv u guys! Back in 7 ish days give or take. Dont worry tho if not.
sent using MTC Freemail service
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
More Pictures Online
Link is on the left, or http://picasaweb.google.com/heyjenjackson
They're in order by date taken, now, so that the comments will make more
sense.
They're in order by date taken, now, so that the comments will make more
sense.
Holiday!
I'm headed east in a few hours with the girls, Rachel and Mita. Our first
stop is Katima. Thursday we will make our way into Zimbabwe and Victoria
Falls!! (Google it if you haven't already.) I'm not sure how long we'll be
there. May also go to the Zambia side.
stop is Katima. Thursday we will make our way into Zimbabwe and Victoria
Falls!! (Google it if you haven't already.) I'm not sure how long we'll be
there. May also go to the Zambia side.
From there we are headed South into Chobe National Park in Botswana where
HOPEFULLY I'll get to see me some biiiig animals!
I'm not sure what the cell phone situation is in Botswana (I'm assuming it's
a no-go in Zim), but I'll do my best to put up short A-OK posts from the
road.
At the very least I should be back in commission no later than Sept. 6.
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Change of Plans
So I often just think a lot when I can't sleep...or maybe it's all the
thinking that keeps me awake, either way, I lay there, mull over problems
and usually come up with plans to solve them.
Things just aren't working in my math classrooms. The learners who mostly
get it are the ones that are participating, and all the rest say "yes" when
I ask if they understand. Due to time I can only glance at homework for
completion, not correctness, but that doesn't matter since most of it is
copied anyway. Me being one and them being *very many*, I can't give too
much individual attention, and really it's only the ones who do fairly well
that come in for extra help anyway. And you all know how exams turn out...
I strongly suspect language/accent to be an issue, the ever-present
disinterest in math and that many simply give up after a few failures (who
wouldn't?!)
So I have a new plan...teams. I ranked all the learners by their exam
scores, and went Team 1-2-3-4-1-2-3-4-... right down the list. The top
performers are the "team captains" and each team has some middle, low and
very low scorers. There are between 5 and 6 learners on a team. They will
of course get to come up with team names and decorate some sort of team
banner. The teams will sit together every day (except quiz day) and I'll
allot time in class for team pow-wows with the material. I'll assign
homework every day, as usual, but will not be checking it, even for
completion. The motivation for doing the homework will be Quiz Day. Once a
week there will be a short quiz, with problems virtually the same as the
homework. The team with the highest average will get 1 point. The team
with the most points at the end of the term wins...something, TBD. I'm
going to make little score boards for the classrooms.
If someone has a question outside of class, they should come with their
team. If someone is absent/ditches class, presumably their team will want
to catch them up...if someone is having English issues, hopefully their team
will explain in Thimbukushu...all to better their team score on Quiz Day.
With a guaranteed quiz a week, I will have enough scores to choose the
highest ones to record in the register - not to mention no longer having to
sift through their notebooks weekly. Oh, AND, hopefully they'll get a
little more used to tests, which should help allay some jitters for the next
round of exams.
Think it'll work? I'll let y'all know...stay tuned...
thinking that keeps me awake, either way, I lay there, mull over problems
and usually come up with plans to solve them.
Things just aren't working in my math classrooms. The learners who mostly
get it are the ones that are participating, and all the rest say "yes" when
I ask if they understand. Due to time I can only glance at homework for
completion, not correctness, but that doesn't matter since most of it is
copied anyway. Me being one and them being *very many*, I can't give too
much individual attention, and really it's only the ones who do fairly well
that come in for extra help anyway. And you all know how exams turn out...
I strongly suspect language/accent to be an issue, the ever-present
disinterest in math and that many simply give up after a few failures (who
wouldn't?!)
So I have a new plan...teams. I ranked all the learners by their exam
scores, and went Team 1-2-3-4-1-2-3-4-... right down the list. The top
performers are the "team captains" and each team has some middle, low and
very low scorers. There are between 5 and 6 learners on a team. They will
of course get to come up with team names and decorate some sort of team
banner. The teams will sit together every day (except quiz day) and I'll
allot time in class for team pow-wows with the material. I'll assign
homework every day, as usual, but will not be checking it, even for
completion. The motivation for doing the homework will be Quiz Day. Once a
week there will be a short quiz, with problems virtually the same as the
homework. The team with the highest average will get 1 point. The team
with the most points at the end of the term wins...something, TBD. I'm
going to make little score boards for the classrooms.
If someone has a question outside of class, they should come with their
team. If someone is absent/ditches class, presumably their team will want
to catch them up...if someone is having English issues, hopefully their team
will explain in Thimbukushu...all to better their team score on Quiz Day.
With a guaranteed quiz a week, I will have enough scores to choose the
highest ones to record in the register - not to mention no longer having to
sift through their notebooks weekly. Oh, AND, hopefully they'll get a
little more used to tests, which should help allay some jitters for the next
round of exams.
Think it'll work? I'll let y'all know...stay tuned...
On Trash
Trash. Trash. Trash is EVERYWHERE and it drives me absolutely batty. I'm
looking out my bedroom window right now, and the ground is literally
littered with trash. But there's really not much to be done about it.
When I first got here I got all up in arms about it, and walked around my
yard picking up every scrap. Once bagged, it goes where the trash from our
house goes...in a hole in the back yard. Not two days later, half of what I
picked up was back blowing around the yard again. See there are a few
factors working against trash collection here - namely dogs, goats and wind.
My housemates don't help - if they're finishing their beer while walking
from the gate to the door, it's dropped mid-step. If they happen to be near
a window and finish a bag of chips, out the window the bag goes. At first,
this infuriated me. All of my trash of course goes into my plastic grocery
bag, which is later emptied into the hole in the back. But again, within a
day or two I see my trash around the yard too.
This culture, like many others, is very prideful, but there seems to be
little to no pride in ones surroundings. I made the mistake of giving out
candies with wrappers a few times in class. The wrappers went either to the
floor or out the window. I tell the kids to pick them up, so fine, they get
dropped in the pile accumulating in the corner...which at odd times gets
taken to trash bins...which sometimes get emptied and burned...but most
times end up just blowing in the wind.
But what does anyone DOOO??? There's no central 'waste management'
authority, there's no reliable transportation, hell there weren't even bins
until a Peace Corps guy managed to deliver a few in the area. Even if you
could stop people from littering, which would mean undoing X years of habit,
where does the trash go and how does it get there?
This has also made me painfully aware of how much waste I'm personally
generating. See I don't eat boiled goat and porridge every day. Nope, I
eat pasta, tuna, tuna helper, egg sandwiches, fruit chutney nik naks (the
best chips in the world) - all of which have one thing in common -
packaging. I probably generate twice the waste that my housemates do, and
it makes me ill. I reuse all that I can, but eesh.
Burn scars cover this landscape, quite literally. I guess I prefer that
than trash strewn about. But I can't help but thinking of all the plastics
and fumes and CO2.
Those of you who know me know what recycling nazi I am. Here, beyond
reusing stuff, there's no such thing as recycling. Apparently there's a
recycling center in Windhoek, so someone in this country is thinking about
it, but that's a heckofalongway from here.
What to do???!!!
looking out my bedroom window right now, and the ground is literally
littered with trash. But there's really not much to be done about it.
When I first got here I got all up in arms about it, and walked around my
yard picking up every scrap. Once bagged, it goes where the trash from our
house goes...in a hole in the back yard. Not two days later, half of what I
picked up was back blowing around the yard again. See there are a few
factors working against trash collection here - namely dogs, goats and wind.
My housemates don't help - if they're finishing their beer while walking
from the gate to the door, it's dropped mid-step. If they happen to be near
a window and finish a bag of chips, out the window the bag goes. At first,
this infuriated me. All of my trash of course goes into my plastic grocery
bag, which is later emptied into the hole in the back. But again, within a
day or two I see my trash around the yard too.
This culture, like many others, is very prideful, but there seems to be
little to no pride in ones surroundings. I made the mistake of giving out
candies with wrappers a few times in class. The wrappers went either to the
floor or out the window. I tell the kids to pick them up, so fine, they get
dropped in the pile accumulating in the corner...which at odd times gets
taken to trash bins...which sometimes get emptied and burned...but most
times end up just blowing in the wind.
But what does anyone DOOO??? There's no central 'waste management'
authority, there's no reliable transportation, hell there weren't even bins
until a Peace Corps guy managed to deliver a few in the area. Even if you
could stop people from littering, which would mean undoing X years of habit,
where does the trash go and how does it get there?
This has also made me painfully aware of how much waste I'm personally
generating. See I don't eat boiled goat and porridge every day. Nope, I
eat pasta, tuna, tuna helper, egg sandwiches, fruit chutney nik naks (the
best chips in the world) - all of which have one thing in common -
packaging. I probably generate twice the waste that my housemates do, and
it makes me ill. I reuse all that I can, but eesh.
Burn scars cover this landscape, quite literally. I guess I prefer that
than trash strewn about. But I can't help but thinking of all the plastics
and fumes and CO2.
Those of you who know me know what recycling nazi I am. Here, beyond
reusing stuff, there's no such thing as recycling. Apparently there's a
recycling center in Windhoek, so someone in this country is thinking about
it, but that's a heckofalongway from here.
What to do???!!!
Friday, August 21, 2009
This is Africa
So I'm sitting outside yesterday enjoying a post-term beer and watching the
sunset when all of a sudden a bunch of dust and what seem like pebbles fall
on my head. I'm stunned for a second, wondering what the heck just
happened. Then there's a loud and something much bigger falls on me.
I look down and there is a small bat holding onto my pants at my thigh. I
of course jump up and wiggle around and act like a TOTAL girl trying to get
it off, but the little guy is holding on. I finally brush it off with my
wrist...and then proceed to wiggle around and "EEEEEK" some more (like a
girl).
This at least solves the mystery of the sounds I hear overhead at night in
my bedroom. Bats, check. (Least it's not rats...which is what they sound
like.)
That is all.
sunset when all of a sudden a bunch of dust and what seem like pebbles fall
on my head. I'm stunned for a second, wondering what the heck just
happened. Then there's a loud and something much bigger falls on me.
I look down and there is a small bat holding onto my pants at my thigh. I
of course jump up and wiggle around and act like a TOTAL girl trying to get
it off, but the little guy is holding on. I finally brush it off with my
wrist...and then proceed to wiggle around and "EEEEEK" some more (like a
girl).
This at least solves the mystery of the sounds I hear overhead at night in
my bedroom. Bats, check. (Least it's not rats...which is what they sound
like.)
That is all.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Results Are In...and they are Saaaaaad
Here are the results out of 100 (percentage) for the term (not the exam
scores...the scores for the whole term):
Physical Science, Grade 8, 3 classes, 116 learners
High - 54%
Low - 3%
Average - 30% - F
Math, Grade 9, 2 classes, 77 learners
High - 65%
Low - 8%
Average - 23% - G
Math, Grade 10, 2 classes, 57 learners
High - 43%
Low - 1%
Average - 20% - G
The letter grades go like this:
A, 80-100
B, 70-79
C, 60-69
D, 50-59
E, 40-49
F, 30-39
G, 20-29
U, 0-19
F is passing. If learners get only 1 G and they pass English, they can
still pass the grade.
In grade 10, 32 learners got "U", which means "Ungraded", which is the
equivalent of not showing up for class at all. I felt like ASS yesterday,
absolute ASS. But as I'm sitting in the staff room with other teachers
marking, they're all reporting the same stuff. Mr. D. just now said, "I
can't sleep sometimes asking myself if I'm teaching or not." In truth, I
see him sleeping in the staff room sometimes when he *should* be teaching,
so there's definitely reason to doubt himself...but ...oh shoot, that makes
me feel worse actually. I WAS teaching, and these are the results I get.
But then again math is...challenging. Joseph Kativa was the one that got 1%
in 10B. But I just saw in history he got 60 something! So he has the
capacity, he just strongly dislikes math. This is true all over the world I
suppose. The other math teacher in grades 5-8 says she sees the same
things, and I know in her class English isn't a problem.
Maybe in a few generations things will be better. Actually, they will, I'm
sure of it. You get a collection of the 65%-ers to not leave the country
and stick around to be in education or government, and things will change.
In other news....I'm completely done with my work...just waiting for other
teachers to hand in their scores for my register class so I can complete
their report cards.
It's going to be a loooong couple of days.
scores...the scores for the whole term):
Physical Science, Grade 8, 3 classes, 116 learners
High - 54%
Low - 3%
Average - 30% - F
Math, Grade 9, 2 classes, 77 learners
High - 65%
Low - 8%
Average - 23% - G
Math, Grade 10, 2 classes, 57 learners
High - 43%
Low - 1%
Average - 20% - G
The letter grades go like this:
A, 80-100
B, 70-79
C, 60-69
D, 50-59
E, 40-49
F, 30-39
G, 20-29
U, 0-19
F is passing. If learners get only 1 G and they pass English, they can
still pass the grade.
In grade 10, 32 learners got "U", which means "Ungraded", which is the
equivalent of not showing up for class at all. I felt like ASS yesterday,
absolute ASS. But as I'm sitting in the staff room with other teachers
marking, they're all reporting the same stuff. Mr. D. just now said, "I
can't sleep sometimes asking myself if I'm teaching or not." In truth, I
see him sleeping in the staff room sometimes when he *should* be teaching,
so there's definitely reason to doubt himself...but ...oh shoot, that makes
me feel worse actually. I WAS teaching, and these are the results I get.
But then again math is...challenging. Joseph Kativa was the one that got 1%
in 10B. But I just saw in history he got 60 something! So he has the
capacity, he just strongly dislikes math. This is true all over the world I
suppose. The other math teacher in grades 5-8 says she sees the same
things, and I know in her class English isn't a problem.
Maybe in a few generations things will be better. Actually, they will, I'm
sure of it. You get a collection of the 65%-ers to not leave the country
and stick around to be in education or government, and things will change.
In other news....I'm completely done with my work...just waiting for other
teachers to hand in their scores for my register class so I can complete
their report cards.
It's going to be a loooong couple of days.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Exams
Coming up on Day 9 of 10 for exams. Serious marathon test-taking over here.
Physical Science happened while I was in Windhoek, and I'm kind of glad
about that...because it's chaos on your exam day, as I experienced with
Math.
I was able to get the exams ahead of time and proof them. Oh me oh my.
Errors left and right on the tests, AND on the keys. And I'm not talking
about little typos...there were plenty of those that I didn't bother trying
to correct. No, I mean, here's the diagram, and the 3 QUESTIONS to
accompany said diagram are not there. Or, find angle X, but X is not
marked. So I ran around like a mad woman trying to write the corrections on
the board in each of the classrooms. And made sure to distribute all the
calculators and pencils I had amongst my grade 10's. After all that, they
were just flat out hard tests. Sigh.
Other things working against the learners are the sporadic time
tables...some of the teachers don't exactly stick to the schedule. And as
far as I can tell, in some classes, if the majority of the learners are done
with the exam (or more to the point, have given up), the invigilator
releases everyone. Um, photocopying...sometimes there aren't enough exam
papers, sometimes various pages are missing or were stapled in the incorrect
order.
I've been bringing skittles to the classes I invigilate for...figure the
sugar boost might help them just a teeny bit. Plus I think I might be
getting a cavity from all the sugar...so it's a win-win really :-)
I am done marking the science exams and the grade 10's. I'll start on grade
9's tomorrow. I'll post my highs/lows and averages in a few days. But let
me warn you, it's DEpressing.
I find myself wondering if I've done more harm than good sometimes....like
did I spend too much time on a topic that was too hard that I should've let
go? Should I have started giving them actual exam problems weeks and weeks
ago? It's really easy to second guess yourself around this time, and I know
that, but I can't help it, obviously.
Physical Science happened while I was in Windhoek, and I'm kind of glad
about that...because it's chaos on your exam day, as I experienced with
Math.
I was able to get the exams ahead of time and proof them. Oh me oh my.
Errors left and right on the tests, AND on the keys. And I'm not talking
about little typos...there were plenty of those that I didn't bother trying
to correct. No, I mean, here's the diagram, and the 3 QUESTIONS to
accompany said diagram are not there. Or, find angle X, but X is not
marked. So I ran around like a mad woman trying to write the corrections on
the board in each of the classrooms. And made sure to distribute all the
calculators and pencils I had amongst my grade 10's. After all that, they
were just flat out hard tests. Sigh.
Other things working against the learners are the sporadic time
tables...some of the teachers don't exactly stick to the schedule. And as
far as I can tell, in some classes, if the majority of the learners are done
with the exam (or more to the point, have given up), the invigilator
releases everyone. Um, photocopying...sometimes there aren't enough exam
papers, sometimes various pages are missing or were stapled in the incorrect
order.
I've been bringing skittles to the classes I invigilate for...figure the
sugar boost might help them just a teeny bit. Plus I think I might be
getting a cavity from all the sugar...so it's a win-win really :-)
I am done marking the science exams and the grade 10's. I'll start on grade
9's tomorrow. I'll post my highs/lows and averages in a few days. But let
me warn you, it's DEpressing.
I find myself wondering if I've done more harm than good sometimes....like
did I spend too much time on a topic that was too hard that I should've let
go? Should I have started giving them actual exam problems weeks and weeks
ago? It's really easy to second guess yourself around this time, and I know
that, but I can't help it, obviously.
Ngepi Camp
I slung my backpack over my shoulder Saturday morning with my new-to-me
inherited tent and sleeping pad, bound for the famous Ngepi Camp. It's
about 11 k away down the road to Botswana, on the Kavango River.
I walked for about 4k before I got a hike, and thank goodness too because it
was HOT. It was worth it though, as the camp is as beautiful as everyone
says. And has very clever toilets and showers! For instance, there's
"Poopa Falls" - a play on a nearby waterfall called Popa Falls :-) There
are "tree houses" available which are gorgeous huts elevated a bit off the
ground. Those were pricey though so I stuck to my tent. (unfortunately
though, a tent pole is in need of some repair).
This area on the river is famous for hippos and crocodiles...i only got to
see the hippos. Apparently the water is too high right now for the crocs.
The croc/hippo swimming cage is still in use, however, and I took a quick
dip. Fun! (until the ear infection started the next day... :-(
I met a really lovely retired couple, and boy did I wish I could have spent
more time with them. Instant connection really. Then there was the
uncomfortably aggressive South African tour guide that I couldn't get to
leave me alone.
Tent-sleeping left quite a bit to be desired...i'm very bony, you see, so a
sleeping pad doesn't help me much. And I sort of forgot how much colder it
can be by the river...so I was uncomfortable AND freezing. But the quiet
was lovely.
OH, it wasn't THAT quiet...i heard elephants this morning! WOW! Apparently
they were visible last night, but I missed them. And of course, hippos are
quite audible as well.
I'll definitely go back to ngepi, though a camp site was a whopping $85
namibian...$10US. Regardless, it's great to have such a lovely oasis so
near by.
inherited tent and sleeping pad, bound for the famous Ngepi Camp. It's
about 11 k away down the road to Botswana, on the Kavango River.
I walked for about 4k before I got a hike, and thank goodness too because it
was HOT. It was worth it though, as the camp is as beautiful as everyone
says. And has very clever toilets and showers! For instance, there's
"Poopa Falls" - a play on a nearby waterfall called Popa Falls :-) There
are "tree houses" available which are gorgeous huts elevated a bit off the
ground. Those were pricey though so I stuck to my tent. (unfortunately
though, a tent pole is in need of some repair).
This area on the river is famous for hippos and crocodiles...i only got to
see the hippos. Apparently the water is too high right now for the crocs.
The croc/hippo swimming cage is still in use, however, and I took a quick
dip. Fun! (until the ear infection started the next day... :-(
I met a really lovely retired couple, and boy did I wish I could have spent
more time with them. Instant connection really. Then there was the
uncomfortably aggressive South African tour guide that I couldn't get to
leave me alone.
Tent-sleeping left quite a bit to be desired...i'm very bony, you see, so a
sleeping pad doesn't help me much. And I sort of forgot how much colder it
can be by the river...so I was uncomfortable AND freezing. But the quiet
was lovely.
OH, it wasn't THAT quiet...i heard elephants this morning! WOW! Apparently
they were visible last night, but I missed them. And of course, hippos are
quite audible as well.
I'll definitely go back to ngepi, though a camp site was a whopping $85
namibian...$10US. Regardless, it's great to have such a lovely oasis so
near by.
She's a Namibian Now!
The learners braided my hair Friday night. It looks AMAZING! Like last
time I did it in the states, I've got reddish/brown, black and white. I'll
post pictures soon I hope.
It only took 4 hours as opposed to the usual 7-8, but it hurts quite a bit
more when you have 3 or 4 people yanking on your head at once. Soooo worth
it though.
Will likely leave it in 3-4 weeks. Yay!! Oh, the price of said braiding?
3 large fantas and some beef jerky. I hope they are as willing to help me
take them out!!
time I did it in the states, I've got reddish/brown, black and white. I'll
post pictures soon I hope.
It only took 4 hours as opposed to the usual 7-8, but it hurts quite a bit
more when you have 3 or 4 people yanking on your head at once. Soooo worth
it though.
Will likely leave it in 3-4 weeks. Yay!! Oh, the price of said braiding?
3 large fantas and some beef jerky. I hope they are as willing to help me
take them out!!
Spring Is Officially Here
Actually, Spring seems to have come while I was in Windhoek. Almost
overnight the weather seemed to change. Since I came it's been pretty darn
cold in the mornings and evenings - like 2 fleeces and a scarf cold. And no
mosquitoes whatsoever. Then, within 2 days I went to 1 fleece, then to no
fleece.
The days were always rather warm before, but now I'd call them hot. And
there's a definite sense that it's going to be roasting here before too
long.
Everyone is loving spring though...they say this is the best time of year
:-)
I'm a little nervous what it's going to be like when the Namibians say it's
hot. Not to mention the mozzies. Yikes.....
overnight the weather seemed to change. Since I came it's been pretty darn
cold in the mornings and evenings - like 2 fleeces and a scarf cold. And no
mosquitoes whatsoever. Then, within 2 days I went to 1 fleece, then to no
fleece.
The days were always rather warm before, but now I'd call them hot. And
there's a definite sense that it's going to be roasting here before too
long.
Everyone is loving spring though...they say this is the best time of year
:-)
I'm a little nervous what it's going to be like when the Namibians say it's
hot. Not to mention the mozzies. Yikes.....
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Bright Lights Big City
I'm back from Windhoek, where the semester volunteers had our mid-service
conference and the summer volunteers had end-of-service. It was hard to say
goodbye to Megan...but I know she's basking in the arms of her honey and
probably eating tremendously well.
Windhoek was more than a little overwhelming. It is SUCH a western city.
For Rachel's birthday us Kavango girls went to a real restaurant. I, for
one, nearly tripped when I walked in it was so nice. All along I've been
saying that it's hard to wrap my head around the fact that back home we have
so much and here there is so little. But that's true even within Namibia.
Now that I'm writing this, I suppose it's true everywhere.
I have to say though I was anxious to get back to Divundu. I didn't miss my
house, but I missed my room and my routine. And of course, I missed my
learners. Thanks to Marlena I was Mrs. Claus this afternoon and brought
some much needed bras (and a few other things) to the girls' dorm. Oh were
they happy! I also have news to pass along to Andreas about his possible
job in Windhoek. I haven't caught up with him yet but imagine I will
tonight.
Will write more soon.
Quick updates:
I did spin fire for the school. Everyone loved it, but between me and the
rest of the world it wasn't a stellar performance.
I ate monkey fruit. Google it.
I got a paycheck!! It's not as much as the other semester volunteers for
some wacky reason, but at least it's something...and I'm finally not having
to live off savings!
conference and the summer volunteers had end-of-service. It was hard to say
goodbye to Megan...but I know she's basking in the arms of her honey and
probably eating tremendously well.
Windhoek was more than a little overwhelming. It is SUCH a western city.
For Rachel's birthday us Kavango girls went to a real restaurant. I, for
one, nearly tripped when I walked in it was so nice. All along I've been
saying that it's hard to wrap my head around the fact that back home we have
so much and here there is so little. But that's true even within Namibia.
Now that I'm writing this, I suppose it's true everywhere.
I have to say though I was anxious to get back to Divundu. I didn't miss my
house, but I missed my room and my routine. And of course, I missed my
learners. Thanks to Marlena I was Mrs. Claus this afternoon and brought
some much needed bras (and a few other things) to the girls' dorm. Oh were
they happy! I also have news to pass along to Andreas about his possible
job in Windhoek. I haven't caught up with him yet but imagine I will
tonight.
Will write more soon.
Quick updates:
I did spin fire for the school. Everyone loved it, but between me and the
rest of the world it wasn't a stellar performance.
I ate monkey fruit. Google it.
I got a paycheck!! It's not as much as the other semester volunteers for
some wacky reason, but at least it's something...and I'm finally not having
to live off savings!
Monday, August 3, 2009
Life Goes On
The school seems relatively unfazed over the passing of Ms. M. I think it's
because she hasn't been here all year, that and everyone is a little
shell-shocked that we lost two teachers in such a short amount of time.
Classes proceeded normally today. There was an afternoon service that many
attended, but not nearly as many as Mr. M's. The teachers got into a debate
this morning on the logistics of attending the funeral. Last time, money
was collected from each teacher to go towards transport for the staff and
learners. At the last minute, the learners got dropped from the trip.
There are still grumblings as to where the money went. I didn't attend Mr.
M's funeral, and I was not asked to pay (though I found out later "all
teachers" were asked). I haven't gotten a dime of my stipend yet, so I'm
still living off of my savings and not inclined to blindly put in money for
anything. I would've had it been for the learners, but clearly that didn't
happen. After this weekend's boondoggle I see more where the money goes.
So I will continue to wave the 'haven't-gotten-paid' flag.
Tonight I was supposed to spin fire for the school as a sort of pep rally
pre-examinations. With the services, I didn't feel it was appropriate, so
it's been rescheduled for tomorrow night. I've asked some learners to drum
for me.WHOO HOO - spinning fire in AFriCA to African drumming for a hundred
or so bright eyed-never-seen-anything-like-this-before kiddos!!
Hopefully it happens.
If not I suppose I can always do an end-of-exams show.
Exams start tomorrow with Thimbukushu.at least I won't be tempted to help
them out!!
because she hasn't been here all year, that and everyone is a little
shell-shocked that we lost two teachers in such a short amount of time.
Classes proceeded normally today. There was an afternoon service that many
attended, but not nearly as many as Mr. M's. The teachers got into a debate
this morning on the logistics of attending the funeral. Last time, money
was collected from each teacher to go towards transport for the staff and
learners. At the last minute, the learners got dropped from the trip.
There are still grumblings as to where the money went. I didn't attend Mr.
M's funeral, and I was not asked to pay (though I found out later "all
teachers" were asked). I haven't gotten a dime of my stipend yet, so I'm
still living off of my savings and not inclined to blindly put in money for
anything. I would've had it been for the learners, but clearly that didn't
happen. After this weekend's boondoggle I see more where the money goes.
So I will continue to wave the 'haven't-gotten-paid' flag.
Tonight I was supposed to spin fire for the school as a sort of pep rally
pre-examinations. With the services, I didn't feel it was appropriate, so
it's been rescheduled for tomorrow night. I've asked some learners to drum
for me.WHOO HOO - spinning fire in AFriCA to African drumming for a hundred
or so bright eyed-never-seen-anything-like-this-before kiddos!!
Hopefully it happens.
If not I suppose I can always do an end-of-exams show.
Exams start tomorrow with Thimbukushu.at least I won't be tempted to help
them out!!
Sunday, August 2, 2009
It's Good for You
I'm not exactly sure when it happened, but it must have been a least a few weeks ago now. I said something in 10B along the lines of practice (math) problems being good for you. There's a kid in that class, who as best I can tell doesn't give a rat's a#$ about school, that just says "Thank you Madam" in response to everything I (and any other teacher for that matter) say. Anyway, he just started repeating it, "it's good for you" all the time in this really cocky and mocking yet somehow endearing way. Over the weeks I've noticed more and more learners saying it, but it has now spread across the school. Even teachers are saying it.."it's good for you", "it's good for us", "it's good for them", and on and on.
So something was very good for me, mostly, this weekend. I agreed to be the female supervisor for an overnight sports trip. Apparently, it's the first time Divundu has ever done anything like this (throughout the weekend it was referred to as "historic"..whether that is an exaggeration or not I'm not sure). On Friday after school we loaded 50 some odd learners into the back of a truck (yes, one truck). Last minute, I was asked to drive because the driver, Mr. S. wasn't feeling well. I quickly realized that meant he wanted to drink. And in fact, it wasn't long before I figured out I was the official DD of the weekend. It was a standard car.I've driven on the other side of the road before, but not a stick, so it definitely took some muscle memory adjustments. But I digress. We took off for Rcara (this is a click word, I'll have to demonstrate when I get home). It is about 100k away, 30 or so of which is down a dirt road.
This school looks just like Divundu *should* look.buildings all the same, even the school housing has the same layout, but it's all in much better shape. We had to take everything we needed with us, including mattresses. Thankfully I had the presence of mind to bring some toilet paper too. We got the kids squared away and the teachers went to a shebeen. I feigned tiredness after a while, plus I wanted to make sure the learners weren't having sex. I went to check on the gals and plopped right down on their mattresses all bunched up in a classroom. They loved it.started playing with my hair, wondering when they would get to braid it (after the break). They asked if I'd play netball with them tomorrow and I told them about my bum knees and showed them my floating knee caps which prompted squeals and giggles. I let them play with my camera which turned out to be a big hit all weekend. I saw one girls with some fabric wrapped around her calf. I
asked what it was and someone called out something about her trying a tattoo. I asked to see it and she pulled it down to reveal all kinds of badness underneath. I told her to come see me when we got home. Anyway, bonding abounded.
The following day got off to a slow start, naturally, since the other teachers got a learner to drive them *back* to the shebeen. But soon enough the first match started. Netball is a sport for girls, and as best I can tell it's basketball without the dribbling and some weird rule allowing you
to straddle the ball to keep others from getting it. Anyway, BOTH of our teams KICKED ASS! I don't think the other team touched the ball for many minutes at a time. Then it was on to boy's soccer. Our first team lost by 1 goal, but second team won by 2. Divundu "topped" the day!!
I had a blast. I'm realizing that when I'm around kids here (both my learners and other kids), I laugh very easily. When I'm around the adults I feel more like how I feel most of the time I'm at home where things are more oh, what's the way to describe this, layered? I guess I'm not that great at living in the moment. But here with the kids, most of the time, when I laugh I'm just laughing, not thinking. So we laughed and cheered together. I sat with some local kids for a good long while and though we didn't understand a single word out of each other, we had a grand time. They kept touching my skin and blond leg/arm/head hair, and just giggling and giggling. Seriously, this entertained them for close to an hour. Earlier in the day I held a baby for a good long while and had 'baby snatching' thoughts. I joked about buying her for N$20. I took pictures of the teams and started a new Divundu cheer. And of course, "it's good for you" was pervasive throughout the day.
There were a few annoyances. The music for one. Namibians love 2 things when it comes to music, excessive volume, and repeat. Seemed that all of the CDs but one was scratched, and that one only had 3 songs on it. So that's what we listened to, for 1.5 days. 3 songs, seriously, at a ridiculous volume. I still have them in my head.
There were a few other things that bugged me, but I don't think it's appropriate to mention them publicly, at least not now. Let's just say, whenever I could, I opted to spend the time with the learners.
I'm home now, and really happy to be able to sleep in tomorrow. This morning I was up around 5. I'll make a nice breakfast, have some coffee, and try not to think about the impending failure rate on the exams that start Tuesday. I was asked several times this weekend if I could stay on as a teacher here. There's so much to love, and so much to run from.
This blog post was more elegant in my head as I was thinking about it today. Sorry it's so clunky. I should get some sleep.
So something was very good for me, mostly, this weekend. I agreed to be the female supervisor for an overnight sports trip. Apparently, it's the first time Divundu has ever done anything like this (throughout the weekend it was referred to as "historic"..whether that is an exaggeration or not I'm not sure). On Friday after school we loaded 50 some odd learners into the back of a truck (yes, one truck). Last minute, I was asked to drive because the driver, Mr. S. wasn't feeling well. I quickly realized that meant he wanted to drink. And in fact, it wasn't long before I figured out I was the official DD of the weekend. It was a standard car.I've driven on the other side of the road before, but not a stick, so it definitely took some muscle memory adjustments. But I digress. We took off for Rcara (this is a click word, I'll have to demonstrate when I get home). It is about 100k away, 30 or so of which is down a dirt road.
This school looks just like Divundu *should* look.buildings all the same, even the school housing has the same layout, but it's all in much better shape. We had to take everything we needed with us, including mattresses. Thankfully I had the presence of mind to bring some toilet paper too. We got the kids squared away and the teachers went to a shebeen. I feigned tiredness after a while, plus I wanted to make sure the learners weren't having sex. I went to check on the gals and plopped right down on their mattresses all bunched up in a classroom. They loved it.started playing with my hair, wondering when they would get to braid it (after the break). They asked if I'd play netball with them tomorrow and I told them about my bum knees and showed them my floating knee caps which prompted squeals and giggles. I let them play with my camera which turned out to be a big hit all weekend. I saw one girls with some fabric wrapped around her calf. I
asked what it was and someone called out something about her trying a tattoo. I asked to see it and she pulled it down to reveal all kinds of badness underneath. I told her to come see me when we got home. Anyway, bonding abounded.
The following day got off to a slow start, naturally, since the other teachers got a learner to drive them *back* to the shebeen. But soon enough the first match started. Netball is a sport for girls, and as best I can tell it's basketball without the dribbling and some weird rule allowing you
to straddle the ball to keep others from getting it. Anyway, BOTH of our teams KICKED ASS! I don't think the other team touched the ball for many minutes at a time. Then it was on to boy's soccer. Our first team lost by 1 goal, but second team won by 2. Divundu "topped" the day!!
I had a blast. I'm realizing that when I'm around kids here (both my learners and other kids), I laugh very easily. When I'm around the adults I feel more like how I feel most of the time I'm at home where things are more oh, what's the way to describe this, layered? I guess I'm not that great at living in the moment. But here with the kids, most of the time, when I laugh I'm just laughing, not thinking. So we laughed and cheered together. I sat with some local kids for a good long while and though we didn't understand a single word out of each other, we had a grand time. They kept touching my skin and blond leg/arm/head hair, and just giggling and giggling. Seriously, this entertained them for close to an hour. Earlier in the day I held a baby for a good long while and had 'baby snatching' thoughts. I joked about buying her for N$20. I took pictures of the teams and started a new Divundu cheer. And of course, "it's good for you" was pervasive throughout the day.
There were a few annoyances. The music for one. Namibians love 2 things when it comes to music, excessive volume, and repeat. Seemed that all of the CDs but one was scratched, and that one only had 3 songs on it. So that's what we listened to, for 1.5 days. 3 songs, seriously, at a ridiculous volume. I still have them in my head.
There were a few other things that bugged me, but I don't think it's appropriate to mention them publicly, at least not now. Let's just say, whenever I could, I opted to spend the time with the learners.
I'm home now, and really happy to be able to sleep in tomorrow. This morning I was up around 5. I'll make a nice breakfast, have some coffee, and try not to think about the impending failure rate on the exams that start Tuesday. I was asked several times this weekend if I could stay on as a teacher here. There's so much to love, and so much to run from.
This blog post was more elegant in my head as I was thinking about it today. Sorry it's so clunky. I should get some sleep.
More bad news
Another of our teachers passed away this weekend, Mrs. Mugwala. She's actually been out since the beginning of the year, so I hadn't met her either. No word as to what it was beyond "she was very sick". I doubt very much will happen at the school with this news as exams start Tuesday, but one never knows.
Our staff of 18, including me, is now down to 16. The janitors have been asked to invigilate some of the exams this week. Who knows who is going to do the marking.
Speaking of, did I mention that exams go from this Tuesday, the 4th, THROUGH the 19th?
Our staff of 18, including me, is now down to 16. The janitors have been asked to invigilate some of the exams this week. Who knows who is going to do the marking.
Speaking of, did I mention that exams go from this Tuesday, the 4th, THROUGH the 19th?
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