Thursday, January 28, 2016

School Begins (1-22)

Monday morning I started at school. The school is a small one with about 180 learners in grades 4-10. Learners in lower primary grades go to a nearby lower primary school. Like my Thai schools, better learners often go to school in town after grade 6. There is one class for each grade except grade 8, which has two classes. Grades range in size from 15 to 40. There are a total of 12 staff members including the secretary and the custodian. There are also three student teachers who are here for a few weeks. The school reminds me of Nam Tuam in Thailand in its size and general atmosphere.

Although school started last Wednesday, they waited until I arrived to make the timetable of classes. So that process was started on Monday after they decided what I will teach. They decided that I will teach English to grades 8-10, a total of four classes that I’ll see daily. Since this is only 20 periods (40 minutes each, which is really 35 minutes because the learners have to change rooms during the 40 minutes), I will also help in classes for grades 4-7. Most teachers have about 34 periods, and the principal and HOD have 20.

Wilhelmina is my mentor. She is 50 years old and has been at the school for 19 years, having taught at a more distant school before then. The village is her home, and she has a field here, but she lives in Ongwediva now. She has six children, four of whom are still at home. We have already had the religion discussion. Religion is important in Namibia, and most people are Christian. She asked about my religion, and we discussed why I don’t go to a Christian church and that I get materials on the Internet.

As with most schools these days, there is a lot of paperwork. Each class has to have a Scheme of Work, which is like a syllabus, that follows the national syllabus in terms of skills taught and that prepares students for exams. There is also a term plan for each class that details each week in terms of skills taught. These are kept in a special binder along with daily lesson plans. When I completed one term plan and asked if it was to be submitted to anyone, I was told to just put it in the binder; so I think no one really pays much attention to it, but it is a good exercise to have a general outline for the term. Copies of all materials used and tests are to be kept in another binder. And the binders must be covered with pretty paper and have a typed title sheet and then be covered with clear paper to protect it. Textbooks—for both learners and teachers—are also to be covered.

Monday Wilhelmina took me to town to do shopping. I purchased food staples, food for the week, pans, a broom, and several other household items. When I came home, Sark came over to see what I had bought. Tuesday Helena walked into the kitchen and looked at my food items on the floor. She didn’t say anything, but Sark came over Wednesday morning and said he was sorry he didn’t have another small table for me to keep my food on. Later that day I purchased some shelves, and he thanked me when I showed them to him.

Tuesday I took candy from America for the teachers. I had brought chocolate covered caramels that survived pretty well. Some still had their original shape; others melted into a mass but cut apart pretty well. They were all happy to have the treat. I also gave some to Sark and Helena.

Angel asked to see an American dollar. I didn’t think I had one, but I did and took it to show him on Tuesday. He was quite happy to see and hold a real dollar that he’d seen only in pictures. If I get a few more before I leave, I’ll have enough to give every teacher one, which would be nice to be able to do.

Wednesday Angel took me to town to get my tax ID number so I can open a bank account and arrange to be paid. However, a letter is needed from the regional office; so we didn’t get that done. We did get copies of my passport and visa stamped at the police station so they are officially validated as true copies. This is standard procedure, and many people were having copies stamped. Then he took me shopping to purchase the shelves, a chair to sit on outside, and a fan. When I put the fan together, I was really disappointed to find that a piece was missing. 

The chair is a folding camp chair that is comfortable. It’s perfect for sitting in the shade under a roofed area behind my room, which I do every day.










When we passed a KFC, I asked if he liked KFC. He doesn’t. He asked if we have them in America. When I told him they are American, he was surprised, as he thought they came from Windhoek as does everything. He told me he had just recently learned that Coca Cola is an American company.

Thursday morning we received our timetables and began teaching. It was good to have the learners and get started teaching. My smallest class has 17 students, and the largest has 32. Because the class of 32 fills the whole room and because it is eleven learners more than the next largest class, it seems like a big class, but after China it’s really small.

Tuesday evening Miriam, Helena’s good friend who lives nearby, came to meet me. Thursday we went to her house. A chair was brought out for me, and the other women sat on a blanket on the ground for that purpose. Miriam has fruit trees and gave me a big mango and several lemons.

Saturday I made my first trip to town, which will be a weekly event because that’s where to purchase food. Sark walked me to the road to get a hike (ride). I think he told the young man to take me to the junction, as he returned after dropping me off. Then I got a taxi to the shopping center I’d been to with Angel. I spent a few hours walking around the shops to see what is there and to pick up my supplies, as no one shop had them all. Since I’m settling in, I needed things for the room and for school. After walking around the mall, I walked to the corner and came upon a market where lots of dried goods are sold 

as well as traditional dresses, 













baby carriers, some clothes in piles, and a few personal care items. I got a taxi to the junction, and the driver drove me down the road a bit to where he thought I could get a hike. The corner seemed like a good place to me, but he thought the shade under a tree farther down was where people used to wait. I walked for a bit while waiting for vehicles to come by. The fourth car was going to the village and had room for me. The woman said Helena is her auntie and her mother lives behind the school. She has three children, ages 2, 6, and 8. The older girls speak English fluently, and the 6-year-old was quite chatty. I enjoyed meeting them.







Back at the homestead, Helena’s friend was visiting and she brought her to meet me. When I was returning from the toilet, Helena called me over to one of the small buildings to help grind. This was the small hut that I didn’t know the purpose of. I noticed that are three holes in the floor, and they were pounding millet in two of them. I realized that this was what I’d seen at the market and hadn’t known what it was. (Addition: I learned several weeks later that I really didn’t know what it was. I thought it was millet, but it was sorghum, which is used to make a traditional alcoholic beverage.)
 











Helena wanted me to try; so I did. I could do it but not as strongly or quickly as they do. After the grain was pounded, they scooped it out to a pile on the floor. 
















Then Helena sat down and started shaking the ground bits on a flat basket so that the large pieces were returned to the pile. The remaining powder was put into a large basket. It took me a while to realize that the powder was the finished product. After completing the process, the larger bits were ground again with a bit of flour and water added. 






The process was repeated until all the grain was ground, which took about 2.5 hours. It was a good way to hang out with Helena and bond with her a bit. Helena mentioned a few times that this was tradition; it is the traditional way to thresh millet. I was hesitant about taking photos since that’s not a common practice here like it is in Thailand and China; so I thought I’d wait till the next time. Then I realized that there may not be a next time since we were doing so much and I got the camera. The women were happy to have me take photos. 


Later I noticed that the ground powder was drying on plastic on the ground, which reminded me of all the rice I've seen drying that way.



Helena even told me to take one of her and took off her hair covering to let her hair hang out for the photo. Later I noticed that the ground powder was drying on plastic on the ground.















I washed my clothes afterwards and hung the hangers along the fence since I didn’t have a line. When Sark saw them, he decided that I needed a line and we made a plan for where to put it. While I was reading in the shade, he put a pole in the ground and put a wire between it and the fence. I hadn’t realized that he was doing it right then and was surprised when I went around the corner and saw my clothes hanging on the line.

Early mornings (6:30) are now so cool that I need a jacket to walk to the toilet. Sark wears a sweater and sometimes a hood every morning. He also wears a sweater in the evening.

I continue to enjoy the sunsets but have stopped taking photos of them since they are pretty much the same.















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