Above is a Ghanaian way of saying I understand... One click = yes, two clicks = no, multiple clicks and a shake of the head = I don't understand etc. These are some of the things you pick up in a short few weeks teaching classes packed full of African teenagers !
Yesterday we left Kongo/Logre, where we have been based for the past three weeks teaching in the school. Finally decided that I should probably post something on this, after writing half a post a few weeks ago but running out of time in the oh-so-slow internet cafes. We were both very disappointed not to have had more time in the school, and I definitely thought that three weeks just wasn't enough, although even in such a small amount of time you can see the difference that your presence makes to the students.
Their daily routine is something you only learn through spending time with them, and it makes you appreciate the struggles they face on an everyday basis. The typical student will wake up at 5 a.m. to collect water from the nearest borehole for drinking/washing. They might leave home at about 6a.m. to walk an hour or so to school (many walk a lot longer) to begin school at 7. Classes supposedly begin at 7.50, after the students have had assembly and cleaning of the school in the morning. In reality only some of the teachers show up for their classes, and punctuality certainly isn't a priority. Classes continue until 2.40 p.m. in the afternoon, with a break at 12 for luch which is provided through donations from Ireland so that the students can get a proper meal during the day. The menu usually varies between rice and beans, beans and rice, or rice and beans. After assembly in the afternoon the students walk home again at 3 and as soon as they arrive home they reverse their roles. The girls might need to collect more water or begin cooking for younger children in the family, while the boys help with the farming. They have about two hours at home before it gets dark at 6, and since there is no electricity in the vast majority of the homes (which are made of mud/sand) there is no question of homework or study. Some students who are forunate enough to live within a half an hour walk of the school come to the school for evening study if their family is supportive of it, and dozens of them sleep in the school on the wooden benches or desks becuase they have no other chance to get any work done.
The students themselves understand the importance of their education, and they know that if they don't progress to senior secondary school they will spend the rest of their lives in the vicious cycle of poverty which most people in Northern Ghana are trapped in. Gruelling farming is the only livelihood for those without an education, and the students are desperate to avoid this fate. This doesn't mean that their parents are of the same opinion unfortunately, so when teachers don't show up for classes in school, you quickly realise that many students literally have no other opportunity to learn anything that day... or the next day...
Am just after realising that my time is almost up on the internet so will have to cut this short. The students were a joy to teach, they have so much energy and enthusiasm in spite of their hardship and are as likely to break into song in the middle of a class as they are to start whacking each other across the face for getting a question wrong...!! There's a lot to say, but time is actually up, I'll try to post something else next time!
No comments:
Post a Comment