For no particular reason other than that I’m probably still just getting used to teaching and life here in general, I was incredibly exhausted this week (I don’t think I’ve ever looked forward to the weekend so much!). My week was a little bit busier for a few reasons as well: I now supervise evening study for 4 hours a week (I hate being in a policing role!), I went to a teachers’ workshop for 6 hours, I started the girls’ soccer club, and I went to a primary school principal’s farewell ceremony.
As for the teaching…well, the teaching itself is generally fine once I have made my lesson plans! The double periods are rough though, as it’s hard to make a lesson plan that will fill 80 minutes. Some of the older students are also getting a bit cheeky…probably not surprising given that one of my 11th grade classes has 36 boys and only 4 girls. This class now has 40 students because 8 new students were added to my two 11th grade classes this week (so I am now teaching almost 150 kids!). Every year the Namibian government has huge difficulties finding enough places for all of the students nationwide. So even though it is late in the term, the government informed my school last week that we had to take these new students. Every time I walk into these two classes, I wonder how I can keep this many 16-20 year olds interested in what I am teaching, and hopefully learning as well. The problem is compounded by the fact that we don’t have any textbooks.
After having bought 3 soccer balls last weekend, I did start the girls’ soccer club this week, as well as sort out the members of the drama club, which officially starts next week (if anyone has any good ideas for plays, they would be most welcome. I am particularly interested in HIV/AIDS themed plays). I feel a little bad as I have to restrict both of these clubs to grades 11 and 10 for the moment, as the numbers would be too large otherwise. As it turns out, I still had 30 girls turn out for the soccer, which is great! I started off by doing some running and drills with the girls, but quickly realised that they just wanted to get out and kick the ball around! Fair enough, I don’t know when they get a chance to do this otherwise.
A lesson that I’m trying to come away with after the week is getting used to things cropping up at the last minute. For example, on Tuesday morning I was about to leave the staffroom to go teach a class, when I was stopped by a teacher who informed me that I had to leave right that minute to go attend a teachers’ workshop for 6 hours! Just like that I was expected to leave my 5 classes for the day with no supervision or work to do (there are of course no substitute teachers here). And to make matters worse, the workshop ended up being 2 hours late in starting!
The same thing happened again on Friday. I had just finished teaching the last class of the day and had gone into the staffroom to pick up my books and head out for the weekend when I was told by a teacher that I had to go attend a farewell ceremony for the principal of the primary school “right now”! You may think that I would have been happy to go attend a ceremony, but I guess that I was a little miffed that I wasn’t given any advance notice, and it was a precious Friday afternoon (the week was finally over!). Furthermore, the ceremony ended up lasting for over 3 hours! But complaints aside over the lack of advance warning, I was later glad to have attended the ceremony as I had the opportunity to see some of Northern Namibia’s ceremonial traditions. See the photos above for more detail.
All of this is also probably a good lesson in defining my concept of time and “free time” in particular. What do I have to do in my free time that is so important anyway? I suppose that the only reason I remain somewhat fiercely protective over my free time is because I want to spend it with Pete. But I think that this conflict over time will be resolved as we both become busier and slowly have to relinquish our concept of “free time” and adjust more fully to our new lifestyles here.
Anyways, the teaching week is over, and I am happy it is the weekend! I feel more accepted by my students and colleagues after 3 weeks of teaching here, but I am also still not quite settled in yet. This weekend we and a couple of the other volunteers are heading up to the Angolan border to spend the night with some friends of ours. Hope you all have a great weekend!
As for the teaching…well, the teaching itself is generally fine once I have made my lesson plans! The double periods are rough though, as it’s hard to make a lesson plan that will fill 80 minutes. Some of the older students are also getting a bit cheeky…probably not surprising given that one of my 11th grade classes has 36 boys and only 4 girls. This class now has 40 students because 8 new students were added to my two 11th grade classes this week (so I am now teaching almost 150 kids!). Every year the Namibian government has huge difficulties finding enough places for all of the students nationwide. So even though it is late in the term, the government informed my school last week that we had to take these new students. Every time I walk into these two classes, I wonder how I can keep this many 16-20 year olds interested in what I am teaching, and hopefully learning as well. The problem is compounded by the fact that we don’t have any textbooks.
After having bought 3 soccer balls last weekend, I did start the girls’ soccer club this week, as well as sort out the members of the drama club, which officially starts next week (if anyone has any good ideas for plays, they would be most welcome. I am particularly interested in HIV/AIDS themed plays). I feel a little bad as I have to restrict both of these clubs to grades 11 and 10 for the moment, as the numbers would be too large otherwise. As it turns out, I still had 30 girls turn out for the soccer, which is great! I started off by doing some running and drills with the girls, but quickly realised that they just wanted to get out and kick the ball around! Fair enough, I don’t know when they get a chance to do this otherwise.
A lesson that I’m trying to come away with after the week is getting used to things cropping up at the last minute. For example, on Tuesday morning I was about to leave the staffroom to go teach a class, when I was stopped by a teacher who informed me that I had to leave right that minute to go attend a teachers’ workshop for 6 hours! Just like that I was expected to leave my 5 classes for the day with no supervision or work to do (there are of course no substitute teachers here). And to make matters worse, the workshop ended up being 2 hours late in starting!
The same thing happened again on Friday. I had just finished teaching the last class of the day and had gone into the staffroom to pick up my books and head out for the weekend when I was told by a teacher that I had to go attend a farewell ceremony for the principal of the primary school “right now”! You may think that I would have been happy to go attend a ceremony, but I guess that I was a little miffed that I wasn’t given any advance notice, and it was a precious Friday afternoon (the week was finally over!). Furthermore, the ceremony ended up lasting for over 3 hours! But complaints aside over the lack of advance warning, I was later glad to have attended the ceremony as I had the opportunity to see some of Northern Namibia’s ceremonial traditions. See the photos above for more detail.
All of this is also probably a good lesson in defining my concept of time and “free time” in particular. What do I have to do in my free time that is so important anyway? I suppose that the only reason I remain somewhat fiercely protective over my free time is because I want to spend it with Pete. But I think that this conflict over time will be resolved as we both become busier and slowly have to relinquish our concept of “free time” and adjust more fully to our new lifestyles here.
Anyways, the teaching week is over, and I am happy it is the weekend! I feel more accepted by my students and colleagues after 3 weeks of teaching here, but I am also still not quite settled in yet. This weekend we and a couple of the other volunteers are heading up to the Angolan border to spend the night with some friends of ours. Hope you all have a great weekend!
posted by Sinéad at 1:20 PM
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