Category: Peace Corps-year1

Four of the five promotional classes I teach ‘wrote’ their exams this week and I needed to mark them and have them moderated by Friday. For every exam, the class teacher marks the exam and then another teacher moderates it, which means another teacher checks the marking. Once the exam is moderated then the Head of Department (HOD) or a delegate will check 10% of the exams. At each iteration, if issues are found then we resolve them and sometimes we have to revise the marks. I don’t know if all schools in the U.S. do this, it takes extra time, but I think it is a great idea. Since the HOD sees a sampling of all the marks they ensure that the marks are consistent within the subject. Once all the exams were finished then I had to compile the final grades which were also checked and signed off by the HOD or delegate. Mine are all done, yay!

Friday afternoon we had an end of term braii, we call it a BBQ in Georgia. Thursday was the learners last day, so this was a teacher and staff celebration. It was nice to unwind and socialize with each other.

Friday night I joined several colleagues for an end of term and girls’ night out celebration. We went to a wine tasting which included live entertainment. The wine and food were good, but the most fun was dancing to the live music. One of the women from our little group got the dancing started and before long the dance floor was full. It was so much fun!

At one point a young black man was trying to get everyone to do what he called a “family dance”. It looked like line dancing to me and I started following him. I would mess up and do it again until I was getting it, all with his encouragement. As I was following along, he said, “look granny is doing it, so come on, you can too!” We laughed and kept dancing.

I was invited to lunch on Saturday with two of the same young colleagues and one of their friends for kapana in the location. As a reminder, the location is where black people were forced to live during apartheid. They are free to live anywhere now, but often economic circumstances prevent their moving. However, some people prefer to stay in the location because it is their home and their history. It is still a majority black community. Anyway, one of the school’s staff, Eina, lives in the location and she was taking us for Kapana, beef with special spices, grilled outdoors. Plans changed and what started as a simple lunch engagement turned into lunch at Eina’s, which she calls the day care. She has 5 children ranging in age from about 8-18 and many nieces, nephews. We played card games, an African stone game, helped with cooking, and just hanging out. We went for kapana around 7pm. We had no other plans, the location is full of life, and we were on African time.

All for now with all my love

Exams at Otjiwarongo Secondary School started on March 29 (a week ago Friday) and end on April 11 (Thursday of this week). There is no teaching during the exam period. The learners are assigned classrooms for the exam period by their grade class and they do not rotate classes. The learners are expected to either be studying independently for their upcoming exams or ‘writing’ an exam. “Writing” is the term used for answering a test or exam. When a learner asks, “Are we writing today?”, they are asking if I am giving them a test.

The day’s schedule during the exam period consists of “Before Break” (BB) and After Break” (AB). Most exams are written BB but due to the number of subjects or an exam having 2 parts, some learners also write AB. The teachers are assigned daily to either ‘invigilate’ or monitor in an exam classroom BB or AB. “Invigilate” is proctoring the learners as they write their exam. Monitoring is just making sure the learners are studying quietly when they are not writing an exam.

The exam’s responsible teacher is explicitly not assigned to invigilate their subjects’ classes. I assume this is to ensure objectivity which does make sense. A teacher can be assigned to one of their subjects’ classes if the learners are not writing but you are not expected to teach, and most teachers don’t. Fortunately, I was able to trade with another teacher and use this time to teach a couple of the lessons that I didn’t cover due to all the schedule changes that took me by surprise this term.

Before Break is from 7:30-10:15, Break is 10:15-10:45, and After Break is 10:45-12:30. As an example, if an exam is BB and the learners have 1.5 hours to complete it, then the learners must study quietly from 7:30-8:40, then write from 8:40am until 10:10, which is 1.5 hours. This allows 5 minutes to collect the exam without missing any of the break.

Try as I might, I don’t think I will ever understand the reasoning behind these exam periods. As you can imagine, AB is not fun because the learners are drained from either ‘studying’ or ‘writing’ BB or both. It is difficult for them to be focused, to be quiet, to stay in their seats. We are instructed every day in our staff meeting to keep the learners quiet, to not let them walk around or lay their heads down, to make sure they study independently.  As a teacher, I walk around the classroom, I stretch, I talk to learners and colleagues. I don’t understand how we can expect learners to not need to do this. Added to this is the expectation of many parents that they also study when they get home.

It also seems like such wasted time. It’s basically 2 weeks that could be used to provide an organized and consistent review of the term with their teacher. As a Peace Corps Volunteer, we are expected to reserve judgement and to try to understand why things are the way they are. I have asked about the structure of the exam period with various colleagues. Some say it is mandated by the Ministry of Education, but I haven’t been able to verify this. Others don’t really like it, but it is just the way it is. Others say it is necessary. The learners must develop discipline, and this is part of the process. Also, it is a scheduling issue, they need the teachers to invigilate.

I don’t like it, but I will keep trying to understand.

All for now with all my love

Namibia celebrated 29 years of independence on March 21. Our school had a great celebration with music, dancing, and poems from the diverse cultures that make up our student body. The school choir is made up of learners from all groups and they also sang several selections including the national anthem. I included a couple short videos to get a taste of the celebration.

A PCV from my group rewrote one of the verses from “This Land is Your Land” (by Woody Guthrie) using sites from Namibia. I taught the American first verse to all the classes and then we sang it with the Namibia words. They all enjoyed this very much.

Since Thursday and Friday were school holidays, I went camping with 8 other PCVs at the Waterberg Plateau National Park. We hiked to the top of the plateau one day, we went on shorter hikes and swam in the pool (a real luxury in Namibia), and on Saturday we went on a 4-hour game drive. Cape Buffalo, Black and White Rhinos, and other endangered species have been transferred to the top of the plateau for protection and in hopes of increasing their numbers. It is working. We were in awe of seeing White Rhinos, Cape Buffalo, Eland, Roan Antelope and many other kinds of antelopes and birds. It was a wonderful excursion despite the light rain that kept many of the animals from coming to the water holes.

All for now with all my love

Another busy week at school and something new, the Miss High Beauty Contest. I am not a huge fan of beauty contests, but I like to support the learners and I was enlisted as a ‘technology’ backup. Our IT lead, the woman who was so helpful with getting me my own classroom and other teaching support, asked if I would serve in her absence. She prepared a complicated excel workbook with linked sheets and formulas to calculate all the judges’ scores for multiple events. In the past someone may have accidentally deleted a link or did the data entry in the wrong place, so they always have a ‘technology’ person on hand in case something goes wrong. I was on call during the show, but I was not needed. I couldn’t decide if I was relieved or disappointed because I knew I was quite capable of figuring out whatever went wrong.

This beauty contest is different because it includes boys and girls. A boy and a girl are paired together for much of the show with somewhat coordinating outfits or they had planned little gestures or routines as they modeled their clothes. However, the scoring is completely individual, and the final Miss High and Mr. High were not a ‘couple’ at all. The show also leaned toward the girls since they had more segments including an interview segment which the boys did not have.

The parts I liked most were some of the girls made creative outfits from recycled materials such as rolled newspapers, garbage bags, and paper fans. Also, some of the outfits were very casual and they were barefoot.

There was no talent segment. There was some singing by various learners as they transitioned from one segment to another, but these were not performed by contestants. All in all, it was entertaining, but it still makes me uncomfortable to put such an emphasis on looks.

All for now with all my love

Exams at our school start on March 26 which is 2 weeks from Tuesday. How did this happen? How can the term be almost over? My classes are behind, and I am trying to figure out how to get them where they need to be. It just doesn’t seem right to push ahead without most of the class really understanding the content. I know other volunteers are struggling with this since it is a topic of discussion lately on our WhatsApp group chat.

One volunteer makes the following argument. Passing is 40% here, their tests are hard. They follow the Cambridge curriculum and certain grades and terms must take external exams (i.e. Standardized exams) so the internal exams (i.e. created by the school’s teachers) must be tough to prepare them for the external exams. The external exams are also graded externally so there is no preferential treatment. Anyway, his argument is since 40% is passing then having his learners thoroughly understand at least 40% of the syllabus is better than them not really understanding 100% of the syllabus. I agree with this logic, but it is stressful to implement.

I know some of my school’s teachers struggle with this too. One of my counterparts says she never gets through the Term1 syllabus, but we will make it up over the next 2 terms. However, my other counterparts are telling me I must cover the syllabus and if I slow down then I won’t be able to complete it.

All I know is that I will keep trying and I will do the best I can. That’s really all I can do… and of course, pray.

All for now with all my love

• 

Which class are you enjoying the most? Are the learners really engaged? These questions from a dear friend made me really think. I responded something like this and then decided it would be a good blog post.

The kids are starting to engage. Historically, the culture in Namibia was for learners to be seen and not heard, especially black learners during apartheid. Part of our mission is to teach learner-centered lessons. There are national syllabi for every grade and subject which specify a learner-centered approach, development of critical thinking, no corporal punishment. However, many teachers are only used to chalk and talk with minimal interaction with learners, they teach by rote, not developing critical thinking, and use corporal punishment. I witnessed corporal punishment during training such as mild spanking but lots of intimidation with rubber hoses, etc. My school is somewhat better since we stick to the policies and have a discipline system. Some teachers use learner centered techniques, but many don’t. Anyway, the learners don’t readily talk, unless they are misbehaving, but they are coming around.

• 

• 

It’s hard for me to say which class I like best. I like11th grade Math since many are very independent. I gave them the schedule and answer guide, so they work on their own or in small groups and ask for help as needed. If there’s a consistent problem, then I demonstrate it to the class. Music is my classroom management for them. I play it when they behave and turn it off otherwise. I try to be proactive in seeking those who need help but may not ask for it. I ask them to show me their work and it often leads to questions and then I can help them.

The grade 8&9 physical science classes are good too. The 8th graders need much guidance on developing study skills since they have been spoon-fed for so long. They were told explicitly what to write and put in their notebooks. I want them to do this independently, but they usually write nothing unless I say “write this down”. The 9th graders seem to enjoy having some independence with me and they especially like math riddles or logic games.

The computer studies learners want to start learning applications or writing programs. This first term is strictly theory, including the history of computing, how binary code is used, computer components, hardware and software, operating system software vs application software. They get antsy, but they are also eager to learn.

Art can be a lot of fun, but each class seems to have someone (or 2 or 3) that could care less. It’s not a promotional subject, meaning they can fail without any penalty, and the bad attitude can influence others. I try to keep it fun and explain how these things can enrich their lives, to make life more fun and enjoyable.

Classroom management and developing engaging lesson plans are the hardest things. I wish I could develop a system that would be effective all the time, with all the grades and with all the subjects. So far, it’s been one thing works with these kids today but not tomorrow or it works for the 8^th graders but not the 9^th graders. I am constantly seeking a solution that works for all which probably does not even exist. It gets exhausting and then I think I am trying too hard. I will keep working on it and by the time my 2 years of service are complete, maybe I will have it all figured out.

All for now with all my love

My town, Otjiwarongo, is the crossroads to those heading to the far North, or
going South to Windhoek, or to those going West, i.e. to the coast, or East. Prior
to Reconnect, the volunteers in Group 48 were not allowed to travel except for
work, to collaborate/train with other volunteers for work, or if we were
traveling with a local national. Now we can travel more freely but we still must
get permission and/or inform Peace Corps of our plans. Peace Corps is very serious
about our safety, so we must inform them of our where-abouts any time our head is
not on our own pillow at our own site.

Back to my town and what the expanded travel means to me. Many Peace Corps visitors come to town and it is fun. Last weekend, a bunch of volunteers from the North came to town for various reasons. One of my Group 48, Alex, who lives in a remote village came to get a key made for her school. Otjiwarongo is the closest town for this so she was able to come for the weekend. Two other volunteers from my
group came because they knew Alex would be in town. There were also volunteers
from Group 46, following a similar pattern where one volunteer came to town so
more came to be able to hang out together. Most everyone wound up staying at
volunteer Will’s place because he has lots of space to accommodate many people
and he lives alone. I stayed there too because I didn’t want to miss all the
fun.

This weekend, Maggie came to town from way up North to check out a puppy that she
wanted to adopt from the SPCA in our town. She went home with Tuna, named for
Big Tuna from The Office. He is adorable, very good tempered, and already
wanting to please his new ‘Mom’. Maggie also enjoyed shopping at our Super Spar
and prepared fish tacos with mango salsa. Yum!

(The regional track meet was this past weekend. Note the barefoot runners)

Maggie, Tuna, and me

After Maggie left, I received a text from another volunteer that she and 3 other
volunteers would be in town for a quick stop on their way to a workshop in Okahandja. Did I want to meet for a quick milkshake and hugs? And today, Sara, who was in town over the holiday break, is here for a workshop all week.

As you can see, Otjiwarongo is a crossroads, at least for Peace Corps volunteers.

All for now with all my love