Mumana Basics School and Movie Night

Soooo today was one of the most interesting experiences of my life. But before I go into that...last night I found a piece of paper on my bed from Collins (the one who follows me around all the time) and it said, I love (I think he drew a picture of my blonde hair on the paper next to love). It was so sweet to find that note. After I got home from school today he ran up to me and said "I missed you so much and hugged me for a long time." There has been about 5 times that I have quietly cried when I am around him, because of his past and his future. I love all of the kids, but Collins is attached to me...which makes me attached to him. Here is a picture of him...

So today I taught the boys again this morning we have almost gone through the first phonics book. They are doing very well, but it is sometimes frustrating. i's are hard for them, and b's, d's, and e's. They get them all mixed up, but we just have to keep on going over those words. OK we just saw a HUGE spider. Anyways, they are doing good and have the best attitude and work ethic than anyone I have ever taught.

For the life-changing experience... I went to the Mumana Basics School today with Merrium. Teachers...you will find this experience very interesting. So Duane took us to school and we were the only car that pulled up- period. Teachers do not even drive to school. I first had to go talk to the headmaster before observing classes, but he was not there. So they told me to wait until the students had settled in class. I was talking to the secretary for a while in the one room office and she explained a few things about the school. Everyone was very nice and said welcome to Zambia. The school has about 2000 students in the entire school grades pre-k- 9th grade. If they do not pass a test in the 9th grade, then they have to continue to take it until they pass. Most of the kids in 9th grade are age 18-21. IF they pass the test then they can go onto high school. The teacher that I talked to said it is really sad because a lot of students take years to pass it. All of the students wear uniforms, and the secretary said it comes in handy because when kids get hit by cars, then they know what school they go to. I thought that was a weird statement, but she said it happened this morning. I saw the staff room, it was pretty much the same as ours but with one computer for everyone to share and one copy machine (used only for tests). The teachers normally have 70 kids in each class- 72! It was unbelievable, they were packed in like sardines (corny phrase, but that's all I got). The teacher have no supplies. All they have is a chalkboard and the kids have spirals. The smart kids with potential come to school in the mornings and the struggling kids come in the afternoon and stay until 6:30 p.m.

Sister Elizabeth Mutale, a teacher who tutors kids on Saturdays without pay, was so kind and took me around to every class to introduce me to the students. Once again, kids were yelling Muzunga- I think that's the word. I even saw students looking in windows to see me. I said to the class "I am just a silly muzunga"- they thought that was hilarious. One more thing I like about Africa- they laugh at everything I say. They are joyous people, even in the last period of the day, the kids are not complaining, they are always smiling, even without breaks all day long. The were extremely respectful. I could not believe the amount of respect they gave teachers. The teachers would life their hand up and all of the kids would get quiet right away. If they answered a question they would stand up and answer. If they were ever disrespectful (the teachers said that they rarely are) they are assigned chores around the school or they have to sit on their knees facing the class with their hands up. The floors are concrete- I like that rule:) I told the teachers about some of my experiences and they were shocked. It is just so different here. Grades 8-12 they have to pay to go to school. I walked from class to class introducing myself and asked if they had any questions about America...here were some of the responses:

Can you be my teacher, How is the economy, Obama?, Do boys to laundry and help cook, do boys and girls have relationships?, How much does a girl cost to marry in America, and what does America look like. Every time I walked out they would all start laughing and talking, but they were somewhat shy when I was in there. When I entered a classroom this is what happened:

Fellow teachers.... I have forever been changed with the amount of respect I saw from these kids. I have also been changed because I have realized how EASY we have it. They teach from 6:00-6:30, they walk to school, they teach 5 different classes with 72 kids in each, they do not have computers, they inhale chalk every day all day, they do not sit down, they have closets as offices, they do all grading by hand, they do not have textbooks (only old ones that were donated decades ago), they have NO extra teaching materials, they cannot make copies, they write entire tests on the board for the class every day, they do not have the internet to come up with fun activities, and they show lots of love. Something that Sister Elizabeth Mutale said that really put things into prospective was about religion in schools. Zambia is a Christian nation and they students in every school have bible classes. A student asked me if I teach a bible class. I told them that we cannot talk about God in our schools in America, and they were all confused. Sister Mutale then stated "It is our job class to bring Christ back to America. They helped bring Christ to us, and now it is our turn to bring it to them." That really changed my perspective on things. America thinks we can change everything and everyone, but we really need to change ourselves before we lose Christianity.

They have Home Economics (the only elective offered) at their school, which was very neat to see! They had one stove and one sewing machine for kids to learn on. She thought my Ready, Set, Teach class was very interesting. The entire time I felt like a brat for all of the things that our school has, and yet I hear complaining all the time. Which got me thinking.... All of the books and textbooks and materials that teachers get rid of each year can be used for the better. I talked to the headmaster about how they are funded and he said by grants, but they are usually shut down. He says they are so low on teaching materials. I got the address of the school and we are totally going to do a service project and get them materials...If you are a student of mine start thinking of ways to get books donated and money for the shipping. I also talked to him about a pen pal program and he said that would be great, so I am very excited! It will benefit both sides.

That is pretty much the jist of it...I am sorry it is sooo long! I saw so many other things and I will post pictures later, but for now I must go to bed.

p.s. We saw a BIG spider tonight. I did not look over this tonight- sorry for any confusion.