Village Updates

I spent this past week in school working with the teachers to create a schedule of periods for each day. This way, it is not a "free-for-all" of who teaches what to whom and when. Every teacher now has 8 total periods in every day where they move from class to class teaching only their specialty subject. It is a much more organized system now and seems to be working quite well so far. The children are getting used to a schedule and no class is left without a teacher at any point during the day. School days are longer now that it is cooling off a bit. The day starts an hour earlier and ends an hour later, now that the children can walk home in the afternoon without being scorched. In the summer months the children that walk 4 or 5 kilometers complain that there is no water along the way, making the journey treacherous.

I noticed very soon on that not every child has a book. Most have notebooks and tiny little knubs of pencils, but the textbooks are lacking in the classroom, making it hard for most students to keep up or follow along. I donated a new book, pencil, and pen for each of the children today, hoping that new supplies will not only help their experiences, but get them excited to come to learn more using their new things.

The frustration I experienced early on in communicating with the children has subsided; I have mastered the "Indian head nod" and many of the Hindi commands needed in the classroom and most of the students are better behaved now that they know me. I am still having trouble adjusting to their methods of discipline; they beat the children, whip their hands with wooden sticks and slap them hard across the face when they don't do their homework, spell a word wrong or misbehave. I tried explaining that taking away recess or making the child sit in the back of the room may be just as effective, but there is no changing this system. Maybe that's why my students like me so much, they know that when I am teaching no one is disciplined in such a manner. Just another cultural difference that takes some getting used to...

Work on the farm has been slower the past few days as we are just waiting for rain. I ride everyday to our farm down the road and collect the cow food, then feed and milk the cows every evening. I weed a little, but the plots are ready for peanuts now, it's just the clouds that aren't. I have found myself doing more odd jobs around the house and kitchen work with the women than working in the fields. I re-string cots and sweep the house and porches; I was the dishes and help prepare the fire for chappatis two times a day. I learn more from talking with the family members during work than I ever imagined. I have found that they are very responsive to my questions, and love telling me all about their lives. I have taken a good amount of photos as well, which I will put up tomorrow (when the internet is faster!).