One Month into Pre-service Training

I am about one month into my training and am having an amazing experience. Everyday I tell myself how lucky I am to be able to do this since so few other people will ever get a chance.

I moved into my training homestay about 3 weeks ago and have had to do some adjusting. I share the house with a 40 year-old sister, 29 year-old brother, mom and dad in their 70s and a 98 year-old grandmother. Since day one they have treated me as if I were one of their own.

It is interesting to see how their relationship with each other is. For the most part, they seem to be more traditional in the way they grow and live. The father is the patriarch, the women do most of the house chores and several generations of the family live under the same roof. Women live with their family until they get married and then they move in with their husbands family and the oldest male takes control of the family and house when the father dies. Women seem to live longer which probably has to do with the men leading riskier lifestyles. In America we don't always live near/with each other, don't maintain traditional gender roles, and don't always take responsibility to take care of our parents in the traditional way of moving them into our houses. Neither one is right or wrong, they're just different.

On the first day I moved into my house there were 4 kids that were awaiting my arrival. They were extremely interested in talking to me; I think it was because I was the first American/white person they had interacted with up close. Either way I am enjoying the exchanges I've been having with them. Everyone seems to love playing cards and at first I was shocked at how no one knew about them. Then I realized that playing cards are a European tradition and I shouldn't be surprised that they were never integrated into their culture.

They have been sharing a lot of their culture with me and I have been sharing a lot of the things I do in the U.S. and food I eat with them. It seems that they have a much more clearly defined culture. They believe that you shouldn't cut your hair at night nor go outside. They were shocked when I freely walked from my house to a fellow trainees house when it was dark; I have not pinpointed why yet but have just accepted it. I am trying to figure out what defines American culture and my culture but have not quite figured it out yet.

This past week I was teaching at a local high school with four other volunteers and we all discovered that the effects of Bantu education are blaringly obvious. The teachers tell the students the information and don't encourage participation so the students aren't learning just memorizing and the teachers aren't really teaching. A lot of the teachers are teaching because it is a job, not because they have a passion for teaching. They often aren't qualified for their jobs since they haven't had formal training and are not knowledgeable in their subject areas. A lot of them don't even plan their lessons and just read from the textbook and wing it. Teachers often leave their classes unattended and sit the lounge or don't even show up. As a result other people have to cover their classes for them. I taught a class about earthquakes and volcanoes on a whim from a textbook because a teacher felt that she had other more important things to do. I was given the opportunity to plan and teach two lessons on car loans and savings accounts to a 12th grade class. I incorporated group work and related it to real life situations to help them understand the importance of what I was teaching them. It was like pulling teeth to get the students to participate because they were never asked to do that. After two days they finally started to open up and get involved in the lesson which shows promise for the future.

I don't mean to paint an ugly picture but the education system needs a lot of work and I am honored to be a part of the process of change. I see a lot of potential in the people and am grateful that I get to share my knowledge of America and the world with them. Not surprisingly, they think America is a bed of roses and everyone is rich. They are shocked to find out that most of the divides and problems they are experiencing we also are experiencing in America. They aren't informed of the true America just like how the media and other people paint a picture of only poverty and war in Africa. I am looking forward to sharing everything I find out with you as I learn more.

My permanent assignment is going to be in the Mpumalanga Province and I am classified as a secondary math teacher. In two weeks I find out my permanent site. and in five weeks I will begin my 3 month survey of the site before I start doing some work.

I am learning IsIndebele as my language which I will be using when I move to my permanent site in September. Until next time, hope everyone is doing well. I'll try and keep you updated.