First week of school-

Monday-

Today we had 3 different meetings that all lasted about an hour or more and none of them accomplished anything. My Portuguese is not up to par to understand or contribute, but even without knowing what is going on- I know there is nothing going on (discussions that go in circles and nothing is accomplished!). Frustrating. Yes. We are told we will each teach only one class for 4 hours a week because we have so many English professors (why did they hire two more?). Then we are told we may have a 10 week break (ummm awesome, but seriously I came here to work! Use me!!). Then we are told we have to get up every day this week at 4:30 to watch the students do military-like exercises and “babysit” them as they do their countless chores. We decide this is ridiculous and agree to show up at 6:00. No one should be up before dark cutting grass! Even in this heat we need our sleep. I feel sad because I have a choice, but the students do not. Hmmmm.

 Then we are told to meet at the gymnasium at 13:50. We wait for half an hour and then learn that the students still haven’t eaten yet and nothing can be done until after they eat. We go home and sit in our boiling hot house waiting to be called at any moment to go back to “work.” Will I ever get used to this inefficiency? Is this system really inefficient or is America’s over-efficiency clouding my mind and expectations?

Tuesday-

Today we head out at 6 to “babysit” students in the outdoor kitchen. Then we go home and “tomar banho” (take a bath) and head to the cafeteria. Oh! to my surprise everyone is very dressed up and a ceremony is about to happen…. to my even greater surprise the Administrador of Homoine (mayor) is arriving within minutes and we are to go and greet him. I am dressed nicely, but still underdressed for the occasion. I find that pulling the “ignorant foreigner” card gives me a great excuse for the things I do wrong. We shake hands with the mayor and head to the ceremony, which consists of the chefes planting trees with the new students, a small cultural moment with Mozambican dancing and singing and then the director talking about the diversity of teachers at this school (Americanas and Cubanos). Next the mayor welcomes the students to Homoine and to the Instituto de Formacao de Professores. I look around and watch as the eager, unknowing students begin to glimpse what their life for the next three years will be like. They have no idea how much they will change. Their work ethic will change so that the labored, back-aching work done here seems normal. Their bodies will change as they have to cook their own food (men and women alike- take that sexism!) and are forced to do military-style exercises at 4:30 am. These students will push through. They will struggle on and study hard. This school presents a future for them that they may otherwise not have. After three years of grueling work, intensive study, and student teaching these students will attempt to find jobs as Elementary (primary) school teachers far and wide in Mozambique. They may move to the neighboring village or across the country.

 They differ from many students in the states because of their thirst for knowledge of other cultures and places. They respect the teacher in a way that has been lost in America. They are invested in bettering themselves, not just for money, but for the future of their country. I am lucky to be a part of their experience.

Wednesday-

We received our schedules yesterday at the end of the day. It revealed that I in fact have Wednesday off, but my roommate will start teaching today. We prepare our first class as best as we can since our Mozambican peers have once again left us in the dark. My roommate prepares me as much as she can. I am thankful that I have an extremely helpful and thoughtful roommate. So thoughtful, in fact, that she helped me when I thought my night terrors would get the best of me. The other night I had a nightmare and I was convinced that there was something outside my window. I started to give myself a mini-panic attack- my heart beating right out of my chest. I slipped out of my haunted room and into my roommate’s. She woke up and scooted over offering me a blanket and some security. She was prepared and happy to help assuage my ridiculous fears. It’s great to have that kind of support in a country far from home and full of many different fear-inducing things.

Thursday-

Finally I get to teach!! I have no classes before 8:30 a.m.(luckily!!). I teach two hour blocks, four times a week. That’s only eight hours total, but that leaves plenty of time for secondary projects! My first day of class went as expected. A little bit crazy. We played the name game and I took pictures of all of the students so I could practice their names. Then we went over classroom expectations (you no like if your cell phone rings, I will throw it out the window). I realized that the levels in my classroom are all over the place. Some of the students don’t understand any English and others understand almost everything! It will be extremely difficult to plan for all these different levels and make sure that each student gets what he/she needs. Talk about a challenge!

 Friday-

Today my goal was to learn all 23 of my students’ names and get a better understanding of their levels of English. Time to plan a Needs Assessment for Monday!

All in all- a successful week! Looking forward to finally teaching and being busy!