As my first term of teaching English in Rwanda comes to a close, I know that I am only scratching the surface of what the next 21 months of teaching will be like. Of course, in many ways, I have a much greater understanding of the school system and my role in it than I did in early February. But it many more ways I still have absolutely no idea how I can make myself most useful here. Many of you have asked about the differences between schools here and in the United States, so I thought I’d highlight some of those for you.
Logistically, a class day is run much differently from what I’m used to. For one, teachers rotate instead of students. The students stay in one classroom all day long, and when one class is over that teacher leaves and another teacher comes in. My school has several hundred students and there is no electronic bell system, so as far as time and chaos are concerned it makes sense for students to stay in one place rather than run all over school every hour. They understandably become very tired and restless, though, making afternoon classes extremely difficult. Also, this means that teachers don’t have offices or classrooms of our own. We bring all the materials we need with us to class and leave with them when we’re finished teaching. It also means we don’t hang maps, pictures, or students’ work in the classroom.
I work at a public school, and students are in class from 7 am to 2 pm. My school can’t afford to provide lunch, so unless the students have money and can run to a bread stand on their 20-minute noon break, they don’t eat until they’re finished with classes.
We just got textbooks last week, and there aren’t enough for every student to have one. If I want to use a textbook for class, I have to ask a couple of students to go to the teacher work-room and get enough for everyone, bring them to class, and then take them back when my class is over. We have no science labs and no library. Science teachers teach mostly theory, with the exception of a few very small and resource-limited experiments. Students don’t read for luxury, and since they can’t take textbooks home, if I want them to study something they have to copy the entire thing into their notebooks. We also have only 3 computers, none of which function properly at the moment. The ICT teachers have to teach students how to use a computer by writing instructions on the chalkboard and trying to help them imagine what it would be like to actually do it on the computer.
The classrooms are brick buildings with several huge windows for light and air. The roofs are made of tin, which makes it practically impossible to teach when it’s raining because the students can’t hear anything I’m saying over the loud rain.
Teaching in general in Rwanda is also regarded differently from how it is at home. University students often get jobs as teachers to pay their way through college. They come with no teaching experience other than what they know from being a student, and are rarely given any training. On top of that, without a bachelor’s degree they only make about $50 a month. Even teachers with a degree only make about $100 a month. Low pay and practically no teaching resources make it very difficult to motivate teachers to try to teach in a way that keeps their students interested.
I can’t say that I blame them at all or that I would feel differently in their situations. The question now, of course, is what I can possibly do to change any of this.
Love and miss you all.
