My last day at Seshegong -- L! I got up early to arrive before school started so I could see morning assembly. They made me feel like a rock star! When I was introduced to the whole school (more than a thousand students packed into a courtyard surrounded by trailer classrooms) they screamed and shouted and ululated like I was Taylor Swift! Thoko and I (and most of the teachers) were late starting class because everyone wanted photos.
I was able to do some teaching today, mainly cross cultural stuff relating to South African student perceptions of the US. Many of the stereotypes persist: everyone is rich, everyone is beautiful, everyone has a nice car. I was surprised by how much students do know about the US, though: President Obama (I am pretty sure none of my students know Jacob Zuma) and the White House and Empire State Building (most Americans don’t know the capitals of South Africa, or even that there are more than one, much less that Union Buildings are located in Pretoria). In the eleventh grade Tourism class Thoko was teaching Lesotho, which was fun for me since I could add to her lesson. We also talked about some of the main tourist sites in Washington, DC, since that will be part of these students’ curriculum next year. Thoko’s eighth grade English class was doing a listening exercise with a dialogue, so Thoko and I took parts in the reading, which the students enjoyed. I enjoyed it, too.
Best student question today: “What do you think about today’s youth?” This was followed by a question about how I feel about youth making mistakes. After explaining that I think young people are the ones who will bring about change and that I think it is normal for young people to make mistakes, I qualified it with the idea that we often learn more from our mistakes than from what we do right the first time. I introduced them to our adage, “Don’t make the same mistake twice!”
During planning I got to speak with many of the teachers, who individually picked my brain about how we do things in my school. One was particularly interested in our counseling/social work program as she sees a real need for such in the township. Most wanted to talk about curriculum – what we teach and in what grades. My favorite teacher conversation, though, was about Washington, DC. After asking me about the city he brought the conversation around to crime and safety. Finally he asked me whether or not Thoko would be safe when she visits in January. I laughed and told him that people back home had the same questions about whether or not I would be safe in Johannesburg!
One highlight of the day was a special luncheon organized by the principal in honor of National Women’s Day, which will be celebrated annually on August 9. It commemorates the 1956 march of more than 20,000 on the Union Buildings (in Pretoria) in protest of proposed pass laws for women. During the luncheon the male teachers had to monitor the students’ lunch while all the women on the faculty gathered together. The head girl spoke, thanking the teachers and letting them know how much the students appreciated them for being not only educators but acting as moms, sisters, aunts and “grannies.” The principal gave an inspiring talk about empowering girls and young women (and, indeed, leads by example). She ended with the phrase adopted at the original march, "You strike a woman, you strike a rock." Cheers and songs left everyone energized and motivated to continue to carry on. In the Olievenhoutbosch township, single parenthood (mainly by moms) is very common. One of the teachers told me that half of all students had single parents, and teenage pregnancy continues to be a huge problem. Events like National Women’s Day are a step in the right direction for combatting such issues.
I was able to do some teaching today, mainly cross cultural stuff relating to South African student perceptions of the US. Many of the stereotypes persist: everyone is rich, everyone is beautiful, everyone has a nice car. I was surprised by how much students do know about the US, though: President Obama (I am pretty sure none of my students know Jacob Zuma) and the White House and Empire State Building (most Americans don’t know the capitals of South Africa, or even that there are more than one, much less that Union Buildings are located in Pretoria). In the eleventh grade Tourism class Thoko was teaching Lesotho, which was fun for me since I could add to her lesson. We also talked about some of the main tourist sites in Washington, DC, since that will be part of these students’ curriculum next year. Thoko’s eighth grade English class was doing a listening exercise with a dialogue, so Thoko and I took parts in the reading, which the students enjoyed. I enjoyed it, too.
Best student question today: “What do you think about today’s youth?” This was followed by a question about how I feel about youth making mistakes. After explaining that I think young people are the ones who will bring about change and that I think it is normal for young people to make mistakes, I qualified it with the idea that we often learn more from our mistakes than from what we do right the first time. I introduced them to our adage, “Don’t make the same mistake twice!”
During planning I got to speak with many of the teachers, who individually picked my brain about how we do things in my school. One was particularly interested in our counseling/social work program as she sees a real need for such in the township. Most wanted to talk about curriculum – what we teach and in what grades. My favorite teacher conversation, though, was about Washington, DC. After asking me about the city he brought the conversation around to crime and safety. Finally he asked me whether or not Thoko would be safe when she visits in January. I laughed and told him that people back home had the same questions about whether or not I would be safe in Johannesburg!
One highlight of the day was a special luncheon organized by the principal in honor of National Women’s Day, which will be celebrated annually on August 9. It commemorates the 1956 march of more than 20,000 on the Union Buildings (in Pretoria) in protest of proposed pass laws for women. During the luncheon the male teachers had to monitor the students’ lunch while all the women on the faculty gathered together. The head girl spoke, thanking the teachers and letting them know how much the students appreciated them for being not only educators but acting as moms, sisters, aunts and “grannies.” The principal gave an inspiring talk about empowering girls and young women (and, indeed, leads by example). She ended with the phrase adopted at the original march, "You strike a woman, you strike a rock." Cheers and songs left everyone energized and motivated to continue to carry on. In the Olievenhoutbosch township, single parenthood (mainly by moms) is very common. One of the teachers told me that half of all students had single parents, and teenage pregnancy continues to be a huge problem. Events like National Women’s Day are a step in the right direction for combatting such issues.