Teaching

The main reason I go on these mission trips to Tanzania is to teach. Funny how I always feel like I'm the one who comes back having learned more than what I leave there. I teach at a secondary school called Uroki. Secondary schools are not funded by the government... they are private schools. Students have to pass an exam in order to get into the school. Each year they have to pass National Exams, which are in English. If they don't pass, they most likely won't be able to come back because their families would have to pay $400 for another year of education for them and that is quite a sacrifice. Yes, their education costs $400 per school year... and that includes room and board at Uroki. Many children don't go to secondary school because their families can't afford the tuition or maybe even the uniforms.

When I go I work on teaching English with the students. In 2005 we played Scrabble. This time I worked on adjectives and nouns with them by teaching them the game Apples to Apples. I also made my own bingo and board games that had prepositions.

One day I was showing Anande (a teacher at Uroki) some of the things I'd prepared. She said, "So when can you come teach?" I said, "Well, I was hoping to teach tomorrow, but it's a holiday and there's no school." Anande said, "If you want to teach then, they will come." I was like, no way, I don't want to make them come to class on their day off. She said they would like to. I didn't believe her so she said, "Let's go ask them." We went over to the window, stuck our heads in a classroom and she said, "Form two's, this teacher would like to come teach you tomorrow, will you come." They all said yes. Then she asked them if they were excited to come and they cheered. Sure enough, at 9:15 the next day when I walked into the classroom, they were all there ready for me to teach.

When you walk in the room they all rise. I didn't realize that they don't sit down until you give them permission to sit. Imagine me talking away for a few minutes and then finally realizing that they weren't sitting down on their own. I needed to tell them to sit down. One time I walked into the classroom, the students stood up. I immediately told them they could sit down. Then I introduced myself and said Good Morning. When I said this they all stood up again. I realized that they will stand up for Good Morning as well as when the teacher walks in the room. I quickly learned to tell them good morning, ask how they were doing and THEN I could ask them to sit down, otherwise they would like like yo-yo's going up and down, up and down.