Tuesday, September 28, 2010

third term!

Well I'm about 3 weeks into my third term of teaching in Namibia. While many pcvs in the education sector really really hate teaching, I think I lucked out a lot with my placement because I love teaching. There. I said it. I love teaching. So much, in fact, that I'm considering getting my teaching degree in America when (if?...when) I return. There are definitely things I don't love about teaching in Namibia. I hate the bureaucracy, and being forced to make ridiculous files, the unrealistic expectations of the management, the frustratingly low levels of the learners. Sometimes my learners drive me insane. Corporal punishment makes me feel physically ill. But there is little I love in this country more than being in the classroom. One day last term I was giving grade 7 a "pep talk," meaning they were being noisy and I was feeling cranky and trying to make them be quiet and listen to how to add and subtract fractions(yes, even though I love my learners, Miss Emily does have her cranky days) and I finally said in exasperation: "I am here for you!!!! You are the most important people in my life here!!!" And while I was saying this I had a moment of clarity where I realized that this was actually completely true.

Volunteers in other sectors have more free time to spend in their communities doing projects and what what but when you're an education volunteer you don't have much time to spend outside of the school. I spend all of my time with learners. I go to school at 7 in the morning and stay until 4:30 at night. I run with them in the evenings (I'm currently training them for a marathon in Swakopmund!) They come to my house to watch movies with me on weekends. They write me letters asking me to be their best friend. Actually, they are my best friends in my village. These learners are the most important people in my Peace Corps life. They're the reason I'm here. And even when my secondary projects fizzle out, or school bureaucracy makes me angry, I still love those kids. And even when they don't listen in class, or knock on my door at 6 in the morning on a saturday, or break my pens or steal my sticky tack I still love 'em.

So I'd say, I'm pretty lucky.