We are working with a program called PELLE, promoting English language learning in Ethiopia. Our goal, summed up, is to be English teachers full time to improve student’s confidence inside and outside of the classroom and to improve teaching using English with the teachers. But what does that even mean, or what does that look like? Well, let me tell you. In Ethiopia, students begin learning English as a third or fourth language (after Amharic, Tigrenya, Afaan Oromo or another local language) in elementary school. However, when students reach 9th grade the language of instruction is supposed to be English in all classes. Additionally, the 10th grade and 12th grade national exams are completely written in English. In order to get a good education it is immensely important that the students can speak, write, listen and read English. The same is true for our colleague teachers. So here we are, trying to improve the four skills of English for students and teachers. In this way we are helping to develop the country, improve the education system and thusly build a more peaceful world, for all you big picture people out there, like me. But how?
So Sylvia teaches 11th grade at the local preparatory school. She uses the 11th grade English for Ethiopia text book and follows the Ethiopian curriculum. She has two sections of 60 students. I teach 9th grade at the local secondary school. I use the 9th grade English for Ethiopia text book and follow the Ethiopian curriculum. I have three sections of 75 students. I teach English four days per week to each section and Sylvia teaches six times per week to each section. Each period we teach is 40 minutes, granted that the teacher before us does not go over, or we do not start the day late (which happens frequently). The students stay in the same classroom all day and the teachers switch out. This cuts down on the time that students would have to go from class to class, but creates a bit of a manic teaching style in which part of your 40 minutes is entering the classrooms, assessing the situation for the day and trying to prepare, all while the students are becoming restless from staying in the same seats all day. This is something that has taken some getting used to. Each day we prepare a lesson plan based on reading, writing, listening, speaking and of course grammar. The Ethiopian students absolutely love grammar. The teachers also love grammar. We are continually quizzed on our grammar knowledge. Neither of us, being ultimate grammarians makes it interesting some times when we are asked very specific questions about the difference between two words that mean the exact same thing or why we use the past participle for present perfect as an adjective and as a verb tense in the past. Using grammar as a means to encourage speaking, writing, reading and listening has proven effective in this learning environment.
In addition to our everyday teaching we also have English clubs, girls tuturioals, all student tutorials and make up classes that keep us very busy. We hope to expand out extracurricular activities in the coming year.
After we are done teaching for the day, or in between periods we hang out with our Ethiopian colleagues in the shai/bunny bet (tea house), drink tea, play checkers, talk about students and everything under the sun. This is when the majority of our learning and teaching takes place I feel. We have discussions about American religion, food, culture, mass shootings in America, racism, feminism and any other topic that make you want to squirm. We drink tea and eat bread. One of the main questions we get is, how is the teaching learning process? Every day, without fail someone will ask us this. It means “How is class?” This usually turns into a discussion about teaching methodologies or the lesson we have prepared for the day and how it can be improved or how it benefits the students. The majority of teaching in Ethiopia is lecture style, teacher-centered due to the large class sizes, the limited amount of teaching time, the school culture and the immense amount of information that needs to be covered in a semester. However, we have been able to improve some of this with introducing our ideas of student-centered learning approaches and making learning fun. After this we will go back home, review our lesson from that day, create our lesson for the next day and then watch an episode of newest favorite show (currently we are watching Newsroom…awesome!).
Sylvia’s school only has one shift, meaning her classes end at 1pm each day. My school has two shifts because of the large number of students, meaning we have 10 classes in the morning until 12pm and then 10 classes in the evening until 4:30 or 5pm. I have to switch every two weeks between working morning shift and working the afternoon shift.
To be very honest many days we feel defeated in our classrooms. Due to the large number of students, the lack of participation, language barriers and large number of absences of students (and teachers), it is very easy to wonder if we will make any real impact at our school. It is difficult to see or measure the outcome of our work really. But the days when a shy girl raises her hand for the first time or days when the students really seem engaged, these are the days that we motivate us and keep us going. I remember once a mentor of mine told me that social work, insert teaching here, is like a savings bond. We invest in it for many years without seeing any return on our investment. However, one day that savings bond will be cashed in. Helping improve education in a quickly developing country does not happen overnight and we have to remind ourselves of this daily. Also, we are beginning to see teachers and students speaking English more and more, being excited about learning and being excited about teaching. This is the work that we are doing, this is the impact that we are having. Our work here is difficult, our life here is difficult, but the rewards when we see little change here and there makes it all worth it. We need to remind ourselves of this. Not only during our work in Peace Corps but in everything we do in life. There is a Ethiopian proverb that goes something like little by little the egg becomes a chicken. This is very true in everything that we do.
The days are long, the weeks are long but the months are going by very quickly. It is important that we live in each moment that we are here because it is going to go by very quickly. We are already six months in. Some days it feels like we just got here and other days it feels like we have been here for a life time. Each day there is something positive that takes place and most days, to be honest, there is something negative that takes place. But it is a new year. And we are determined to be the best volunteers we can be. I have made a real New Year’s resolution to document our growth through journaling, pictures and videos, so please feel free to hold me accountable to that. Peace Corps was not joking when they said that this will be the hardest job that you will ever love. The work is difficult, the cross cultural situations are difficult and the living conditions are different, to say the least, but we are lucky to share this experience and even luckier to have an impact on so many students lives. Here’s to a new year and a new sense of motivation and hope for the coming year of peace, relationship building and increasing self-efficacy in our students.
Peace and Love,
Jimi and Sylvia