Education In Namibia - Some Thoughts

The rainy season has really started here in Namibia, making me really glad I packed a raincoat. The rain will come out of nowhere and absolutely downpour, complete with thunder and lightening. It's respite from the heat though, so it's more than welcome.

Today I had my internship, I took a taxi (taxi rides in Namibia - never a dull moment) to get there early so I can work with the remedial program. I sort of fell in to working with that class, because it has been hard to determine where I can be the most useful since I am here for such a limited amount of time, and only speak English. The remedial class is made up of students that are between 14 and 19, and most if not all are not in formal school. This is for a lot of different reasons- they were prevented from going to school when they were younger, they don't have birth certificates which prevents them from registering, they can't afford school fees (even though education is supposed to be free, this is often not the case) to name a few. These students work really hard, are really attentive, and really respectful. This past Monday I had the class on my own, which was rather daunting for the five minutes I had to think about it before class started, but they were really great. Usually I work one on one with them on reading or math skills, their teacher is trying to prepare them for the grade 7 exam but really the goal is to simply educate them as much as she can.

My students have really poor English reading and writing skills, not only because of the lack of education but because they aren't exposed to English regularly. It can be really heart breaking some days, because they've missed out on so many years of education that they very badly need. Also it's me, so I really want people to enjoy reading and have it not be such a struggle. Left out of the educational system, and with very little vocational training that doesn't require you to be a high school graduate, I worry about what will happen to these students and their peers in the future. At the same time, I am loving getting to spend time with them and even though I know that it was a miniscule victory in the grand scheme of things, when one of the girls told me today that she understood dividing fractions I was so pleased. Especially because goodness knows the last time I divided a fraction.

Having another, different experience with education really makes me think about its role in development and eradicating poverty. And makes me wonder why I always end up in teaching positions when I get volunteer and internship placements. I feel like I am learning a lot from my internship, and the amount that I am giving back is far less. I can't reconcile how an educational system can fail so many students, and I wonder how many similarities there are to inner city schools in the US, where obviously the situation is very different but there are still a lot of missed opportunities. It is hard not to be discouraged! And of course, I am left with the very familiar question of what can be done to solve such a multi-layered problem...

My weekend in Swakup!

Dune 7, I climbed all the way to the top!
Some seals, hopefully I got closer photos on my disposable camera
Rachel and I at the beach!
This weekend was very busy, and very cold (comparatively) but it was great to see more of Namibia. The landscape changes pretty quickly once you head towards the coast, or at least it felt that way, because I woke up from my nap and thought I was watching scenes from Aladdin as we drove. This is not particularly politically correct of me, but that's what it reminded me of! We stayed in funny little A-frame bungalows that are a fabulous shade of pepto pink, Lauren and I were great roommates. Thursday and Friday were filled with meetings, including the Walvis Bay Municipality, an Export Processing Zone (super interesting), a fish factory (I got to wear some great protective gear complete with little booties), an uranium mine, and we also toured the former township of Swakupmund, Mondesa. There we saw a community project school that is not unlike my internship, got to meet one of the first female Damara chiefs, and went to Mondesa Youth Opportunities (mondesayouth.org) which is an awesome after school enrichment program that definitely gave me ideas as to what I would like to do when I 'grow up.' We definitely learnt a lot in Swakup and Walvis Bay, which I appreciated, because it's typically pegged as just a tourist area (there are certainly a lot of Germans around to justify this).
We also did a lot of fun non-academic things, like climbed Dune 7, which is 100 metres high and one should always bring and inhaler when climbing it. There were lots of great places to eat, the sunsets were always amazing, I did yoga on the beach on Saturday, and sea kayaking was amazing. There were SO many seals, who are very noisy and also very smelly. We also saw little dolphins, which I believe are called heavy side dolphins. So all in all it was a great trip, if tiring, especially knowing that I have three papers due this week! I'm glad to be back in Windhoek, we have a lot to do this week including planning fall break before we head out next Sunday for 2 weeks up North which includes our rural homestay (!). I can't believe that this is week 7 and next week I'm halfway done with my trip...the rural homestay is definitely what I am most nervous about. But I am excited for this week, being a little settled, having internet (have to admit it) and possibly going to the Old Mutual Jazz Encounter this weekend. CGE certainly keeps us busy!

On the move again!

The CGE crew is on the move again, even though we have really only been at the house for maybe a week and a half, I think we are all really excited to get to Swakupmund. The car ride is about four hours, we leave tomorrow afternoon after class. Apparently it is fairly cold (by this I mean 60-70 degrees, really not anything to complain about - but it is such an adjustment to make!) Some of the things that are on the schedule for this upcoming weekend: going to a fish factory (we get to wear stylish protective suits), an Export Processing Zone (very excited about this because of all of the critiques I have learnt), and climbing a dune. And then of course my sea kayaking! I am excited to see more of Namibia, now that I am feeling that Windhoek is more familiar.
I am having trouble defining my role and project at my internship, but have definitely been giving a lot of thought to the Namibian and South African educational system since being here, and definitely after the time spent at FHS thus far. I would like to see a formal school, because FHS works as an enrichment and remedial program. It is very hard for me to see 13 and 14 year old boys that have never had formal schooling, and are working hard to get in to an educational system that doesn't have the resources or ability to help them. I have been thinking a lot about my role within educational systems that leave so many children with no opportunities. I haven't come up with any answers yet! But this article was recently in the NYT (I am very grateful for any time I have to check the news), it sums up the obstacles facing the South African educational system: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/20/world/africa/20safrica.html?_r=2&ref=global-home
Another note is that this upcoming week I am doing the academic blog that all students have to do twice during the semester, and which counts towards our class grades. It's a little behind because the posts have to be graded before they're posted, but it gives you an idea of what we're doing academically: http://cgenamibia.blogspot.com/
I was going to post a photo as a reward for all of the reading, but it didn't work. But I did update my Picasa website, and will have photos of Swakup soon!

Weekend in Windhoek

Hello, it's a lazy Sunday morning, I slept until 8:30 today! Which honestly is quite a feat here, between the sunrise and having 5 other roommates. I would like to go to church here, but thus far haven't found one that is in English. Yesterday Julia and I went to the Namibian National Art Gallery, it was really nice and I'm glad that we went. Museums here are usually not very well funded, but thankfully this one was. While it wasn't very big, they had some nice pieces of art and a great display that was made up of photos from the community, 100 years after the Herero genocide. After the museum, we had lunch and walked to Parliament Gardens. The Gardens are really beautiful, and actually the one place I've seen in Windhoek with grass (the advantages of manicured lawns in the desert). I did take some photos, so I will post those soon. It is actually hard to take photos here, because a lot of the time I don't feel safe carrying it around. But I am trying!
Today is a serious homework and gym day, this Thursday we are leaving for Swakupmund! I am so excited to get to the coast...I have been feeling to far away from the ocean lately. And yesterday I booked my sea kayaking - apparently there will be lots of seals! I can't wait!

CHINA!!

(That is what all the little kids at my internship scream when they see me)
Things have been busy, which is why I haven't posted in a while. This week we have been back from homestays and at the center, which has been really nice because it has been relaxed and given us the ability to do more independent activities. Today I don't have class, right now I'm sitting on the balcony, the weather is fabulous :) Later today a group of us are going hiking, which I have been looking forward to for a while. This weekend I have lots of plans, such as going to Parliament Gardens or the Namibian National Art Gallery, we'll see what happens! Classes have kept us pretty busy because they are 4 hours long, but the work hasn't been overwhelming and certainly not what I'm used to at Clark so that has been great.
This week has really been pretty relaxed, but next wednesday we go to the coast (Swakupmund) and I am looking forward to that. I think I'm going to go sea kayaking, and I'll get to see seals! It is nice to be settled and able to really enjoy things here. It really makes me excited for the next trip I'm going ot take, whenever and wherever that may be. I do have to say that Namibian air has really caused problems with my breathing and given me a cough and stuffy nose. Should have packed a humidifier...
Additionally, I miss my chiropractic appointments, recycling, and knowing where to get a haircut (not sure how to handle that issue, my fringe is getting rather long...)

This is an example of a beautiful Namibian sunset, even though the photo isn't that great, I plan on taking many more while I'm here. The sunrises are also pretty spectacular too, I can report (unfortunately I have been a witness to them many times). I am currently eating almonds and chai (excellent snack) and trying to do some homework...which is proving to be difficult in a house of 25 people whilst doing a homestay. Though I can't really complain, our papers aren't very long. We only have two more days of homestay-ing, then we have about a week and a half at the house before we go to Swakupmund. I can't believe that come Sunday, we will have been here for 4 weeks already.
Yesterday we had history class, and I think it has been one of the most insightful experiences I've had here so far. We learnt about the Herero (a tribe here) Genocide, which took place during 1904-1905. As it was enacted by German colonizers, it is considered the precursor to the Holocaust, yet it is not something that we are ever taught. Many of the tactics used during the Herero genocide were reused during the Holocaust, and is an equally intentional killing of thousands of people. The documentary we watched is here at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iXgIhSjWGhE and I would really encourage people to watch it. It is pretty shocking how little history we truly know, because we are so often misinformed or not informed at all. So that has been a pretty incredible learning experience...I'm interested to see where it goes from here.

Namibian men love their bucket hats

...At first I thought it was just our driver, Passat, but nope. It's all of them. In fact, if I had thought of it earlier, I would have started a photography book on hat wear in Namibia. I started my homestay Thursday (more on that later), and when we went to church I felt uncomfortable because I was the only woman without a hat. But then I realized I was the only non-black person there, so whatever attention I was going to draw to myself was not going to be because of my lack of headgear.
So it has been homestay since Thursday, which I am enjoying even though it is very different from our Soweto experience. I love that Lizzie is up the street, and we have been able to go to the gym a couple times as well. I love having host siblings my age, Saturday we went to a football match (Swaziland vs Namibia's Brave Warriors), which ended 1-all. Saturday night we had a family braai (bbq) which was a ton of fun, and Sunday was church and a 2 hour nap. I think that CGE students (or at least our group!) are nortorious for falling asleep everywhere, on sofas, in cars, going to bed at 8pm. It is only a matter of time before the jetlag/time change excuse is no longer applicable...
This week is also our first full week of classes, so we come back to the center in the morning and Lizzie and I take a taxi back at night. It means we've been pretty busy, today we had political science and our internship class. Tomorrow I have religion class for the first time, and we have to do a creative project/presentation on how we feel about religion and social change. It was actually a very interesting project to do (I still haven't decided what I'm going to say though...) because both topics are very relevant to me. Hopefully the class is equally interesting...
As for my internship, I have been getting more of a background to the organization the last couple of times I've been, and hopefully tomorrow I will be able to nail down what my specific project will be. It's a learning process, definitely!
Hopefully I will be able to update more coherently when I am in one place for a longer period of time....I am feeling very scattered!

My first day at Family of Hope Services

Today was my first day at my internship...it has been a long time coming! I was actually really nervous, I think because it was truly my first time to do something completely without the group or anyone from the group. I fought back the feelings of abandonment, good practice for my homestay tomorrow! The schools in Namibia are on recess right now, and don't go back until the 8th, so most of the center's programs are on hold until then. That means that I don't get to jump right into whatever project I decide to work on, but hopefully next week that will become more clear. For today, I mostly talked to the administrative assistant and I met my supervisor in the last hour I was there.
Even though the center doesn't have official programs running during school break, they still do feeding and youth programs. So I helped out with that today, per usual I played with kids! One little girl took a nap on me for 2 hours and I read Bible stories aloud. I feel fairly overwhelmed because I don't know a whole lot about the organization yet, or what I will be doing, and I don't know Katatura very well. But I am sure all of those things will come to me eventually, and hopefully next week will have more clarity.
Tomorrow we start our homestays in Windhoek, which is another transition. I am apparently staying with a single mum and her 3 kids, (all around my age) and she is a schoolteacher. It is going to be hard doing a homestay for 10 days and without someone from the group, but at least we will see each other during the day for classes. I am also hoping to fit in some gym time! Also, today I got my first piece of mail in my little mailbox, it was very exciting...thank you Calli :)
So I will have updates about all of that as things happen...miss you all!

Photo Albums

Here's a link to my Picasa photo albums. Hopefully I will have more photos of Windhoek soon!
picasaweb.google.com/ihaveawaterbuffalo