So it sems like a long time since I’ve blogged, at least a blog that doesn’t involve a ridiculously fantastic road trip! I thought I’d had it with road trips for a while what with Lesotho and Victoria Falls/ Botswana but just before writing this I’ve found out that I will be visiting the ‘Wild Coast’ this long weekend! This blog won’t contain any photos of breath taking natural beauty but rather the pictures this week will be a tribute to the wonderful friends who I’ve made during my too short a time in SA!
So, after returning from Easter break I spent a full day recovering and trying to regain some energy before beginning teaching practise. As I have stated in previous blogs I will be teaching in Khwezi Lomso Comprehensive in the Zwedi township area of Port Elizabeth. Teaching practise consists, for me, of 3 weeks block teaching with one tutor visit which, unlike home, is to be arranged by me. Now approaching the half way stage of my teaching practise I will fill you in on some of the stories and some of the experiences which I have had so far.
The first morning took me by surprise. Assembly was the first time I really grasped a sense of what 1500 kids in one place looked like and trust me it looks like a lot! I was slightly apprehensive about starting teaching but amazingly on Monday morning I felt a weight lifted off my shoulders and I don’t know what to put it down to other than God’s hand of car upon me. At assembly the principal criticised the pupils singing and waited for a teacher to lead the pupils in another song. When no teacher was forthcoming, one of the girls in the concrete court where they meet started singing and her voice was incredible! In fact as everyone else began to accompany her the sound was just uplifting and I think that had something to do with my being at ease as well. I really respect that girl for leading her classmates in song…I wonder how many pupils would be willing to do that in Northern Ireland?
I spent the first couple of days observing again and arranging my timetable for my classes and then began teaching on Wednesday. After a slow start with my first class I had an experience which made me realise why I’ve chosen to become a teacher. I was teaching a Grade 8 class about world religions and they were really responding and interacting well, which was much more than I had expected. I expected the pupils would be timid but not so in this class. As the children had participated so well I gave them the opportunity to ask me questions about NI and I in turn would ask them questions about SA. It was fantastic to see how enthusiastic they were to learn new things and at the same time I was able to learn from them. Teaching as a two way process, the way it ought to be! As the discussion evolved one of the children asked me what my national anthem was and then the others asked me to sing it so I made a deal with them that if they sang their National Anthem I would sing mine. Immediately the children started to sing and gradually they all started to rise to their feet and stand with hands over their hearts. They were singing with such volume, pride and passion that my heart was stirred. It was actual beautiful to see these kids singing unashamedly about their country and their teacher even walked in when she heard them and started singing with them. It was absolutely fantastic but then it was my turn to sing. Nothing I could produce would match what I had just seen but I did my best at a rendition of God Save the Queen! Afterwards some of the kids asked me for my autograph so I must have done alright!
I spent the next couple of days covering for a Life Orientation teacher who was away for some reason. The main focus of my teaching has been on world religions and it’s actually been really interesting for me to learn something about other religions. I’ve found myself learning as I’ve been teaching and so the lessons have evolved throughout the day. I found that when teaching the same lesson 6 times over in a day that the first lesson is not exactly the same as the sixth lesson. This is one thing that I don’t think I’ll miss about secondary teaching, the repetition of lessons, although it does save on planning time…I always knew the secondary ones had it easy! My fears about teaching in a secondary school have also been relieved as I found out through one of my class discussions that children in SA start school two year later than in NI so when teaching a Grade 8 or 9 class I am effectively teaching the same content as I would in P6 or P7 back home as the learners are at the same mental level even if they are a bit more physically and emotionally developed! The language barrier, or perhaps more accurately, the language barrier is also something which I have had to address. Sometimes in class it is very difficult to make out what the children are saying and so I’ve found myself having to ask them to repeat themselves several times before I gain an understanding and on occasion they’ve had to do likewise with me.
I’ve always introduced an A-Z of Northern Ireland lesson which I’ve been able to use when I’m covering a class which I was unable to prepare for, such as today when I was told that I would be covering a class for a teacher who wasn’t in. My favourite part is undoubtedly when I tell them the story of Finn MacCool and the Giant’s Causeway. I love going into story telling mode and I love seeing the captivated looks on the children’s faces when they soak in every detail and then the utter disbelief when I tell them that the story is actually just a legend…it’s amazing how many of them actually believe it! While I’m doing the A-Z of NI I also get them to compile an A-Z of SA so again I’ve been learning lots about their culture and things which they see as special about their culture. I’ve also been picking up lots of Xhosa words which I can now use, my favourite being ‘uxolo’ which means peace (the x is not pronounced as we would pronounce an x but is rather a clicking sound, and is one of three clicking sounds within Xhosa speak!) Teaching practise has so far been a very different experience to what I have at home but I am so glad that I am experiencing it because it is really broadening my perspective of teaching and making me aware of how lucky we are as teachers in NI to be so well resourced!
Of course teaching practise has been taking up most of my life and is absolutely draining me of energy but I have also been managing to keep up the social side of things. We spent a lot of last week on the beach playing volleyball, football and body boarding. There’s definitely more of a chill in the air these days as autumn approaches but of course that isn’t going to stop a hardened Northern Irish lad from going to the beach! I actually had a rather action packed weekend just past which involved go karting, hockey and paintball. On Friday night a large group went bowling at the Boardwalk which is a massive entertainment complex geared mainly towards tourists and so has everything. A couple of us didn’t feel like bowling though so we took a walk around the complex and ended up go karting which was fun, if not up to the standards of the world famous Super Drive in the Birches! After a relaxing Saturday Sunday was the complete opposite. I had my first hockey match of the season at 8am in the morning! I can’t ever remember having a match that early bar possibly at the British University Games but I don’t even think they were that early! Nevertheless we travelled across town to face a side called Man United who actually turned out to be a bunch of unfit old men who we overturned comfortably 4-1. Still it was good to be playing competitively again!
On getting back to the Bantry I had just made some breakfast when Henrik, one of the Swedes, told me that we were going paintballing, so up I got again and went on my merry way. We must have spent about 2 or 3 hours shooting each other through bush terrain before we eventually decided we had had enough. Two of the guys actually decided it would be fun to shoot each other point blank with no shirts on, although their scars seem to indicate that it was actually anything but fun! Speaking of things which aren’t fun I’ve forgotten to mention my cinnamon experience! Whilst hanging out one night, and before watching ‘Once’, Henrik and I were persuaded by Kate, an American, to participate in the cinnamon challenge…basically eating a table spoon of cinnamon powder. Well, never will I do that again! I physically could not breathe as the cinnamon clogged up my airways and I don’t think I’ve ever been as scared, even with my water experiences. Thankfully on this occasion water was on hand to ease the blockage but my throat still burned and tasted of cinnamon for many hours after! Honestly, never again!
I’ve really started to enjoy Livewire again after Easter break as I feel refreshed and more at ease with tolerating a different style of worship and a different doctrinal approach to teaching. I still don’t agree with everything that is said or the way everything is done but I do feel more at ease knowing that at the end of the day we are just people worshipping the same God! And the most incredible thing is that the same God who we worship in South Africa is exactly the same God as you guys are worshipping at home which to me is just incredible. God is Lord of all! This week there was a guy speaking, Duncan Stewart http://www.duncanstewart.co.za/ who is a Christian artist and whose are represents some idea of Christianity. It was really interesting to hear him speak about how there are so many aspects to God and Christianity and his most captivating piece was one which depicted a fish in the Sea of Galilee watching Jesus and Peter walk on water, illustrating the idea that it is good to be open to different perspectives on things.
That is all I can think of right now. As I look through my journal I keep finding little things that I’ve forgotten about but I think I’ve covered the bulk of what I’ve been up to. So until next time,
Peace
God Bless
“Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord”
Philippians 3:8
PS I knew I had forgotten something! Yesterday I had my last class at the NMMU. I would just like to express a really big thanks to all those in my PGCE class who have made me feel so welcome and from whom I have learnt so much. Love you guys!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment