Back to School

This week I held meetings with school directors and teachers to establish a curriculum plan for the year. Whereas last year I planned and taught most of the “Life Skills” classes, this year the schools have to take ownership of the course so that it becomes sustainable. I will teach half of the classes, and a local teacher will give the other half. I will be present during all of the classes to support the teachers and give feedback, but the lesson plan selection and evaluations are the responsibility of the local teachers. When I leave in July, the expectation is that the teachers and the schools are trained in and comfortable with the curriculum, and that they will continue giving the classes. The volunteer who replaces me will not teach students, and instead she will organize youth-themed workshops for teachers and parents.


Even though I called ahead and scheduled meetings, getting the directors to show up was tough. Only one of the four meetings started on time, and in anticipation of their tardiness I brought a book and a camera (thus, the random pictures of goats and school bathrooms on this post).




One school was especially aggravating. On Monday morning I called school A to confirm our Monday afternoon meeting, only to hear that not all of the teachers would be present. I rescheduled for Tuesday. I had to leave the Tuesday meeting with school A early to bike (uphill!) to school B for a meeting, but the director of school B showed up an hour late (time I could have used to continue the meeting at school A). I returned to school A to reschedule again. I came at the appointed time on Thursday for our third meeting, but the director asked if I could come back later because they were behind in their agenda. I said that I had a different meeting with school C at that time, and could we please just sit down and plan the logistics of the year. I know that time is flexible here, but the inefficiencies wear you down—especially when your primary mode of transportation is a bike.


In cultures where communication is indirect (like Guatemala), the background music of a conversation is just as important as what is actually being said. At one school the director again asked if I could teach theater and English, even though I have reiterated for the last year and a half that my job is to implement the Life Skills curriculum. He agreed to co-teach the Life Skills class, but the background music said that he preferred a handout and that he was not thrilled at the amount of work the class entailed for him.


To better deal with unmotivated directors, at a meeting next week the school superintendent will make the directors sign a contract in which they agree to implement the Life Skills curriculum. The superintendent believes that getting the directors’ commitment on paper will help to enforce accountability. Here’s hoping.