Winding Up for the Wrap Up

February, 2010

I started the first term of the school year in January with the determination of pursuing a number of initiatives before I leave Botswana. The development of a program to empower students with live long skills has been the primary focus of my job at my senior secondary school. The teachers agreed to hold the final life skills workshop for teachers on January 28th. To hold the workshop, we needed food. The school needed to train about 50 teachers. They only had money to buy them a drink at most, so I was fortunate to find PEPFAR(US HIV/AIDS) funds to pay for a lunch. We then organized the teacher trainers to help present the final workshop. With planning and preparation we pulled off our final training on schedule. This completes the number of teaching staff ready to implement the life skill books. So within the next month we hope to distribute the 1000 of student life skill books(were paid for by the US government and have been in my office for over a year. Just numbering the books has been a real task so that students will return them for others to use in the years to come. So if all goes well the new program will be rolled at least partially soon.
I have also suggested that the PACT club mentor the 900 plus new form 4 students that arrived campus at the beginning of February. This task is challenging since despite numerous formal greetings in Setswana, students have trouble approaching students they do not know. We are using role plays to overcome this with some success. My school within the school consists of several hundred students. At my suggestion they have committed to mentoring the new form fours. Again, role play and some unusual logistics are being used to meet and greet the new form 4’s in our mini school house. None of this is without a degree of angst on my part, since without an adequate knowledge of Setswana, it is difficult to convey the concept of mentoring.
As part of the orientation of the new class, I am working to organize the drama group of men to dramatize some of the messages to be conveyed to the new students. The drama will be followed by a interactive discussion of behaviors dealing with teenage pregnancy, sexually related diseases, alcohol and domestic violence in the home. This is a change from the lecture style don’ts and shoulds lectures that comprise days of on-going orientation. Wish me luck!!
If all goes well, with transport and other logistics, my students will visit a few primary schools to mentor the children and participate with seven other schools in presenting and receiving training to learn about health related issues. We shall see….
All these activities will be accomplished under the leadership of students who have been elected as the result of campaign speeches and campaigning by members for votes among their fellow students. The election was a great success with lots of campaign promises, but now the problem is training the new leader to lead on a weekly basis????? Skills that many take for granted are not easy in an environment where students are usually told what to do. Training is mainly trial and error with a considerable amount of coaching. But my students crave the power and now need to realize the responsibility. All they need is the experience, which takes time. Since the concept of student government does not exist at my school, it is more of a challenge. (Who would have thought my days of student government long ago would come into play???)
And if I am lucky, the Guidance and Counselling Center will have a Resource Center of sorts to help students find out about not only health issues, but also career and options for further study. Nothing is definite. The challenges are great. So we are beginning by putting a sign on the door so students know where the Guidance and Counseling Center is located! And after a year I have located an available bookshelf! I have to make sure it reaches our office before it is snatched up by others. We also are bracing ourselves for hundreds of students who will return to school in March once they know their exam results from last year. They will need counseling on applying for further studies.
Finally, I am planning a trip to Cape Town in March for a week before the World Soccer Cup takes over South Africa on June 11 and Peace Corps’ official lock down or restrictions on travel begins during the last three months of service. So as you can see, I am acutely aware of doing things now or never before I am replaced in June by a new Peace Corps volunteers at my school. And fortunately I have some time for a smooth transition knowing that the next volunteer will have some knowledge of past and the existence of future community resources before I depart.