Wednesday, July 18, 2007

What's in a School?

This morning we visited two more schools and it occurred to me I haven't really shared the extraordinary things I am learning in these visits. It is important to remember, before trying to visualize one of these, that we are here as guests of the Indian Government and are sent by the US Government and are therefore, in many ways, treated "like royalty." That is not to say that we are ever, or ever could be so
deserving. It does, however, make me think about the way we greet visitors to our school and I think we could learn a thing or two from our Indian counterparts.

In every school we are welcomed by someone, either a committee of adults, of students, a color guard and choir, or the principal. We are usually then ushered into the conference room and given tea, coffee, or snacks. Then we introduce ourselves and hear introductions of the teachers and administrators involved, or sometimes we go straight to the all-school assembly (described in an earlier post) to introduce ourselves. We are often immediately taken on a tour -- sometimes as a large group (so we walk through the halls causing quite a stir, as it is really difficult to
ignore 16 Americans creeping through the halls) or we are split into smaller groups (this also gets us into trouble because then I get to go into a math class, and you all know what happens when I get to enter a math class: I start talking with children, doing problems, asking questions, etc). After the tour we return to the meeting room for "interactions." This is the time set aside by our hosts for talking,
either with students on a panel, with teachers, or both. This is ALWAYS accompanied with tea and snacks, and we are ALWAYS running late to this session because we get caught up in the hallways talking with students (I know, you're surprised). And then the conversations wane as we are told we must hurry to our next appointment. We slurp down our tea, are treated with special gifts (often a copy of the school's yearbook, which is like our Literary Magazine) and then we are shuffled back through the hallways for a group picture in front of the school.

I'm not sure why I thought this narration would be of any interest to you, but since this pattern of behavior has consumed my days since arriving here, I guess I thought you might want to be able to imagine what it is like.

The reality, though, is a bit different. This morning we saw a government school only for boys, 100 of which were picked up from a tribal village and live in hostels near the campus. The building was falling apart, the boys didn't speak English and for that reason didn't seem to understand the friendly nature of our visit. The library was the size of my closet and the principal had no helpers or gifts to give
us. It was a reality check in comparison to make of the fancy schools we visit.

In other words, there are students in this country that need our help to ensure they have a fair shot at a good education and a bright future just as badly as the ones back home.

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