Examination time

All last week was examination time for my primary school at Chikale. I was supervising a lot and don't know how many times I have said "be quiet, "sit down" and "no cheating" to Standard (grade) 7. They can be quite naughty these kids. But I guess when you are 12, 13 years old you tend to be naughty all the time. And having 70 kids in two classrooms with one teacher is not the best either or yet worse 70 kids cramped in, in one small classroom so the kids have to sit on the floor. Here is Malawi everything is possible. You also got to be creative to solve problems you encounter every day at school.

For example, last Monday the students had their first exam, which was Science and Agriculture. This was the first time they were going to write an exam on paper. Before they wrote the questions on the board and the student wrote the answers in their notebook. But this year they have enough money to print out a proper exam. So everything was new to the kids. Also that you have to be quiet during exam and sit far away from each other so you could not cheat. Anyway, the teacher had not printed enough exam papers and five students got left out. So what to do? Well, let's go to town and print some more at the internet cafe (there are no computers at school). But then someone realized that there is a power cut and with no electricity, no printers or computers are working. Hmm..then what do we do?? The kids are waiting...maybe these five kids have to write it tomorrow then as by then power should be back and we can print.. but then they will cheat and get all the answers from their fellow classmates..not fair. Well what to do?? (This discussion went on for like 1 h) Ah let's write the questions on the board... but the board is too small for all the 20 questions. Not fair or easy... So what to do?? Then I came into the room, asked what the problem is and they explained and I was like " why dont we write it by hand, there are only five students so shouldn't take too long and we are already 3 teachers here that could write it". Great idea they thought and then I ended up writing 3 exams by hand... and the other teacher 2 and the other teacher left ( I guess he thought that was too much work). But we got it written, the students got to write the exam and I got a soar hand. The easiest problem can just become the most difficult here do to lack of resources.

So all week the students had exam, a new subject every day. I supervised the English exam and then marked 70 papers which took me like a week. Gosh so much work! I am glad I am not a teacher (in real life). Today I handed the exams out and the kids got excited but hmm they got really low scores as their English is really not good and the exam was pretty difficult. Some of the kids can barely read and write English never the less know what a noun and a verb is.

This week is the last week of teaching for standard 7, then they are off on Christmas holiday. I plan to go on a "holiday from volunteering" myself  next week for 1 week and then come back and volunteer over X-mas maybe painting some more or tutor some kids. Have not yet decided. Painting sounds good right now as that is theraputic to me and usually pretty noise free. Kids can be noisy man!

I hope I can blog some more soon again. For the last week we had no internet as problems with the internet provider and then there has been constant power cuts too.