Piece of Mind

Piece of Mind is exactly what I am trying to acquire during my journey in South Africa. I want to figure out why God has placed me here and if I am fulfilling the purpose that he has for me. I have always been an advocate for service and making a difference in the community, but how can I, an American, make a difference in Cape Town in only 4 weeks. With all the problems and dilemmas that many youth and citizens face everyday there is so much I want to do to help. As a result, I find my mind wondering all over the place about possible programs or solutions to help alleviate these problems. However, where would I get the resources or where would the starting point to these solutions begin.

The Adult IT training initially was a waste of time in my eyes. How and why could we teach middle-aged women how to use the computer in 2 weeks? It was clear that many of the women couldn’t use this skill to obtain a job so why even bother teaching them. My naïve and oblivious thoughts were changed during the two weeks when I noticed the learners gaining confidence and their self-esteem changing. It was then that I realized that I was there to touch and motivate the lives of those in Manenberg. Although I couldn’t provide jobs to alleviate the poverty in Manenberg, I could inspire a mother to push her child to obtain an adequate education. Which would then pull somebody out of poverty.

Spiritually I was able to find piece of mind during the hike on Table Mountain. While sitting and reflecting on all my activities I have done thus far, I realized the grace of God. How he showed favor on me to experience this trip. It could have easily been any other student at Vanderbilt University, but God showed allowed my fellow classmates and me to come this far.

Still troubled but thriving.

During the last part of our trip in South Africa, I unfortunately had my laptop stolen in Manenberg. At first, I felt the typical anger, resentment... To a degree I felt violated by the idea that my personal identity was in the hands of a total stranger. I was told that the laptop would most likely be pushed for a week's supply of drugs. We spent the first half of the trip providing IT training to individuals who lacked the most basic knowledge of how to use computers. It made me wonder whether someone in the township would at least benefit from it, or whether it would be resold far away in the black market to a foreigner like me.

Although my experience the rest of the summer before coming back to the United States mid August changed substantially without the laptop, I felt that it was good to be a little more disconnected from the world and connected to the present real-time.

At times during our stay in Cape Town, especially during the later weeks when the fatigue appeared chronic, it felt hard to really be present. My learner, Mikyle, I was glad, had the academic drive to make me enthusiastic when my energy was draining. I learned never to underestimate how contagious another person's optimism and thirst for knowledge can be. I admired my peers and observed their styles of learning. Having gone to a German elementary school, I wondered if my teaching style was too strict, considering some of the softer, more forgiving approaches I saw people using. It was like a mini cultural experience just seeing the different math techniques each of us had and were forwarding on to our learners.

The last day with the kids was hard. Part of me really hoped I could see them all again soon, and part of me was stunned at how "ok" some of the kids were. It seemed routine to them to say goodbye to the foreign volunteers. I had to remind myself that people had been here before us and people would come after us, too. The projects are sustainable in the supply of volunteers. I know that many individual volunteers probably never return, but others keep coming.

I haven't quite decided whether it's a good or just a realistic notion. With conviction I can only reminisce at what the community taught me, and what the nation inspired in me. Never had I immersed myself in a city so diverse, so unique, so complex--still troubled but thriving. It was an experience of a lifetime, of that I am certain.

Expectations and Reflections

With a little less than a week remaining in our tutoring program at the SHAWCO center in Manenberg, it’s interesting to look back on the experience we have had thus far. Initially, I thought the first two weeks of IT Training would be the painful part of the service, but I soon learned that I would miss this part. The IT Training was anything but what I expected. I remembered when I was learning to use a computer and the tedious typing exercises and monotonous projects that we were forced to do. I figured the training program would be similar to what I experienced, but because of the adult’s enthusiasm, the 2 weeks were anything but dull. I worked with two learners, one of which was more experienced than the other, but both were incredibly motivated individuals. They were eager to learn, and even though the simple information I was teaching them was pretty boring, they were just so happy to be learning anything I could teach them. I was impressed when one of my learners asked me to help her make an invitation, and the other asked to learn how to make a pay slip in Excel. These two individuals were clearly going to put their skills to good use, and I was glad that I was able to help them out. At the end of the two weeks, I was sad that I would no longer be spending time with them everyday, as I felt like I had formed a special bond with each of them. It was the best surprise when one of my learners showed up at the SHAWCO center on my birthday. I figured she was there to use the computers, but she told me she had come just to wish me a happy birthday and deliver a present. My other learner sent me an incredibly kind Facebook message, showing off her newly learned skills. The fact that these two ladies went out of their way after only knowing me for a short 2 weeks was heartwarming and made me feel incredibly grateful that I was able to spend time with them and not only be a teacher, but a learner as well.

After having a very positive experience with the IT Program, I was optimistic heading into the 2 weeks of teaching with the kids. I had looked forward to this part of the program from the beginning, as I really enjoy working with children and this was the type of work I was hoping to do. I was assigned to a group of 3 girls, 2 who are 7^th graders and 1 who is an 8^th grader shadowing me as a tutor. We started the week off with some pretty basic English. We worked on Indirect/Direct Speech, Active/Passive Voice, and then Parts of Speech. The curriculum seemed much too basic for a group of 7^th graders, even if English is their second language to Afrikaans. The curriculum was also not sequential, which made it difficult to teach. I was so surprised how much basic English knowledge the children lacked. By teaching such elementary things to a group of teenagers, I felt like I was babying them, but this was the appropriate place for them. After adjusting to teaching the curriculum and age group, I figured it could only get easier the following week, as what we would be teaching couldn’t be any more difficult than the English we had taught them. Math is math across all languages, right? I was very quickly proven wrong. When I told my kids we’d be working on math from now on, their attitudes did a 180 and they were no longer as cooperative or excited. They all told me how they disliked math because “it was hard”, and the struggles began immediately. I was in disbelief when I had to teach the most basic addition and subtraction, let alone multiplication and long division. These skills that I associate with being drilled into your head at such a young age were a challenge to these 7^th graders. I figured I would be teaching basic algebra, but I found myself re-teaching myself how to do long division before I could explain it to them. The only way I think I’ll be able to make an impact is by going back to the foundation and basics. Hopefully by solidifying these skills, the kids will be able to move on to where they should be at this stage in school, but we’ll see what happens over the next week.

Teaching has been quite the experience. It’s certainly had its highs, and there have definitely been many lows. It is both frustrating and challenging, but also incredibly rewarding. I’ve learned much about the lives of people in the Manenberg community and surrounding areas from my learners, and I have also learned a lot about the South African education system, or lack there of, from the challenges I have faced with my 7^th grade students. This experience has been a new one for me, as I had only previously taught Preschool and Kindergarten age children, but I have thoroughly enjoyed it and learned a lot throughout the process. Two weeks is a short amount of time to impart meaningful amounts of knowledge, but I do hope that the hard work that we’re putting in as volunteers pays off in some form. Whether the kids are actually learning and we’re helping them come closer to being able to pass the Matric exam, or if we’re just keeping them busy and off the streets and out of trouble, I do hope for the best for this community and hope that I’m actually making some sort of impact.

Cape Town is So Random: An Overdue Post

On Saturday morning, a group of us decided to go to Old Biscuit Mill. We weren’t sure exactly what this was, but we were told it was somewhere where you eat and shop and that “we HAVE TO go at least once.” As we walked in, Stefanie turns to me with a look of surprise and says, “Cape Town is SO random.” I could not put it better myself. Old Biscuit Mill turned out to be an open air market of gourmet food stands where we could purchase the best of any food category- meat, fruit, fish, decadent desserts, breads, Belgian waffles, coffee, pizza, really anything we could possibly want to eat. This was surrounded by blocks of boutiques where we could easily spend hundreds of dollars on items ranging from designer clothes to home decorations. What surprised us most was not necessarily the concept of Old Biscuit Mill itself, but the people and the general feel of the place. Everyone was dressed and looked the same, as if they had been plucked right from a free people catalogue. One thing was also very apparent; these people had money. As we “people watched” the young blonde child eating her gourmet crepe or observed those purchasing the fancy designer clothes with their bulging wallets, I could not help but be shocked (once again) by the contrast in the people and places around Cape Town. It is an area of homogenous niches of people, which seemingly coexist but rarely interact. Just minutes away are Manenberg, the township that we work in every day, and the other townships in the Cape Flats. Here, life looks much different. You may live in a four-walled shack or an over crowded house. Some will not have running water or electricity. Instead of eating gourmet food dishes, you eat a cheese sandwich for lunch, and you are considered well off if you can afford to buy meat once in a while. You will go to an understaffed school with few resources. Leisure activities will include playing games in the street, rather than shopping or food tasting at Old Biscuit Mill. Even across the townships there are homogenous niches; it is still possible to categorize the townships as “black” or “colored” and the boundaries are very clear. This pattern is pretty apparent wherever we go across the city, and it is this pattern that makes Cape Town and the surrounding areas feel so random. By simply driving a few minutes, you feel like you are in an entirely different world; even the language spoken from place to place changes! As travelers here, we are attempting to experience it all. From posh restaurants on Kloof Street to Mzolis in Guguletu, from Camps Bay sunsets to Manenberg mornings, from cable cars to mini bus taxis, from tours of Cape Point to tours of Khayelitsha, we are slowly being exposed to the vast range of lifestyles here. It can be shocking and overwhelming at times, and even though we are more than half way done with our trip, I am still trying to grasp the dynamics of this amazing city and the areas surrounding us.

2nd half of the trip activities + Reconciliation

To start, in the past couple weeks, we have had a couple of trips that have blown my mind. We took a cable car up to the top of table mountain which is like a 5 minute trip but puts you atop the highest mountain in Cape Town. The views are unreal. The landscape is flat everywhere else but the mountains create many different coastal communities and it is impossible to really understand with out being atop Table mountain and being able to look to every side and see ocean and urban development. There is a lot of beautiful vineyard land, strong coastal ports, and a lot of beautiful geographic terrain, but for every developed beautiful community there is a township next door. These areas are the poorest of poor and are not really getting better. The ailments of poverty and the lack of adequate education hamper their development, which makes South Africa the most unequal country in the world. For example we watched a beautiful sunset in Camp’s Bay which was the best I have ever seen. But while John Travolta and other famous celebrities have houses here, there is a township 20 mins away where the children have never even left their communities.

It is very recent since Apartheid, only 17 years. Nelson Mandela led the movement of Reconciliation vs. Reparation. This means that instead of repaying all of the black and coloured people whose lives were destroyed by Apartheid and centuries of oppression, do not get repaid for their losses, but are supposed to reconcile with the white people and attempt to forgive them. In case the doubt is not evident in my writing, I am still yet to really conceptualize this process. There have been efforts that we have learned about such as Black Economic Empowerment and affirmative action, but it seems that reconciliation has not done enough to undo the oppression that plagued this country. Okay enough of the depressing stuff, we also went to Robben Island where Nelson Mandela spent a majority of his imprisoned years. It was interesting that it started out as a leper colony and then strictly housed the most dangerous of criminals at the time (political criminals) and separated people based on race to keep people competitive and deter unity. Our tour was led by a former inmate one of the last people to get released. It still didn’t seem real, it felt more like a museum that a place of atrocity and oppression.

Another activity we did was go to a Rugby game. It was the equivalent of the ALCS or AFC championship game. The two teams were the stormers and the reds. The Stormers were the last South African team. It was tough to watch as the Stormer’s got owned and I couldn’t really understand everything. Also, it is like football with out passing so its just a run and grind offense with not a lot of action. But it was fun to eat biltong and drink a lot of SAB. Plus there some pretty raw hits: some dude got taken out from underneath and it looked like he broke his neck. After that we wen’t home and fell right asleep at 8 pm. It had been a long day.

Its the little things...and the Joy they bring

Today was the last day of the Holiday Project. Despite the difficulties, I really enjoyed myself. As I was preparing for the program to end, The Lord placed it on my heart to write all of my kids personal letters. At first I was only going to write certain kids one, but I ended up writing everybody one. I’ve been to summer camps before and the counselors all wrote us notes. It made me feel special to know that somebody took the time to write a note specifically for me. I know how much it could mean to these kids to get something like that. After I wrote most of the letters I prayed over them and asked that they be used as a seed to plant in my kids life. After I passed them out, the kids that I talked to the least where the main ones that came up and gave me a hug. It made me feel good to know that the letters were appreciated. After it was over Nandi said they were competing about who’s letter was the longest, and that they were really appreciative of the letters, and that made me happy.

We ended up going back to Manenberg to work on the library after the Holiday Project had ended, and we were there while the kids were in school. One of the girls that I worked with a couple of times came up and gave me a hug and handed me a note. I wasn’t expecting it at all and it really showed me how much the letter had meant to her. When I wrote the letters I didn’t write them expecting anything in return, but this note is definitely something that I will keep as a reminder of how big of a difference the little things make.

40 days

Two months ago I would have said that 40 days is not a long time at all. I would have said that its just a little over a month, just 4 or 5 weekends, or just 5 Mondays and 5 Tuesdays and 5 Wednesdays and so on. However, coming back home from spending this seemingly little amount of time in South Africa was still a bit strange to me. The day I arrived in Johnson City, TN it was weird for me to think that just hours before I had been in another hemisphere and continent, 6 hours ahead of where I am now, driving on the "wrong" side of the street, using the Rand as currency, wearing a jacket and hanging out with 19 other people in a bus. The experience of coming back felt surreal; when I was stepping out of the gate to hug my mom, I remembered the day I left for South Africa as if it were only two or three days ago, yet so much had happened since then.

It wasn't until days later, when I started catching up with friends, telling stories and showing pictures to my family, that I realized just how much I had lived in those 40 days, how much fun I had had, how much I had seen, how much I had learned and how many great people I met both in my group and in South Africa. I left that country with a heavy heart. 40 days was enough time to make me want to come back and see more of its beautiful landscapes, experience more of its culture, and meet more of its wonderful people. I miss the spontaneous afternoon hikes, the cool weather, the markets, the cider, the chocolate. But, more than that I miss the people; I wonder how Fidelio, Austin, Masud and Aziz (the boys Carrie and I had as "students" on the Holiday Project) are doing. I wonder if they remember the multiplication tables, the difference between an active and a passive verb, or even our names. I often reflect on my relationship with them; did I have an impact in their lives? Did I teach them anything of substance during those 2 weeks? It is frustrating to know nothing about them now, and to be uncertain of whether or not we made any difference.

Out of any issue I would say that as a group we struggled the most in dealing with this uncertainty: are we making a difference? Working at Manenberg for such a short period of time didn't allow us to see the large-scale changes most of us were imagining our service projects would bring. There was really no way for us to exactly measure how much we helped our learners, and in this way I sometimes did feel powerless. However, I now look at the 560ish pictues I took of these kids, some candid while they were at the board solving math operations, or when everyone was out playing Red Rover Red Rover, and others posed with smiling eyes, and I realized that we had to have had some impact in their lives. Maybe I am being naïve; I hope they’ll remember and learn more than just the different parts of speech or the multiplication tables, but the importance and power of knowledge and the self-recognition of their true capability. I do feel fortunate to have had the chance of (possibly) impacting someone’s life in this way.

It's too soon for me to exactly express how this 40-day experience changed me, but it certainly taught me something about myself. I find myself constantly reflecting on the trip, and reliving memories, planning on ways to come back to South Africa. I miss everyone that experienced South Africa with me. Goodbyes aren't my strongest weapon, so I think I'll be going back.

A Night of Comedy and the Archbishop

    I have encountered so much during my first few weeks in Cape Town. Through my experiences, I have developed an awareness of the diversity and the vibrant culture that exists here. In a developing country with eleven national languages and a nickname of "A Rainbow Nation," South Africa allows one to witness and learn about various issues and experience great diversity, especially in Cape Town. I believe that one event that a few students and I attended really gave us an interesting perspective on the diversity and the livelihood that Cape Town offers. The event we attended was a comedy show, showcasing a performance by the Nobel Peace Prize winner and  iconic figure, Desmond Tutu. By just hearing his name in affiliation with this event, I believe most of us were eager to attend. Luckily, we were able to shake the Archbishop's hand and share a few words with him before the performance began.

   While having an encounter with Desmond Tutu remains as enormous highlight of my trip, the entirety of the show stands out in my mind as such a valuable experience while in Cape Town. The show showcased several comedians from around South Africa and each brought their own humorous yet enlightening perspectives on issues that continue to affect this nation. Hearing their perspectives around important issues was extremely interesting. We heard jokes over political leaders, culture, and the different regions. While some jokes were told in Afrikaans or Xhosa, I could follow their skits and recognize the humor. The performers were all very different and each skit enlightened me about the city and the lifestyles I would be encountering.

    One more special detail about this night which makes this performance even more memorable for me remains that I was able to go on stage several times during the show. As our group sat in the front row of the audience, we were very susceptible for audience participation, and I was even selected by the MC as a flower girl of sorts. Whenever the MC introduced himself, I ran on stage to bring him flowers, and I must add that this MC was quite full of himself! Going on stage was pretty exciting and remains just an added bonus to this wonderful night.

Just Thoughts

Here we go! There are so many priceless experiences I have had being here in Cape Town. This trip is my first time out of the country and I don’t know if I should have started with a five and half week trip. However, thus far I can say it has been a bittersweet trip. The bitter is that I am dealing with the guilt of traveling internationally to commit myself to a service project, which particularly revolves around education. This is something I could have done in the states, even in my own hometown. I often criticize big figures about their willingness to put all their time and effort into helping internationally. However, we never really hear the same big figures advocate their philanthropy on projects that could have been done in the states. Coming to Cape Town has proven to me just how proud I am to be an American and have urged me to commit to a major ongoing service project back home, in addition to my other minor community service projects. My feeling to step up while in the states does not mean that I will not help internationally, but my overall dedication will be within my own land. Aside from my personal guilt, living in ONE house with 20 people is bitter. I am not a person who enjoys the fact that wherever you turn your head there is someone there. However, it is not ruining my trip and for the bad times in the house there are good times as well. But enough of the bitter I don’t want to be the Debbie Downer of the blog.

This trip has met my expectations drastically. I have enjoyed every minute of being a tourist and experiencing all that I can in five and half weeks. Cape Town is an amazing city, while at the same time being an eye opening city. The drastic difference between being well off and living in poverty is so evident, for example the atmosphere of Camp’s Bay then to look at the Townships. I feel that this trip has allotted us to be able to see all of this. I am grateful to see this and it has encouraged my personal belief to ever pity someone. This is because while people are in poverty the people I have met have been so happy and being a philosophy major I agree with Aristotle when he says the meaning of life is happiness. With the opportunities I have received I can say that working in Manenberg, experiencing Cape Town, and our academic excursions have been my favorite parts thus far. Although, I am sure the Kruger National Park may take the cake!

I am looking forward to the rest of the trip here. I’m hoping that the rest of the trip will top the beginning of the trip. But I am happy to know that the third week is over and this makes me feel like I made it over the hump. This hump I refer to is the fact that most of the trip is over because though I love SA, there is no place like home. Or now what I have come to conclude AMERICAN CUISINE. But for right now I can say that I am grateful and have learned to appreciate things 100x more than ever before, because I think people often forget that the circumstances of the poorest people could have easily been us!

A Rainbow Nation

Being in Cape Town so far has been such an unbelievable experience, as hackneyed as that may sound. Every afternoon when we drive to Manenberg, the township in which we work during the week, we pass by incredible views of Table Mountain and the skyscrapers in the Cape Town city center, but also the view of thousands of shacks inhabited by tens of thousands of people. We drive past high-end grocery stores and people selling bag after bag of oranges at traffic lights. The diversity and range of people and cultures that I have encountered while in Cape Town has been far beyond what I expected. I thought I knew enough about South Africa before I came to avoid culture shock, but with so many different cultures crammed into a single country and even a single city, it’s been impossible. Even so, I have had such an incredible time while I’ve been here.

While working in Manenberg, I have been able to understand the opportunities and privileges I have been afforded more acutely than ever before. For example, while I was teaching computer skills to a woman, I realized how much I take for granted when I log onto my laptop to check my email and my facebook and just generally waste time. To my learner, knowing how to get on the internet and search for jobs online opened up a new world of opportunities. Now she can help her daughter with school projects, whereas in the past she could only play solitaire. While it can sometimes be difficult to see how I’m making much of a difference in two weeks of IT training when there are so many other problems in Manenberg, seeing the look of excitement and triumph on my learner’s face made everything worth it.

A Pointless Question

As the Vanderbilt group approaches its last week working with the Manenberg community, Professor Nation’s question continues to reverberate in my head−“Was it worth it?” Ironically, I answer his question with more questions of my own. Have I made any impact in this community? How do I know whether my service will make a change after I leave? Should I have invested my efforts in other issues that affect Manenberg as oppose to teaching IT Development, English, and Math?

These are the idle thoughts that slither through my conscience and remain the most challenging part of this adventure. The reciprocity of global learning has provided the framework for human rights to be universal. However, as I continue to work in the township of Manenberg, I see how unfairly basic human rights can easily be violated. South Africa’s apartheid remnants lurk openly in the diversely rich country. The list of injustice is long:

Violence against women-Check

Limited access to healthcare- Check

Scant opportunities to education-Check

High rates of HIV- Check

So how could knowledge of Microsoft Word & Excel or identifying a gerund phrase alleviate any of these bigger issues? Is approaching things from this angle pointless?

Think, Gheremey. Think.

“Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase,” says Dr. Martin Luther King. It’s funny how eagerly I want to make a change. I’ve forsaken my patience for empathy. Seeing struggle is hard but erasing it takes much time. South Africa’s movement from apartheid is similar to America’s era of Civil Rights dating as early as the 1930s. The fight for racial, economic, and social equality took years to overcome. Actions that may seem “pointless” to my generation have been noted in history as landmark movements that paved a better life for future generations. Civil disobedience acts from African Americans such as sitting in segregated lunch counters seemed futile at the time. Ridiculed and taunted for trying to get what should have already been given to them at birth. This is the same phenomenon that is occurring in South Africa today. The only difference is that I am amidst history in the making. The Civil Rights Movement is an intangible concept to fathom simply because I’m far removed from the event. 

The apartheid is only several years from its end. Being a part of history is unusual because there’s the hard reality that I may not witness the outcome of the work put in for the change for which I am fighting. This is the mentality I must keep while working in Manenberg. Is it worth it? Is it all pointless? Of course not! The empowerment of the Manenberg community is consequential to detaching the stigma of generational hopelessness. My work will not be in vain, and it will inspire others to work to eradicate the other pressing issues here in South Africa. Freedom has no due date. Therefore, I will continue to work…..patiently…..hopeful…faithfully. The IT Development and English/Math teachings have energetically reminded that there are people that the globe wants to see the rise of the townships. Pointless? I think not.

Fixing a Class-Based Calamity

Jonathan Jansen, Vice Chancellor of the University of the Free State, proposes some solutions for the ills of public education in today's Sunday Times. He will speak with our group on Tuesday, July 12 at UCT.

A Proper Education

Children and families make many sacrifices to obtain a proper education. I remember growing up my parents went through extensive measures so I could receive a good education in our public school system. The children that I work with in Mannenburg are in the 6th and 7th grade, however, the SHAWCO center provides a place for all children of Mannenburg to enjoy education, sports, and technology. I remember when I was 11 and 12, I was a sports fan and budding music connoisseur. I loved everyday that I could spend with my friends and family. The children of Mannenburg are quite similar and they enjoy local music and similar songs that I enjoy. They like to play different kinds of sports and enjoy many different forms of technology. There are also children who are very advanced in reading and math and those who are struggling to make out words and lack basic comprehension skills.

After working with the children kids for about a week, it’s frustrating to see how easily many children fall behind because of a lack of resources. There are several obstacles and barriers that prevent many children from obtaining a proper education that may include gangs, violence, drugs, and improper teaching styles. I have discovered from my professors, lectures, and people in and out of the Mannenburg community that a great number of people in South Africa suffer from unemployment because they lack the proper skills for the jobs available. Many of the learners struggle with the English grammar exercises because they were improperly or insufficiently taught skills they need such as reading, comprehension, and math which has allowed them to pass through they system.

While it is possible for children to pass in several different educational systems, it is quite frustrating to discover that these children are ill equipped and unmotivated to desire changes to their own education. Many times this week I have found myself struggling to teach the differences in the English language when my learners do not have a solid understanding of grammar. It seems quite backwards for me to “tutor” a child on grammar exercises when ultimately I teach the rules of English grammar. Although it is much easier for the children to speak the language, they are more comfortable speaking Afrikaans than trying to write English sentences.

I only hope after this experience that they can remain steadfast in their quest to achieve an education and overcome the obstacles that they face. I also hope that that their holiday curriculum will challenge them so that they can perform better during the school year.

Let Me Be Something...

Finishing the book, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, on my Mango flight from Johannesburg to Cape Town, I was struck by a passage of Betty White’s book: the main character wishes, “let me be something every minute of every hour of my life. Let me be gay; let me be sad. Let me be cold; let me be warm. Let me be hungry...have too much to eat. Let me be ragged or well dressed. Let me be sincere - be deceitful. Let me be truthful; let me be a liar. Let me be honorable and let me sin. Only let me be something every blessed minute. And when I sleep, let me dream all the time so that not one little piece of living is ever lost."

So far, I, as well as our whole group, have challenged ourselves to be something and feel something throughout our short time in South Africa. I have been wildly perplexed at the airport in Joburg, intrigued by the “rainbow nation” I heard choruses sing of on my second night here, and troubled by a young boy begging late at night on Long Street. I have been breathless, viewing the stunning Cape Town from Rhodes Memorial and atop Lion’s Head, enlightened when speaking with and learning from my learners in Manenberg. I’ve felt alive, running around the school yard with my 6^th grade learners. And both frustrated and overwhelmed by the state of education, safety, and health care of Manenberg as well as across South Africa.

In a reflection, Naveed, our RA, told us a piece of advice he had been given- to never pity anyone. It is important not to feel pity, but to work toward understanding and empathy toward everyone we meet. So let us feel something as we see a homeless man outside our house, as we pass by rows of shacks in the townships, and as we read statistics such as the fact that in 2009, 1,477,000 black Africans over the age of 15 could not write their own names. It is important to be something every minute we are here and to address the more difficult things that we see and experience. In doing so, we are working to better promote change and to ensure that “not one piece of living is ever lost.”

The Past Week

It’s hard to believe that we are already halfway done tutoring the children. It has been a great experience thus far, with each day being more successful than the one before. All of us work with between 2 and 3 students in either grade 6 or grade 7, but we have had to tailor the curriculum to the abilities of our individual learners. This past week, we taught our learners English (Afrikaans is their first language) and quickly discovered that our learners were all at very different points in their level of understanding. Some were able to differentiate the difference between reported and directed speech, while others did not know the alphabet.

This demonstrates one of the primary problems with the South African education system. Students are passed on to the next grade without mastering the basic material appropriate for their age group because of overcrowding. For example, we learned in lecture that many classrooms in the poorer townships have just one teacher for up to 60 students. Struggling students do not receive the individual attention to successfully learn the material. We all have individual goals for our students. For example, I hope that my students will have their multiplication tables memorized and be able to correctly punctuate a paragraph. We only have two weeks total, so the best goals are small, but specific, as these offer the greatest chance of success. Although the program has offered both frustrations and tribulations, we are all excited for the opportunities to teach in the week ahead.

An Unexpected Lesson from Some Unexpected Teachers

So today concludes our first week of working at the SHAWCO Holiday Program at Manenberg Primary School. The three hour program consists of teaching 6th and 7th graders English and Math, providing lunch, and playing games with them. We all come together to play games, but during instruction time each Vanderbilt student tutors from one to three students. To be honest, the first few days of the program were pretty rough. The program was... unorganized--kids were running everywhere, materials were lacking, and the curriculum provided seemed arbitrary and not grade appropriate. As I am studying Education back at Vanderbilt, the teaching approaches implemented in the program here were very frustrating for me to see, let alone use. However, after a few rant sessions and brainstorming, our group pulled together and somewhat reorganized the logistics of the program. Five days later, the program is running much more smoothly and I think the kids are really starting to learn and enjoy themselves.

One hard thing to deal with while working at the program is that we are teaching only a small portion of the children in Manenberg. We are only a group of 20 students that can tutor a maximum of three or four students each before it becomes unmanagable. Thus, many children have to be turned away. However, this does not mean they don't still show up to the school. Every day when we start the program, other kids from around the neighborhood hang outside the classrooms, bang on the windows, play games, and wait for the breaks when we go outside to play. They have served as quite an annoyance, as their constant banging on the walls and random barging into the classrooms make it hard for our students to concentrate. However, today I got to see these neighborhood children in a different light.

Today we began teaching math. Five minutes into starting the math worksheets, I realized that one of my students did not know how to add. Luckily at that moment we were scheduled for a break, so I had some time to write out easier problems for my student. While the students were out playing soccer and running around, I sat against a wall outside and began writing out simple addition problems. Almost immediately after I sat down, a boy that isn't in the program curiously circled around me to see what I was up to. The boy took one look at my paper, smirked, and claimed that the problems were too easy. I challenged him and asked if he wanted harder ones, to which he nodded. I then wrote out a harder problem which he solved quickly and looked to me in anticipation for more. Pretty soon I had a group of little boys around me, asking for math problems and eagerly shouting out the answers as fast as they could. I continued to sit there for the next thirty minutes, teaching little math tricks and quizzing the boys.

Although this was just 30 minutes of doing simple math problems with a couple boys against the wall of a classroom, that time was pretty special to me. These boys, who I had seen as rowdy little trouble makers, really did have a thirst for learning. They enjoyed doing math problems and kept asking for more. Suddenly I wished we could have class outside so others could join in on the fun. Teaching those boys showed me how hopeful these children are and how they yearn for knowledge. It reaffirmed my aspirations to be an educator and highlighted the importance for effective teachers to capture this thirst for knowledge and help students reach their highest potential. I fear the reason why many of these students are several grade levels behind where they should be is not because of lack of interest, rather a lack of skill on the part of educators and an inefficient education system. Because this is a much greater issue than I can tackle in two weeks, I am focusing on what I can do with the time that I do have. Hopefully my passion for teaching will shine through to these little ones and I can encourage them to continue in their education, as they have encouraged me to continue in mine.

What's a Drop Cap?

Nandi has finally filled us in on exactly why I flew for two days to go to the other end of the world. For two weeks we are working with adults doing ‘IT Training’ in the township of Manenberg. I’m working with two women one named Aziza and one named Ghadija. Not to try and paint some hyped up portrait of these poor women, but neither have them have used computers before and they are taking the class to become more familiar with and use the computer to send emails, and hopefully use them in potential jobs. Seriously though, to be honest my patience is tested when it comes down to teaching how to highlight in Microsoft Word. Click and drag. No. Click. No not there. Yes there. Now drag. No, not that far. Now let go. No let go. Now click. Ok it’s gone, try again. It’s challenging to try and be respectful of women who are older than me, while at the same time trying to teach them a technical skill that requires a lot of correction from the teacher in order to get the hang of it. We do training for three hours every morning; we roll in on the SHAWCO bus, and just like in every documentary, BBC special, and commercial on TV for adopting children kids do run up to the car, grab onto you, hug you, want to know your name and play. It’s slightly overwhelming, but they have so much energy and it’s fun to kick the ball around with them.

Seeing that I’m using Word at this moment, it’s strange to see someone who has never used a computer before try and type on Word; and while they are picking it up quickly Aziza keeps apologizing and thanking me for my patience. She seems nervous to make mistakes and cause anyone disturbance or ask too much of them. I really do enjoy the interpersonal connections we’re allowed to make with each other at this level of engagement. I’m getting to know two people extremely well, and Vince, the director of the program, keeps mentioning the amount of empowerment the women in the program feel. Even if they are not able to get a job with their newly learned skill, they have gained the knowledge and confidence that they can use a computer, which is an intimidating machine. I’m also learning things on Word, like Drop Cap. It’s crazy. It makes the first letter of your paragraph really big like an old fashioned book.

Everything else in the house is going really well. Our guide, Nandi, is the best; she has way too many friends and they’re all too nice. We’ve been going out and meeting people wherever we go. It’s kinda strange because a lot of people want to talk to you just because you’re from the states, but it’s still enjoyable to constantly be meeting new people and learning more and more. And not just South Africans, there are students from other schools we are meeting, people from other countries like Zimbabwe, Namibia, and other places. I feel so connected to the global world here not just because I’m in another country, but because everyone here comes from such interesting and new backgrounds (to me, at least).

Education and Illiteracy

Another blogger's take on the difficult state of education in South Africa and the way forward.

A Token of Appreciation

Today I woke up a bit terrified. Today we are going to start working with the kids.

Although most of us are ok, I think some of us are a little apprehensive of teaching younger students, particularly since we were forewarned that they could be a little difficult sometimes. I can't remember the last time I tutored 6th and 7th graders but I can remember me as a young middle schooler, and I know for certain that I was a pain.

In any case, I'm sure we'll all figure it out and make buddies soon enough but today marks a big change. For one, it's the 4th of July. Every 4th of July that I can remember was spent back home in the States. The idea of going to lecture at 9 am on Independence Day is unusual to say the least but the sacrifice is well worth it.

On Friday we wrapped up our IT training program with the adults. I received an email from my learner this weekend, expressing her gratitude to us for helping the Manenberg adults these past two weeks. It wasn't until I saw her email, that I realized what a positive impact, even if small, that our group made. I think it's easy to undermine some of the daily skills we possess. For most of us, computer skills was just a given. We grew up with computers, so we couldn't imagine IT training being as vital as it was. I think this week a lot of us struggled with the dilemma of whether our time and effort in South Africa was worth it. I think every service adventure comes with a misconception that you have to do something big, something momentous for it to be worthwhile, but really, it's the culmination of little things that amount to big changes.

Mother Theresa once said that, "In this life we cannot do great things. We can only do small things with great love".

I have no doubt that every single one of us fully invested our efforts into our learners. The degree of accountability and passion and frustration that every Vanderbilt student shared with his/her learner these past two weeks serves as testament of how much each of us worked hard to maximize our time with the learners.

To a large degree, the true value for us students was getting to know the Manenberg community. We came in with little knowledge specific to the Manenberg community and left with at least a deeper understanding of our learner's daily experience--one that I thought would drastically contradict mine but it didn't. It's easy to believe that just because someone lives miles away, on a different continent, in a different kind of neighborhood that they would be completely different to us, but my learner wasn't. She went to church, visited her relatives and went to the supermarket to buy food every week and travelled to the mall from time to time. Yes, our experiences are different, but the essence is the same.

'N mens is net 'n mens deur 'n onder mens

"A person is only a person through another person." The community members of Manenberg who participated in SHAWCO's IT training were immensely grateful for the assistance provided by their Vanderbilt trainers. Many of the trainees are local women who want to pass their new IT skills on to their children. By helping with this program, we may have not only had a direct effect on the adults who sat through the course--there will hopefully be a radiating effect outward to Manenberg's young people, as well. Young people who badly need extra support in a still highly unequal education system.

On the flip side, we have learned much about Manenberg, the condition of Cape Town's townships, and development, in general, from these community members. The first-hand experience of working in the SHAWCO Manenberg Centre has been an education in itself and has lit a fire in many of us to learn how to best work with communities like Manenberg, both here in South Africa for the next few weeks and beyond.

What Is A Computer?

One of the most pressing issues facing the Manenberg community is unemployment. Learning the basics of information technology opens up a broader range of potential jobs. To that end, SHAWCO's Manenberg Centre offers a two-week computer training to local adults in hope of making them more marketable. With the guidance of SHAWCO's program leader, Vince, VISAGE students are working directly with program participants in a one-on-one (sometimes one-on-two) fashion to help get them up to speed on general computer use, word processing, email, and web browsing.

We've grappled with the question of to what degree IT training helps to ease the burden of unemployment in Manenberg. There are very few jobs available, and program participants may not be lucky enough to secure them, even with computer skills. An important point raised in our group, however, is that despite the fact that the program may not lead directly to employment for these community members, they are becoming empowered to participate more fully in a computerized world. This empowerment may be an important tool in  making Manenberg a better place moving forward.

Arrival!

Welcome. Welkom. Wamkelekile. VISAGE participants began arriving in Cape Town on Friday this week, and they'll continue rolling in through the weekend. The official program kicks off on Monday. VISAGE 2011 is partnering with the Students Health and Welfare Centres Organisation (SHAWCO) at the University of Cape Town, and we look forward to working with Lana, Alecia, Nandi, Cyril, and the rest of their great staff! Students will spend most of their days attending lectures at the university, volunteering at the SHAWCO Manenberg Centre, and exploring the area to learn about South African society and culture. Our work in Manenberg will include supporting SHAWCO's adult IT training program and their youth development program. This blog will document the experience and continue to be updated by VISAGE participants as things unfolds. Here's wishing everyone a wonderful five weeks!