No matter how many times I arrive at a new school, I’m still as nervous as the students. But I can say this first week at my countryside school has been awesome. What with the first day of school festivities, and later, getting to know my co-teachers and students. I couldn’t have asked for a better first week.
September 1st: A Memorable First Day at My New School
My communication with my co-teachers had been a little spotty in the days leading up to the first day of school, so I didn’t know what to expect. I had been told to dress up and might have overdone that a bit. But I was surprised at the festivities the school had planned.
Besides me, most of the students, teachers, and even some of the parents were dressed in their finest. It almost reminded me of an Easter parade. The school courtyard was too small to handle all the students. And most of their mothers had also come to see their children start the new year off right.
The principal, Mrs Hovhannisyan, gave the opening day speech. And she presented awards to lots of the students. The school’s dance troupe gave a traditional Armenian dance performance. And one small boy gave a solo drum performance. Then, we all got out of the heat and into the classrooms.
There, the teachers met with both the students and many, many parents who had come. As the rest of the discussions would be in Armenian, I slipped out of the door and headed home. But I still think I made a good impression on the principal, the teachers and staff, the students, and their parents.
Working with My Experienced Co-Teachers
I spent most of my first week shadowing my co-teachers, Lucine and Mary.
My ‘job’ is to work with my co-teachers, to both help the students improve, but also to help my co-teachers improve too. But with over 30 years of experience between them, that was going to be a challenge. So, I spent the week following them around trying to experience how they taught at all levels, from 3rd to 12th grade.
Even after a week, I’m still impressed with the high level of knowledge the students have, and my co-teacher’s skills to help them. And they have done this with very limited materials. I was able to help with some pronunciation points and tried to explain some more everyday usage of some terms. And they were happy I could use some of my handouts to help their students.
I have so many questions and they have limited free time to discuss them with me. I wanted to know about homework, where do the tests come from, do other teachers in the district help each other, etc. But they both live in a nearby town (30 minutes away by car) so I can’t keep them after school. I have to be patient and slowly build up the answers I need to be a more effective co-teacher.
I know it will be a joy to work with Lucine and Mary for the next two years.
Navigating the Classroom Dynamics
I spent the week trying to visit each class at least once.
Each day I would take turns shadowing my co-teachers. This first week, the class schedule was subject to change and it did quite often. But the faculty took it all in stride and still kept the laughter coming.
I think I was able to sit in, and sometimes teach: 3rd, 4th, 5th, 7th, 9th, and the 12th grade. Lucine wants me to concentrate on co-teaching with the lower grades 3-8. I will be working with some of the older students when we start up the English clubs next month.
My favorite was teaching the 3rd-grade students. Even though this was their first academic exposure to English, they already knew a lot of the basics, like numbers. But what excited me the most, was their fearlessness. I had never met them, I was from a different country and I didn’t speak their language. But they were far from shy. ha ha ha
At one point, Lucine had to leave the classroom and she asked if I could continue to work with the students. Since they knew their English numbers, we played a game where I would yell out of ‘number’. And they would have to join up with their classmates to make groups of that number. So, lots of running, yelling, and laughing.
When Lucine returned, she was shocked that we were in the middle of an activity. “How did you explain to them the activity,” she asked. I said the students were so smart that we figured it out together.
Too many more stories to tell about the other classes but I will share more in the coming months.
Building Bridges Beyond the Classroom
Teaching can be a difficult profession but it is much better when you have happy staff around you.
In every country I’ve had the privilege to teach in as a Peace Corps volunteer, the school staff have always been welcoming. But here at my school in Zar, they are bursting with hospitality. I have never worked anywhere where there seemed to be so much camaraderie, so much laughter, so much sharing. And so many smiles! What’s not to like.
In a way to thank them for including me, I want to do everything I can be be “one” of them too. I need to learn their names and what they teach. But before that, I decided to start bringing treats to share, which is common with the staff too. I’ll get to know more of them later when I start giving the staff English lessons. But I really hope I can visit some of them in their homes and meet them outside of school too.
Looking forward to seeing the staff and the students every morning is the best kind of place to work.
Looks like an Awesome year ahead
Again, I am so grateful to my Program Manager, Armine, for this placement. And I know the next two years are going to be full of fun, laughter, and learning. What’s not to like!
For more stories of my Peace Corps service in Armenia, you can always check here. But I also have a weekly blog called “Tales from Armenia” where you can read more about my day-to-day life. And for those who would rather listen, I have a podcast “PCV Tales from Armenia“.
