USAID Training

What was your day like this past Monday? Well, mine started out as usual until 9 o’clock rolled around; at which time the whole staff was informed that we had to cancel everything we had planned to work on and that we were expected to be in staff development for the next two days. That is Zambia for you! I can begin to see why people never plan around here. A fatalistic attitude can definitely set in when all of your well-devised plans are upset by people who have a disregard for planning.

Well, obviously my attitude was not very good, but when I arrived at our conference hall for training, I was very excited to see that my tax dollars were at work. The training was funded by USAID. Yippee! Even in Africa, I am able to experience the joy of American tax dollars.

The purpose of the training was to lead the staff through a self assessment exercise to detail the strengths and weaknesses of the Jubilee Centre. It sounds great in theory, until you realize that this is not America. First of all, the training did not provide sufficient training on the proper way to self assess. This is very important in Zambia because most Zambians have not had many opportunities such as this that require critical thinking. In schools critical thinking skills are not stressed; therefore, the skill of analysis is generally lacking. The presenters did not seem to realize this though in their presentation.

Second, it must be noted that Zambians have been lacking in life opportunities. This is not a fault to anyone, but it is just the way of life. When self-analyzing, it is important to have an ideal situation against which one can reference. Unfortunately, that ideal situation in our minds is based upon the opportunities and experiences we have had. Considering this, the expectations for the ideal situation in the Jubilee Centre were very low in my opinion; therefore, people kept grading themselves higher than we should have. For example, when discussing planning our frame of reference was very low. Compared to other Zambian organizations, we do an excellent job planning for our programs. We are setting our standard too low though when we just compare ourselves to other Zambian organizations. Unfortunately, this is the only frame of reference most people in the Jubilee Centre have had. Again, it is no body’s fault, but I do not feel like the presenters/organizers considered this to the extent that they should have.

The problem in my opinion is that this training was just brought from the States without any true understanding of the situation. Now, I trust that the people are USAID are not stupid and actually tried to tailor the training to the situation. Unfortunately, this is what one continuously sees with many aid organizations. If they truly understood the organizations with whom they are working though, they would have a two step process of analysis. First, they would come through, personally analyze the organization, and help the people of the organization come up with action steps for a six month period. Second, after six months had ended they would come back, formally teach how to self analyze, and then provide more guidance during the process of self analysis.

What can I say though? They did not really ask me how to run their program. I did provide my opinion on their evaluation though. I just thought you should know how your tax dollars are being spent.

Random Teaching Updates

Well, it is time for a few random teaching updates. First, the teachers continue to make drastic improvements in their pedagogy. When I observed this week, every classroom but one was completing an activity related to their subject matter instead of just making the students copy notes. That is a drastic improvement from the beginning when one out of 12 classrooms was completing an activity. What is even more excited is that the teachers are now starting to collect and analyze data on their classrooms (data gathering and analysis were recent lessons). With these new pedagogical practices in place, we will now be able to analyze the academic progress of the students. YIPEE!!! (I know I get excited about the weirdest things).

In other news, I recently ran a power point presentation for one of my sessions. For some of my teachers, it was their first time seeing a projector or a powerpoint. During the session, I once thought to myself, “I am teaching in the middle of the slums with a powerpoint presentation. This is weird but really cool at the same time. I wonder how many people actually get an opportunity like this.”

Finally, I was thinking yesterday that I am going to miss these teachers. For this particular group of teachers, their training ends in March. I have developed many close relationships with these individuals; therefore, it is going to be difficult not seeing them every week. I never thought I would feel this way. Sorry, I know this post is kinda random, but those are just some thoughts that have been floating through my head recently. Peace and love and have a great weekend.

To Infinity and Beyond (or to Kitwe)

Well, as expected, our little education program at the Jubilee Centre is expanding. Today, I went to Kitwe, a major town approximately 45 minutes from Ndola, to talk to a school administrator about training her teachers. Lawrence and I had already talked briefly to her about setting up the program, but today we had a very productive meeting in which we outlined the training she wanted. During the month of April, we are going to train her teachers and maybe the teachers from three other schools in the area.

I am very excited but hesitant about this training. First of all, I am very excited to be able to help these teachers and for a chance to expand the program. At the same time, I am hesitant because we are changing the format of the sessions. Because the schools are located in Kitwe, I can not give the individual attention to the teachers like I have done in Ndola. This is difficult for me to let go of because I feel like the success of the program has stemmed from the fact that I have been able to walk beside the teachers as they attempt to change their practices. With Kitwe being a distance away, I will not be able to do this. Instead, I will do a few site visits before the training to chronicle the teaching practices. Then, I will teach four days of intensive sessions. Finally, I will do site visits afterwards to chronicle any change in practice.

I am not saying that it is not going to be successful. From my visit today, the teachers seem eager to be trained and to grow as educators. It will be a different from the present structure, but we will have time to analyze the effectiveness afterwards. Maybe, I am wrong. Maybe, we will see that the effectiveness of the program is actually due to the curriculum instead of my individual attention. We will see come May.

“BUT I HAD TICKETS TO THE SUPERBOWL, JESUS!"

Presently, it is 1 a.m. on Monday morning, and I have just awoken to a new day. More important than that, I have just awoken to watch the SuperBowl. I am pumped! I forgot today was the SuperBowl until an American mentioned it to me, but when reminded, I immediately thought to myself, “You have not watched a football game the entire year. This is your last chance. YOU CAN’T MISS THE SUPERBOWL!” Not only is this the first time I have watched a football game, but this is also the first time I have watched TV in almost six months. There are a bunch of first happening right now...

Once Jesus asked one of his disciples why he was not in church. Jesus’ disciple told him that he was watching football, and when Jesus challenged him, the disciple retorted, “BUT I HAD TICKETS TO THE SUPERBOWL JESUS!”. Ok, that is not in the bible but that scene is in one of the funniest videos ever. (Click on this link or search Vintage 21 Jesus Films on Youtube to find the video. It is well worth your time.) My friends and I probably watched these movies at least 100 times in college. Some people call them sacrilegious, but I think they are great examples of the misconceptions that people have about Christianity.

Anyways, because I did not sleep last night guess what I am going to say to my boss tomorrow when he asks why I am sleeping at my desk. “BUT IT WAS THE SUPERBOWL, LAWRENCE!” Don’t worry Lawrence does not care one bit. I am watching the game in his house and sleeping on his couch. How many of you have that kind of relationship with your boss?

Giving Credit Where Credit Is Due

Three people this week asked me if I take the pictures that are on my blog. I am going to throw out two equations for you to help you figure that out.

EXCELLENT PHOTOS = JONATHAN HOFFNER

AVERAGE PHOTOS = DAVID BRAMLETT

I am not a good photographer and don’t pretend to be. Jonny gave all of his photos of Zambia to the Jubilee Centre to use; therefore, I have access to them. I figure why not put them up if they capture some of the things I write about. So, without further ado, here are some more of Jonny’s photos from Zambia.

Other Ministries of Jubilee Centre

Raise your hand if you think that the Jubilee Centre is an education NGO? For those of you that raised your hand, first that is weird. Second, you are incorrect. I don’t know if I have mentioned it before but the Jubilee Centre is actually a Christian NGO that trains churches in holistic ministry. When we say holistic ministry, we mean that the gospel of Jesus Christ should reach all aspects of a community. That means that we train the pastors theologically while also helping them set up ministries to their communities. That includes ministries to the orphans and vulnerable children in the community. That is where the teacher training comes in. Many of the churches that we work with run schools which educate the orphans and vulnerable children (community schools). Lawrence, the Executive Director of the Jubilee Centre, saw the need in these schools and recruited me to come in and help. We will expand the training to schools outside our network of churches, but this is where we have begun.

That is all good and great, but why am I writing about this now. Well, because the Jubilee Centre helps facilitate the ministries of these churches, it has many branches of work ranging from youth ministry to HIV/AIDS home-based care. Over the past two weeks, I have had the opportunity to visit some of the other projects run by the Jubilee Centre. One of the projects that affected me the most is a kitchen run in a compound called Chifubu. Fifteen churches in this compound provide volunteers and resources to run this kitchen, and six days a week this kitchen feeds children who are either orphaned or infected with HIV/AIDS or TB. Some receive meals three days a week while other receive meals all six days (it just depends on the severity of their situation). I had been to this kitchen before, but on Saturday, I truly realized the situation of these children. And it struck a cord with me. The fact that the only meal that some children receive is from the kitchen would not leave me. You could say that this thought haunted me.

I don’t know why seeing these children being fed affected me so much. When living here, after a while you forget that many of the situations you encounter daily are very difficult. You begin to see it as normal, but I am glad for the times that tug at my heart. I am glad for the times that remind me that I should be concerned and that I should feel compassion for these people. When this work becomes a job instead of a calling, I am in trouble. And when my compassion dwindles, I will also be in trouble. Thankfully, I don’t see that happening right now. I increasingly feel a calling to fight for and have compassion on those who do not have access to the basic necessities of life. Through all the difficulties, that is why I enjoy my job.