Who Knows What the Future Brings?
At my school right now we are in a bit of a transition. In the Moldovan school system there are three types of school, one called a gymnasium that goes up to grades 8 or 9, one called a school up to grades 10 or 11, and the final called a lyceum, the most academically prestigious, that goes up to grades 12. Where I work now is a school going up to grade 11.
When I first arrived in August, at the first teachers meeting, it was brought to me and my fellow teachers that our school would no longer be a 'school' after this year, that there is not enough students (and money) for us to maintain our current status and that we would likely become a gymnasium next year, meaning that I wouldn't get a chance to work with my favorite 10th graders again and that it would be a general disaster for the community in general. The problem, as I've written before, is that if we become a gymnasium all the students after 9th grade would have to go to Chisinau to live and study, away from their parents and family and community that have been with these kids all their lives. As my host mom said, it's a hugely important in the development of these kid's lives, and to be away from home after the age of 14 is just about the worst thing that could possible happen. In short, it's a disaster.
It's also a disaster because the village two kilometers to the east and three kilometers to the west also have gymnasiums, small ones with fewer than a hundred kids each and going up to only 8th grade. As my host mom and I agree, the absolutely best solution for everyone would be to close the other schools in the area and turn our school into a lyceum, absorbing teachers from the other schools to fill in the gap in teachers that would come with the influx of kids. The families in the other villages might not like the situation because they would have to pay to transport their kids to this village, but has my host mom says, transportation would cost maybe 500 lei a year (about 38 dollars), while a year in Chisinau would cost around 20,000 lei (about 1538 dollars a year). Money is perhaps the other huge reason why it's a disaster for the school to close, because it's basically giving these families (about 97 percent of which are on a very income) this massive, seemingly unavoidable expense. Yet despite the fact that we all seemed regulated to the fact that the future of our school was not good, in recent weeks we've learned that there is a chance that we could become a lyceum if enough teachers agree and the community wants one. The community seems fully behind the idea, but much to my shock, the a fair amount of the teachers are totally against the future becoming a lyceum.
The reason? Scrutiny.
As a lyceum, because it's more academically challenging, us teachers would be under far more scrutiny that we are now, meaning that many teachers would be forced to do more work to prepare lessons and things like that and and would, in general, have more of a presence watching over their shoulders, something that (much to my frustration), many teachers are totally against, to the point that they prefer the school become simply a gymnasium to say their-selves the extra work. It's not that I'm really in a position to complain or strongly voice my opinion, as all these teachers have been in the school for more years combined than I have days (no joke). If asked my opinion I give it, but so far only my host mom has asked me what I think. We should know the future of the school in a little while, but until then it's just a matter of waiting and and hoping.
Notes:
- You know what the Russian title of There's Something About Mary is? Without Wisdom About Mary. I saw this about ten seconds ago while I was writing and thought it needed to be retold.
- Last Saturday I did something I thought I would never do in the village – I went to the local disco with a few of my students. No, the world didn't end, and it actually turned out to be a good time for everyone.
I told a few girls I work with a while ago that I would go with them eventually to the disco, but I tell people here all the time that I will do something I don't want to do, knowing that whoever I tell will just forget – frankly, it's earier than saying 'no'. These kids, however, forgot nothing and instead just kept telling me that the day I wanted to go to the disco with them I just needed to tell them and they would be happy to go along with me. Naturally, I just waited and waited and didn't say anything, but Friday after school, in a momentary moment of weakness, I told them I would, at last, join them for the evening.
But after waking up at 5:10 Saturday morning, taking the 6:00 bus into Chisinau, stomping around the city doing the pictures for my eleventh grade class (which all turned out wonderfully) and returning on another bus at 6:30 at night, I was in no real condition or mood to go – however, being a person of my word I felt I couldn't back out then. So I called a student of mine with whom I was going (per the student's directions), and we agreed to meet at 9:10 at the intersection near my house. Naturally, being exhausted I fell asleep with one of the kittens and awoke at 9:20 to the sound of one of the kids banging on the window outside, waking me and beckoning me from my slumber.
From there we went to the disco, (I really should use quotation marks around the word 'disco' because it's just the village's House of Culture - mayor's office, post-office - and they bring in some speakers on the weekend, some bright lights, and turn it into a disco). To make a long story short, I just spent a good hour and a half or so hanging outside of the building with my older students, drinking home-made wine from a jug and shooting the breeze with them for the whole time. It actually turned out to be a great opportunity to get to know the students outside of the classroom setting, learn about their families and the like, as well as to practice my language. A great time all around.
- This Saturday is Class Reunion Saturday in Moldova – one the first Saturday of February every year those who graduated from a school return to chat with teachers and with each-other, while all the while the current students at a school preform some sort of show(s?). Should be in interesting time for me, as this is my first event.
- The weather here has officially turned nasty. Up to now we've been blessed with temperatures in the 40's and 50's, but on Monday the wind blew like I've never seen before and yesterday the snow started. Now, it's not supposed to break 20 for a few days. I can't complain really because I really like the winter, but as for my family who spends a lot of time working outside . . . a lot of their lives just became a lot tougher.
- I'll end by simply telling that if you've never seen kittens around a vacuum cleaner, it's something to behold. My host mom on Monday night was holding one of ours and told me to hold it while reaching for the vacuum. Thankfully I was holding on tight because when she started up the machine the cat became terrified, trying to scramble from my hands before finally just settling in with it's eyes wide. The other kitten in the other room instantly sprinted under the bed and refused to come out for a while. When the vacuum was finally off I picked up the little one and it spent the next ten minutes with eyes wide and neck craning back and forth, totally terrified.
It was, without a doubt, the highlight of my week (although it is only Wednesday).
When I first arrived in August, at the first teachers meeting, it was brought to me and my fellow teachers that our school would no longer be a 'school' after this year, that there is not enough students (and money) for us to maintain our current status and that we would likely become a gymnasium next year, meaning that I wouldn't get a chance to work with my favorite 10th graders again and that it would be a general disaster for the community in general. The problem, as I've written before, is that if we become a gymnasium all the students after 9th grade would have to go to Chisinau to live and study, away from their parents and family and community that have been with these kids all their lives. As my host mom said, it's a hugely important in the development of these kid's lives, and to be away from home after the age of 14 is just about the worst thing that could possible happen. In short, it's a disaster.
It's also a disaster because the village two kilometers to the east and three kilometers to the west also have gymnasiums, small ones with fewer than a hundred kids each and going up to only 8th grade. As my host mom and I agree, the absolutely best solution for everyone would be to close the other schools in the area and turn our school into a lyceum, absorbing teachers from the other schools to fill in the gap in teachers that would come with the influx of kids. The families in the other villages might not like the situation because they would have to pay to transport their kids to this village, but has my host mom says, transportation would cost maybe 500 lei a year (about 38 dollars), while a year in Chisinau would cost around 20,000 lei (about 1538 dollars a year). Money is perhaps the other huge reason why it's a disaster for the school to close, because it's basically giving these families (about 97 percent of which are on a very income) this massive, seemingly unavoidable expense. Yet despite the fact that we all seemed regulated to the fact that the future of our school was not good, in recent weeks we've learned that there is a chance that we could become a lyceum if enough teachers agree and the community wants one. The community seems fully behind the idea, but much to my shock, the a fair amount of the teachers are totally against the future becoming a lyceum.
The reason? Scrutiny.
As a lyceum, because it's more academically challenging, us teachers would be under far more scrutiny that we are now, meaning that many teachers would be forced to do more work to prepare lessons and things like that and and would, in general, have more of a presence watching over their shoulders, something that (much to my frustration), many teachers are totally against, to the point that they prefer the school become simply a gymnasium to say their-selves the extra work. It's not that I'm really in a position to complain or strongly voice my opinion, as all these teachers have been in the school for more years combined than I have days (no joke). If asked my opinion I give it, but so far only my host mom has asked me what I think. We should know the future of the school in a little while, but until then it's just a matter of waiting and and hoping.
Notes:
- You know what the Russian title of There's Something About Mary is? Without Wisdom About Mary. I saw this about ten seconds ago while I was writing and thought it needed to be retold.
- Last Saturday I did something I thought I would never do in the village – I went to the local disco with a few of my students. No, the world didn't end, and it actually turned out to be a good time for everyone.
I told a few girls I work with a while ago that I would go with them eventually to the disco, but I tell people here all the time that I will do something I don't want to do, knowing that whoever I tell will just forget – frankly, it's earier than saying 'no'. These kids, however, forgot nothing and instead just kept telling me that the day I wanted to go to the disco with them I just needed to tell them and they would be happy to go along with me. Naturally, I just waited and waited and didn't say anything, but Friday after school, in a momentary moment of weakness, I told them I would, at last, join them for the evening.
But after waking up at 5:10 Saturday morning, taking the 6:00 bus into Chisinau, stomping around the city doing the pictures for my eleventh grade class (which all turned out wonderfully) and returning on another bus at 6:30 at night, I was in no real condition or mood to go – however, being a person of my word I felt I couldn't back out then. So I called a student of mine with whom I was going (per the student's directions), and we agreed to meet at 9:10 at the intersection near my house. Naturally, being exhausted I fell asleep with one of the kittens and awoke at 9:20 to the sound of one of the kids banging on the window outside, waking me and beckoning me from my slumber.
From there we went to the disco, (I really should use quotation marks around the word 'disco' because it's just the village's House of Culture - mayor's office, post-office - and they bring in some speakers on the weekend, some bright lights, and turn it into a disco). To make a long story short, I just spent a good hour and a half or so hanging outside of the building with my older students, drinking home-made wine from a jug and shooting the breeze with them for the whole time. It actually turned out to be a great opportunity to get to know the students outside of the classroom setting, learn about their families and the like, as well as to practice my language. A great time all around.
- This Saturday is Class Reunion Saturday in Moldova – one the first Saturday of February every year those who graduated from a school return to chat with teachers and with each-other, while all the while the current students at a school preform some sort of show(s?). Should be in interesting time for me, as this is my first event.
- The weather here has officially turned nasty. Up to now we've been blessed with temperatures in the 40's and 50's, but on Monday the wind blew like I've never seen before and yesterday the snow started. Now, it's not supposed to break 20 for a few days. I can't complain really because I really like the winter, but as for my family who spends a lot of time working outside . . . a lot of their lives just became a lot tougher.
- I'll end by simply telling that if you've never seen kittens around a vacuum cleaner, it's something to behold. My host mom on Monday night was holding one of ours and told me to hold it while reaching for the vacuum. Thankfully I was holding on tight because when she started up the machine the cat became terrified, trying to scramble from my hands before finally just settling in with it's eyes wide. The other kitten in the other room instantly sprinted under the bed and refused to come out for a while. When the vacuum was finally off I picked up the little one and it spent the next ten minutes with eyes wide and neck craning back and forth, totally terrified.
It was, without a doubt, the highlight of my week (although it is only Wednesday).
posted by Andy Buchanan at 6:20 AM
3 Comments:
The Andrew Buchanan School Of Intelligence will take place.
Andy,
It will be interesting to see how the authorities act on their many options; which school goes up, which stays the same, and which possibly declines. We often face a similar problem when the "Merit System" collides with the realities of senority, unions, long standing friendships, etc. But I can't imagine what it would be like for the kids, youth is undoubtedly resilant and naturally optimistic but to downgrade their school's rating could be interpretted as a general rejection of them as people.
The disco sounds adequate, in the 60's after the British Music Invasion when you went to a dance the docorum wasn't much different then that which you described. Yet, from what I hear on the radio I'd bet the music was better in those days !
As a former cat owner i must say you experiences with your kittens brought back memories. They are fascinating creatures to watch and they interact with us in ways that are completely different then that of dogs, so independent when they want to be.
And the 11th sounds great !
Dad
Buckster,
I was listening to NPR on the way in this morning and they had a story on about bribery in Russia. They said bribery is a way of life. Do you see or hear of any acts of bribery? Good luck.
Jake
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