Post by Lara
30 September 2013
Because we were traveling, we missed the first two weeks of
school this year, which last year would have meant we missed absolutely
nothing, since students tend not to come the first few weeks of a term and then
teachers occasionally decide not to show up one day and then suddenly it’s
October and time for a mid-term break! No really, we hardly started teaching
last year before October and almost as quickly as that picked up, we got most
of a week off. Anywho, we weren’t too
worried about missing some classes since 99% of the time we’re the most
punctual and reliable teachers at our respective schools. At least, that was until my students went on
strike to replace the administration.
Let me back up—I meant to write a post back in April when
the strike happened…but I couldn’t really find the words and before I knew it,
it was history and I didn’t really know what to write anymore. Essentially, a group of senior students at my
school decided, with some guidance from an alumnus, that they wanted to see
changes for the better on our campus and in order for that to happen they
needed new leadership at the school. They staged a demonstration that started
in morning assembly and followed it with a week-long strike, writing a letter
to the school board expressing their frustration with the lack of effective
teaching and discipline at the school as well as the lack of sufficient
furniture for all of the students to use.
Within a week, the board held a meeting and came to an
agreement with the students, replacing both the junior high and senior high
principals at our school with younger senior teachers who are both alumni of
the school. Many things were promised;
among them, enough desks for all the students, more oversight of teachers to
ensure they were teaching, and a more disciplined school that encourages
learning. For any school anywhere in the
world, these kinds of changes from one academic year to the next would be a
tall order. I have to admit I didn’t
expect many things to change. I guessed I would still be one of the first
teachers on campus each day and one who spent more of my school day teaching
than the vast majority.
Well, I’m here to say I was wrong and I’m thrilled about
it. I returned to my school to find the
staff room freshly painted with new vinyl floor mats and window curtains, the
administrative building spruced up and the rain gutters remade, and students
and teachers on campus in large numbers.
I have been the first teacher at school only once this academic year,
and in fact I’m not usually the second, third, or fourth either. Morning assembly has been attended by an
average of 15 teachers every day (last year the average was 3 or 4), and the
staff room seems to be used once again for teachers preparing for classes or
taking breaks between classes. In short,
our school seems to be operating as a school should, which is more than I can
say of most days during the last academic year.
 |
| Mr. Sengeh, the new principal, addressing the assembly. |
Some of the changes will take longer— the next round of
standardized tests starts in May, I believe, so a few months after that we’ll
be able to gauge any improvements.
Additionally, many of us are watching to see whether teachers and
students fall into old routines—low turn-up at morning assembly, teachers and
students skipping school during the day, minor infractions going unpunished,
etc.
My hopes are high, especially
because I’ve heard the new administrators make numerous comments about the fact
that they are under the microscope now and they will be judged based on the
success or failure of the school in the immediate future.
 |
| Students getting new football uniforms! |
So far, I’ve seen some amazing transformations take place in
the short time I’ve been in this community, and I’m looking forward to finding
out what’s to come for my school and my students.
