The Beginning

Blog #1: The Beginning

            After the two earthquakes, it seemed like this trip would definitely not be happening. Looking through the news articles of how devastated Nepal was and hearing things like there’s a lack of resources, there are dead bodies all over, there is rubble and trash everywhere, air pollution and smog is worse than ever and that Nepal had been deemed a place “un-travelable” unless you were the Red Cross or some other large relief organization doesn’t make it seem like a great place to be. But after getting here and seeing it, all expectations were shattered. It was inevitable to not think of huge piles of rubble and buildings destroyed everywhere and people in the streets when you hear there’s been two huge earthquakes with a sequence of reoccurring aftershocks. But what the news has said and what you may think is not what it really is. People want help and they are happy to see volunteers here. In the airport native Nepalese people asked what we were doing and when we told them they responded with nothing but gratitude and love. “Thank you so much, we need you. Our country needs your help, thank you, thank you, thank you.” Nothing but love and support for what we are doing here, which drives you to put that much more effort into everything you do. People here have not lost hope within themselves or their country but need people here supporting them, showing them that their hope has been worth it and people aren’t forgetting about Nepal. Where we are staying is in the midst of a large historical site called Darbar Square which usually has tourists swarming around but there is no one here but us because the buildings are too damaged. The only building with no damage is the one we are staying in which almost makes you feel guilty for having no sense of fear about where you are staying when the people here are too afraid to go up farther than ground level and don’t want to enter the buildings for fear of the damage succumbing and causing the buildings to collapse. In most of the buildings only the top floors are destroyed which means people have to come in and take the buildings down from the top to the bottom and then rebuild but they can’t start that process until after monsoon season which ends around August or September so until then the buildings have to remain as they are which leaves an eerie feeling all around and doesn’t allow people to move on. But the hope they still have is inspiring.

            Today, Friday the 5^th, was our first day at the school which always gives you jitters and leaves you with mixed emotions of fear, excitement, joy and nerves. Before going to the school the principal, Keshab, came to our guest house to give us an orientation before going to teach in the school. It was really inspiring to hear what he had to say and made me want to put 110% of my effort into everything we did at the school. But what he said was also not what I was expecting, he was much more open and accepting than I thought and kept reiterating how important individuality and independence are. He would say things like “No child is a bad child but, everybody just has their own learning styles.” And encouraged us to figure out those learning styles and develop 1 on 1 connections with the students. He wants all of his students to be mentally and financially independent and encourages the use of critical thinking to develop those skills. Another thing that really stood out to me and resonated with me was his idea that there is no wrong answer and that as long as the child is thinking and trying, then there is some truth to their answer. He went through several teaching methods with us like; being professional because the kids watch your every move and look up to you, being prepared with lesson plans, the importance of body language, tone and eye contact, being positive and smiling, 1 on 1 connections, and being a friend to the students but also a leader. All of these things gave me the confidence I needed and helped shake off the first day nerves of teaching. What he said validated everything we are here to do and made you want to give teaching everything you have because no matter how little or how big, your impact is remembered and does make a difference.

            At the school Kevin and I were assigned to class 4 which had math class first. All of the things they are learning make sense and are things students in the U.S. learn but the teaching method is extremely different which makes it more challenging and makes teaching that much more scary because you never know if the way you are teaching is the way they should be learning. We helped the teacher grade homework and classwork and he asked me to do a few of the classwork problems on the board to help the students understand better. At first I did the problem how I usually would and got blank stares from the students, a laugh from the teacher, and a head shake from Kev. I probably turned red from embarrassment and being so nervous but, I did the problem again the way they were learning it and felt a huge sense of accomplishment seeing the kids’ eyes show that “ah-ha” moment. We followed the math teacher around for the rest of the morning from class 4 to class 3 to class 6 which eventually led to lunch time. The same was true for class 3 & 6 as was in class 4, the same concept as the U.S.  but different teaching methods. This makes it a little bit more challenging but not impossible. Kevin and I brainstormed fun games we could do with the kids to get them up and out of their seats and excited about what they were learning. At lunch it was really cool to talk with everyone about what they had noticed and what they thought and telling funny stories from the morning classes. After lunch, Kevin and I went back to class 4 and helped teach computer class which initially consisted of copying down notes out of the book but Kevin and I made it more interactive by taking notes on the board and talking through it with the class which you could see really changed their moods and got us into the swing of teaching again. The rest of the afternoon (2 classes) no teachers showed up but one of the classes was drawing so the kids just had to draw and relax which gave us a really good opportunity to talk and get to know the kids better. Learning the names is definitely not easy, but it’s fun trying to say them and watching the kids laugh at you because you totally butchered but eventually they help you and you slowly begin to learn the names. The next class we played about 4 different games with the kids and just got them up and moving around which changed their moods and they became more spirited and happy just by having a little fun in the classroom. The day ended with all smiles and happy faces which leaves you feeling extremely accomplished and proud that you just had to do with putting a smile on their faces. It makes you excited to go back the next day and continue to make new connections, fail a few times, learn new things, and make an honest impact on the people around you.