Vieux Fort Schools; Halloween (not related)

Yesterday I was scheduled to go work at Belle Vue Combined (the same grades as an elementary school in the states, up to grade 6), but instead I went with the teachers at Vieux Fort Primary to their development day activity.

We went to students' houses in Bruceville and the Mang in Vieux Fort Town to see what conditions the kids were living in, so we could understand the challenges they face at home that might interfere with their education, or likewise the support that helps it. These neighborhoods are pretty much the slums of the Vieux Fort area, and are located in or near downtown. Much of Bruceville is referred to as "shanty town" because the houses were built haphazardly on a bit of land with no planning. They are built on concrete or wooden stilts a few feet high usually, and the houses are thin wooden sheets, only a step above plywood. Roofs are sheet steel, and the fences are patches of long rusting sheet steel about 4x4 feet, nailed together. It seems like most people have an electricity connection, though some don't; many (perhaps most in this neighborhood) don't have running water. Trash is strewn all over the ground (there were a few times when the other teachers and I were taken aback when people just tossed it on the ground. One teacher asked if there was a bin around that she could put some trash in, and the resident told her to just put it on the ground). Some people have animals like goats, pigs, and chickens. Goats are usually tied up; the others are let run as they may.

As we went along meeting parents and grandparents we had a survey sheet to fill out. It asked questions like: Mother/Father/Guardian's employment; parents' and siblings' education levels; whether they had electricity, water, books, newspapers, radio, television (Miss Sherene always skipped over the one about computers); where and how often they went to church, and whether they had a Bible; and if children were given chores, help with homework, and did other activities with parents (many said they took their kids to the beach or shopping regularly).

At each home we were greeted warmly (sometimes too warmly: one woman was bathing in a fenced area where the outhouse is. As we walked to the front door of the house, she called from behind us, "I'm busy, I'm not doing laundry," so we looked and there she was, completely naked and dripping from her shower. We tried to get out of that situation quickly, though she was not at all uncomfortable with it), and parents were not shy or dishonest about what they had or didn't have. Most had nice things to say about us and the kids. One mom we spoke with (and other groups reported similar conversations) told us that her son, a boy that I've been working with personally, insists on doing his homework by himself even though he can't read or write (yet!! I'm working on it with him. He's in Grade 4), and also that every night he asks for KFC for dinner. KFC is very expensive (between $10-15 for combo meals, $20-30 for family dinners), especially considering that similar meals would cost less than half if made at home, and many families have only one employed member, if that, and are seriously scraping to get by. Most families said that they or the older siblings help our students with homework, but that doesn't necessarily show when we look at their work in class (this is one of the reasons I think an after school tutoring program would be so helpful).

After the visits, we went back to the school for lunch (the third free lunch I enjoyed that week--It's nice because I cut back on my expenses, but then again I end up having left over food for over a week that needs to be consumed), then we went to visit three other schools in the district. (I had already visited all three before, and I ended up knowing more about them than my coworkers.)

The first was Vige (pronounced Veezhay), a rural school with four classrooms and 55 students in grades K-6. The VF Primary teachers were agap at the size and at the effort those teachers must have to put in to teach not only mixed-ability classrooms, but mixe classes too.

Next we visited Belle Vue, a school I work at on Fridays, helping mainly in the computer lab. The fact that this school has a computer lab says something about it. It also has a learning center with televisions, projectors, board games, and books; murals a paintings all over the school yard of educational games for kids to play and learn at break and lunch; a school garden of fruit and vegetables (I'm not sure if they sell the produce or use it in the kitchen); and two little meditation gardens where kids can go read and be in a peaceful, relaxing area outside. The classrooms were not as bare as those in VF Primary. The effects of this stimulating learning environment shows: Belle Vue has pretty good test scores for the area.

Finally (after school got out at 3pm) we went to Blanchard, a school that is participating in a test program called SET, where classrooms are made with themes to promote the idea that learning is fun. The VF teachers also liked these classrooms, but overall they were most impressed with Belle Vue. It's supposed to be a "sister school," in that they serve similar demographics and have similar resources, but in truth Belle Vue and Vieux Fort Primary stand on opposite ends of the District 6 spectrum of primary and combined schools.

After our visits to these schools, we went to a hotel bar where the principal bought a round of drinks for everyone. I felt bad because I ended up making everyone leave early. I was going to a Halloween party in a different town (about two hours away) that started at 6, so I had planned on going back home quickly after we were done so I could leave just after 4. Well, we didn't get to the bar until about 3:40, and so by 4:15 I told the principal that I had to go, and that I would catch a bus back into town, but he rounded every one up and we went back to VF Primary.

I didn't get home until about 5, and I didn't leave for Canaries until 5:45. It was already dark, and I took a bus to the mall where I thought I could catch a bus to Soufriere, but apparently I had to go all the way into town to get that bus, so I wasted about 20 minutes and $1.25 on that misconception (it does work that way for buses into Laborie on the same highway, so it wasn't unfounded, just wrong). I had to wait another 10 minutes once I got on the bus for it to fill up, and I spent the hour ride into Soufriere worrying because as soon as I left the house and tried to call my landlady to let her know I was going, my phone died (thankfully I had asked someone at her house to let her know just before I left). I knew there was a chance that the bus up from Soufriere that should pass through Canaries might not run often that time of night (I got into Soufriere a little after 7. So early, but because it's already dark there's no one out and fewer buses), and I knew I would cry if I couldn't find a ride, but the thing that kept me going was knowing that this was an adventure. Thankfully a woman in Soufriere walked me to the cemetery where I might be able to get a ride, and luckily a bus passed just as we were there, going to Canaries. When I had spoken to Jason (a PCV who also lives in Canaries) the other night on the phone, he wouldn't tell me exactly where the house was, instead saying I should just call him when I got off by the police station. It turned out the bus driver didn't have a phone either (his was stolen at Jounen Kweyol), but the first person I asked when I got off told me exactly where the house was, so that wasn't a problem. It was a stressful but very exciting journey, alone at night to a place I'd not only never been, I didn't even know where it was! I arrived just before 8.

No one else at the party could believe I was able to get buses at that hour. I changed into my costume, and everyone loved it. One of the neighbors, a boy about 11 years old, told some of the PCVs that my costume won. Unfortunately in my rush from home I forgot my camera, but here's a pic someone else took. What you can't see in the pic are the wings from the mesh laundry hamper, the white bands around my joints on my legs, and the lyre pattern in white paper on my back. This was the reference I used.

Last night was a ton of fun, though. It was nice to be around people I already know, and to just hang out and enjoy being social. This morning those of us that stayed in Canaries over night made a breakfast of scrambled eggs, pancakes, and golden apple juice (I used the green golden apples left over from last night's bobbing for golden apples).

When I finally got back home around 1:30 or 2pm today (Saturday) I had to take a nap before cleaning up my mess of an apartment. But now it's clean, and now I'm enjoying a more relaxing weekend.