Reflecting

I’ve been processing the entire experience of our visit since we returned.  I find my mind constantly wandering back to Community Eleven, sitting on the bench under the tree in the middle of campus.  There was a sense of peace among the controlled chaos that is a school of one thousand students moving about, excited to finish writing exams and start their break.

From the outsider’s perspective, the kids had a lot of freedom.  There were students jumping rope and playing about the grounds.  They would amble towards the back of campus and the canteen, purchase a drink or snack and wander back.  Very rarely did a teacher question their motives or actions.  It appeared that they were trusted to do the right thing and be where they needed to be.  One time the headmistress questioned a group if they had finished their exams.  Their replies were respectful and honest.  “No, teacher”, and they returned to their classes.  Well, most of them.  It certainly may have been our presence and disruption of the regular routine that created this scene, but it had a very natural feel to it.

I should mention that I haven’t walked away with a feeling that this is some sort of educational utopia.  I just liked the way it seemed the kids were expected to do the right thing and be in the right place without constant supervision.  Within the classroom it had a slightly different feel.  I wish we had been able to see a regular day of instruction.  Instead we saw the kids sitting quietly and working on their exams.  Because of this, there wasn’t a lot of interaction with their teachers.  In some cases they were sitting at a desk scoring papers or doing other work.  In others the teacher walked through the room looking over the kids shoulders as they worked.  In at least one room, they carried a long stick with them.  

At the ceremony on the first day, the kids slowly filtered out of classrooms and made their way to the tents and few chairs that were set up.  There were no straight lines, no teachers barking orders, just kids talking, joking, laughing, being kids.  Azonto music pumped through the sound system luring them into the area.  They filled the seats, or stood, occasionally wandering away to the canteen or to investigate something going on in a different area of campus.

Once the program ended they really put the sound system to use.  We had walked to the other side of the primary building for the “adoring” of the new computer lab.  When we returned to the assembly area, the speakers were turned up to ten and every last one of those one thousand kids, from kindergarteners to junior high, was dancing.  It was beautiful.  It still gives me a little chill to think about it.  Unadulterated fun.  Smiles stretched across every face.  Robyn jumped right in and got a quick lesson in Azonto dance to the absolute delight of the kids who crowded around her.  The music was still thumping as we drove away and I couldn’t help but wonder why it seems that could never happen at one of our schools in the States.  

I also think about the speeches that were given during the ceremony.  Several of the speakers were politicians and with this taking place a mere four days before the general election, well, they were campaigning.  There were promises of major changes, a three to four story, “proper” school building, air conditioning for the computer lab and other such things.  It sounded wonderful.  It also sounded like politics.  As we spent more time at the school and heard of their needs, the lack of supplies, and saw the meager lunch that was provided for the students, it was hard to believe that anything like a three story school building could even exist.  

The classrooms had as many as sixty kids in them.  Most rooms had one or two bare bulbs hanging from the ceiling, not turned on, and maybe a ceiling fan or two.  Technology seemed to be represented by colored chalk.  There were a few posters on the wall.  The only ones that looked new were promoting a peaceful election. 

It all left me with a mind full of questions.  Was it really that different from our schools?  I don’t know.  We generally have better facilities, technology and supplies, but we’re constantly being asked to do more with less.  It’s all relative I guess.  (I should say that I have been amazed by what I’ve seen the kids have done.  The writings that they sent home with us were impressive.)  We certainly have the same goals and want the same thing for our students.  I do believe we go about it in a different fashion.  I can’t say for sure one is better though.

Where do we go from here?  Again, I don’t really know.  I’m excited to figure it out though.  There are seemingly endless options to be explored in this partnership.  Certainly, I hope that one day soon we will see CESC connected to the internet.  It would be very beneficial to be able to communicate directly with the school through email.  At this time, they have other concerns and needs that are more pressing and we’ll do what we can to address those first.  Maybe, just maybe, the government will decide to help a little as well.  The elections have passed and those making promises retained their power.  Only time will tell.

I think the biggest question that weighs on my mind is, when can I go back.  I want to visit again, and again, and again.  I want it to be a true partnership between Mendenhall and Community Eleven School Complex.  Most of all, I always want to be a part of that partnership.  I don’t see any way I could have walked away feeling any differently.

Update 12.17.12

Just a quick note, because I'm thinking about it.  I got to talk to Mr. Atta Friday.  He's still in Tema.  He says that they have managed to put together a committee to work on building a wall around CESC.  As we sat and talked about the things that they felt they needed the most, that was at the top of the list.  A list that included a place for the kids to eat lunch and educational toys for the younger kids.  I have to admit that selfishly I was a little disappointed that it wasn't Internet, but we've said from the beginning that this isn't for or about us.  So that will be the next project.  I can't wait to hear more about it.  Once again I'm on the other side of the ocean, waiting to see what we can do from here.

Day Two at CESC

Our time in Ghana was so packed, I didn't get to update this as I had planned.  Over the next couple of days I hope to catch up a bit.

We headed back to Tema and Community Eleven on Tuesday to meet with the faculty and visit some of the classrooms.  We were in for another interesting day.

Students were "writing their exams" on Tuesday as they were approaching their holiday break that began Thursday.  Friday was election day so school was going to be closed for that as well.  Needless to say we provided quite a distraction as the students were wotking, but it did not seem to be a problem.    

We started with some time sitting and talking with Gift, the Headmistress of Primary School A,  and Gifty (spelling?) who was Headmistress of Primary School B and two members of the PTA.  They shared information about their student population and the needs of the school.  They expressed a desire for a cafeteria spave where their students could all sit to eat, a wall to enclose their campus, toys for their kindergarten classes and a printer/copier.  The list certainly could have included much more, but these were the things they felt were priority.  

We got the full tour of the primary school starting with the youngest and working our way around.  In each class Gift addressed the class as we walked in with, "Hello class.  How are you?"  To which the class would respond in perfect unison, "I'm fine.  Thank you.  And you?" Very different from entering a class in the states.  She then went on to ask each class to sing us a song.  Each class chose their own song, some of them sang several.  All in English.  Well, except maybe one that had some native language mixed in.  Everyone sang.  Everyone.

We never made it to the junior high side of campus.  We kept talking about it, but in the end I guess we just ran out of time.  Or maybe they decided that we shouldn't really interrupt them as they were writing  exams.  In any case, we spent the day in the lower school.

Once we finished our tour they collected some members of their three soccer teams, two age groups from the primary school and one from the junior high, and had them put on the jerseys and let them play a bit.  According to our tour guides, they regularly win the cup in their area.  They were certainly good.  It was nearly noon and they were playing hard despite the midday sun.  The field was entirely dirt and many of the kids played in socks.  There were no lines and no nets on the goals, but it was still a beautiful game. 

After the game it was almost time for lunch.  Students who had wandered out to watch (there seemed to be a lot of freedom for the students to come and go) were hustled back inside to continue working on their exams.  We had a little time to sit and talk in the courtyard under the trees.  Robyn spoke to a few of the teachers about their required training and I walked across the street with the PTA leaders to meet one of their wives and the other's daughter who was in the upper school.  The wife was in a partially completed building across the street with another lady who was sewing on an antique sewing machine.  

We departed Tema about 1:00 with a lot to think about.  In some ways this visit was a culmination of our efforts of the last couple of years, but I also have to look at is as the start of something new.  I hope we can continue to work with CESC and find new ways to learn from one another.

Each class sang us at least one song as we visited.

English lesson on the board

Singing

I believe this was a grade one class.  Maybe grade two.

The master schedule.

Everyone wanted a picture taken.

More mugging for the camera.

Members of the two primarty school teams and the junior high team.

The boys were playing hard!

"Fans" gathered in the goal to watch.

This was the canteen on the edge of campus where students got snacks and drinks.

A vendor on CESC campus 

Jump rope time

The Black Star flying high above the Junior High School.

Lunch Time!

Students brought their own bowls to school.  Today they had beens with ground cassava.

Jerseys were washed and laid out to dry.

Robyn talking with the PTA leaders

A first visit to Community Eleven

What a day!  I finally got to visit Community Eleven Complex School today.  We met Mr. Atta at his home in Tema this morning before heading over to the school.  I had no idea what was ahead of us for the day.  Atta had continued to call this a "meeting", but hinted that there would be quite a few people there.  Turns out the entire school, their staff, PTA leaders, probably fifty parents, media representatives and seven or eight dignitaries from Tema Government were there for the celebration.  There was a sound system pumping out music, speeches from all of the dignitaries, kids doing traditional dance, contemporary dance, a skit about the importance of trees from the environmental club and poetry about the importance of computer education.  They even had a ribbon cutting for the opening for the computer lab.

It is hard to believe that this whole project started over two years ago.  It's been a long time coming and it was very special to see how much it meant to the school and the community.  We will go back tomorrow to talk more about how to continue the collaboration between our two schools.

The whole day had a somewhat surreal feel to it.  It certainly felt good to see the fruits of our labor.

The tree in the middle of Community Eleven School Complex

Mr. Atta and a member of the PTA

The crates from our shipment of computers.

The computer lab

An outdoor classroom

Kids waiting for the celebration to start.

PTA representatives

Kids of Community Eleven

Two students sharing a poem about ICT (technology)

Part of the Environmental Club's Skit (He was a tree)

The Environmental Club Skit about the importance of trees.

The dance group

Exchanging student work with Community Eleven Teachers

Julie Olson speaking with one of the traditional dancers.

Departure Day

Today is the day.  We are all packed up, well pretty much, and ready to go.  Our flight leaves Greensboro this afternoon and we'll be in Accra by noon tomorrow.  It is hard to believe that all of this is really happening.   Mr. Atta and I talked about traveling to Ghana way back when this project started.  It seemed like a pipe dream back then.  Not any more.

We have quite a lot to take with us.  Two giant bags of soccer gear that weigh 40 pounds each, two carry ons each and then our regular suitcase.  Our carry ons will include three video cameras and three digital cameras for Community Eleven.  Right now it seems like if we make it through the airports with all of this stuff it will be a miracle.

We have just a few more hours here to take care of final details, then the adventure begins!

GCSTV!

Here's a link to the GCSTV story about our project!
http://schoolcenter.gcsnc.com/education/components/scrapbook/default.php?sectiondetailid=360420
Our story starts at 2:12.

More later.  Busy packing for tomorrow's flight!

9 days and Passback

I picked up the soccer gear from Mike at Soccer.com today.  I'm super excited about it.  He gave us at least three sets of uniforms, a couple sets of cones and over fifty balls.  Looks like a few keeper jerseys and some gloves as well.  I didn't dig too deep in the bags as I was afraid I wouldn't be able to repack them.  We've got somewhere around 90 pounds of equipment, just under the limit for our flight.  He seems like a really good guy, and his little sister is even working with some of her friends around here to collect a little more gear.  Sounded like she might drop another set of jerseys off for me at school on Monday.

Things are coming together, and the trip is coming on quick.  Mr. Atta and I are planning on sitting down again sometime this weekend and talking a little more about what we need to discuss when we meet with the leaders of Community Eleven School.  I think that he is a little worried about the committment from Mendenhall and being certain that the school is in it for the long haul.  He says that so many times people come with good intentions, but they quickly fizzle out, and he doesn't want to see that happen here.  I certainly agree and have some of the same worries.  However, I think that we will be able to build some extra support for it when we return and have some things to share.  Mr. Matson has agreed to draft a letter of support for us to take with us as well.  He's been supportive of us the whole way, so I think we'll be ok.  I guess in the end, only time will tell.

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, and I can't help but take a few minutes to think about how thankful I am for this opportunity.  There are a lot of uncertainties as this project moves forward, but I'm very excited about all that we've been able to do so far.  I feel like things will continue to just work themselves out as we go along as well.  That's how good things tend to happen, right?

9 days...

14 days and television

It's getting closer and closer.  Two weeks from the time I'm writing this we'll be in the air.  Hard to believe it really is that close to finally happening.  Things are really starting to come together and feel real.  I got to talk to my friend Julie Olson via Skype the other night and discussed a few of the particulars of our trip.  She's kind enough to open her home to Robyn and I and she's committed to getting her school, Lincoln Community School of Accra, in on the project.  She'll be bringing a group of staff members from Lincoln along with us to meet with the staff of Community Eleven School.  I'm excited to have another school involved in the project, especially one close by and with a lot of resources to help.

I also did my first television interview today.  GCSTV interviewed Mr. Atta and me this afternoon to help publicise the work that we are doing.  I know it is just the school system channel, but it's still pretty cool.  I'm excited about this project and I want people to know about it.  It will be interesting to see what the final program looks like.  I'm not sure when it will air.

Finally, I'm really excited to be collecting soccer gear next Wednesday to take along with us.  There's something cool about working with a program (Passback) that's connected to the US Soccer Foundation.  I can't wait to see what we get but more importantly, I can't wait to share it with the kids in Ghana.  The computers and school supplies are of course very important, but getting to share the beautiful game with kids across the ocean is something extra special for me.

Passback just posted this on their Facebook page.  Some of this gear is headed out with us!

The Beginnings - Part III

Mr. Atta managed to get everything all nice and packed sometime around the end of May.  We debated all kinds of plans about the best way to pack the computers.  I called every shipping place I could to ask advice.  In the end, I have no idea how they were packed.  Atta called me one day and told me it was done and that was that.  Not how I had planned, but he is a man of action and I was glad to be one step closer to getting the computers on the ocean.  Atta contacted a shipping company that he had worked with before and set up a time for them to pick up our containers.  Twice Mr. Atta set up these appointments and twice they did not show.  Once again another road block presented itself.  We were ready to begin seeking other options as our containers had been packed for several weeks now and sitting in Atta's garage.  This was an incredibly frustrating time.  To make a long story short, eventually they did show and our computers were headed for Africa.  I was excited and nervous.  We had just turned over 3 crates full of computers, clothes, and school supplies and I had no invoice.  I was assured that everything was in order, but it just wasn't the way I was used to doing busines.  It was well over a week before I was emailed an invoice and we didn't even pay anyone for a couple of weeks.  When the crates were picked up Mr. Atta had told them he did not have time to pay them because they had made him wait so long.  They would have to wait.  Wow.  He is a man of action and I am impressed. Eventually we got a real invoice, paid our bill and I even got a tracking number.  I checked it daily, as if it would make things move quicker.  After a stop in Amsterdam our container finally made it to Tema where it would sit in port for another solid week before being received by Community Eleven School.  Mission accomplished.  Kind of.  School was out for the summer so the crates were moved to the headmaster's house to await the new school year and installation.  Again we would have to wait. That pretty much gets us to where we are now.  CESC is working on the installation process, aparently with an outside organization.  There is so much I don't know about what is going on in my own project.  It can be frustrating at times, but it has been an incredible learning experience.  I've had to accept the fact that I can't control every little aspect of this.  It's just not possible. I'm not really used to that, but I'm coming to terms with it.  I've also learned to accept that there are different ways of doing business.  Mr. Atta has helped me many times with reassurance that everything was ok.  It's been fun, it's been frustrating, it's been a challenge.  We've only just begun...

Recruiting, Writing and Soccer Gear

Thanks to my wife, Robyn, who is a school social worker in our district, I was invited to share our project at Joyner Elementary School yesterday.  I presented to the 5th grade students and their teachers as well as a few other staff members.  I wasn't real sure what to expect and basically just adapted a presentation I gave to our staff here at Mendenhall.   The kids were excited and had some great questions.  They were curious about how our schools differ from theirs.  So their plan is to come up with a list of questions that Robyn and I can take with us and work on answering as we visit Community Eleven.  We also provided their teachers with the idea of possibly having the students create an autobiographical poem that we could take with us to share and hopefully have CESC kids complete as well. In my classroom our students are working on creating an essay about a pivotal moment in their life to share with students in Tema who are preparing the same assignment.  I'm pretty excited about this for several reasons.  One, this is potentially our first real exchange between our students and I have a feeling that the topics the students have chosen will be radically different from each other.  I can't wait to see what comes out of these.   Finally, thanks to another connection provided by Robyn, we're communicating with Soccer.com's Passback program and are working on getting some gear to help Community Eleven build a soccer team.  This is kind of a side project from the original plan, but if we have the chance to connect through soccer (football) I'm all about it.  Mr. Atta also sees this as another opportunity for the kids in the region to find a positive outlet. Lots of stuff going on right now.  All kinds of ideas and possibilities.  I can't wait to see where all this takes us.

The Beginning - Part II

The success of Ghana days had us planning to make it an annual event.  It didn't happen.  I was also a little disappointed with the fact that the kids raised a bunch of money, presented Atta with a check and then had nothing else to do with the project.  The students had participated in the fundraising, but did not build a real connection with the project itself. We had done some good, the money raised was used to refurbish computers, but I felt like we could do better. We needed a way to better connect our students with Community Eleven School Complex. I had a student teacher and therefore a little time on my hands so I started looking into grants for technology to use in my classroom.  I wanted iPads for my students to use and I was searching for ways to make it happen.  I found two grants that I thought might fit my needs and came up with the idea to include a connection with Community Eleven.  I presented the idea to Mr. Atta and he said sure.  I'm not sure that what I was proposing was really clear, or I explained it all that well, but it was all still hypothetical.  I wrote the grants pitching the idea that we would purchase 6 iPads and 6 FlipVideo cameras to be split between our two schools.  Students would use the technology to create videos about their daily lives, school and communities that we would then share via the internet.  It worked.  My idea was funded by both the NEA Foundation and the Lego Children's Fund.  With both of the grants I recieved almost $10,000 for the project.  Game on! Once we had the funding, Mr. Atta and I started talking seriously about how to implement the project.  We ran into a roadblock right away. CESC didn't have internet access much less wireless.  I hadn't even considered this as a possible problem as I was developing my initial plan.  I figured we would order the iPads and have them shipped to CESC and we'd be exchanging videos in a few weeks.  I was quickly introduced to reality.  Obviously our plans changed.  We began to focus on providing CESC with enough desktop computers to develop a computer lab.  Mr. Atta began purchasing used computers at UNCG's surplus sales and we asked our students and staff to donate their old computers as well.  We found a local computer repair service that offered to refurbish the computers at a discounted price and we managed to buy 3 new desktops along the way.  In the end we added 2 laptops and 2 printers as well.   It took us an entire year to collect the computers, monitors, keyboards, and other accessories and be certain that everything was in working order.  At times it seemed like we would never get everything organized and ready to go.  Thanks to Alliance Computers and the UNCG Computer Science department we finally had enough refurbished computers that were ready to ship.  Enter the next roadblock... To be continued...

The Beginning

I'll have to recreate this the best I can.  This project has been several years in the making and just now gotten to a point where I feel like I should start writing about it.  I wish I had kept a little better record of events as we were putting things together, but I had no idea what this would turn into.  So, to the best of my recollections this is our story...

I met Mr Kweku Atta in my first years at Mendenhall.  Somewhere around 2006 I guess.  He was (and still is) the custodian on my hall, so we would strike up conversations from time to time as he worked in the afternoons.  Eventually I learned that he was from Ghana and we tried, somewhat successfully to set up something where he would share with the students about his home since we studied the Africa and the Eastern Hemisphere.

When UNCG ran this story in January of 2010 it opened the door for the beginnings of our project.  It started with my wife and I making a small donation to Mr. Atta to help with shipping costs and turned into Ghana Days later that year.  Students in the 7th grade were assigned to create a project about a specific time period in Ghana's history.  We then came together as an entire grade level for two days of presentations and sharing about the history and culture of Ghana.  

The final aspect of Ghana days was an afternoon Survivor tournament among the grade level. Students created teams of their friends and donated a small entry fee to play one of their favorite Physical Education

games.  Students who decided not to play were asked to make small donations to come out and watch.  In the end, no student was excluded and we had an excellent afternoon of games and socializing.  We were able to present Mr. Atta with a check for $550

To be continued...