Classroom Chaos

Taylor and I completed our first day of teaching the P-3 class and let’s just say, culture shock! Before coming to Uganda, I had this idea in my head that the students were going to be nothing like those in America. And boy was I right…and well so completely wrong at the same time. I had always thought the students were going to be great listeners, never messing around or getting distracted, and just beyond excited to be there learning. I am going to flat out say that I have so much more respect for American classrooms after today. Any class or student that I ever thought was difficult doesn’t compare. And I don’t put it on the kids here, I just think it’s the culture. And I'm not familiar with this culture quite yet.

I found that it’s completely normal to leave the classroom if you are done with your work, don’t feel like doing your work, or are just bored. It’s also normal for cockroaches two inches long to be in the classroom and the way to take care of them is to kick them. I personally thought it was best to stand on a stool behind Taylor. Chalk disappears just as quickly as guitar picks do, and I’m quite sure they go to the same place. It’s also normal for kids who are not even attending school to sit in your classroom all day long. Standing on the tables is a normal occurrence as well as fighting.

And this is normal. Trying to do anything “fun” is simply out of the question. We realized that quickly. The only way to teach in the classroom is to have the children either copy from the board or their books into their notebooks and then have them solve problems or answer questions. Time does not matter in the classroom, unlike in America. The pace is slow as a tortoise. When the students are done with the assigned work they again leave the classroom or find someone to fight with. Those who become bored or frustrated also leave the classroom.  

During our math lesson on counting from 400-500, only about half of the students were able to complete the task. Some zoomed through, others just didn’t want to do it, and some just didn’t understand. When we tried to explain they became frustrated and gave up. Multiplying by 10 was the same way. We had two students who asked for me problems to solve, while some became frustrated and gave up and left the classroom, while other just sat there not doing anything when we tried to explain.

Working one-on-one only seemed to frustrate some kids more. I think it’s really going to take Taylor and I some time to figure how exactly these classrooms operate. The chaos is not something we are used to. I mean at one point, there were five girls and boys playing with Taylor’s hair while she was trying to read a story. In this moment, I understood why Yvette’s friend cut her hair off when she was in Uganda. It really is a huge distraction.

I am quite sure that both Taylor and I were counting down the minutes until the end of the day because we were just so confused by everything. Riding the boda-boda home, we both said a big hallelujah to the fact that it’s a three day weekend. Taylor and I absolutely love it in the family home. The children are the sweetest little things ever. They never let us take our own plates after dinner, always want to give us hugs, and will do anything for us to spend time with them.

I realized just how big their hearts really are tonight when one of the boys came and asked me if we could play guitar together. He always asks to pay my guitar while I play his. After dinner he worked on teaching “Auntie” (Taylor) how to play guitar. He had so much patience with her. One of the girls then asked to see photos. I showed them the printed photos I had brought along, and Taylor pulled her laptop out. All the kids were gathered around her asking about each photo. One of the girls even grabbed my arms and wrapped them around her.

It was movie night, and I fell asleep on the couch from the long day. I woke up realizing I had my feet propped on a stool, and took them off and said, “I have my feet up where someone could be sitting!” and took them off. One of the girls said to me, “No, Auntie, you put your feet up!” And insisted I rest my feet instead of her sitting.

It’s different here, that’s for sure. The school was different today, but Taylor and I are going to work together this weekend to come up with a plan to help the class run smoothly next week. I am thankful for all the kids in the home and their generous and loving hearts. They have such big hearts for God and simply enjoy life. Joy. Joy is what they have.

I am thankful for this experience and all that it will bring to my life.