Volunteer Visit

I took off for my Volunteer Visit today (this entry was first written then typed). In the past, PC has sent trainees to visit their future sites to check things out, though this year, they decided to send us to visit a current volunteer to get an idea of what volunteering life is like. Sole trainees, or groups of two or three took off last week and this week to visit a volunteer somewhere in the country, staying with them 4 or 5 days. I was set to visit one volunteer by myself, but she was too busy, so I ended up visiting another volunteer, with Emily, a fellow trainee. Though I went a day later than she did and got to navigate there all by my lonesome. It was an educational experience, though.

Being at this volunteer’s site les than an entire day has given me a lot to unload and process. What I’ve noticed: a good counterpart has a big influence on how you integrate into the community. Building relationships with your co-workers is crucial, for several reasons: being included/counted amongst your peers, they’ll help you with your new job, they’ll give you background on the school and the students and they are the ones who can best tell you what their needs are; they will be much more receptive to the new methods you introduce them to; there’s a better chance that what you facilitate with them will become sustainable. It’s important to set aside the first month… or two… or three to simply assess the job – observe how and what’s being taught, classroom management, know students’ abilities. I know now that it wouldn’t be wise to jump into a classroom of my own and start teaching – I need to not only get to know my colleagues and students, but I need to get some class experience first, having never done that. It might be good to first just visit the class once a week to observe and let the kids get to know me with small exercises and then move in for the serious stuff. I’ve also noticed that secondary projects an be as informal as a Saturday morning play time with kids. It might help with getting to know the kids and families. Maybe we’d map out the area together, or create a nature book of their community’s vegetation I’ve noticed you can be very relaxed about your job assignment – this can be comforting and harmful. I hope I never get to a point during my assignment where I become too comfortable and complacent.

One last observation: apathy is a challenge to overcome. Some have stated that education beyond the primary level is “not necessary” for the lifestyle of the people here as farmers, workers, etc. I believe that people can support themselves with a primary school education, having learned basic math and life skills – but there is so much more to education and life than that, and I ache for people to realize that. PCVs seem to have an even bigger job in front of them, if they can handle that challenge.