It's the System

Monday 30^th April 2012

Year 6 students learning prepositions in a fun way

I have just tested all the students in Maka’s year 6 class.  I have just recorded how many of the “Fry’s 100 Picture nouns” they recognise and how many of the words they can read.  This set of words is a basic vocabulary and I think is a quick way to assess the level of the student’s language even if it is just serves as a comparison between the students themselves.  These words are very common and students should be able to sight read them to ensure that reading is fluent as it will save them time and make reading less painful.

These children have been studying English for 4 years but are not at the same level, in fact there is a wide range of ability.  The system here is that teachers present information to students by working through a text book with exercises and the teaching methods used are translation and rote learning.  Parents also pay for students to have private lessons after school, often with the same teachers as they have at school. 

So based on this I have split the year classes into 3 groups; those who can work with the teacher and follow the text book; those who have very limited English and don’t confidently know numbers, colours and sentence structure and those who cannot read and do not have basic understanding of letter.  I will teach them.  The teachers are happy with this.  IN a way it is business as usual for them as they ignore those who are in my groups. I have had a few lessons and it is going well.  One of my lads is obviously dyslexic and I have gone to great pains to let him know that he is clever but just has a problem with writing and reading.  He is working well with me and I intend to make sure he can at least read before I leave.  I also am aiming to increase vocabulary and get them to be more confident speakers and listeners.  Well there is so much you can do really it is just a matter of what time is available.  They are hard work too as they do not focus well and don’t have the learning habit so to speak which means they stop doing what I am asking them to do as soon as I turn to give attention to another group.

The system is so frustrating.  Teach and Learn with Georgia (TLG) are not part of the educational system and does not have any authority as such, they are responsible for the volunteers and making sure we are ok and interacting with the schools and families on our behalf.  The Georgian government may well have a view on how they expect the volunteers to work with teachers to demonstrate new working methods and ways of teaching.  However the schools still work to the old system and usually see volunteers as teaching assistants who should work in the old ways.  All the volunteers are amazed and frustrated at this and don not see what their role should be as they are actively discouraged to really participate in the lesson.  I guess a combination of my experiences of teaching challenging students in the UK and the kind of personality that can sometimes feel like railroading has made it different for me most of the time.  I do a lot of teaching using modern methods and two out of the three co-teachers have taken some of this on board.

"How to make Beans on Toast"  The most important lesson in life!

However, Maka, the most experienced of my co-teachers went from “training” about the MacMillan books (the new text books).  She came back somewhat distressed by this as she has been told that only the first years can continue with the 1^st book (Red Book) next year.  The remaining classes can continue until Christmas if they haven’t finished but must all be moved up to the 2^nd book in January.  This is the complete opposite of what we have been told in meetings where the Minister of Education has been present.  This is a complete disaster.  As I have said before, the culture here is that you have to say what you think is the right response rather than what is the right response.  Students are given marks based on what their position is relative to the other students; no real assessment of ability.  This follows through into University where degrees are handed out effectively based on attendance rather than assessment where students have met previously agreed criteria.  Without this culture of assessment then yes, it is acceptable to move onto the next book even if most of the students have not met the criteria for finishing the previous book.  What a depressing state of affairs!

The educational system cannot be based on a text book that has not been produced specifically for the Georgian Education System.  The lessons in the book are not differentiated – does not allow for different abilities and assumes that lessons are 1 hour.  MacMillan say and indeed common sense has to tell you that the text book is a guide and as a teacher you have to adapt it to your students.  As each book builds on the previous book it is only logical that when you start a particular book you make sure that the students have been taught (not  just gone through in class but actually taught) to make sure they have the prior knowledge to start this level book.  This of course does not happen.  Teachers are in the unenviable position of looking bad if their students are not at the level they are “meant to be at” as based on the number of years they have been studying English.  The teacher doesn’t want to look bad, the School Director doesn’t want to look bad and therefore the boxes are ticked and it “looks” like the students are on the level that they claim to be on other than the “lazy students who don’t want to do anything”.  The further you go up the years the more students are left behind and then they wonder why at Year 12 they cannot pass the exams, even when they have been told the answers.

At some point or the other all the volunteers ask themselves whether they are making a difference here and if so what it is.  The answer that you tell yourself depends on how long you have been here and how many setbacks you have had.  I know the students have made a lot of progress in the time I have been here and I know that the teachers have seen new techniques but my feeling is that they will go back to the old ways when I leave.  I get a standing ovation when I walk into the class, literally.  It isn’t a joke, they are not yanking my chain, they really are thrilled to be having decent lessons delivered in a fun and interesting way.  Poor kids – I hope my replacement volunteer if they get one will be interactive as well.

Bills

Friday 27^th April 2012

Martin was quite justified after all to save all those jam coffee and Branston pickle jars "Just in Case!"

Our electricity was cut off last week.  I came home from school and assumed that there had been a power cut but when it hadn’t come back by 7pm I thought something must be up and knocked next door.  “Shuki? Ara?” (Light? No?) I say to the old boy.  He presses the switch and light shines therefore we are in no doubt we have been cut off.  This is confirmed by his gesture of writing on his hand saying “Puli” (Money).  We had been sent  a bill but ignored it for the first 4 days and then we went on our travels over the Easter break.  This was meant to only be for 5 days but we spontaneously extended it to 10 days and on our return was thinking in terms of paying all the bills together when we got paid this week.

We paid the bill Saturday morning and was told by our co-teacher that we would be connected Monday.  I was horrified and I must confess in quite a panic.  On returning home I gathered clothes together for the weekend “We can get the 8 o’clock train to Tbilisi!”  I call out on the run to pack the bag.  At that point I just thought we had no choice but to get out but only the thought of whether we could afford a hostel for the weekend or should we ponce off a friend and at stay at hers made me reconsider.  We could brave it out that night and go in the morning – maybe we had enough charge on our laptops to survive the night.  In the end we stayed at home.  We DID charge our laptops at another teacher’s house but we were on rations.  We read until the light faded, cooked by candle-light and then watched TV on our laptops until we went to bed by candle-light where we lay talking about this and that.  On the Saturday we went for a long walk around the town and stopped for tea at the teacher’s house.   It was quite nice in the end; but it was clear to me that the computer  “had gotta hold of me”  and this has to stop.  There has to be more to life that sitting at a computer looking for things to do. (Like write this blog lol)

We also knew that we had to eat the meat in the freezer that we had been saving for a rainy day so Martin made a wonderful minced beef casserole to which I added the most fabulous dumplings (See Kim I finally used the suet taken from your store cupboard last Christmas)  We had two good meals out of that and made lots of plans for the rest of the mince and the 2 chicken breasts but unfortunately the electricity did not return until Tuesday night by which time the meat had gone off and bled all over the last of our parmesan cheese to add insult to injury.  Damn and blast! With pay day a week away this meant that we were going on potatoes, pasta and eggs for a week.  Martin switched the mains on and off a few times and it returned so in all likelihood it was back Monday and we just didn’t know.

One of my co-teachers was sympathetic as they assumed it was lack of funds and not mismanagement that resulted in the disconnection.  She said that every month “I am shaking” because she is worried she won’t be able to pay her bills.  Compared with England the Georgian approach to utility payment is pretty draconian.  You receive bills monthly and have 3 weeks to pay it before you are cut off without warning.  This is how it is for everyone.  Although prices are cheap compared to England it is expensive to live here if you live on Georgian money.  Our bill was only 14 lari (£5.30) but there is no concession for the amount that is owed.  Our gas bill this month was 106 lari (£40).  A teacher here earns only 200 lari a month.  No wonder they live on pasta, bread and potatoes and relish the 6 weeks of lent where they follow virtually a vegan diet.

When we at the Botanical gardens a week or so ago we came across this huge modernistic building.  We tried to think what it might be as it had a huge silver sphere in a glass column, a helicopter pad, huge swimming pool and was all in all a most interesting building.  It was in a great position, at the top of the hill looking over the city. Eventually we stopped a couple of people and asked and they told us.  A hotel?, Museum?, Government offices? No, it was the home, yes home, of the leader of the opposition party.  Really?  It seems to me to be in bad taste.  If I were an ordinary Georgian I would look at that and never vote for that party.  Do they under stand what it is like for the common folk?  I don’t think so.

A Carbunkle

View from the Carbunkle of the City and Sameba Cathedral

To end on an amusing note however, I made sure we were not late with all the other bills that were piling up I took them to the bank (with my passport – it is not clear why I need this)  of course I cannot read what the bills are about other than where it says Gazi or Electro at the top of the bill so I asked the cashier what a particular bill was for.  She looked at it for a moment and then said “This is a receipt for some medicines you bought in the pharmacy.”  Oh how we laughed.

Easter with the Beels

Thursday 26^th April 2012

In the top right hand corner the statement "Europe starts here" is an interesting perspective,

It’s quite a difficult thing, writing a blog.  You have to consider what the purpose of the blog is and who the intended audience is and without these two points in mind a blog can become really boring and its focus weakened.  I have read many blogs where this is the case!  I don’t intend it to be a day-by-day record of my life in Georgia (I know many of you will be disappointed! Haha) and I don’t intend it to be a “Travel Blog” containing information about the different places to visit, how much it costs and tips on hotels. There is also a lot to be said about the political system, the rapid changes that are taking place here and who is financing them, the debate about whether Georgia is “European or Asian”, the treatment of women, immigrants or homosexuality; corruption – to what extent it still exists.  There are many laudable topics that deserve to be disseminated and discussed and maybe if this blog were to continue for a long while I would draw your attention to these issues as I understood more about them.   So the difficulty when writing this blog is what to leave out rather than what to include and I revisit this question every now and again to make sure I remember it.

So the purpose of this blog is to share my experience of being a volunteer teacher in Georgia, how I adapt and adjust to the educational system here and the impact life in Georgia has on my life choices.  All about me really!!!  Last year we went to Armenia for a week.  It was great, we saw lovely places and I celebrated my birthday there but I didn’t include this in my blog; I just put my photos up on Facebook.  So I hesitate here to include a “what I did in the school holidays” post.  However, as any teacher knows, the school holidays are eagerly awaited and it is no different in Georgia.  Also, we are coming to the end of our time in this country and as we return to England straight away this is the main opportunity to see places we haven’t yet seen.  The long, cold winter put paid to being a tourist.  So this is a round-up of what we did over the break.

The first event on the Friday after school was to go to the circus.  It had arrived in Kaspi early in the week from Gori and was slowly assembled.  It would have been considered a little tacky and unsophisticated by European standards but like so many things in Georgia, takes me back to my very unsophisticated childhood and a time that we “Didn’t know any different” and therefore was less critical and discerning.  The audience here enjoyed it for what it was. 

The Clown and the Ringmaster - Grandpa and Grandma

There were the usual circus acts, the clowns (or in this case the clown, the grandfather of the family) and the ring master (The gran of the family) who also doubled as the animal trainer) along with uni-cyclists and gymnastic displays (acrobatics on a large ring hanging from the ceiling of the big top) .  The clown got children from the audience to be humiliated for the pleasure of all but it was harmless fun but interestingly one pubescent boy didn’t take it too well.  The game was to get 4 boys of increasing height to bend over in a line in leapfrog fashion with the purpose of each one to jump over the one in front and the next one.  However the “trick” was to get the littlest one to pretend not to make it over the biggest one and instead to cling to him piggy back style.  This little boy is one of my students and is part of the circus family so obviously he played his part well.  But the victim wasn’t happy and really went into a sulk, kicking the wall around the ring and really showing off for quite a while after it was over.  Lots of Georgian male strutting, arm gestures, outraged face, needing to be held back by his mates allegedly for everyone else’s protection.  Someone should have told him not to sit in the front row or to volunteer in the first place.

The Uni-cyclist and the Bear

The Granny ring master / animal trainer watched the other acts like a hawk and she was furious when any of the acts made a mistake which I think made them even more nervous but her animal acts were funny and piteous at the same time.  I have no problem with the little poodles who for some reason are dressed up in silver bikinis and walk on their hind legs while she feeds them “doggy-bitz”.  It did go on for a long while with them parading around in gypsy outfits followed by golden bikinis on their hind legs – the act wore thin.  She tried to vary her acts by changing from the spangles dress and blonde wig of the ring master to the black haired bitch with the slutty bondage look as the snake charmer where she strutted around and did what might be considered inappropriate activities with her mouth and the snake’s head for what was a family audience.  The dogs pooped on the floor during the “Doggie – show-jumping” act which surprising smelt incredibly nasty.  We had the pony act where the pony stamped his hooves to demand “Donkley-bitz” which wasn’t pleasant to watch.  But the worst was yet to come with the young muzzled bear climbing on boxes.  No-one in the audience seemed to think this was amusing at all which is a relief.

We travelled to Tbilisi and the following day wewent to Kaheti region which is known as a wine region and was very serene.  It is surprising how different geographically the different regions are to each other.  Very green.  Naturally we visited many monasteries and churches as Georgia is full of them and they are indeed very beautiful.  As always women have to cover their heads, shoulders, cleavage and any hint of a vagina (for trouser wearers) and luckily they supply the necessary scarves.

In this region we paid a driver to take us to the sights around Telavi on the first day and then to drive us to Signaghi to see the sights on the second day.  We had a lovely Mexican meal (we were very excited about this) and the restaurant had amazing views over the area.

The next day we took the marshutka over to Borjomi which is a spa town famed for its health giving bottled water and was once a popular tourist town with the Russians.  The president has a house here so that he can go skiing at the weekends at Bakuriani.  We had a pleasant walk through nearby forests and rivers which were running fast and furious but ironically the town itself had a water problem and water was only appearing at 2 in the morning.  The recent thawing of the heavy snow meant that the water pipes that were damaged over the winter needed to be repaired.  Rather ironic that in the town famed for its water there was none! 

We spend the next day travelling to and seeing the sights around Vardzia a cave city that was constructed in 1256; but I guess that people lived in the “natural” caves there for many years before that for protection.  This was such a strange and wonderful place – one of my favourites.

We took the 1902 train up to Bakuriani, a ski resort that took 2 ½ hours but was pleasant and stopped at several pretty villages that had a distinctive Swiss Alpine feel so yet another change in the geography with spectacular views of the mountains.

Back in Tbilisi we did a day trip to the old capital Mtskheta which was quiet with a beautiful cathedral (no surprises there of course!). 

Didube bus station was alive with Easter preparations with many stalls selling Easter food and candles.  They take Easter here very seriously and many do actually fast vegan style for the 6 weeks of Lent. Unlike in the UK where Christmas is the religious season of choice, Georgia pays relatively little attention to Christmas and focusses instead on the more significant event in the church calendar. Then back home to dear old Kaspi where we chilled for the weekend before going back to school for the final half term.