Last Day at Maalim Dawud

     At last, my time at Maalim Dawud has come to an end. Initially, my intention was to teach for a month and then move on to another school, however my attachment to the students made that transition very difficult. Two months later and with my time in Hargeisa limited, I've transferred to a local high school in an attempt to experience all facets of the education system in Hargeisa.

    Before leaving, I made sure to say a proper goodbye to the students. After marking their vocabulary quizzes (I asked them to spell words such as relentless and first degree murder), I bought novels for the kids that received a perfect grade. Although they were very expensive, I was determined to purchase these novels as children in Hargeisa don't read books.

     At the risk of going completely off topic, I can't stress this enough. In fact, when the school children used to see me reading novels during recess, they would ask me what it was that I was reading. At first, I misunderstood and told them the name of the book, or the storyline. It was only after the students asked me if I remembered what I remembered the pages I've already read that I realized that the students don't read books, other than their lesson plans.

     In addition to these books, gave out pens, pencils, and pencil sharpeners (the school supplies pictured in an earlier post) to the kids that also received high grades.

The first and only girl in any of my classes to receive a perfect grade! I was so excited I asked her to give me a hug, and because there isn't an exact translation for the word 'hug' in Somali, she just looked at me with a confused face and gave an awkward embrace while the other kids laughed out loud.

 I ordered sambuusas and tea for the teachers to enjoy during our break. Afterwards, apparently thinking have a lot of money, the teachers subsequently made weird requests, including new memory cards and khat. I learned that even when you work for free, nothing is free in Hargeisa.  

 I recruited eight grade students to hand out school supplies to the students that answered questions correctly or won competitions (the videos in the 'Tartan' post).

I also gave the Alifla of the class the stick to maintain order in the classroom. I guess I've made a huge transition, compared to my initial shock and disbelief at this form of discipline.