School

Last week was supposed to be our first week of teaching but it was kind of a flop.  The most noticeable problem is that not even half of the students came to school.  Since it was our first week, we wanted to lay out the classroom rules and explain what they will be graded on, etc.  This is critical to make sure our classes run smoothly.  However, we decided to try to wait until later in the week when other students would start arriving.  Unfortunately, they never arrived.  We did our introductions, but I have a bad feeling that this is going to be a bad experience until the new year starts and I can have control of the class right from the start.  You see, the schools in Tanzania begin in January and end at the end of November.  So, we’re starting at a really weird time of the year.  Hopefully, it all gets better soon.  There are no such things as photocopies or handouts.  The students that missed the material last week are pretty much set up to fail now.  What a mess.