er and arrived to an ‘Indian winter’, at the start of January, with temperatures in the high twenties. Arriving in India is always a bit of a shock as the air is heavy with heat and the country operates in a type of organised chaos. When I first thought about taking on this role I imagined teaching to large classes outside under the shade of a tree with anything up to 100 children, but in fact after talking with Peter from the Annalivia School he informed me that there would be a total of 24 children divided in to 3 separate classes. Locally teachers here can have classes up to 75 students at a time.
After arriving and settling in at the SPPD center, the facilities and location were noticeable different then what I had imagined. The center received large sponsorship aid from the Irish government when built so facilities are really quite impressive when compared to other Indian standards.
The childrens classes I taught were always appreciated by the children and in India they tend to want to grab your attention and always
try and tell and explain things which really shows that they are confident in making the effort to communicate. The children are all at varying levels and ages which keeps things interesting and of course a little frustrating at times.
The children have a busy routine here as they go to school outside the center for the main part of the day and then in the evening between some study time, eating and 30 minutes free time, there day is coming to an end.
During my volunteer programme, there was also adult classes run on a routine basis which was a great way to meet some of the staff here at SPPD, who are all really easy going and good company to be with. Indian people are always friendly and trying to help you. Generally between staff and local people there is always a keen interest in your day to day happenings and some amazement with seeing a person of a different nationality.
One thing that I found a little easier about coming to India initially is that English is a ‘second language’ here so it is possible to communicate with people in many circumstances.
Although be aware just because an Indian can ask you your name and where is your native place i.e. Where are you from? It does not mean they can ask you anything else, the equivalent of many Irish people been able to say a few native words in their mother tongue ( e.g. Dia Dhuit, Conas a ta tu? ) And then getting stuck to say anything else.
There is a huge importance for the children to learn English as it can mean the difference between succeeding in jobs at varying levels here in India, as all official
and corporate work is conducted through English.
A big difference in life I find here is that the time between work, social and recreation becomes a bit of a blur and may in fact be mixed in to there day at work, do not tell any Indian that. Indians having an average working week of six days, this gives them one day off to relax.
My teaching experience has been greatly helped here with the constant guidance from the Annalivia School, with help on ideas and steps in making my lesson plans more simple and easy to go though. Also some of the staff from the Annalivia School have experience of been here so it has really helped make me feel more comfortable starting this project in the outset.
I would recommend this to any new or practising teachers. It was also a great help to talk with and ask questions to the previous volunteer that was here. I would be happy to help answer any queries people may have. Contact me at derekb70@hotmail.com
For information on applying for the scholarship, please click here
Posts
