Super, Clare, Super!

Hello from India!
A bit about the project and how it started
Well many of you may already have heard of our project with SPPD but just in case I’ll give a quick sum up. Just over a year ago two of the esteemed teachers/ managers from Annalivia School made the trip of a life time to Incredible India and while they were there they met up with some people who had started a really worthwhile project here. The project was SPPD, which stands for the society for poor people’s development. They really do a lot of good work looking after very poor kids in their children’s home and in the community. You can check out more information on their webpage,(www.sppd.org). When the boys from Annalivia visited their main area of interest was how could we help? Being an English language school the best we could to do was to help out with the educational work they do, specifically their English classes and that was how it started.
Kevin and Peter taught for two weeks and wrote up a report and decided that continued English classes would be of great benefit to both the staff and the kids so they set up the scholarship programme with our TEFL course. This meant trainee teachers starting out could have a opportunity to do some very rewarding teaching with the support of experience EFL people behind them and the kids and staff could have regular English classes! English is the international language of business and although many Indians speak English very well, many only know the very basics, ‘’hello, how are you?’’ ‘’I’m fine.’’ The children being able to communicate effectively in English would really give them the edge when they want to go to university or need to look for a job.
Our teachers
I was a little jealous of the guys and their exciting new project. Soon we sent our first teacher David. (check out his blog, he was a big fan of the food here!) He worked really hard to give the kids a good base in understanding and using simple English with lots of ‘Simple Simon says’ and ‘Heads, shoulders, knees and toes,’ and he got stuck into the grammar with the staff. Proper order!
The second teacher to take up the challenge was Derek. He kept up the momentum with lots of games and competitions for the kids and giving his social nature lots of fluency practice for everyone! (for more see his blog entry!)
I couldn’t wait. I volunteered to come and see the project for myself but I couldn’t spare 3 months! The guys were keen to have someone on the ground do a needs anaylsis on what our next steps should be. I could come for two weeks and do some work on the programme and materials to help our teachers out over here. Perfect!
So here I am. It’s my first time to India so lots of things to get used to and I was quite nervous setting out but what an experience! The food is great, especially for me because as a vegetarian I fit right in. I’m also delighted to eat with my hand! The people are so warm and friendly. My only regret is that I don’t speak more Tamil. It is a very difficult language and I am a very slow student but every day the kitchen staff and the kids try to teach me!
The kids are the real reward for the long journey and hard work. It may sound like a cliché but they really have a lot to teach us. Many of them have lost a parent or two and really have very little but they are so generous and grateful for every little thing. They close their eyes and bow their heads to pray before their dinner and the one word I understand is, ‘nan ree’, thank you. It’s a humbling experience being here, even if everything I teach is, ‘’super Clara, super, thank you.’’
Is the program working?
Some visitors to SPPD were delighted with the kids’ ability to quiz them as was I when I arrived. Thanks to the boys they have the confidence and the English to ask lots of questions, ‘’what’s your mother’s name?’’ ‘’do you like cricket? ‘’ ‘’ where are you coming from? ‘’
That last question I haven’t bothered to correct it since everyone here says it and we have lots of other work to do! But yes, it is working, they can ask and answer and for the most part communicate better than the average Indian I met at the train station.
How can I help?
This is the bit where I ain’t too proud to beg!
If you wish to learn more or donate please see www.sppd.org or if are interested in our scholarship program please contact peter@annaliviaschool.com , if you wish to learn more about the programme we are teaching here contact me on clare@annaliviaschool.com