Ghana Team Journal

After spending a week at the Beatrice Akoto school, yesterday, Monday the 27thof February, I returned to the Nana Amo School, often called the “open school”and where I spent my first week in Senchi Ferry. As I discovered last week, the B. Akoto school was also somewhat “open”. This is not a qualification of the intrinsic quality of the school but the walls between the classes are just about 3 feet high. I have felt that the constant noise coming from the other classrooms is overwhelming and certainly not conducive to serious concentration and learning. Surprisingly, the 18 children of the 3rdgrade at the “Open school” could read just as well and do more advanced mathematics than the 18 children of the same grade, same age at the B. Akoto school. So these children are capable of studying and learning in what seems to be yet a very disruptive environment! So much for our western habits, values and philosophy!

Upon arriving at the “Open school” (Nana Amo school) in the morning, I was greeted by the Master of the school, by Misma, the third grade teacher whom I had met the first week, as well as by the ICT teacher (Information Communication Technology). As soon as I entered the class at the “Open School”, three children rushed to set a desk for me while I greeted the teachers. The children dusted the desk very carefully and they invited me gracefully to sit down in the blue plastic armchair accompanying it. I then discovered that the desk had been spirited away swiftly from the closest child! He too had to work, so as I thanked the children for the desk and chair, I yet asked for the permission from Misma to return the desk to its regular occupier. Agreed!

The ICT teacher then took “the podium” over to give the children an exercise on ICT, exercise related to a presentation made last week by an ICT “visitor”!2 questions:
1) What is a “paint” application?
2) Write down any four features of a paint application.

Evidently, the class had understood little if anything about what was said or demonstrated during the presentation last week. As I walked slowly between the desks, it seemed that the students could not even quite remember what went on during that presentation. The result of the exercise was chaos, sheer chaos! But there is a ray of hope since this morning we shall again visit the computer room!At this stage, Misma simply switched to a mathematics exercise completely ignoring the questions and the eventual answers to the ICT exercise given! As it seems to happen often, pencils are missing and there is no supply available. I, for one, have now exhausted my personal supply. As I insisted for the retrieval of pencils from the children’s bags, a few pieces appeared which were the occasion of yet another session with razor blades. I am getting used to it and somewhat admire the skills of children with this unfriendly tool!
So, on with the “Division of triple numbers by double numbers”:
1) 200:50=4
2) 100:20=5
3) 108:36=3
4) 108:56=
5) 250:10=
3 divisions with answers, 2 divisions to be solved. All the children of the class, except for one boy and one girl seem to have forgotten what they could do 10 days ago. Of course, it is tempting to review the entire process by talking to the class as a whole. But it was not Misma’s idea it seems. So I started a row of explanations, one child at a time, but jumping left and right through the class to make sure that I reached everyone. Slowly, the exercise got done. If I happen to be alone with the class this week, I’ll know for sure what to do. No lack of inspiration there! Time for recess!We now switched to a grammar lesson: prepositions!I recall that the children have studied adverbs two weeks ago.Some examples are offered to show the structure of a sentence with a preposition.Now, prepositions are divided into four groups: place, time and duration, directions, purpose. For today, we study prepositions expressing a place. Two examples each are requested for the use of the following prepositions: above, between, under, in front, outside. The teacher retires to his desk and seems oblivious of how the children do the exercises. Evidently, the next grammar lesson on prepositions should include a clear distinction between an adverb, already studied, and a preposition. But, overall, the answers to the exercise are not too bad. The children even seem to have fun. They ask questions, suggest new examples, some start to correct their friends who may have some difficulty. Examples are given spontaneously, corrections are suggested. There is true friendly interaction and cooperation between them. It all ends on a pleasant note. As I leave the class to go to the Library, the head master accompanies me and we talk. I take this opportunity to mention the pencils situation, which I find too dismal! He listens and tells me that there is a small supply of pencils in the office. He will ask that some be distributed to the class. I shall wait with much anticipation. A pleasant note at the end of the morning!