During the past couple of days, I had the opportunity to visit a high school in Windhoek, where I shadowed teachers, and talked to the students about teen life in Windhoek.The school I visited welcomed 1,200 students ranging in age from 15 to 21 years. All of the students were extremely polite to their teachers. Classes were large at 40 to 45 students. The most noticeable disadvantage was the lack of materials. One teacher explained that he had only 15 books for 93 students. Some students had notebooks, but others had nothing. The students were very curious about life in the US. Here are a few of the questions they asked:
-Miss, how much does it cost to take a taxi where you are from?
-Miss, what famous people do you know?
-Miss, may I fill your water bottle for you? Please, Miss.
-Miss, are you on facebook?
The school day began at 7:30 am. I really liked that the staff started each day together with coffee or tea in the staff lounge. The principal would stop in to discuss the day and to announce any schedule changes. At 11am, students and staff had a 30 minute break. School ended at 1:15 pm. so that children could go home to eat lunch. There were no meals served at school, which meant that some of the children might not eat at all that day.
Overall, I was extremely impressed with the spirit of the teaching staff. The educators were very welcoming and eager to teach me about the education system in Namibia. They were cheerful and patient with students and colleagues, despite the lack of materials, space, and technology. Thanks to these teachers and students, I have new perspective on overcoming the challenges that exist in US schools.
