More Pictures from Kidetok and Soroti

Tony, Ted, and I in Kidetok. There were some very cool clouds that day. Very opening credits of the Simpsons-ish, if you get my drift.

On top of the rock with Soroti Town in the background

Another shot from on top of the rock

Education in Uganda

March 26 marks the completion of our sixth full week in Uganda and our second week of immersion training. This past week I was given the opportunity to teach in a Ugandan classroom. It was a phenomenal experience and I walked away with a great sense of reward and accomplishment.

Teaching in Uganda differs in many ways from America. First, there is the size of each class. At this particular school, each grade level contains roughly 170 students. The grades are broken down into two streams each. So each stream, or class, consists of 80-90 students. Class sizes can range from 60-150 students, all with just one teacher in the room.

The students sit in groups of three to four on long benches in front of another higher long bench that serves as their desk. They have very little room to write or do anything else.

The students do not have textbooks. Most of them do not have calculators. Some of them have protractors, rulers, compasses, etc., but not all. There are textbooks available at the library, but I’m told this specific library has many more resources than the typical Ugandan secondary school library.

Basically, the students have writing utensils and small notebooks to record notes in. That is all. This is how they are expected to learn. This is how they are expected to study for exams. Whatever I write down on the board, the students copy down in their notes. This notebook is their only resource for learning outside the classroom. They can go to the library and use textbooks there, but they cannot check them out.

The Ugandan curriculum and text structure differs significantly from that of what I’m used to. Children attend school for seven years at the primary level, P1-P7. They have a state exam at the completion of P7. This exam determines whether or not they are competent enough to move on to secondary school.

Students attend secondary school, the equivalent of our high school, for a period of four years, S1-S4. I will be teaching math and physics at the S1 and S2 levels. I will also be trying to teach some of the higher-level math and physics courses once I get to my site.

You might be asking, “How does a high school freshman learn physics?” This marks another huge distinction of the Ugandan school system. A typical secondary student takes 8-15 subjects concurrently! So, at any given time, the students are responsible for learning at least eight different subjects at a time.

Of these 8-15 subjects, physics, math, biology, and chemistry are mandatory. English is mandatory. Social sciences (history, civics, religious studies, etc.) are mandatory. The students get to choose maybe 3-4 different subjects to take each term. Ah, another distinction, they teach religion in school here.

There is CRE, Christian Religious Education, and IRE, Islamic Religious Education. I’m told the classes do not advocate for a specific religion. They serve more to educate the youth on the history and principles of the religions themselves. Uganda is mostly a Christian nation. They do have a large population of Muslims. I think the breakdown is somewhere around 85% Christian, 15% Muslim.

So…back to teaching. At the end of the day, the only resources a student has to study are their notes and maybe a textbook at the library. So what I teach and the notes I put on the board, are extremely important!

A term is 13 weeks. There are three terms each year. The first term begins in February. The last term concludes in early December.

Quizzes and homework are scarce in Uganda. When a term begins, the only structured form of assessment is the end of term exam! This means, in theory, the students’ entire term grade could come down to one exam! Peace Corps Volunteers have begun implementing quizzes, homework, and in class exercises to help relieve some of the emphasis on one test.

The end of term exam has two purposes: to assess what the student has learned during that term and to give the students a feel for the test format of the end of S4 state UNEB exam. UNEB is Uganda National Examinations Board. They control the content and structure of all major examinations in the country.

If a student does well on the S4 UNEB exam, they can move on to “A” level, Advanced Level Education. These are called S5s and S6s. This would be the equivalent of our high school senior and college freshman. During these two years, students still attend secondary school, but concentrate on far fewer subjects, typically 3-4. Students can choose what emphasis they want to place on what subjects before going on to university.

Despite all the challenges mentioned above, teaching has been an amazing experience. The Ugandans are incredibly enthusiastic and eager to learn. They are quiet, disciplined, respectful, and motivated. They know that education is one of the key factors to success and giving themselves the opportunity to bring them out of poverty. Poverty - a common affliction in Uganda.

There are problems. They have great strides to make in the areas of critical thinking and applying learned knowledge to different concepts. But I see great hope and promise of progress in the future.

I somehow managed to upload two pictures in this internet cafe before the connection got terribly slow. Here they are:

Here is me in the school library. Decked out in "smart" dress.

Here I am in front of a huge boulder/rock structure in Soroti Town. We climbed it shortly after.

Why I'm Here + Kidetok Arrival

Before I left the states, many people asked me why I decided to join Peace Corps. Throughout the PC experience, it is important for every volunteer to remember the reasons why they joined. The reasons can be easy to forget when you get caught up in the day-to-day activities and frustrations.

For me the reasons seem both selfless and selfish. I’m supposed to be here to help others that are in the deepest need. However, I know I have already personally benefited from being here for just a month. The intangible benefit for me is hard to put into words, so I won’t try.

Nevertheless, I can describe the more concrete reasons for joining.

My main motivation to join came from both my background and personal belief system. I grew up in a white, middle class family in the most affluent country in the world. I was privileged enough to get a good education and challenging career. Many, many people invested in me to ensure I was successful and happy.

I joined the Peace Corps because I wanted to channel some of that energy invested in me into helping and improving the lives of those most desperately in need. My focus was on Africa. I would go anywhere the Peace Corps deemed me qualified for, as long as I could make an impact.

Other reasons for joining vary greatly and sound cliché sometimes. They are, however, true.

I wanted…

• to live and work abroad for an extended period of time
• to directly impact the lives of others
• to serve
• a challenge
• an experience

Surprise, surprise! Joining the Peace Corps seemed to be my next best move in life. I remember back in 2006 when my initial interest was sparked along with a few of my good friends’, and the feeling has never died. That must mean something.

I feel blessed. I believe that anyone with a similar foundation should seek to enact positive change, no matter what his or her career interests or fields of study are. Positive change can be as simple as altering your attitude towards a particular situation. Or it can be more involved, such as donating your time, money, or energy to a higher cause.

A wise man once told me, “Patience is the key to realizing any progress in the developing world”. I really appreciate these words because of the truth and reality behind them. Granted, I have only been here a little over a month, but I can already witness the legitimacy of this statement.

My patience will definitely be challenged. Whether or not I am able to adapt my mindset to these challenges will determine to a large extent how successful I am at implementing some positive change in this country. The successful volunteers I have talked to were those that were able to adapt and embrace different cultural paradigms.

The word embrace takes on a new meaning here. It’s really about altering your attitude to see the best in each situation that presents itself. To expect nothing, hope for the best, and prepare for the worst.

I’m in Kidetok this week for cultural, technical, and language immersion training. From Wakiso, it Is a one-hour taxi ride to Kampala, six-hour bus ride from Kampala to Soroti, and then another 1½-hour taxi ride from Soroti to Kidetok, pretty remote. Time to practice Ateso!

Kidetok consists of a single band of dirt road plowing past two schools, half a dozen shops, and a church. Surprisingly, the roads (I should say road) here in this region are in incredibly better condition than those in Wakiso. This had made my morning runs and travelling by matatu (taxi) much more comfortable.

The weather has been dry and fairly hot with very minimal rain. The town has two boreholes where the locals can access clean water. The home we are staying in has an ample supply of collected rainwater. This saves us from having to trek 2-3k back and forth to collect water for bathing/cooking/cleaning/drinking.

We are getting some great exposure and experience working in the Universal Secondary Education system. We will begin teaching next week.

That is all for now! Unfortunately the internet cafe I'm at is far too slow to attach any pictures at this time, but I will try in Kampala the next time I'm there. I've got lots to show. Until next time...

Room Pictures

My drying system

Desk and wonderful map of Uganda

Bed with mosquito net

My table/closet/dresser/whatever

More of my closet/drying system/showering system/toilet system

One Month In

I’ve been in Uganda for almost a month now and already there is so much to report. I have learned so much and yet I still experience both excitement and frustration. I’m anxious to begin my assignment as a secondary education math and science teacher.

Picture of the airplane the day we left JFK

Exciting news this past week! I have learned that I will be assigned to the Teso Region of

Uganda. The Teso Region includes the districts of Soroti, Katakwi, Kumi, Pallisa, Amuria, Bukedea, Tororo, and parts of Kaberamaido. A few of the cities are Soroti, Kumi, and Katakwi.

So…come April 21^st, I could end up in any one of these districts/cities. I likely won’t know any more information about my assignment location until mid-April.

This picture to the left is of John and I after we just got done riding to the training center at Wakiso.

I have also found out that I will be teaching specifically. I have been selected for mathematics and biology. I will be teaching to S1 and S2 (secondary one and secondary two students). Ideally the students should be between the ages of 14-16. However, the age range in reality will likely vary more between 13 and 18. I’ve been thinking lately that it might make more sense for me to teach physics instead of biology, since I have at least had some college level physics. The last time I took a biology class was in high school. I guess in the end it is all about the prep work anyways. I will probably talk to our secondary education coordinator this week about it.

But back to my experience in Uganda so far, it has certainl

y been an unpredictable and revealing month. To go into this experience with an open mind is certainly one of the wisest approaches to take. I really had no idea what to expect and it has been very entertaining.

I took this next picture on my walk to the training center last week. There was a great layer of fog settling in on the field.

I am currently living with a home stay family in the Kisimbiri neighborhood of the greater town of Wakiso, which is located just northwest of Kampala, t

he capital city of Uganda. I have a home stay mother, Dorothy, and am surrounded by her MANY children and nieces/nephews/extended neighborhood kids who float in and out of the house throughout the entirety of the day and evening. I am still trying to keep all of their names straight.

There is Justine, Fina, Sala, Godfrey, Maricho, Winnie, and many others. Joseph, Dorothy’s 28-year-old son, lives with the family still and takes care of the animals and crops. He is a good man and fun to talk to.

The food has been quite good. I especially enjoy the fruits and vegetables the most. The pineapple here is absolutely amazing, same with the avocados, sweet bananas, regular bananas, and watermelon. There is also a local food they call Jack Fruit that is very good. Everything I eat is grown literally a few feet away, so fresh and natural. I think my body enjoys the change, however I do crave a juicy cheeseburger or some Chick-Fil-A just about every day. The good news is I’m starting to forget about those things now.

Picture on left: Eating Uganda style pizza! Chipatti with tomato paste, mozz. cheese, and veggies.

Living conditions…the electricity is off during the day and sometimes the night too. Most nights we do have power and I’m able to charge any electronics I need. No running water or indoor plumbing. I take my bath each morning out of a bucket of boiling water mixed with cold water; both come from two huge tanks of collected rainwater from the roof and other surfaces.

Short call and long call (#1 and #2) are done via a shoebox-sized hole in a concrete slab, pit latrine. This has been an interesting feat to master. There are all kinds of bugs and other small creatures that crawl around the latrine at night so I avoid using it and use other “holding devices” for my nighttime activity. I avoid the long calls at night. No emergencies bowel issues yet. I’m happy I made it this far. I’m told it is only a matter of time.

I feel like this next picture pretty much paints an awesome picture of a typical road in Uganda. Congested, cattle, and crazy skater kids using trucks to pull them at 30+ MPH.

Typical day…I wake up around 6-6:30 in the morning. I usually get up, do some morning exercises or hit the batheing area right away. Take my bucket bath, get dressed, pack my bag for the day, and eat breakfast. I jump on my back around 7:10 and bike the 4-5K to our training center. I usually get there around 7:30. I spend about 30 minutes changing out of my riding clothes and into our “smart” dress as well as reviewing any material from the previous or current day. I’m in training from 8-5. Between 5-7:30 I’m either in town taking care of errands, playing volleyball or jogging or some other activity, or just chilling with some other PCTs having a beer.

All of us must be home before sunset, around 7:30-8. After that we are told it is too dangerous to go outside, especially for white people. I wonder all the time just how dangerous it is, but best to be cautious I guess. Dinner is at 8-8:30, then down time to read, write email, study language, journal, etc. Bed around 10 or 11. Rinse and repeat.

Initial capstone thoughts…Uganda is crazy! I had no idea what to expect! And I still don’t even really know what I’m seeing. I never imagined the level of poverty that most people here endure. They are truly magnificent at making the best out of what they have. It is pretty undescribable for the most part.

The muddy dirt roads are checkered with potholes and rolling trenches. The streets are lined with piles of garbage and substances I can’t even identify. And the smells are truly unique. But the people are friendly and manage to get by. Though I can’t help but feel like an alien sometimes.

I’m anxious to see what the next month brings. If any of you would like to mail anything, please send it to the following address:

Joe Mathias

Peace Corps

PO Box 29348

Kampala, Uganda

P.S. – Don’t send anything valuable or perishable, I have no idea how long it will take to get here but it will likely be weeks if not months.

Thanks everyone for your emails and support! I will write again soon!