School; the classes and the students!

Wooohooo time table! I like time tables, it reminds me of school, which reminds me of Hafstad, which reminds me of my friends and how much I miss them. Sigh.

So, I’ve got 18 hours of lessons a week and am in charge of the full English education until Christmas of students ranging from 8-12 years old. Which is pretty scary. The awesome Britt, who I’ve taught together with until now, is leaving on Wednesday, which means that I have to try and be the disciplinarian that she is. I just want the kids to like me, which means I’m probably too nice to be a good teacher. Ah, well, I’m going to do my best to be all mean and stuff.

The classes:

Class 3: An unruly classroom full of 23 energetic 8-year olds. They don’t listen, half of them don’t do their work and they keep breaking their pens. There’s a lot of yelling and sometimes a desperate; ‘’I’m gonna get the cane, I’M GONNA GET THE FRIGGIN CANE!’’ before snatching it from one of the other teacher and smacking whatever with it. I would never hit the kids, but their tables, chairs and the blackboard have already taken several beatings.

Class 4: There are about 30 9-year olds in this class. These don’t listen either, but they want to learn and are quicker to write down their notes. There are a couple of funny figures in this class, like Lewis, the class-snitch who writes down lists of the kids that misbehave and then gets a teacher to cane them. He’s actually adorable and means to help, but it’s still diabolically smart, because he is best mates with all the teachers. His popularity doesn’t seem to suffer though. I can easily see him become president one day – he’s already got the political games down. Or the twins Doris and Dorcas, who are equally sleepy and who keep running off to do whatever wherever. I cannot keep them apart. There is also a little boy called Michael, who is so happy and content all the time, but who we believe is dyslectic. The poor boy gets no extra help at the school and can barely read.

Class 5: The ‘’nice’’ class. About 14 kids, I think. They are clever in this class and pay attention. My favourite is in this class. A teacher isn’t supposed to have favourites, but all teachers have and mine is 10-year old Chris. I think he is adorable and smart, just like his twin sister Cristobel. But Chris remains my favourite. Today he got caned, for no apparent reason other than cruelty, and it broke my heart to see him cry. I just wanted to comfort and hug him and Sophia (A girl who got the worst of the beating and was also crying) but the kids here are used to some more beating if they are caught crying, so they just kind of hide their faces on their tables. It’s horrible.

Class 6: These are the ones ‘’in charge.’’ 11-year olds, about 12 of them. There are a couple of ‘’good ones’’ in this class and a couple ‘’naughty ones.’’ They are good kids though and are mature and responsible enough to ask help from, which is nice, as the teachers aren’t especially helpful. The students of class 6 are the ones that get us our lunches, the ones who check the time table for what’s lesson is next and the ones that like to carry bags. Big and dopey Clement, always-eager Portia, quietly brilliant Beatrice and Pearl who has, according to Britt, ‘’the biggest African lips I’ve ever seen!’’ She likes to pout and go ‘’Oy! Madame!’’ and be annoying.

Class 7: A tiny class of only four students and the only ones who have a proper classroom, instead of a ‘’class-stable’’, without a fan of course, which mean that it is their classroom is the HOTTEST room out of them all. They’re a silent bunch, with only one boy. Normally students of class 7 are supposed to go to a different school, so called Junior High, but this year they’ve decided that class 7 just stays at Promiseland Int. School, but some of the students did transfer. That’s why there are so few of them. Don’t ask me why.