Second Week – More Training

The second week of training was much like the first.  Tagalog lessons in the morning.  Morning snack, or meryenda.  Education lessons.  Lunch.  Education lessons.  Afternoon snack.  Education lessons.  Dinner.  Free time.  We did mix up the sessions a bit though once we learned to which specific level each Education trainee would be assigned: elementary, secondary, and tertiary.  When our cluster sites were announced for Community-Based Training, we were also told with which level we would work.  I was surprised to learn that I would be placed in Tertiary Education teaching at a college or university.  Only five of the 33 Education trainees were placed in the Tertiary group, so I felt honored to chosen and excited at the prospects of what I could teach or do.

On Tuesday, all trainees had a field trip for their respective sector group.  CYF trainees went to visit inner-city youth and organizations assisting them, CRM trainees went to mangrove forests, and Education trainees went to five schools to observe classes.  Our schedule for the school visits was very tight; we had five schools to visit in only a few hours and had to factor in the driving time between each one.  In the morning, we observed classes and interacted with students at two elementary schools and one high school, and in the afternoon, we observed at a science high school and a local college.  The experience was great to get out of the theoretical realm of Philippine education that we had been discussion in sessions and actually see what the schools and classes are like.  I will comment more on this in a later post.

We were lucky to have a special visit from Peace Corps Deputy Director CarrieHessler-Radelet, the second-highest person in the Peace Corps who was nominated by President Barrack Obama and approved by the Senate.  She had been visiting Thailand to celebrate their 50^th anniversary as a Peace Corps country and stopped by to visit the Philippines office and the new trainee batch—us.  The time with Carrie was very rewarding.  She was extremely charismatic and friendly, and she showed a genuine interest in wanting to get to know us.  One of the first things she did was have each trainee state his/her name, place of origin, and one fact that no other trainee knew (yet).  She took time to comment on each person and even refer back to others if someone was from the same city or state.  I unfortunately embarrassed myself by mentioning that my family has the oldest family-owned farm in Michigan where she and our Country Director are from, but I blanked on the city name when she asked.  Here I am in front of a senior government officer and I screw up on a fact that was intended to relate to her.  I remembered the city soon after my turn—Centreville, Michigan near Three Rivers—and I went to tell her and apologize after the session.  She was very understanding and the Country Director reassured me as well that I was ok.  Still, I feel as if I blew a potential opportunity.

The talk that Carrie gave was very inspiring in itself.  She spoke about her own experience in the Peace Corps and how it lead to her career in development, a career similar to what I myself would like to have following my Peace Corps time.  She served as an Education volunteer with her husband in Western Samoa when she was in her mid-twenties.  During her service, she helped a woman with a difficulty pregnancy and realized her desire to work in public health.  The entire story was very revealing to learn about health standards and customs in Samoa at the time and the way in which the Peace Corps experience can shape the course of the rest of someone’s life.  I left the session inspired and energized to get out into the field and really begin my service.

The final activity we did for the Education session was a demo teach.  Using a specific lesson planning schedule provided by the Philippine Department of Education (DepEd), I developed a lesson to teach consonants for an introductory English Linguistics class at the college level.  Each Education trainee developed lessons to suit his/her particular age level; some people taught nouns and adjectives, while others taught advanced note-taking and prepositions.  I felt very confident in my lesson since it is a subject about which I am passionate and know much about.  I was very pleased to receive such positive feedback after my demo and all the trainees said that they learned from my lesson, both in terms of content and in delivery.  Hopefully I can expand the lesson for an actual class at my assigned college.