Substitutes and Camel Crossings

In an earlier post I mentioned that the concept of substitute teachers is a foreign one here.  When a teacher is absent, you scrounge around hoping to find someone who is willing to take the class. Today there were two teachers absent on the girls' side - my side - and I was responsible for finding coverage.  In both cases, I just happened to notice the classes were without teachers.  The kids are used to this and quite frankly, handle it well.  There hasn't been any outlandish behaviors, but its a huge safety issue, or it would be if we were in the US.  For whatever reason, students unattended is not a big deal.

This house is right outside our parking structure.

In between covering classes and taking them over periodically myself, I was able to visit all of the Western teachers, leaving notes for them all.  There are a hard working group.

Side note - Western teachers have six periods a day, the Arab teachers have four. That's why the Arab teachers are available to substitute throughout the day, if they chose to.

Another neighborhood home

Right now the Western teachers get a prep period every day, which is nice, but otherwise they have to be with their classes at all times, including lunch time - it seems like they don't have a break at all.  I get it.  I hope to have a schedule by the end of the week that will divide all teachers in half, so one group will work one week, the other group the next.

There are at least eight different teacher rooms for teachers to relax and make copies.  I have yet to see a Western teacher in any of these areas.  Another area was located that can be used for all teachers, but I'm hoping it will be a refuge for the Western ladies.  I've also made my office - with refrigerator, microwave and goodies to eat - a place for them to go.  I'm happy that they're taking advantage of it. This I know - a happy teacher is a more productive teacher.  Sometimes all they need is a piece of chocolate to get them through the day.

No joke.  The boys' behavior is as bad as advertised.  For the most part, they haven't grasped what is expected of them  in school.  When they went out to recess in the past, it took the teachers hours - literally - to round them all up again to go inside.  As a result, the boys do not have outside recess, and of course, no outlet to let out some of their energy.  It's a Catch-22 situation.  The boys need to play outside, but won't get the opportunity until their behavior improves.  The behavior is crazy because they need to burn off energy.  It's a vicious cycle.

I have another off campus training tomorrow, and you guessed it, I don't know where it is and will be relying on Peter (my GPS).  He doesn't like coordinates, so I hope to get a landmark that's nearby as a reference point.

Camels grazing in a pasture

I stopped on the side of the road to take pictures of the camels I see regularly.  I couldn't zoom anymore than I did, so you'll need to strain a bit to see them, but they are so cool to see.

The other pictures are of homes that are neighbors to my school.

Traveling camels

Traveling camels 2