Professionalism and Ethics: Who are YOU?

Here we go! It is the first day of the Conference: At 630am, I was downstairs and ready to roll. Breakfast is included in our stay so I ate up. Being I am a silent, not good morning person, explanations had to be made to the group, but all was well as our drivers showed up on time and we headed to VICA, the school we will be at for two weeks training the teachers (Joo, Kristy and I), administrators (Martha) and librarians (Kathy). The first day's topic was ethics and professionalism (for everyone) which they desperately needed. There is little accountability or self regulation at schools for anyone, teachers, students, principals, directors. Most use punishment of students (expulsion, caning, yelling) as ways to manage the classroom and often it is not student-centered. We kept reminding them all that we are there "for the students," that, "without students we would have no job," and that, "God gave us dominion over creatures so we could glorify him and be stweards of those in our care." In Liberia, some teachers accept bribes for grades and others don't even come to class, and that is just the start. For us, we focused on honesty, both within their professional life and within themselves and other characteristics of professional and ethical judgement. The team (Kathy, myself, Kristy, Martha and Joo) worked with them as they looked at themselves as educators, then their role in the school (sharing out with each other when they felt okay to), and then their role within the community. The big question was, "Who are you in the world and who do you want to be?" Everyone was hungry for thinking and talking and shared with each other and with the group. We ran a powerpoint through a generator and they all watched careful and attempted everything we asked them, regardless of their trouble understandings us (which would get better as they got more used to the accents etc) and their limited literacy skills. Most have writing that looks like a 3rd grader, arduous, slow, and with weird formations in their letters. It could easily be misrepresented as a child's penmanship. The heart is so there though and they try so hard to get it all, to soak it in. I loved watching their hard work and delighted to think about the shifting cultural expectations that were being spoken of. These educators wouldnt be the same at the end of the conference. It seemed clear.

Books and Libraries...

Because there are so few books, Kathy and Anne have been creating libraries in the schools. These libraries are basically classrooms (although one library is housed in one of the teacher's homes, with cinder blocks and about 400 books on wooden planks. The planks bow low because the weather is so humid. as a generalized notion, these libraries are dark, sticky and the books are dusty as most dont get checked out because of the fear of losing them and mostly due to the fact that everyone in the whole school/ area are a bit unsure how to utilize the texts for instruction and learning. Books are such a commodity that everyone is scared to let them go. We saw libraries with padlocks, shelves at the ceiling and screened window holes (there are NO glass windows, of course). It was an interesting juxtaposition, all the light that can be found in the books, the far away places and thoughts that are bigger than ourselves, and yet the dankness and fear of losing the possibilities contained inside. Kathy did an amazing job of reinforcing the importance of using books, repeating I'm sure for the 100th time that books wither and die without use. My favorite Kathy quote of the day was, "What are you proteting the book from... readers?" Her tenacity with this challenge is admirable. We all need to remember that change is hard, learning is hard. The impressive part is the ability to keep going and to create something where nothing was before. These libraries are rife with possibilities and sheer determination from the education founders of Liberia Now.

The librarian is often herself a struggling reader and while she has been trained on how to catalogue books, keep the books safe but let them venture out and about, for most the "safekeeping" falls on the shoulders of a principal who insists on padlocks and allows little use,  taken out by a student for an hour or 2 and a teacher the same, if they are used at all. There is much work to be done to train these teachers, librarians and administrator, not to mention the students and parents.

The teachers have very limited access and in some cases, no books to use if not for the libraries, funded and established by Kathy, Anne and others. But, they have not been used well in most cases. It will be a constant mission for this team, I think! Glorious, the education point person in Liberia, is in charge of making sure the libraries get utilized. She is in a state of literacy growth herself and, I believe, struggles to understand her roles and responsibilities, but has passion and will learn over time, like all of us. Our connection to these books and the education they mirror is already inside our hearts. Im not sure if that comes from our love of books here in the States, or the amazing libraries in these text-poor schools.

There are shifts happening everywhere in Liberia! Kathy and Anne have done amazing things getting these libraries here, amazing. Now, the hard work of training teachers and holding them accountable for using the books, of not being scared to lose them, of recognizing the importance of text, while living half a world away begins. I'm glad I get to be a part of that! It will be a profound psychological and social shift! Kathy was on it like white on rice as we toured. In time, like the ladies before me, I know it WILL happen. Faith is something I can already tell is important when working here.  This whole task seems insurmountable without it.

After we returned from our tour, walking in mud and grime, we met for dinner, and regrouped to begin tomorrow with the conference. These ladies are hilarious! We laughed and planned for tomorrow some more, and I decided I adore everyone one of them. Boy, this is going to be hard work, fun, but hard work! I'm already glad to know these women who are standing for literacy in ways I have always tried to myself. Their intense passion for this work shines under every dusty book and through every packed box of books. Here we go!

Feeding the attendees

Their was much talk about not feeding them during the lunch hour. Many come from a long way (some were traveling as much as 9 miles without a car) and have no time nor possibility to return home for lunch. As such, the soda and water we provided was all most had the whole day. Im not sure what the answer is, other than finding support, but it is something we will work on for our next trip. It was hard to know that the teachers and administrators wanted lunch (and needed lunch), and that we couldn't provide it as the price we were quoted was just too much per day. With 70 participants, the cost was nuts for everyday for 2 weeks. This was one time I could clearly see that having support for education from those in the US could change the learning experience. As students, we need food to learn and to think. For a hundred dollars or so each day, we could have fed them. But, most people donate to the areas that see quick, change: water wells and supplies for a clinic. Education takes time to infiltrate, time to percolate in order to see direct, tangible change and many don't understand how literacy is paramount to the success of a nation rebuilding. When those wells break or the clinic gets the medicine and no one can read for understanding, it all breaks down. Education must come first and all must work together to insure that it is seen as an integral part. No one denies its importance, surely, but funding is lacking in the area of education for Liberia Now!