Meche and Hirma and I have lunch together a few times a
week. A couple days ago at Hirma’s house, she was venting about one of the
other teachers that the two vent about often. I have to admit, I am not a fan
of the teacher they talk about because she is so cut off from her students’
learning. She seems to be the only teacher in the primary school that is distant
from the class as a whole. She is also distant from me, and doesn’t attend any
of my teacher workshops. She considers herself more holy and above everyone in
the community including myself. What she does have is her ways, and no one is
going to change that, and what is more, no one is going to mess with her couple
favorite students.
Dynamics are changing in the classroom. With the VALE
program influence, many of the youth that used to be at the bottom of the rung
are slowly but surely, and surprisingly rising in stature in their classes.
Becoming more responsible and creative, they are getting better test scores.
When one of the VALE youth beat out one of this teacher’s favorites in a math
competition, she said it was a fluke and insisted to Hirma (The principal of
the primary school) that her favorite continue in the competition, to which
Hirma said, “no”.
I was kind of giggling about it until Meche said, “You know,
the reason she doesn’t like your student, Luz, is because he has a single mom.”
She explains that Teacher X is a Jehova’s Wittness. She thinks that single mom
families are sinners, “She will do anything she can to make sure the sinner’s
kid doesn’t get any attention.” Ok, now my friends complaints aren’t quite so
funny, and Teacher X is now on my ‘watch your back’ list.
Elvis cam into my room the other night.
“Will there be VALE today?”
“Yes, sir. But it isn’t your day, you should have come
yesterday. But if you want to you can come and play quietly.”
“Dani said that all you do in VALE is draw.”
I am a little confused. Elvis comes to VALE, he has seen
with his own eyes that that isn’t all we do. But, awareness of his own low self
esteem makes him trust some classmate over his own observation.
“Who is Dani? I don’t know who she is, so that means she
never comes to the program. We do a lot more than drawing, you have seen, games
and contests and masks and reading. And what is wrong with drawing?”
Then it clicks. Dani is Teacher X’s daughter. Out of no
where, fumes burst out my ears.
It is hard enough to keep this program running and fighting
the generational habits that contradict educational advancement. We don’t need
TEACHERS making up lies and talking poorly of the program. Especially to their
children and students.
Why would she be against me?
Is it because I said no when she asked me to buy her a
computer last year?
Is it because she doesn’t want the poorest youth to learn
and improve?
There are two windows to the library that overlook the
street. Regularly there are faces peering in, but usually young ones or
mothers. There was an ancient male face looking in last night. Then a few
minutes later an equally ancient female face next to him. I waved for them to
come in. He came around,
“What is this place called? I want to make sure my grand
kids come here.”
The man I would excuse for not understanding the program
values it, and the teacher who’s students the program is helping improve is
fighting against it.
This world never ceases to amaze me.
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