aripeskoe: October 2006

aripeskoe

(living in ghana)

23 October 2006

Two Things That May Not Change for a While Are

The teacher's strike and the lack of electricity every 2 days.

Last year doctors and nurses went on strike The government thinks that if it caves to the teacher's union it will lose its power with every government union. So far it has failed to recognize the existence of the striking union and is instead just now beginning discussions with the other teacher's union (the bigger one that is not officially striking).

I think everyone involved recognizes that at some point shutting down a significant part of the nation's education system becomes a bad thing for the country. I don't think they agree on whose responsibility that is. Through all of this, the teachers still get paid. The union president said they're prepared to strike all year. Teachers do get low salaries. With more than 50% of the country's workforce in agriculture, any job with a salary is atypical, especially outside of the major cities. Two years ago, the striking union had made an agreement with the government which the government ignored, for reasons that I don't know.

Of course, Peace Corps (and therefore me) are neutral. Government? Union? All I can is shrug and occasionally ask questions around school like, "Is this ever going to end? Seriously, because it's going to be weird once there's normal school going on."

As for the electricity, it's usually on for 48 hours and then off for 12. I don't really mind it that much. If it's off during the day, it means I don't have to open the lab for the students (which right now is a chore I took on that maybe has some potential). And at night my town is so peaceful without electricity. When there are no clouds and the stars are out it reminds me of New York (a New York in which I shut off all of the electricity, remove the people, flatten all of the buildings and surround it with green jungle).

All of this because some body of water in the eastern part of the country is too low. And the dry season has not even started yet. I think they said the problem can be traced back to some other body of water to the north of Ghana, but I guess it really doesn't matter. It's probably not raining there either.

But the price of gasoline came down! Woo! I think the only way this directly effects me is that cab drivers no longer tell me that the price of gas is forcing them to rip me off. (they just don't provide an explanation any more).

Addendum #1: Someone from my group decided to go back to home to Alabama. He's not dead, so I won't eulogize him. He just decided he had seen enough of Ghana .

Addendum #2: Every computer at the Internet café has some Internet café software installed that keeps track of how long each user has been on, etc. Each customer has a "username" that the cashier (because that's what she is – a cashier. If she thinks she's managing this place, she's doing a horrible job) puts into the system. My name, always and every time, is "white." This makes perfect sense, unless she doesn't realize both that this username is easily accessible to me on my computer and that it's absurd to call me "white" in front of my face. Or she may just not care. I'm usually not upset by the whole obruni thing anymore. It's now kind of hilarious when someone comes up to me and just says, "Hey white." But I still hate this Internet café.

Addendum #3: National holiday today, so no school. It's the last day of Ramadan, a great way for everyone in Ghana to lose all the weight they gained during the yam festival (that line really kills over here). About twenty percent of the country is Muslim. My house is right on the border of my town's Muslim district (called Zonga District).

¶ 12:01 PM 1 comments

17 October 2006

I am Kwabana

Every Ghanaian has a name based on the day of the week they were born. There is one male name for each day and one female name for each day. I think this is done all over Ghana, although the names may vary in the north. In my part of Ghana, names like Kofi, Kwesi, Kwame, and Yaw are all male names. So men generally have one of these and a Christian name and they can go by either one (sometimes they use both). Kofi Annan (the UN Secretary General is Ghanaian) means that he was born on a Friday and he is the fourth born in his family (Annan means four).

I was born on a Tuesday (or at least I was for the purpose of my Ghanaian name). I never used a Ghanaian name when I lived with my homestay family, but I quickly got tired of being called obruni or one of its many derivatives. And when I introduced myself as 'Ari,' I was usually either called Harry (little do they know that no American baby has been named Harry since 1953) or Eric (not terrible, but it's not me). I needed to give people a name they understood and could easily remember.

So, shorly after I moved into my town, I only told people in my town my Ghanaian name, Kwabana. The only exception is people at my school, students and teachers. But when I walk on the same few streets I walk on everyday, I get fewer and fewer obrunis and more and more kwabanas (or Mr. Kwabana). I also get called Jesus and Osama bin Laden because of my beard. Jesus, however, is more frequent. I've only heard Osama once or twice.

So I am Kwabana. Please never call me that. I think I'll be pretty sick of it in two years...

Let's Go Mets!

¶ 4:49 PM 2 comments

13 October 2006

The Strike Continues...

The only teachers actually teaching at my school are the volunteers. In addition to me, the school has two Ghanaian national service volunteers, and the assistant headmistress is also teaching. There may be one or two others that I don't know about it.

I think if there was a strike when I was a high school student I probably would have been thrilled. Some of the students here probably are, but some are "serious" (see Addendum #1) about doing well and going on to university. In Ghana, university admission is almost entirely based on an exam that the students take after completing secondary school. And it's really hard to do well on an exam if there's no class and you have not purchased any of the books to study from.

The West African Examination Council (WAEC, pronounced why-ack) is a standardized test taken by students in five English speaking countries in West Africa: Ghana, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, The Gambia, and Liberia (yes, those are all real countries). The exam consists of four required core subjects and three or four elective subjects. Each subject test is three to five hours in length and generally consists of a multiple choice section and an essay section. Some tests are entirely practical/lab work.

In Ghana, the core subjects are English, math (pronounced 'mass' here), integrated science, and social studies. Elective subjects are different for each country but they range from animal husbandry to woodwork. Some of the more obscure subjects include: picture making, typewriting, basketry, and shorthand. I don't know if these are actually offered in Ghana, and they are certainly not taught at my school. Computers is not "examinable," meaning that Ghana does not offer a computer WAEC test. So in some ways what I teach is less important, but basic computer knowledge is not easily acquired here. It's a marketable skill, a fact generally understood by students living in a society with rampant unemployment, but that doesn't mean they care about class.

Anyway, the third year students will take this exam around June, and because it's cross-country, the exam will not be delayed on account of the strike. I can't overemphasize the importance of this exam. Financial constraints notwithstanding, it is basically the sole determinate of university admission. So, I offered to teach integrated science and math to the third year students. Physics, chemistry, and biology are not taught at my school.

According to WAEC, "integrated science seeks to equip the individual with an integrated body of scientific knowledge and raise the level of scientific awareness of the individual. It also seeks to equip individuals with comprehensive scientific skills that will enable them to function competently in the present technological era." I have several problems with this definition. Why does it go from singular in the first sentence to plural in the second? Why does it define the word integrated with the word integrated? Why does it keep using the word equip? The WAEC manual then goes on to list the requirements for taking the exam. "It is presumed that the candidates taking the exam must have…carried out activities relating to the rearing of at least one of the following groups of animals: chickens/ducks/turkeys, goats/sheep/cattle, fish…"

So I'm in slightly over my head. The reality is that few students in Ghana will actually have the practical lab and farm experience that are "presumed" by WAEC. The topics on the syllabus range from stuff I know a little bit about (electricity and magnetism, modern communication, computers, light, energy) to topics that I know absolutely nothing about (animal production, lawns, forest and game reserves). But I have the text book (my school has books - that's a huge plus, but unfortunately few of the students have paid their fees so they don't have any), so I'm ready to give it a go. I plan on teaching until the strike ends, which could be next week but more likely many weeks from now. So I'll teach the subjects I know about and leave sheep production to the actual teacher. Next week I will teach mathematics to the third year students too.

Addendum #1: Every day I open the computer lab for a few hours. Most students use Mavis Beacon to practice typing, but not every computer has the program (these are the computers that don't have CD drives). So I tell the students to type what they are thinking as practice. Today, a student typed the following (actually, he typed it all in caps as students here tend to do): because of the strike action teaching and learning are not going on well at all and due to this situation we are likely to fail our final year examination and this final year exams is our life and due to this we are pleading the teachers to come and help us and we the student will also try our best to learn whatever they will teach our.

Addendum #2: Is there an offline version of Wikipedia or some other mostly text encyclopedia? This would be really useful for schools in the "developing world." There are many schools that have computers but lack internet access. They can not afford to buy a CD-based encyclopedia for every computer, but Wikipedia or a condensed version on every hard drive would be an invaluable tool. I want to teach my students to use the computer for information, but all I have is an English dictionary and the Bible. It's a start…

Addendum #3: It's great that the Yankees are out of the playoffs and the Mets are still in the playoffs. I don't think that's happened in 20 years, but it's about time.

Addendum #4: Ghanaians who use the Internet love "meeting people." They chat (painfully slowly because they often can't type) and go on dating websites. So many dating websites. Last time I was at the Internet cafe, the guy next to me had an inbox full of emails from jewishfriendfinder.com (I would have thought it was for Jews, but why limit it?). And as I'm typing the BOY next to me is using an email address and user name called "Queen Anita." If you meet a Ghanaian online, be careful...

Addendum #5: No where am I more frustrated in Ghana than in the Internet cafe of my nearest large town. I absolutely hate that place. Especially computer #10. Damn you computer #10! You never connect! Argh!

¶ 3:06 PM 1 comments

06 October 2006

Another Lazy Day in Beautiful Ghana...

When school "opened" on September 11, approximately 25% of my school's teachers were on strike. One particular union, apparently made up of teachers who have actually graduated from university, decided that they wanted more pay and would like the head of the national education ministry to step down. Four weeks later, the strike continues and no one knows when it will end.

This week, many of the other teachers at my school who are not members of the striking union decided they were going to stop teaching. Maybe there's a reason why these teachers were teaching last week and stopped now, but I don't know it. As a result, the students, tired of sitting in their classrooms doing nothing, seize the opportunity to leave school early, usually before noon. Because the first-year students still have not reported to school (they're waiting for the strike to end), I only teach in the afternoons. By then, all of the students have gone home.

The bottom line is that I have not taught all week and I probably won't teach next week either. It's hard to complain about not working, but it's a little frustrating too. I did finally open the lab to the students. Most of the students who come to the lab in their free time use Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing. Others just aimlessly maneuver through Windows with no clue of what they're doing. I'm all for pointless exploration, but at some point I have to ask these students what they're trying to find out of fear that they may do something harmful to my school's precious computers. Later in the term, I'm going to hold a school-wide typing competition. This will definitely get a few students excited, but I'm not sure how many.

A note about my school's computers (in case anyone is interested). We have 21 computers, and 20 of them actually work. They range from a Pentium III-733 running Windows XP to a Pentium I-133 running Windows 95. No internet connection and no printer. Most of the computers have a CD drive, but some do not making it really hard to get any programs onto them. Some of these computers don't even have Microsoft Word, which is one of the major topics we'll be covering...

Addendum #1: Who gets injured jogging in the outfield? Absurd! It will make the Mets' inevitable World Series victory all the more dramatic. Go Tigers!

Addendum #2: Tonight there is a Jay-Z concert in Accra. Tickets range from 1 million cedis ($110) to 600,000 cedis ($70). I know of a few Peace Corps volunteers that are going. I'm saving my money for the 2008 Africa Cup (football, aka soccer).

¶ 1:19 PM 3 comments

02 October 2006

Maybe Ghana is not quite ready for piped water?

In the first ten days of 5767 my bedroom flooded, I shook hands with the president of Ghana, and my toilet melted.

5767 - Day 2: Two American friends came over for a festive holiday (Rosh Hashana) meal. They are not Jewish, but I suppose they can still celebrate Rosh Hashana. We were sitting around my house and as usual they were people playing games on my porch (more on that another time) and for whatever reason there was someone taking a shower. Suddenly, the sound of the water got much louder and more intense. Crazy, unpredictable Ghanaian water pressure, we assumed. So we kept sitting there until my friend spotted water pouring out my kitchen. I got up to inspect and saw water bursting from the pipe under the kitchen sink.

While I went to find the old guy who manages the house (more on him another time), my two friends were saving the day. Unbeknownst to me at the time, the concrete floor slopes down from the kitchen directly into my room. The water was flowing so effeciently under my door it almost seemed by design. At at this point, I still had no furniture, other than a bed, so everything I owned in Ghana was lying on the floor as the mighty kitchen river was about to rush in.

To make a long story short, the old guy shut off the water main, my friends threw everything onto my bed saving all of my stuff, and I scooped up two inches of water off my floor with a plastic cup (I had help). Measures have been put into place to hopefully ensure that this never happens ever again. Also, the stir-fried vegetables (they sell eggplant in my town - this is exciting), chicken and rice all topped with sweet and sour sauce were excellent. Collecting ingredients for this meal was quite a project.

5767 - Day 5: 2006 marks the 45th anniversary of Peace Corps in Ghana and around the world (Ghana was the first country to have PC Volunteers). I'm against celebrating the 45th anniversary. If you're celebrating 45, then you've got to celebrate every 5 years. It's too much.

But, Peace Corps decided to throw a party at the US Ambassador's house. Lots of embassy people, easily distinguished by their suits and ties, and about 100 volunteers were there along with assorted bureaucrats, hangers-on, misc. President Kufuor, who recently had a press conference in Washington with C. Rice, pulled up 45 minutes late, or exactly on time in Ghana. He gave the final speech of the evening and then ceremonially cut the anniversary cake and posed for a picture. I was standing directly behind him, so I was right there when he turned around to shake hands. Weak grip, although I'm pretty sure he could take our president in a fight. Also, my face was spotted on Ghana national television by the old man who manages my house. Of course, all white people probably look the same to him, so really, it could have been anyone that he saw.

After the party, Peace Corps put up all volunteers at a Ghana-fancy hotel at the beach. The regular price of a room was upwards of $70! I've stayed on the floor in places that cost me $2 a night, so this was pretty absurd. Peace Corps actually gave us 2 nights, but being the responsible teacher that I am, I only stayed for one.

5767 - Day 7: More friends over for dinner and more plumbing problems. It was light off, so we put candles around the house. Someone, not me but really it doesn't matter, put a candle on top of the toilet. Seemed harmless. The homemade pasta sauce, garlic bread and fried bananas with melted chocolate were all delicious. And then we went to sleep.

I was really surprised the next morning by the sight of my melted toilet. I would not have thought that a toilet could melt. In fact, the tank was made of plastic and there was nothing left of it but a heap of melted trash (the seat was fine). I know what a heap of melted trash looks like because they burn garbage here. No real infrastructure to dispose of it any other way.

The whole thing smelled of burnt rubber and a pipe was slightly leaking. At this point I was mostly concerned with the possibility of another flood, but I learned during The Great Flood of 5767 that if there's a small leak somewhere, I can stop it by turning on a faucet elsewhere in the house.

Unfortunately, no one saw the toilet melt. It would have been fascinating I'm sure and I'm eagerly awaiting a full report from the local police department's forensic unit. My preliminary observations indicate significant smoke damage on the wall and there are these bizarre black webs in the corners of the room. Were there flames? Did it burn slowly or just burst into oblivion?

(Note: The most amazing thing about my local police department is that I actually have one. Many town are too small or too poor. It is equipped with at least one police car and one motorcycle. It has no phone line, but it does have a radio that it can use to contact the police department in the nearest big town. Needless to say, it does not have a forensic unit.)

Obviously I have learned my lesson. Next time I leave a candle on top of my plastic toilet, I'm going to stay up to learn exactly how a toilet melts...

Addendum #1: I was at the Wal-Mart of Ghana a few days ago (called Melcom's and to the best of my knowledge not associate with Walmart) and the TV section was showing baseball highlights! This was very exciting as I don't think I've seen baseball since I was in the US. But unfortunately I learned that Pedro Martinez is out for the year. Bummer. That will probably make winning the World Series even more dramatic (not that I'll see a single pitch). And apparently the Giants are in last place! Also a bummer, but again, probably won't see a single play.

Addendum #2: Jon, I am quite tan. Sort of a reddish/khaki color that's nothing even close to Ghana color. Also, really enjoyed your article in "Acharei ken," which I just got. So disappointed I'll miss my 10 year anniversary next summer. I don't think we'll have a very good turnout.

¶ 3:09 PM 1 comments

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