The project begins

June 25, 2010

At the end of my third class today, a diminutive girl approached me and said, ‘This is sad.” I could barely hear her amongst the crush of students trying to shake my hand and say good-bye, so I bent to get closer.  I asked her why.  She replied, ‘We won’t see you for one week.” She was right…the local government declared a three day holiday this week, so I have a long break from the students.  But that is less the issue here than the affecting interaction with the multitude of students I have the joy of working with in this project. It’s what brought me back to India and, despite the challenges I face with this project, it is what makes my days with the students worth those challenges.

I am teaching in two schools that are privately run, but connected to the government school system in specific ways.  They are highly regarded schools run by one family.  I have two classes, or sections, in each.  At Children’s Garden School in the heart of Chennai, I work with 5thstandard students, primarily 9 year olds.  I have 42 students in each section and about 45 minutes of class three days a week.  Those classes seem a bit like a track event and when I first began a week ago, corralling the energy and joy of these students was my first huge challenge.  On a daily basis now I can count on three things: 1) They will say they are feeling ‘happy’ because they are back in drama class, 2) They will crush in as close as they can to me when we gather to discuss points and 3) They will fall all over themselves to shake my hand as they are leaving class, to say ‘Thank-you, sir’ and ‘Good-bye, sir.’  Some return 4 and 5 times to say it. One of the beauties of working in this school is they serve me and the teachers I am working with lunch each day so we can eat together.

Three days into my first week, I had my first double day, meaning I worked at both schools on the same day.  This entails trundling down four flights of steps immediately after finishing, to be beckoned by the watchman to lead me down the lane to my waiting, hired car.  I am, by this time, drenched in sweat.  So the air-conditioned ride is a joy and slow drying process.  Forty-five minutes later I am delivered to the gate of the second school—Ellen Sharma Matriculation Higher Secondary School—where the watchman there greets me as I tell the driver to meet me again at 3 pm at the gate.  He is hired for a 5 hour period (standard car hire here), so gets to hang out in the small village area of Sholliganallur as I teach.

On these days, I am served lunch at this school in a small room with 3 ladies who try very hard to see to my every need and are continually frustrated that I don’t eat more than I do.  In fact, my eating habits have become more of a topic than the work I am doing, which I am not sure how to take.  I meet the principal, and then my contact Shobitha, who makes sure I have what I need and takes care of fetching the children.  At this school, I teach 6th standard and my first class is about 75 minutes long with 48 children.  My second class is equally long with about 55 students.  These students started off very quiet and shy, which proved to be misleading.  They have opened up quite well and quickly.  There are three things I can be sure of at this school. 1) The classes always divide themselves by boys and girls when we sit, even if we have just finished a very deliberate mixed process. 2) They enjoy coming up to me when they see me to say ‘Good afternoon, sir.’ 3) At the end of class, the first group gets whacky saying good-bye to me and the second doesn’t know if they should.

A couple of other children arrive each day to deliver me water and later to deliver tea.  At the end of these two school long days, I get a gulp or two of tea and it’s off again in the car to make sure I stay within the five hour allotted time.  It’s nice to have that air-conditioned ride, to reflect some on the work of the day.  And to dry off for the second time.  Even with that heat, however, the children have never said a word, nor have seemed to seek out the windy spots under the fans.  I suppose they are use to it, although I like to believe that they are very engaged in the process.  Well, that’s what I am here to research.  So I look forward to the holiday week being finished.  Just like my diminutive friend.