Today is the 2nd day of classes for the 2nd semester. Yesterday, I returned last semester's exams to my students. Nearly every one failed, both in Form A (8th grade, ages 12-18) and Form D (11th grade, ages 16-23) Maths. In Form D, the class erupted in laughter when they looked at their scores (the average was about 25%). I admonished them for laughing at their own failure. They held it together after that, though I think more to make me feel better than anything else. After I returned their papers, they spent class working on corrections under my supervision. Their homework was to finish their corrections at home, so that they could submit them to me today. (Today, I returned part 2 of their exams, and the uproarious laughter resumed).
In Lesotho, you submit assignments by turning them over to your class monitor, who brings them to the staff room. I told all 3 classes today to submit their work at break time. Pretty routine. Everyone understood. But... I received 0 papers. From THREE classes, ZERO students turned in their assignments. Perhaps the saddest part is that this is so common that I wasn't even surprised.
A short while after, I got into a discussion with other teachers about what a sad state of affairs this is. We all agreed that the students' only motivation is the fear of punishment, and that since I don't beat them, they don't make the effort (All other teachers beat students, and indeed, they do get better homework completion, though not by much). We commiserated about the frustration of watching our students revel in their own failure. They claim that when they were students, it wasn't like this. I told them that if 11th graders' only motivation to work is to spare themselves punishment, then they're beyond my ability to help. Bear in mind, I'm not just talking about the troublesome students, or the slow students. I'm talking about 3 entire classrooms of adolescents and adults. Strong students, weak ones, well behaved ones, and troublesome ones. I've spent 1.5 years doing everything in my power to motivate these kids. The amount I have to show for it is, to be honest, embarrassing.
Next time in Why Lesotho Schools Are Depressing: Harassment, Corruption, and Transactional Pedophilia.
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7 years ago
A parallel experience to that of PCV teaching in the South Pacific and not too much different (in terms of dynamics) from the typical American school. In my career which involved considerable consultation with teachers and school administrators, I have come to believe that the families are the source of student motivation (or, lack of) and teachers, administrators, behavior therapists, etc can do little to overcome the lack of positive parental input. Also, it is almost impossible to create motivation to succeed when a child grows up in an environment of depression and negativity toward others.
ReplyDeleteThat PCV I mentioned in the South Pacific is making significant changes in the corporal punishment part of the culture there - - - through modeling and the resultant positive changes being exhibited by the students as observed by other (nationals) teachers and parents.
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