Day two at school and village tour

The students have settled into the life of Treak School so quickly. As some interesting background, Cambodian government education is only run half a day, six days a week, owing to a lack of government funding for anything beyond this. As such, Treak School runs their program in two half day sessions so that children can attend in the opposite half of the day to learn English (and Maths, Science, and Personal Social Health Education). They therefore run the same program twice a day. Our days are therefore long: mornings from 8-11, a two hour lunch break, and second session from 1-4pm. The heat makes it tough going.
Day two saw our UniSQ students learning just how flexible teachers must be, with one of the staff members sick and a hasty reshuffling of classrooms conducted five minutes before the day began. The mid-morning break was filled with play, and the UniSQ students loved joining in, playing badminton and jump rope. Each day, we are also treated to lunch with the teachers, cooked by the school director, Salin, for whom no dietary requirement is too much hassle. In the afternoon session, the students were pulled from the classroom for a village tour by Salin (wearer of so many hats - I'll share more about her in coming posts). The students were shocked by the disparity between houses of those with some means and extreme poverty, all side by side. The tour finished at the local pagoda where the school originated almost 20 years ago. It was first started by a monk who saw an opportunity to both continue his English skills and share the language with children.
It was then a much welcomed free evening, and for many, a much-needed early night!Read more