The School Has Made So Much Progress!

We returned to A.V. Bukani Monday morning, just in time to see the students singing some of our favorite songs. The teachers each gave us warm hugs. But beyond the deep friendships formed last year, we wondered what lasting impact our visit had on the school. How would the second visit be different and would there be a motivation for future visits? We soon saw that the school had made progress beyond our expectations. Larry had hoped that the teachers he and Sara worked with last year continued to read aloud to the students and use the Think-Pair-Share technique. He hoped to see the books we left for them and the additional books we purchased from South Africa Partners, with the generous donations of our many donors, being used in the classrooms.

The first day he went into classes to do shared reading using the”big books” we brought. As he was about to ask the children to tell him what part of the book they liked, the teacher said, "OK. Think...now pair.... now share,” and the students immediately starting talking to each other! We mean all the students and immediately. It was amazing. This happened in all eight classes that Sara and Larry worked in last year. When Larry asked the students to share, some hands went up and the students talked. Their English at 2nd and 3rd grades is still really limited, but these are very beginning English learners and just a word in English sometimes is all they are capable of, given the very limited exposure they get to English during the day. Some of the grade 4 learners speak in phrases and sometimes full simple sentences. It's definitely something we can continue to build on.Some of the teachers in K (their R) and first grade have been coming to the classes to observe Larry teaching, even though they don’t teach in English. After taking part in some professional development Larry presented on the many uses of “big books,” the head teacher in 1st grade said she wanted to order some big books in Xhosa that she saw in a catalogue from one of the publishers. Mr. Thambo, the principal, has the Heinemann rep coming on Tuesday with samples of big books. Hopefully they have some good titles and we can use some of the $1,000 we have remaining from the donations to buy many more English and Xhosa titles.

In addition to the big books, Larry has been using the materials generously donated by Developmental Studies Center. The children loved “Quick as a Cricket” and had great fun comparing themselves to animals in the book.

Larry planned with all the teachers on Friday of this first week so that he can co-teach with the teachers next week (this week he did all the teaching). The teachers took it very seriously and asked some really good questions while they planned. The last week the teachers will take over and Larry will observe and provide feedback. We hope these three weeks give them enough demonstration, information, and confidence to continue after we leave.

Computer lab

Words cannot describe what it felt like to see the students in the computer lab, completely comfortable with the keyboard and mouse after only three months! We thought this day would not come for a few more years, but through amazing Mr. Thambo, the school had a donation of new computers and every class gets to work in the lab.

We didn’t get to meet the computer teacher who is out on maternity leave; however, Eileen met with the IT Committee from the faculty and heard their ideas for improving instruction on the computers. Right now the students are using donated educational software that is several years old. Some of the games are great and some are terrible (don’t even ask about the “puzzles”!) But the teachers are committed to aligning the students’ work in the computer lab to the curriculum in the classroom. Having the computer teacher there full-time, thanks to the donation from Burness Communications, will make a great difference. It is hard without the dedicated computer teacher now, because many of the teachers are not computer literate. Similar to what we saw in the early days of computers in U.S. schools, some teachers feel there is enough on their plates already and they just leave computer teaching to that teacher. But the teachers are starting to realize they must improve their own skills because very soon the students will surpass them.

Parent Engagement

The parent engagement project has been an extraordinary experience. Although we know how the school works this year, it has been a new challenge to try to work with a community that has its own culture, its own language and its own way of doing things. Eileen has worked to connect with key parents, which again is another challenge.

On Monday, Eileen met with a parent leader who spoke at the farewell party last year. Pindewe is an amazing women – smart, knowledgeable about the community, and committed to serving the community. She has excellent English skills. We set the first parent meeting for 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday. The school sent home a note and Pindewe contacted the parents. The school expected about 20 parents, and assuming they would be late, the note home said the meeting started at 4:30. At 4:45 there were 50 mothers and grandmothers in the room!

Addressing 50 caregivers who speak only limited English was quite a daunting experience. Through a translator, Eileen explained that we would be creating a quilt together. Each mother or grandmother would get to create a square describing their hopes and dreams for their child. Eileen asked them to share their dreams and about half of the family members stood up and talked about their dreams of their child becoming a doctor, or a social worker (because so many were helped by social workers), or bank manager, etc. One of the mothers noted that it is not enough to have your own dreams, but they must also be the dreams of the child, which led to a great discussion about talking with their children.

The second meeting was set for Thursday. Despite another important meeting in the community, 25 family members came (and on time!). Eileen and the parents discussed the importance of talking with tyour children when they come home from school and asking questions about what they are learning. Eileen shared with them what Principal Thambo had told her about his own family. Although his own parents could not read or write, his older sister would read to the younger siblings as soon as she learned to read. When Mr. Thambo was studying at the secondary level, he mentored all his younger siblings and cousins. “Make your home a center of learning,” Eileen urged. Each parent was given a piece of paper and a new pencil (“homework!” one of the parents proudly said), with instructions to talk with their children about their dreams, so they could design their square together.

The family members were very engaged with the discussion. One of the grandmothers gave a long speech in Xhosa and Eileen waited eagerly to hear what she said. “On behalf of all the mothers and grandmothers here,” she said, “I want to tell you how much we appreciate being here. We do have hopes and dreams for our children, but no one has ever asked us, and we do not know how to help them. You are telling us how we can help our children. Thank you.” What a moment!

Then Pindewe and some other mothers came in with the refreshments. Pindewe had said that the food should not be catered from the outside, but prepared by mothers in the community who could earn some funds that way. They cooked an amazing dinner of chicken and dumplings, serving a full plate to each caregiver (probably more than they had eaten all week). Eileen told the parents that they are always serving everyone else and this would be a day that they were served a full dinner themselves. The mothers and grandmothers broke into song and dance. The translator explained this was a song that expressed how happy and excited they were to be there. The meeting, planned for an hour, went on for 2-1/2. Next week, we work on the quilt itself, with the help of one of the teachers who is a good seamstress.

Our homestay

We are thrilled to be back with the Mofu family. In addition to their grandson Yanga, who is turning 8 this week, we are joined by two other grandchildren. Their daughter Pam (Yanga’s mother) has moved back and is working nearby. Her older sister Yolanda is also back in the township, with her 2 adorable boys, ages 5 and 2. They are staying in a nearby home while we are there, but we get to see the boys every day and they never fail to entertain us. They are bright, full of life, and totally charming.

WHAT A WEEK. We are totally exhausted, yet exhilarated with the possibilities. Can there only be 2 weeks more???

Larry and Eileen

It feels like we never left

We arrived safety in South Africa, and equally important, our luggage did too! After a night in Johannesburg, we flew into Port Elizabeth this morning and it feels like we never left. Met at the airport by Nelson, one of our favorite staff members at Calabash Tours. Nelson grew up in a nearby township and chooses to live there now because he would miss the special culture if he lived in the city. I'm looking forward to talking with him about the parent involvement project to gain his insights.

We're staying for the weekend at 5th Avenue Beach house, a few blocks from the beatiful beach. This is where many of the volunteers placed by Calabash Tours stay. Those who work in schools in Port Elizabeth stay here for 3-4 weeks. For us, it is our weekend retreat. We enjoy spending time with Anthea, the owner, who not only helps the volunteers who stay here, she is also supporting another school in Port Elizabeth. Nelson is picking us early Monday morning to take us out to the school before the first bell rings. "It will be quite a reunion," he notes.

Returning to South Africa!

Larry and Eileen are returning to South Africa for the first 3 weeks of August. Although Sara cannot return this year because of work commitments, she's been instrumental in planning. So much has happened since we were there:

* A new computer lab was donated by a local business. Students as well as teachers are getting computer training, thanks to donations which are supporting a teacher. A big thank you to Burness Communications for helping the part-time teacher become full time.

* We're returning with two large duffel bags full of materials to help with English instruction! Educational publisher Developmental Studies Center in California donated multiple kits for literacy instruction -- complete with books for the students and teachers' manuals with lesson plans for an entire year! Other donations enabled us to purchase "big books" for "read aloud" instruction and accompanying smaller books for the students. Larry will be using the materials to demonstrate new strategies for the teachers.

* The students should now be enjoying the set of picture books we sent. With wonderful donations from friends and colleagues we were able to order a complete set of books for South African students by South African authors through South Africa partners.

* Eileen will be bringing a new parent engagement strategy to the school, based on "Tellin' Stories" developed by Teaching for Change. The families will create a quilt together, with each family showing their hopes and dreams for their children on their own square. During the quilt making sessions, families and teachers will gain new insights from each other, enabling them to partner in student success.

We're off!!! We'll update each weekend.

GREAT NEWS!

Thanks to your generous donations, we are sending 45 wonderful picture books, written by South African authors, in English and Xhosa to A.V. Bukani school for read-alouds, a critical part of language development.

We are so appreciative of all the interest in and support for this wonderful school. We have great news for future donations. We have forged an alliance with South Africa Partners to create a fund that can be used for a wide variety of needs at A.V. Bukani Elementary, not just books. South Africa Partners has 501(c)3 status in the U.S. so all donations are tax-deductible. SA Partners takes a very small administrative fee (5%!). Since S.A. Partners supports numerous projects, it is important that you note on the check that it is for the "Kugler Family Fund." S.A Parters will let us know who made donations.

if you would like to support A.V. Bukani Elementary, please:

Write check to:

"South Africa Partners" with "Kugler Family Fund" in the memo.

Send to:

South Africa Partners
89 South Street, Suite 701
Boston, MA 02111

Thanks to the special family that sent $1000 instead of giving each other Christmas gifts this year!!

A PIECE OF OUR HEARTS WILL ALWAYS REMAIN IN SOUTH AFRICA

We’re home and we can’t stop thinking about the incredible school and township we left. We know we will be back! For now, we are committed to helping provide the material resources that will match the human resources in this wonderful school (See “How you can help” page).

We keep thinking about the lessons we learned during our visit and how the people we met enriched our lives. In this township, there was much optimism for what can be accomplished under the “new South Africa.” We were touched every day by what was and is possible. Among the lessons we learned:

· Persevere . The teachers had grown up under apartheid yet had risen far beyond the limitations that system tried to impose. When Bella, a second-grade teacher, was asked how she learned to speak English so fluently, she said, “You must empower YOURSELF.” Principal Thambo, a very impressive leader who was born in the township, emphatically stated, “When they imposed the yoke of apartheid upon us, they didn’t know they were only making us stronger. We learned how to persevere against all obstacles.”

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• Be open to new ideas. Because every new idea was an opportunity for personal growth, the teachers were very open and willing to try new ways of doing things. They felt they were good teachers before, but also saw that new strategies could be a way of helping children from the townships be more successful. We saw no cynicism or “been there, done that.” We were lucky enough to be in the country on Nelson Mandela’s 90^th birthday, and his impact on South Africa and on the world cannot be overstated. He urged children to be “descriptive writers” of their own destiny, and these teachers are helping make that happen.
  

· Family, family, family. There is nothing more important in the Xhosa culture than family. On the trip, we became “The Kugler Family,” rather than 3 individuals. It made us appreciate traveling together even more. When the teachers gave us school t-shirts as gifts, they made sure to include a shirt for Sara’s husband and for our son/brother and his girlfriend, even though they had never met them. They are family after all.

· Don’t frustrate easily. The aging computers were a constant frustration to us, particularly Eileen who had to work with them daily. Yet the teachers were excited about every new thing they could learn, and simply didn’t focus on the limitations. When one computer didn’t work, they went to another. They didn’t complain; they didn’t get upset. They were just eager to gain new skills and didn’t gripe about what they didn’t have.

· Everyone should sing every day. Singing and dancing were not reserved for concerts or special occasions at the school. Each day started with rousing singing from the students to get their blood flowing and there was no such thing as a wrong note! The teachers sang as they went off to class, as they drank their tea during break, as they went home. After our farewell party, there were delicious refreshments, but the teachers spent most of the time outside singing and dancing. Oh, how we will miss them!

· Friendship crosses all boundaries. True friendships form across national boundaries, across races, across cultures. They form when there is mutual openness, respect and caring. We could not have imagined the friendships that formed over three short weeks. We smile every time we look at the pictures.

We started this site as a way to keep in touch with our family and friends during the trip. We’re hearing from friends and colleagues that the site, like the trip itself, has become much more. We hope it inspires you to go beyond your comfort zone – or as they say, do something that scares you every day! We certainly had our moments of doubt before the trip about what we got ourselves into. But, as is clear, this trip exceeded our expectations in every way. And we hope it inspires you to think about getting involved, with South Africa or something else that touches your heart. Our hearts will never be the same after this trip.

How do we leave this place?

The students sang us traditional Xhosa songs during the farewell ceremony

Teachers dressed in traditional Xhosa clothing and sang and danced with us

Our final week in the township of Nomathamsanqa was filled with the excitement of teachers learning new skills and eager to learn more, and the reality of the need for books that the students can read along with up-to-date computers that work consistently. We pledged to raise money for both (more on that in our next addition).

The school gave us an extraordinary farewell party, filled with singing and dancing by students and teachers, along with touching presentations. While we waited for the dignitaries to arrive, the students taught Sara new games and sang with Larry and Eileen. At the farewell event, the mothers in the community surprised everyone (even the principal) by giving each of us hand-crafted African garments which we will always treasure.

At the end of our last day, all the students gathered in the courtyard and sang us our favorite songs as we waved goodbye and tearfully hugged our teaching colleagues for the last time. We dragged ourselves into the car as students gathered around the vehicle, and the principal had to create a lane for us to pull out. We are emotionally drained.

Yet the day did not end. We tried to teach some of the faculty how to access email, yet the computers at the school were too old and slow. We offered to meet a few teachers at the Internet café in the city of Port Elizabeth late Friday afternoon. Although we had been warned not to get our hopes up that the teachers might continue contact beyond the school because communication is so difficult, there they were … three teachers at the Internet café 10 minutes early. We signed them up for gmail accounts and they quickly began emailing each other and Larry who was at the 4^th computer. Then we showed them how to do a search on Google. Their faces glowed with delight and excitement. The email notes they wrote reminded us of how special this place is: “We are now computer literate, thanks to the Kuglers.” “WE ARE NOW CONNECTED TO THE WORLD. We will never forget this day.” Nor will we.

A DAY IN THE LIFE

It’s our second week in Nomathamsanqa township and we’ve hit our stride. We love the strong sense of community in this village. Neighbors look after each other although most have little themselves. There is a large feeding program for children who come to school hungry, which amounts to mothers preparing 2 pieces of bread with butter and jam and a “nutrient drink.” I asked the principal what happens to these children when school is not in session and he told me that neighbors make sure everyone has something to eat. “That is part of our culture.”


Here's a typical day -- We rise before the sun when the house is still about 45 ◦. It’s hard to get out from under our thick blankets but Mama has a bucket of hot water waiting for us to wash up. We all sit down to a large hot breakfast. (“Fat cakes” – fried dough dipped in a tomato & onion mixture – are Sara’s favorite).

Then we head off to school with Yanga, who has to be the cutest and happiest 7-year old you ever met. We’re joined by his friends and we walk a few blocks along the sandy rocky streets to school. We teach each other English and Xhosa and the kids giggle at our awkward pronunciation of the different clicks in their beautiful language. We exchange greetings with everyone we see along the way – and the neighborhood is bustling in the morning. Then there are the animals: the donkeys carrying loads of twigs, the goats who clean up the orange peels (it’s harvest time in the nearby groves), the cattle moving we’re not sure where, and our favorite, the hen and her brood of chicks. Yesterday we saw an ostrich at the fence to Addo Elephant Park which borders the township. We hear that in summer (it’s winter here), elephants come right up to the fence.


As we get closer to the school, we’re joined by other children who smile widely as they join us. The school siren (we can’t call it a bell), sounds at 8:00 a.m. and all 950 students gather in the central courtyard for morning devotional, lively harmonious singing of hymns and prayers, mostly in Xhosa, to start the day. We love it and join in when we can. This is a country where EVERYONE sings with great spirit and always in that particular harmony that you hear in African music. The idea that a child might be told they can’t sing is beyond comprehension. Kids and adults just plain sing all the time.

Larry and Sara have been working with the teachers in grades 2-4, both in class and in afternoon staff development, on strategies for teaching English, particularly using oral language beyond the parroting the students now do. None of us could imagine the lack of resources here – pencils of a ¼ inch shared between students, little or no paper, absolutely no books other than poor texts and workbooks that are largely beyond the student’s comprehension. Classes are overcrowded with furniture that is falling apart except for the new furniture provided as donations through Callabash Trust, the same group that organized our visit. At the same time, the teachers are bright, intelligent and caring and are eager to learn ways to reach their students. Most of the teachers have been very willing to try the new strategies and they have been excited about the results. Sara has been modeling lessons and Larry has been coaching the teachers.





Eileen has become the computer guru. When she showed the principal how to get his email working, he sincerely said, “you are a gift from God.” She spends most of her time trying to get their computer lab in decent shape. The donated computers are old and slow, connected to the Internet on a very slow land line. One of her first jobs was to try to get antivirus software installed and it took 10 days just to get someone out to this remote village. Then it took nearly 2 hours to install the software on each of the 8 aging and dusty computers. She’s been offering computer classes after school and the teachers are so excited to get to actually touch these machines. Only a handful have ever touched a keyboard, let alone a computer. Yet within a few ½ hour classes, they learned the basics of Word and are thrilled to be able to see their text in different styles. Nomthle, one of the most enthusiastic teachers, was absolutely elated when she learned how to change the font color, “I’m typing in ORANGE!!!” she exclaimed with enormous excitement, knowing she could now create fun things for her students. The next day class was cancelled because of some unforeseen teachers’ meeting and the teachers in Eileen’s class were not happy about that. She told them she would keep the lab open after the meeting. Nomthle came in after the meeting, saying, “I must peck away at this and learn something new every day.” Eileen showed her how to insert a table and the next day Nomthle was in the lab every free minute typing a chart for a class she is taking.

These teachers are the most extraordinary group of people, and we've grown to adore them. They have the best sense of humor, always joking with us and each other. They are always striving to improve themselves with course work or independent study. It is mostly women, who are outgoing and sometimes outrageous. The two men are warm, but reserved. At a community concert put on for our benefit, the teachers all bought school T-shirts and went on stage to perform although they had little time to rehearse. They were singing (in harmony of course) and dancing and just plain raucous, pulling us up on the stage with them. It will be very hard to leave them.

The students are eager to learn but have few opportunities for creative thought. They take pride in their school are they sweep the room and dust the office each day. On Fridays school ends an hour early and the students clean every inch of the school including washing the floors

After school, we’ve either got classes or some activity the school or our host family has planned for us. The sun is often hot in the afternoon, rising 20 or more degrees throughout the day. But when the sun drops low at around 6:00 p.m., the temperature drops with it. We start layering on the sweaters and fleece because there is no heat in the house. A large warm supper is served at about 7:00 p.m. and then the family starts preparing for bed. The first night we laughed at the thought of bed by 8:00, but suddenly we find we can’t keep our eye open much beyond that. We snuggle back in under the covers and listen for the night sounds of the animals, and the neighbors’ music, as we fall asleep.

We can't imagine leaving after just one more week.

WE ARE THE LUCKIEST PEOPLE ON EARTH

We tried to prepare ourselves for just about anything, but we could never imagine the warmth, enthusiasm, caring and outpouring of appreciation that we have received both from the school and the entire township. Once we established that we recognized we had a lot to learn from the school and community, as well as share with them, the relationship has been extremely positive. The teachers, as one teacher noted, "are hungry to learn how to help the students." There are few school resources -- students work with stubs of pencils and very limited paper -- but the human resources are valuable beyond measure. This is a caring and committed staff, with one of the best principals any of us has ever met. They welcomed the opportunity to learn new strategies for engaging their students and increase the learning.

Our teacher friends before the Welcome Celebration began

Our host family has been caring and warm, making us feel comfortable in every way. The food has been delicious and high in healthy vegetables. The only "comfort" we lack is a shower, and we have quickly learned how insignificant that is. The entire family is great fun to be around.

Our host family (from left): Adopted daughter, daughter, mama, cuteness/grandson, father

We were prepared for the responsibility of being the first volunteers in this school, but also learned the first night from our host family that we were the first white people to ever stay overnight in the township. This was said not with any resentment, but rather a sincere appreciation for our willingness to be with the community. We heard the same message from many others in the township. For us, the home stay has been one of the most meaningful parts of our trip.

The Mofu House

Even in our first week in the township, we've learned many valuable lessons. Among these are (1) The significance of family in the Xhosa culture - Certainly, family is important to us, but family is at the heart of everything here. Greetings between people often reflect your place in the family, so Eileen was often referred to as "Mama" because we traveled with our daughter. This was meant as respect, and actually there was tremendous respect attached to our traveling as a family. This made it all the more disturbing to think of how apartheid often split families or how the AIDS pandemic is taking away parents in so many families. (2) The wastefulness of American culture - While there is a green movement in the US, we became very aware of how much we waste in our society. For example, our host family brought us lunch at the school and carried with them plates and utensils which were washed and returned. There is no concept of paper plates which would just be discarded.

We are still processing this and will have much more later. For those who might want to help this incredible school, we do see there are many needs beyond just books for the library. We’re working with the school on a priority list for fundraising in general and will talk about other options for donations in future updates (as well as discussions once we are home in an all-too-short 2 weeks). Here are a few photos... more next week.

Planning Our Trip

Imagine a school of 1,000 student, in which 70% of the families have no income. The school has a total staff of 29. When one of these teachers is absent, there are no substitutes. The students are either left along in the classroom for the day or are distributed to other teachers. There are few supplies.

A.V. Bunkani during morning break

The AV Bukani School in Addo, South Africa is this school. Fourteen years removed from the end of apartheid, South Africa remains a country struggling with the education of its majority black population. Schools and society in general remain largely segregated with the wealth still residing in the hands of the white majority. Yet, when Eileen and Larry visited South Africa as part of a multicultural educators Peopel to People contingent last year, they came away impressed with the measured optimism of the black educators they met. In the fac eof persistent underfunding, overcrowded and crumbling schools, the worst HIV epidemic in all of Africa, and overwhelming poverty in their communities, principals and teachers alike expressed and optimistic view of the future.

Now, with their daughter, Sara, they will return to South Africa in July to work with the teachers and students at AV Bukani School.