I am absolutely exhausted after teaching the grade 6 class today. Last week, I accepted the position of full-time sub for this class, and now wonder what I have gotten myself into. They are a nice group of kids, about 15 of them, but they have suffered from a complete lack of structure over the past six months. The room was so cluttered that we spent a good amount of time just throwing papers away and cleaning up. Their teacher abruptly left late last week and will not return this year. The school asked me to step in, not so much for the teaching (I will follow the other grade 6 teacher's plans for all major subjects and they go to other rooms for "specials") but to guide the students through their last six weeks of school. There will inevitably be some counseling issues too as the teacher is terminally ill with what is the country's biggest problem - HIV. That is most likely the real reason I am there as the students have already been very concerned about it. We need to get through their big exhibition this week (they have been working on extensive social issue projects for the past eight weeks which culminates on Wednesday) before we start processing the loss issues. It's a bit heady but I am glad to help (when I am not completely tired out).
Russ just received his "permission to teach" today, which means we are one step closer to a work permit and residency papers. I am very thankful that we do not have to negotiate with the Ministries of Education and Home Affairs on our own. Already empathetic to the plight of immigrants in the US, going through this experience here has heightened our awareness to the total complexity of government bureaucracy. We also know a few people who are technically here illegally but only because of all the red tape. The issue of immigration, legal or otherwise, so contentious back home, is not so different than what other countries and foreign nationals deal with, but is far more complex than people think or through spouting political party lines.
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