School

I was invited to the parent-teacher conference at one of the schools some of my sibs attend. I was honored, the sibs were thrilled, & the teachers were, to my surprise, intimidated. I was quite shocked by the timidity of the teachers actually.

You should know that the teaching profession is just about the highest occupation one can hold here. Everyone with a teaching degree is given great respect & special honor. Of all the introductions I have received, only teachers have been presented as, "This is Mr. So-&-So. He's a teacher." Everyone else is simply introduced by name. It's a big deal.

I was taken aback when my sibs' teachers bowed low to me & didn't look me in the eye. I thought the first teacher I met was just shy. I tried to keep my head lower than his as we spoke, but he kept bending too, so by the time our conversation was finished our heads were nearly to our knees. Hahahahahaha! I soon discovered all the teachers were reluctant to speak freely. I spent nearly half my time assuring the teachers I wanted to know all the news, even the bad news.

I found out that they were trying to please me so because I'm very powerful & very wealthy. That is to say, I'm a white chick whose sibs' tuition fees make up about 1/3 of the school's budget. Hahahahaha! We've since become pretty friendly. The assistant principle phones me when there's trouble, most teachers look me in the face now & the guy who nearly had my head in my lap got the guts to tell me one of the brothers was misbehaving in class. I also visit the school regularly now.

I knew that the Cambodian education system is far behind every other industrialized country, but I didn't realize how far behind until I visited classes. Good grief! It's going to take Cambo a good while to get back up to speed. See, the Khmer Rouge killed teachers, grads, & university & highschool students. In fact, they killed people who wore glasses too thinking that a sign of intelligence. The goal was to limit the population to a docile, uneducated labor force &, sadly, they pretty much succeeded. This explains not only why the schools are so far behind (university grads compare to American 7th graders), but also why teaching is such a highly regarded profession. Not quite as high as being a rich, white chick, but we're headed in that direction, praise the Lord!

Oh PS, my darling brother David earned the highest country exam (think SAT's) score in all of Phnom Penh. He aced the thing in every area of testing. Yeah, I'm bustin' buttons. (big honkin' smile)

3/18/11

THANK GOD!
~My health remains pretty good despite unhealthy conditions!
~Meaningful relationships are being deepened!
~Every sib has sufficient clothing & hygiene items!
~Ruth is recovering well!

ASK GOD
~Please, never forget those precious souls who are caught up in stealing
~Increased volunteers & financial donors for charitable organizations
~Inner strength for me
~Time & skill in making a video for you alll