Dreams of the future

Rathana works as a senior supervisor at a restaurant in central Siem Reap. Everyday, he attends the advanced English class at FKC from 10 to 11am. At 30 years old, Rathana is nearly twice as old as the other students in class, but he still comes to school because he wants to be a hotel manager in the future. Nearly half the class wants to work in tourism. A few aspire to open their own restaurant or a hotel in future.

SiemReap’s main economic activity is centred on its national heritage, Angkor Wat. The city’s reputation as a tourist-friendly destination means that there will never be a shortage of jobs as barmen, tour guides, drivers, receptionists, shop assistants, waiters, and chambermaids. Many want to work in hospitality because it offers job stability and best of all, it brings in a relatively good income.

But just as Siem Reap is more than its ancient history, so is its youth more than just aspiring cooks. The problem is not so much a dismal lack of ambition, as is a lack of imagination of the options beyond the tourist dollar.

 
          It all starts with an education

In Cambodia,a typical child attends a government school either in the morning (7..30-10.30am) or afternoon (1.30-4.30pm). In other words, he studies for only half a day up till high school, taking subjects such as Math, Science and Khmer. English only just been made compulsory from Grade 6 upwards.

The child is free for the rest of the day unless—and if family circumstances permit—he attends English classes run by the private and non-profit sectors. FKC is one such charity that provides free English lessons for students aged between two and 30.

The country’s lack of emphasis on education accounts for the short amount of time students spend in a state school. Only 10-15% of the national budget is set aside for education, resulting in a gross shortage of teachers and teaching resources. Teachers also earn low salaries, an average wage of $80 a month.

It is for this reason that NGO schools play a very significant role in Cambodia’s education system. These schools not only provide a child a safe environment to play and learn in, it also helps him gain a foothold for the future, should he wish to pursue a university education.

English, in particular, is an important subject as it opens up an infinite world of imagination for the young. Considering how much information on the Internet is in English, proficiency in the language would therefore give one access to a wide variety of topics. Information breeds knowledge, and knowledge, curiosity. It all starts with an education.

Thinking big, achieving dreams

Unfortunately, many children drop out of school even before they can think about university and beyond, because main bread and butter issues prevent them from completing their basic education. Those fortunate enough to finish high school often take up an apprenticeship or vocational studies where they learn how to cook, clean or sew. Few go to university, and even fewer are those who secure a place in a foreign university. Very rarely do students in Siem Reap become doctors, lawyers, accountants or nurses.

But students in the advanced class do dream of doing something different from their peers.Channa, for instance, wants to be an accountant, and Kakada, a doctor. Three other students want to be teachers.

There is nothing wrong in wanting to work in hospitality, after all, it is a respectable job that earns an honest day’s living. Rather, students need to be stretched mentally and be encouraged to think beyond their geographical limits. Young people have a lot of potential and they can be so much more. It is our job as educators to make them realise it. 

- Zhuomin Lee

Points of View II: Zhuomin Lee, Singapore

This time Zhuomin shares us with us her joys (and frustrations) of teaching English!

"Is it appropriate to express mild frustration about students who just don’t get it? If you are a teacher by profession, this will sound familiar.

Last week students in the intermediate class learnt about clothes, which was fun when it came to role play. They took turns pretending to be customers and shop assistants in a store asking about prices and sizes. This was also a good opportunity to review numbers above one hundred, a lesson they had previously learnt.

This afternoon we went through the same sentence structure again and they made the same grammar mistakes as they did last week. Some also had problems remembering that trousers, shorts and shoes come in pairs.

“I would like to buy a sue.”

“I would like to buy a pair of shoes.”

“It costs 20 dollar.”

“It costs 20 dollarssssss.”

The s sound exists in Khmer, as in Siem Reap and Banteay Srey. However, it is not pronounced if it is at the end of a word. This is why they often miss out the audible s at the end of a plural noun.

“Guys! Remember the s!”. Hiss.

But teachers make mistakes too, and half the time we don’t have the answers either. For example, articles (a, an, a pair of) are hard to remember, even harder still to explain. Two similar items make a pair, so why is it ‘a bikini’ and not ‘a pair of bikini’?

Some grammar rules are as such because… they just are. It sounds correct and it makes sense because we have read, conversed, written, and taken exams in English all our lives, but for individuals who do so in another language, they naturally struggle. In other words, it is like trying to study Khmer from scratch and be expected to do well in four weeks!

The classroom is the only time students get to use their English language skills, since they speak Khmer at home and with their friends. Yet, two hours of practice a day is hardly enough. Although there is a lot of catching up to do, force feeding and setting them challenges way beyond their abilities is not the way to go. As it is, some students have problems attending school. The worst thing to happen is for them to quit school all together, not because of their socio-economic circumstances but because they have completely lost interest in learning.

For the rest of this week, some of us shall probably have to continue to eat, sleep and dream a pair of shoes until the children get it right."

A new well for the village

Kok Thnoat village is about a 30-minute drive away from central Siem Reap. Past the airport and the ancient temple ruins of Bayon, the road leading up to the village is a small pot-holed dirt path, and becomes narrower until no four-wheeled vehicle can pass. The rest of the journey has to be done either on foot or on a bicycle.

Children swing in a hammock. They
belong to one of the few families
who will benefit from the fresh water
supply.

Four year old SreySa (left) and her sister
Srey Chit, 6,sit on the steps of their home.  

On one of our recent visits, a new well was being dug. When finished in a couple of days, this well will be a safe and reliable supply of drinking water shared between four families. Other areas have also been earmarked for new wells, and it is our hope that every family will have their very own water source one day.

A construction worker digs a well with basic
tools. A typical well is between 25 and 30
metres deep and can take up to a week
to complete

A family holds up a well
sign. They will finally
have fresh water indoors
when the pump is ready.

The entire village used to share a derelict public well until some families decided to dig their own in their backyard. At 3m deep, these are unfortunately no more than muddy ditches that breed micro-organisms and algae. They are also a potential drowning hazard for small children.

It gets worse during the rainy season between September and November, when the whole village goes underwater, temporarily suspending all access to drinking water. At one home visit, workers were putting the finishing touches to a new water pump. When completed, it will be connected directly to the house so that the family will have a constant supply of fresh water even during the rainy season.

  

Longbean, morning glory and
pumpkin seeds being distributed.

 Once in a while, when we go around the surrounding villages to see how people are doing, we also 

Lunch from above! Stir fried
tamarind and cabbage, beef
with morning glory and fresh
lettuce leaves

distribute vegetable seeds to help families make a sustainable livelihood. 

Life here is simple and basic—most men work in the town, while their wives look after the home, and children go to a nearby school. But it can sometimes get financially very difficult when the only breadwinner of the family becomes unemployed. 

For others, their only asset is the house they live in, built by their ancestors and passed down through the generations. There is also no electricity in the village. Despite busloads of tourists who visit Angkor Wat every year, local incomes and standards of living have not gone up. As a result, Siem Reap continues to remain one of the poorest provinces in Cambodia.

Beyond the poverty of rural Siem Reap, lies beauty in the form of a welcoming smile and a kind word for the visitor. Sometimes a meal is also generously provided, as it was for us as we happened to be there during lunchtime. This warm hospitality is definitely one of the best experiences in life.

Do visit our donations page, if you would like to make a contribution for a new well. Full-day village tours are also available here. All proceeds from the tour goes towards FKC.

It costs $300 for a well and here FKC
staff show the sign that will placed
at the site

Sew - a needle pulling thread

Every day we have a group of older students who come to study sewing and tailoring. As the demand grows for this vocational training we need more machines and a bigger variety of machines. We also aim to develop sustainable income for the school and the students by offering employment to these students once they have the necessary skills.

In November we were visited by a previous volunteer, Tripti and her mum, Shila. They spent the day here and Shila spent a number of hours with Van Ny, our tailor. Van Ny explained that button making was quite difficult as we didn't have the right machine. Shila kindly agreed to donate a button making machine on her return to England! Van Ny was extremely happy - check out the photos below.

If you are interested in donating, we are always looking for a range of items, so check out our Donate Page.

Van Ny sitting at the new machine

The button hole maker will help with a magnitude
of tasks!

We have also been making school uniforms for the children
recently to make sure they all come to school wearing the
same thing!

The vocational course is taught in both Khmer and English
to help the students gain employment later on.

Staff lunchtime

As you may know, in Cambodia there are two teaching shifts. One from 7.30 until 11, and another from 1.30 until 4. The children are different in both shifts so we end up teaching the same lesson twice! This helps us perfect our lesson plan if need be, but it sure is hard work!

Fortunately we have a couple of amazing cooks at the school - the main ones are Theavy (sewing assistant), Vatana (sewing assistant), Kanha (Deputy Head of Ed and English Teacher and Om Srey(Cook, cleaner, tuck shop lady!).

Most days, we enjoy a large bowl of rice with a soup and a vegetable dish. All locally produced and usually bought in the same village as the school. Most importantly - it is nutritious and delicious, giving us the energy needed for our second class!

Kanha cutting up the vegetables for lunch

A special Cambodian dish made from peas, beef
and a variety of spices

Our cook is always able to knock up
something tasty and filling!

Points of View: Zhuomin Lee, Singapore

Zhuomin joined us last week for three weeks volunteering. We asked her what stood out most to here at the school and she kindly wrote all about it:

"Classroom teaching in Cambodia is a bit of a cultural shock. I don’t mean the part about kids taking lessons in a large shed or outside on the porch. No, I mean the part about them having a sincere respect for their teachers.

Every morning, I receive so much love from an enthusiastic chorus of  “Good morning teacher! How are you today?” It takes all the pre-caffeinated morning grumps away and with little effort, I find myself responding with a “I am fine. Thank you very much. And how are you today?”

“I am fine! Thank you very much!”

The dialogue goes on for a bit sometimes, depending on how much a teacher wants to practise English conversation. Otherwise, the students remain standing until they are told to sit down. And for that, they do a “thank you teacher!”

If someone wants to go to the bathroom, he/she asks for permission to leave the classroom. When he/she comes back, he asks for permission again, to go back to his seat.

Additionally, while teachers can keep their shoes on in class, students are required to remove theirs before entering a classroom. To me, it is a symbolic sign of respect for the institution and the values it embraces, though I cannot verify this, since removing footwear before entering a house is a common practice in Southeast Asia.

It is hard to not be impressed by their manners, considering I wasn’t the most respectful student back in those days. Primary school was a long time ago, but even then, I definitely did not greet my teachers with such enthusiasm. In fact, my manners got worse by the time I was a teenager. Fast forward to the present, some of my friends who are teachers back home in Singapore bemoan unmotivated students who have absolutely no interest in class. A handful has been sent to detention for defiance. No doubt juvenile delinquency is a universal problem in developed and developing countries alike, but at FKC, the students sure know how to respect an education."

Our teachers don't just teach...

As a growing NGO there are always a number of tasks to be done, and we can't pay other people to do to them all the time due to budget restrictions. So what do we do?! We all work together and do it ourselves.

On Saturday morning the teaching staff came at 8am to level out the ground around the school to ensure things are ready for our Christmas Party (more on that soon!). We had a quick break for brunch noodles at 10 and finished for lunch at 11.30. Same again next Saturday!

Shovels, spades, wheelbarrows all made the job easier

There was a lot of sweat but no blood fortunately!

Week round-up: Prue and Alice's last day at school

On Friday we said goodbye to Prue and Alice, volunteers from Australia and England respectively, who have been teaching English at FKC for the last few weeks. It has been a joy having them here with us and we wish them all the best as they return back to life in their home countries.

A child hugs Alice for the last time.
She has been teaching the kindergarten
class for six weeks. She also conducted
music lessons on Thursdays and Fridays

FKC staff and children gather around Prue (left)
and Alice (right) for a final group photo.

Prue says her final goodbyes to her students.
She has been helping out with the Kindergarten
and Starter classes for two weeks.

One of the Lem brothers poses for the camera!

Children crowd around to look at a photograph.

 One of Prue’s students hugs and smiles for the camera.

Students wave goodbye to Alice as they file out of school.

Meet a class! The starter class

The starter class are the second class at FKC. Once they have learned to read and write for about a year in kindergarten they will move to the starter class where they are exposed to more vocabulary and the basics of conversation.

The students listening to a role play exercise

They often cover a range of basic everyday vocabulary such as numbers, colours, food, animals, jobs etc. The students are put in classes depending of their ability, and therefore we have students from 6 to 14 years old in here. 

Chheng is introducing himself to Teacher Nak

Once they have studied here for a year and passed their exam, they can move onto our 'Let's Go' class!

Want to sponsor a student? Check our site for more information www.khmerchild.org

We can do our exercises!

Every month we have a special non-uniform day where the children come in their own clothes, normally this consists of a football kit of their choice although we are unsure whether Arteta plays for Bayern Munich!

For the first hour they sort out their classrooms - putting up any new posters or decorations, cleaning the desks and the room.They then line up and do some exercise, normally starting with a simple warm-up exercise before moving onto stretches and yoga. Finally they get to sing and dance a little!

All the school get involved, which can see around 150 children from ages 3 to 20 fit into our small school yard. Everyone has a smile on their face, even if they do fall over a few times!