Teacher Training

Recently, on the 21st-22nd I hosted a teacher training for 32 teachers from Satpaev/Zhezkazgan. We had three rooms, three rotations and breaks in between. Everyone seemed to have a great time and found the information that Sam, Tom, Gambrill and John presented to be really helpful and awesome.One group of ours, 6 students, organized a really great small bakesale with the help and guidance of one of my teachers Aizhan.She did a really great job organizing them.We had really great baked goods and served chai and coffee. I made some homemade oatmeal raisin cookies which seemed to go over well.The basic schedule went something like this: 3 sessions X 45 minutes with two 15 minute breaks in between. We had three rooms, Sam/Tom, Gambrill/John and me.

We talked about topics

like: teaching reading, teaching speaking, experiential learning, teaching young learners, learning styles, error correction and positive reinforcement. I had a lot of fun teaching the teachers some of the songs I put onto a CD that i gave to each of them. They are a mix of all the camp songs i've grown up singing. I printed out lyrics and added them to the packet of materials. I do feel pretty proud of this seminar, I did most of the organizing myself. I did get a lot of help from my counterpart Assem.

She helped me go to the Akimat and find rooms, she also did a great job in talking to the Director for me.

These teachers ranged from long-time to just graduated. We gave all of the sessions in English and these teachers had to listen to us speak all day. I was really impressed with them.

Some sessions included role-plays and acting, which I'm sure the teachers were not used to and enjoyed. We all worked to engage the teachers in a way that simulated their actual classroom teaching. We also introduced many new games to be adapted for any lesson. Some of my teachers are already using these activities. They told me so today.

Something that was very interesting to me was the propensity for many of the teachers to remain quiet when prompted to enter into a group discussion. One reason could be shyness, not wanting to use their English. Another reason may be that they are used to simply sitting there and listening to lecture.

I had a bit of a time with some of the younger and quieter teachers in the beginning

. On the other hand, I had some young and older teachers who were very very

active and talked all the time. I can safely say that although most of this depends upon personality, some of these teachers have come from villages surrounding Zhez/Satpaev. Some pretty recently too.

This also factors into how they participated in the training. I prepared fancy printed certificates, complete with a peace corps logo and my signature.

At the end of the training we played a big game of Jeopardy. All of the teachers were so into it! Some of them got really competitive. I was really pleased with how it all turned out. Look for the link to the photo album under my photos or just click here.

Spread the Word!

I may be starting to advertise this project too soon, but I really think it's never too soon to celebrate young women doing something in the world.

Here is a link to a new tumblr blog that i've started that will hopefully be continued by the next volunteer after me.

It includes information about a project to be carried out in July 2011 called camp G.L.O.W. as well as materials for other volunteers, our donors and anyone interested in the empowerment of women everywhere. This site isn't just about the project, it's about celebrating these young women while providing a place where others who are interested in preparing similar projects can come to get ideas, advice and simply inspiration. Please follow us!

campG.L.O.W. Kazakhstan

Staring

I was thinking about different topics I could start covering and one major cultural difference dawned on me. Staring. People here stare, blatantly. Without guilt, shame or any reservation. Granted I am a foreigner and I'm the first that many people here have ever seen. In this context, staring is inevitable and can be excused, somewhat...

However, I've been told on numerous occasions just how "Russian" I look and when I'm dressed just right, I can blend in without any problem.

I become invisible and it's fantastic.

With that being said, I get an even better first hand look at how "staring" factors into life here. I'm not blocked by "being the foreigner".

I've come to discern that in situations where I might discreetly glance or try and look out of my peripherals at something or someone, they simply stare and fix their gaze. In this post "they" refers to the locals around me, both Kazakh and Russian men, women and children. No one is excluded from this cultural difference.

For example, not too long ago I was hanging some clothes out on my balcony one day and I looked down at the playground/courtyard [I

live on the 4th floor] and happened to see two men [young 20s] shouting at each other. There were about 3 people in my view at the time the argument started [One grandmother, one other man and an older girl]. The subject of the argument isn't important, all that really needs to be known is that one young man was yelling quite extensively at the other. This ordeal went on for about 45 minutes. By the end of it, there were close to 30 people standing around watching.

Other men, women and quite a few children. They moved so close I thought someone helping break up the fight was going to say something to them. But no one said a thing.

I thought about this and began to imagine what would happen if this kind of event happened in the states. Would there be 30 people just standing around and STARING?

As for me, I believe not. I started thinking about what I would have done if I had been in close proximity to them. I most definitely would have walked by very quickly and I wouldn't have so much as glanced at the scene happening.

I asked myself, Why? Why do I have such an aversion to even look at this type of situation happening. I came to two different conclusions. One, my personality is such that I really don't like confrontations between other people and I've always been keen to avoid them. The other, is that my "social mores" , hard-wired into my pre-frontal cortex, tell me that I have no right to enter into a private affair of another. No matter how public they make their issue. It's my environment vs. the one I find myself in right now.

This process is fascinating to me. The assumption that they will be angry with me or offended by me if I simply sit and stare at them, is one so strong and powerful that I cannot avoid acting in accordance with it. The environment and culture I have occupied in my 24 years completely dictate how I respond to situations even when I am removed from them. That in itself is pretty incredible.

On the reverse, the same can be said for the locals I find myself living amongst.

This is not to say that people in the states don't stare, but we usually stare from afar. I don't mean to generalize any people group in saying this either, I just know in my experience, blatant staring is a big social mistake. This is something that isn't seen as rude in this part of the world. I'm also not pointing this out as a fault, just as a difference.

I will be posting again soon about some other differences I've been mulling over in my head.

Namely,

-class etiquette

-restaurant/customer service etiquette

-CELLPHONES

-school system [high school]

Meat, Meat and more Meat

This is an excerpt from an actual book we used in class yesterday that I just had to share. It give detailed instructions and recipes for the most traditional Kazakh food. Perhaps after reading you might understand better how pertinent getting my own apartment was for me....

UNIT 1 " Foods and National Cooking"
1. Topic for reading and conversation:
MEAT IN THE KAZAKH MANNER

[Recipe for Besbarmak]
For Broth: 750 g of mutton, 1270 g of flesh [what exactly they mean, i have no idea], 1200 g beef, 1-2 onions, green onions [though i have never ever seen these in an actual recipe], salt and "spice" to taste [of which there is usually none].
For Dough: 375 g of flour, 1/3 of a piala [cup] of meat broth or water, 2 eggs, a teaspoon of salt.
For Gravy: A cup of broth, 1-2 onions

This dish is made from mutton, horse flesh and beef. [Though, when i've seen it there is only one meat at a time. Usually mutton or horse]
The prepared and washed pieces of meat are put in a cauldron or pan with cold and water and brounght to boiling. Then the fire is lessened, scum [which i can only assume is fat] is removed and meat is slow boiled till ready. 30-40 minutes until the end of boiling [usually 5-6 hours in my experience] laurel leaf, an onion, pepper and salt are added to the broth. While the meat is boiling, the dough is kneaded. It is left for 30-40 minutes, then rolled out very thin [1 mm] and cut into squares. In a separate pan onion rings are cut, salt and pepper are added and covered with fat skimmed from the hot broth, and is then stewed.
The squares of rolled dough are dropped into the broth, then once done, laid out on a flat plate and covered with gravy. Then the meat is laid on top of that with the fat-stewed onions."


mmmmmmm, right?

This dish is served at every major occasions, from teachers day to weddings to funerals. Kazakhs love it and are extremely proud of it as their national food.

Here is the next lovely description.....
Disclaimer: This one describes cutting up a horse, if you have squirming issues, pass this one!


"DELICACIES OF HORSE FLESH [which i now have deducted to mean meat]

For making: 5kg of kazy [which i assume is a specific type of meat from the horse, similar to how we name steak cuts after different parts of the cow], 350 g of salt, 10g of black pepper, a head of garlic.
For serving the table: 100g of kazy, 0.25 of an onion, 2 table spoons of green canned peas.

From the carcass of the slaughtered horse the ribs with flesh are cut off and the blood is drained for 5-7 hours. The guts are washed well and kept in salt water for 1-2 hours. The slightly dried up kazy are cut into strips along the ribs. The interrib tissue is cut with a sharp knife removing cartilage without crumbling fat. Then the meat is salted and peppered, finely cut garlic is added and meat is wrapped in a narkin [not exactly sure what this is, i'll find out and post the description] for 2-3 hours. Then the meat is stuffed into guts [intestine lining], the ends of which are tied up. After this the kazy can be dried, boiled and smoked. It is better to dry kazy by warm weather hanging them out for a week in a sunny aired place. It is best to smoke kazy in dew smoke at the temperature of 50-60 C during 12-18 hours and dry them up during 4-6 hours at 12 C. "

and now for something "lighter".....

"SORPA IN THE KAZAKH MANNER

For making: 500 g of mutton, 2.5-3 liters of water, 0.5 tablespoon salt.

Meat is carefully washed in cold water, put in a pan, covered with boiling water and boiled for about 1-1.5 hours [in my experience it's been much, much longer]. When the water begins to boil scum and the surplus of fat should be removed [key word there, SHOULD]. At the end of boiling salt is added. Meat's readiness is simple to determine: if the fork easily pierces the meat is ready. The broth should be strained and then poured in a soup plate of kece [chai cup]. Meat and baursaks [a traditional puffed bread] are added."

This dish is always served alongside Besbarmak, their relationship is as common as pizza and salad is to us.

and I've saved one of the best for last...

"KARTA

For making of karta: 100 g of karta [which include parts of the large intestine], salt, green pepper or dill [which is everywhere] to taste.
The thick part of the rectum is washed without removing fat, then carefully turned inside out, washed once more and tied up on both ends. Karta can also be dried and smoked. To dry it, karta is strewed [I assume: strewn up ] with fine salt and kept in a cool place for 1-2 days, then dried. Karta is smoked during 24 hours, then dried during 2-3 days. After washing it well, karta is boiled for 2 hours on slow fire [low heat]. Before serving the table it is cut in rings and
decorated with green pepper or dill."

These are some of the main entrees Kazakhs make for every occasion. In the south and north there are differences in prevalence and even preparation methods for all of these. I'm glad I stumbled upon these descriptions. I also hope this give more of an idea of the diet and that Kazakh history has retained its influence on its people.

Teachers Day

This saturday we celebrated Teachers day at my college [high school]. I was walking to work with my headphones in like any other day and as I walked into the front entry way a line of students, dressed to the nines, chanted :

Мерекетіңізбен күтті болсен![Mer-e-ket-ingiz-ben koot-tuh bol-cen!]

Which literally translates as: "With your holiday, be happy!"

I was so surprised that all i could muster was a whispered thank you and a shy smile as I continued onto my teachers room. When I got there, there was food and tea and everyone was in a celebratory mood. I've described in some detail before how the system, especially college, is set up. First there are the students, regular teachers, administration, zavuchs [principals/vice principals] and then the head honcho, the director. This person, in my experience has usually been a woman, is treated as if she were royalty. Her decisions are absolutely final, she doesn't have to bend to anyone else's time and she won't, EVER.

Our director is actually really wonderful most of the time, she has a very strong character and I do admire that about her. Nevertheless, she knows what she wants from everyone and she demands it.

With that being said, my teachers and I went to wish our director a very happy Teachers day. This ended, after only 40 minutes, with me having ingested almost 4 full shots of cognac [on a relatively empty stomach], being practically proposed to by one of the other male teachers and successfully [though probably not gracefully] giving a toast to everyone in 3 departments in Kazakh.

My teachers day was full of fun and was a day of very unexpected events. My college is the private college in my town, whereas the other college, university and most secondary schools [minus the Kazakh/Turkish lyceum] are all public. What this means, on a very basic level, is that my students [who pay tuition directly] have more of an opportunity to "compensate" for missed classes, assignments or even full semesters. With that being said, I tend to have students who are active in class but don't really see the point in putting forth tons and tons of energy. I've come to learn this early on, thank goodness, and now really focus my efforts towards the students who are willing to learn from me. This has proven to not be so challenging as it may seem. I have a wonderful group of girls that I interact with on a weekly basis, whether it be through clubs, yoga or simply seeing them in town. They have given my service a new and very fulfilling direction. I'm finding things to be settling into a very nice rhythm lately, and I am very looking forward to the weeks and months to come.

Back in Action

It has been quite a long time since I've posted anything. I have discovered a way to access this blog which makes me very very happy that I can continue to write here. SO let's delve right into a short, concise update, then some hopefully entertaining and thought provoking insights.
I last posted here on this site back in december. There has been many many happenings since then but here's a rough breakdown:
December-May-I celebrated New Years, got lots of ice in my eyelashes, had IST [Inservice training], winced the day it snowed in early May, "taught" a lot of yoga and moved into my own apartment.
May 25-School ended, went to work in Pavlodar for a business seminar [don't ask me how I can get away with presenting at a business seminar, that's the beauty of the projects you design here, you can call them anything you want]
June, July- Participated in campG.L.O.W., which I will be running this next summer, traveled around the south, namely Taldykorgan and Shymkent. [played frisbee, volleyball and went to an amazing flea market in Shymkent]
July 27-August 18- Switzerland with the family, celebrated 60 years of marriage between my grandparents [Congratulations again, Love you both very much], picked up a little Bern Deutch and simply just ate a lot of really good cheese.
August, September- Came back to Zhezkazgan, began my second year of teaching, got internet, figured out the proxy server thing and that brings us up to date.
WHEW. sorry if that wasn't at all interesting but laying the groundwork for what I'm actually going to talk about in this post seems necessary. Travelling in and around different areas of this vast, empty country of only 19 million (yes only 19 million) people and then getting to go to a magically beautiful [and frighteningly expensive] country for 23 days has left me with many sharpened observations of the people and ebb and flow of Kazakhstani life that I've had the urge to articulate and put into words.

Namely, that Kazakh people (not necessarily Russian) generally remain complacent in living not very far past their own doorsteps. As opposed to most Americans and Europeans. I, of course, have the in depth view of a large town of only 100,000 people. I can most certainly imagine that in the bigger cities of Astana and Almaty you will find people pushing their own autonomy to its' limits. I must also put the disclaimer that my insight has been into strictly Kazakh womens' lives. I work with women, teach Kazakh high school aged girls and most of the people I interact with in the community are Kazakh women. Therefore, my assertions should be taken within context. The last thing I want to do is make claims about a culture that I only know a fraction about in such a way that leads people to believe I know everything. Uncovering how another social system, culture and groupthink structure operates takes many many many layers of constant insights and breakthroughs. I have only scratched the surface of how the people I interact with every day think and how they are motivated the way to are day to day. I can say with some confidence that the stark contrast between the heavy reliance of a groupthink mentality seen so often in the pockets of Kazakhstan and the exaltation of autonomy seen everywhere in America came to me with the most prevalence.

I was sitting in my teachers room, drinking chai as usual and I just sat there and observed.These wonderful women, whom i've come to know and trust were just simply talking about life. Their conversations stretched from children, husbands, work to chores at home. They complained [and rightly so] about not having enough money for the work they do, how their husbands don't really help at home, how their children danced in a recital and the director said "not good enough". These anecdotes being passed around were cyclical and practically identical to many stories I had heard from them before. I withdrew from the conversation [which wasn't the most uncommon thing for me to do], sipped my water and discreetly scribbled in my journal:

"It's as if everyone is a slave to the same mindset, the same opinions. no individuality, which in turn drives complacency.
This is one affect of the "soviet hangover", more prevalent in Kazakhs simply because there is a rich tradition that aids this mindset and drives being subserviant to a certain way of life, especially for women. This country, this experience is making me a feminist. A big one."

By writing this, I merely attempt to make sense of an observation that had been formulating for many many months. And like i've said before my breadth is limited to my group of co-workers and community members. By no means, do I want to imply that this is a lesser way of thinking, living or working. I simply want to point out the contrast that has come to full volition whilst i've been here in Kazakhstan for over 400 days. With that being said, inside the same vein of thought, I am getting to know my college [high school] girls more closely and I've haphazardly become so attached to each and every one of them. They are my new mission. They are each so incredible, bright and promising in their different ways. I want to show them what empowerment, strength and gumption look like. Big shoes to fill, i know, but by simply being here I feel that i'm accomplishing a tiny fraction of that cause.

This entry was a bit introspective and contemplative but I hope at the very least it was entertaining, if not informative. Much more to come, very soon.

Here are a my other blog posts from January-May
05/25/2010
Well my classes finally ended yesterday. In all of the secondary schools there were huge ceremonies where the national anthem was played [most likely more than once] and kids marched for the “final bell” of the school year. I’m currently traveling to Pavlodar where i’ll take part in a business Seminar put on by the volunteers up there. I’m sitting at a cafe in Karaganda [that has free wifi] waiting for my friend Elena to come meet me for lunch. I really like this city, it’s big enough where I feel like i can blend in, but its small enough to where it’s not overwhelming. I’m really looking forward to being in Pavlodar for a week with Shannon. The weather up there should be moderate, like spring in CA. We’re going to go running and swimming which will be so refreshing and really help summer kick off to a great start. I will be in Switzerland in less than 9 weeks! I can’t believe it. These next few months are going to be amazing. I will post more pictures soon.

05/15/2010
Many things and events have taken place since then but i will try and summarize them quickly then send out some links to pictures from my facebook account to go along with this post.

January- I went to Astana to celebrate the new year and all that jazz.

February- We celebrated Valentines day and I went to the banya ALOT since it was -35 C outside most every day.

March- Weather was a little better, I taught more classes and we celebrated the big Kazakh tradition of Nauryz. Which is basically their new year. I was in Shymkent in the south and it was glorious to leave the snow and make it to sun and green grass. While I was down there I also helped with a project where we had some students show us around as english tour guides. I had a blast.

April- Things slowed down after I can back from Shymkent, It rained pretty frequently [but didn't snow] and I held a small health seminar with one of the other volunteers for my students. We talked about healthy eating, cooking and Jamie talked about smoking.

May- So here we are now in May. I know I brushed through all of that super fast and there are things I am leaving out but for the most part that is what I have been up too. Not too much has changed minus the snow melting and some holidays being celebrated. I am in love with Springtime here. The river behind my apartment is green and trees has lush leaves and long grass surrounding them. I can’t believe it’s the same ground I walked on for 6 months in gray and snow. In literally 4 days, the green sprouted up. I’m told that it will stay like this for the majority of the summer. It’s fantastic.

I did move out of my host family this month into my own apartment. It’s beautiful and I am really happy i found it. I have my own washing machine and BBC news on cable. I have my very own kitchen which is my favorite part. I’ve been cooking nonstop and have gotten down making handmade breads and crusts. I never thought I would be able to master the “make from scratch” skill. But Kazakhstan has changed me in more ways than one so I might as well add that to the list.

These next few weeks are going to be pretty busy for me. I plan to give a second session on resume/cv writing for my college and a teaching methodology camp for my students going on to work as elementary school teachers. I’ll basically share all the TEFL training that I received from PC while teaching them all of the games and activities I’ve learned working at camp my whole life. I can wait to impart all that knowledge, I have a feeling it will be fulfilling and the girls will actually appreciate it. That same week I hope to teach some art at an org for disabled kids here in Zhezkazgan. It’s called Children without Borders. I will open it up to kids in the community so that local kids can mingle with the CWB kids. I’ve been told that they kind of stay in their own world which can be detrimental.

Then after that I’ll be going to help with a frisbee camp which I’m really excited about. I love frisbee and the kids out here just can’t get enough of it! For the 4th of July we’ll all be up in Astana to celebrate then i’m going to hold a health camp with my friends Jess and Leah for the week following. After that I have a week or so to putz around and then I’m off to SWITZERLAND. Which is going to be the highlight of my year hands down. I can’t wait! More on that later.

SOOOO… As this is a very rudimentary and somewhat undetailed update I hope that anyone who has questions or wants to more will say something! Here are some links and I will most definitely post again and in more detail…
01/16/2010
So, with the new year already here I think it’s about time I posted another update. I have had a wonderful start to the new year. I was in Astana, visiting with some friends and I got to see the capital. I saw the Baeteilik [not sure on the spelling], which is on all of the money in Kazakhstan. It’s a symbol of Kazakhstan’s roots and future prosperity intertwined. The monument itself is said to resemble a tree with a bird’s nest at the top, what kind of bird i’m not exactly sure. It could be an owl because the owl is a bird that is highly revered in this part of the world. This is something I learned recently at my last Kazakh lesson. Supposedly, men who play the dombra [the national musical instrument, kind of like a guitar], place owl feathers at the end of their instruments for good measure. Needless to say, it was great to see. You enter in through the bottom floor, pay 500 tenge to get in the elevator to go up inside the “nest”, from where you can get a 360 degree view of Astana. There is a small restaurant at the top and a place to put your hand on President Nursultan Nazerbayev’s gold plated handprint. Some of the other volunteers and I agree that his hand must have been enlarged from the size it actually is. We only agree on this fact because the president is pretty short and stout and the handprint just doesn’t look like a match. Maybe he felt he needed to make his hand bigger to include everyone who comes to put their hand there. This is only a speculation, needless to say it was fun and I’m glad I went to the top. I took some pictures from there of the parliamentary “white house” where Nazerbayev lives. The golden towers are also there. The square in which the monument and the white house is situated is the most rapidly changing section of Astana. There are at least 7 magnificent modern buildings all right next to each other in the 3 block radius. The national library is also in the new section of Astana. All of the magnificent architecture has been constructed by many different european artists and professionals. Nazerbayev wants Astana to become a cultural hub for central asia and europe. I must say with the way he’s going, that very well may happen in the next few decades.

Basically there are two sides of Astana. The new city and the old city. The two parts are disconnected by a river and connected by a massive bridge. Astana is a very compact city and is smaller than the southern former capital, Almaty. Astana is also extremely expensive to live in and outside of. For example, a bus ride in my city, Zhezkazgan, is only 25 tenge. In Astana it’s 60! This doesn’t seem like much, but it certainly adds up. A 3 room apartment [a bedroom, kitchen and living room] can cost upwards of 70,000 dollars to purchase and that is on the low end! I saw signs for a new ritz carlton that will be built, which means prices are only going to go up in that area of the city. The architecture is really beautiful and Nazerbayev has spared no expense. Every day the city is changing and becoming more glamorous. More than 9% of all the country’s revenue goes to making Astana look better. So many new buildings have been erected in the past decade, it is practically a different place all together than what it used to be.

I also went to Pavlodar for the day to visit my friend Shannon. We had such a good time with her family and visiting the other volunteers. I was able to see a mosque that was gorgeous and we took pictures out at the frozen river. The people in Pavlodar are uncommonly kind and I had a great time speaking Kazakh with Shannon’s family. The whole city is pretty spread out and there are some really nice cafes there. Shannon and I went to a really great Turkish coffee place. It felt very european and had a very warm atmosphere. I would love to live in Pavlodar just as much as a I like living here in Zhezkazgan. I made some new friends too and I can’t wait to go back to Astana to visit! All in all I had an amazing New Year.