A true home away from home
View(s):Volunteer Jamie Snedden recounts his experience as a young teacher of spoken English to children at a government school in the south
This time last year I was sitting at a small wooden desk in a school in Scotland. I was studying for my higher exams, the Scottish equivalent of the A /Levels. My exams were challenging. Little did I know that life after school was set to be equally challenging. Upon completing my studies I was signed up to swap snow for sun. I came to Sri Lanka to live and work as a volunteer English teacher for one year. Now 8 months into my time here and once again, I am seated at a desk.
As soon as I stepped off the plane last September, the first of the year’s challenges instantly hit me physically. It was the heat. Coming fresh from a cold country, and never having lived in a tropical climate before, I was struck down by just how thick and clammy the air is in Sri Lanka. I realised then that whatever challenge I was destined to face over the coming 12 months, I would have to deal with all whilst combating this relentless climate. Still, 8 months in, I forever feel slightly too warm.
I live with a local Sri Lankan family. They have looked after me in every way and in doing so they echo the good and welcoming nature of many of the Sri Lankan people I have met. They continually give me tips on improving my ever terrible use of Sinhala; they despair daily at how little food I eat; they constantly make sure I’m healthy and well, all the while offering intriguing (and almost always painful) local remedies whenever I’m not. It is largely because of my host family that when people ask me what the highlight of my time here has been, I always say that the best part is the constant love of everyday life. Walking down the street, burnt and sweaty, I am obviously an outsider. But it is now lovely to be settled enough to be recognised by local shopkeepers and bus conductors, with my sweat patches accepted.
School is in many ways, the hardest aspect of life in Sri Lanka. The difficulties I encounter perhaps stem from my fairly obvious lack of age, as well as my totally obvious lack of experience. Problems have arisen from an inability to adapt to the numerous differences between Sri Lankan and British schools. For example, in Scotland schools begin at a civilised 9am. This is an entire 2 hours after I have to arrive at school every morning here. Class sizes at home are often restricted to 20 students, whilst here they regularly exceed 40 small, very loud children. Unusually for a foreign volunteer, I am working in local government schools, not private colleges. I teach spoken English to primary aged children.
Painful mornings aside, I noticed early on that most children at school are eager and excited to come to school. They clearly have no problem with a 5.30am alarm. This perpetual enthusiasm highlights another big contrast to many schools in the U.K, which feature slothful kids who take education for granted. I am amazed by how perfectly turned out the pupil’s uniforms are, and how much pride they take in simply being at school.
Jamie at work in the classroom
Whilst the job is frequently difficult, I never fail to be bombarded with smiles and warmth from pupils and teachers alike. Even when I’m finding school hard, I still appreciate their positivity.
As a volunteer teacher my short time here is not primarily for recreational purposes. Consequently, I often find myself experiencing an unusual perspective; one where I work, eat and live with local people, but travel and explore as any other backpacker might. This is a constantly interesting perch to occupy, as the unusual half-in half-out position can often give me the best of two worlds, ever adding to the quirks of the year.
It would be a lie if I said that everything here is easy, because it isn’t. Teaching tests me frequently and occasionally I feel the long distance that stands between me and my home and my family. Heck, I even miss the miserable winter. Nevertheless, it would be a lie if I said that these things over shadow all the positive experiences I have had, and continue to have.
I find Sri Lanka to be a very diverse country, in both its landscapes and its inhabitants. I take pleasure in travelling, working and celebrating this diversity, and yet I always return back to my home base, with caring hosts and their gigantic lunches. In living here for a year it is my hope that through looking, learning and being, I too am temporarily adding to this diversity. I am constantly thankful for the hospitality shown in Sri Lanka and it has evolved into a true home away from home.
Jamie Snedden, 18, is a volunteer teacher with the Senehasa Trust, a UK based charity determined to make a real difference at the community level in Sri Lanka. Working within the charity’s English Development Programme, he has taught spoken English to primary aged children in two government schools in the Southern Province.
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