‘‘‘Teacher, please don’t go.’ were the last words that the Ethiopians cried out, wiping their tears while trailing along our vehicle’s pathway.” said Lee Dagam (CE M.S.-Ph.D integrated), a team leader. During community service, students often believe that they are the only ones providing the deeds. However, Lee felt that she was the one who had learned more from the students.
The community service was performed in two schools, Vera School and Deya Elementary School. Postechians were divided into two groups so that each group could teach at one school and swap after about ten days. For each school, Postechians were committed to service that required intellect and labor.
The teachers taught several subjects such as science, physical education, music, and art for three periods in the morning. One of the biggest difficulties that the teachers experience in Deya Elementary School was that the students were unable to communicate in English. Therefore the teachers had a hard time explaining certain theories to the students. However, because the students were extremely obedient and enthusiastic in learning, the teachers felt attached to them. Lee said that she could “feel how purely that the students liked them, without any pretense.” Compared to the students in Deya Elementary School, Vera School students were pretty fluent in English and had already learned basic theories such as E=mc2. Thus, the teachers had to apply a higher knowledge of education. The teachers had also prepared a variety of performances such as Tae Kwon Do, K-Pop, dance, and Nanta so that the students could have a cultural experience.
Other than that, the teachers had helped renovate the areas around school. In Debeso Village, the locals cannot work if they run out of water, and it does not rain often. To increase the work time efficiency, the volunteers dug up a four meter burrow for each household. In addition to that, the teachers built fire pots, bricks to build houses, and concrete pathways. In Vera School, the teachers built a basket stand. In addition, Hyenas occasionally appear during the night and make a ruckus. To prevent this from happening, the teachers built a fence around the school. Overall, Postechians had an extremely hectic schedule from morning until the afternoon. Even during the night, they did not have time to relax, as they had to attend to their daily meeting.
As this was the first round of community service to Ethiopia, the students had no information on the level of education they had to prepare, or how to prepare for the trip. Therefore they had to plan the trip from scratch. Although the trip needs a few improvements, students felt that it was a worthwhile experience. “A tip for the next volunteers is to increase their physical stamina, as this community service trip requires a rigorous schedule.”