Resolved: A Teacher is Better than a Doctor

I had another successful and really rewarding side project this week that allowed me work with some really talented students, brought about something substantial,  and reminded me where my talents were strongest. . . .

I knew some of our 6th grade students were always having debates among themselves, and now that our beautiful hall is fully constructed and inaugurated by an ordination, everything was in place.  Hearing of plans for a debate, I helped one 6th grade student I’ve grown close to formulate a debate challenge to the 8th grade class, and volunteered to help organize things.  

Thanks teachers!

As the week went on, I got the team lists and team captains clarified, found teachers to help judge, held a meeting to discuss the rules, and encouraged the students.

However, this place continues to remind me that the better prepared you are, the more likely it is that something will happen to mess with the plan.   On Friday, we had one of the morning deluges that makes our students come late or not at all, the sisters in charge of the school needed to leave unexpectedly for doctors and embassies, and other difficulties.  But with the teams mostly intact and some fantastic teachers who stepped up, I kind of unilaterally decided to have it, and Alhamdulillah, everything fell into place better than I could have imagined it.

Teachers, without being asked, took on roles I, as a non-debater, hadn’t anticipated were necessary, with great enthusiasm.  The students showed up to watch, and stayed to listen long after school despite empty stomachs.  And the debaters did so well, debating the respective merits of doctors and teacher with such dignity and pride, it melted my heart with simultaneous pride and humility.

In the end, the results were incredibly close but the upperclassmen, in part due to greater showmanship, took it by a few points.  I had to console my favorite 6th grader, who despite such an impressive effort, a perfect score from one of the judges, and the courage to challenge the upperclassmen, was distraught. . . which then broke my newly-melted heart.

The brave 6th grade captain.  So proud of her!

And it was a perfect fit with my talents and way of organizing things.  It was an academic acivity that brought me closer to the students, like myself at the same age, are interested in communication and social issues (being smart can be so lonely at that age).  I made someone else's dream areality with my skills of  communication, organization, and problem-solving. I worked behind the scenes, and on the day of, I stepped back, volunteered to be timekeeper, let those with the greatest stake in things rule the day in more prominent roles.  Sr. Betty gave me some credit at the end, but that was less important than quietly watching the clock run down and knowing that it probably wouldn’t have happened had I not stepped up.

As a VIDES volunteer I am supposed to give the youth confidence. The debate accomplished this in many ways, and gave me as a young volunteer a bit of confidence as well.

Hopefully it continues.  We have tentative plans to repeat it with a 6th grade-7th grade debate on Friday, and my goal is to arrange and coach a debate against the secondary school before I leave at the end of July.  Stay tuned.

In my comfort zone: setting things in motion, stepping
behind the real stars, and letting them shine.
(see if you can spot me behind the speaker)