Two New Projects and an Update

The World Map Project

The World Map Project is an initiative created by Peace Corps volunteer Barbara Jo White (Dominican Republic, 1987-1989). Simply put, the project involves drawing and painting a map of the world on any flat surface (e.g. the wall of a school building) using the Grid Method (transferring information from pre-gridded map sheets onto the flat surface) or the Projection Method (using an overhead projector and a single world map transparency). In addition to a number of fantastic Peace Corps Uganda World Map Projects that have recently been completed, I plan to do one at Kongunga Primary School using the Projection Method in the next couple of weeks.

Why the World Map Project?
* It's relatively easy and simple for anybody to complete.
* It teaches students about geography and the world around them.
* It can be drawn and painted anywhere (school walls, classrooms, community buildings, libraries, etc).
* It instills pride, accomplishment, and teamwork.

To read more about the initiative, visit:
http://multimedia.peacecorps.gov/multimedia/pdf/library/R0088_worldmapproject.pdf
http://www.theworldmapproject.com/

Women's Group

Yesterday was the first meeting of the Women's Group I am continuing at the Mission; the group, of not more than 20 women, was initially started by a previous volunteer (not Peace Corps) and co-led by Betty. The purpose of the group is to discuss health-related issues; issues of gender, diversity, and self-respect; and any other issues that the members, perhaps, don't feel comfortable sharing with their husbands or families. I hope to empower the women in the group by providing them with a safe place to talk about issues that concern their everyday livelihoods. The group will meet every Tuesday at 2:00PM.

Update on the Composition Writing Assignment...

Written about in a previous post, I am primarily teaching composition writing in my Senior 3 English class this term. Each week, my students have been responding to composition writing topics in their journals; in turn, Atim Christine (my teaching counterpart) and I have been giving weekly feedback/constructive criticism/suggestions for areas of improvement. To be honest, while some students' writing has noticeably improved from week to week, I anticipate this to be a slow and gradual process. For many of my students, for instance, this is the first time they are being asked to use critical thinking, write with description, include an introduction and conclusion in their writing, and explain more than just listing points with, "Because of the following reasons..." If I can teach them to move past their natural inclination to just list without describing "why?" or "how?" and write more freely, openly, and sincerely, the assignment won't be all for naught. Only time will tell...