A General Heidi Update - With Pictures!

I was thinking that any regular readers out there might be feeling a little weary of my descriptions of the challenges of working in Zambia, so it was time to make sure the positive side received its proper due. Overall, life here is quite good. The rains have subsided and most days are pleasantly warm. I continue to enjoy having the flexibility to put together my own schedule for each day. It’s also great not to have papers to grade! In my free time I am enjoying yoga, a toastmasters club, and various parties or dinners out with friends. I occasionally host movie night at my house, which is good fun.

I have been able to go on one camping trip since returning in 2008. A friend and I went on a relaxing trip to a campsite on the Zambezi River. We mostly lazed around reading and cooling off in the pool, but also went on one boat ride. It’s the peak of bird season, so this post includes some of my better bird pictures from that trip: a red bishop flying off, pied kingfishers, knob billed (comb) ducks, a saddle billed stork, and the nest of some weaver birds (not sure what species). We also viewed a lovely sunset from the boat ride.

I do have plenty of work to keep me busy now. A few weeks ago I completed a first draft of a long document about the lessons we have learned about school computer projects in Zambia, and what issues and problems those working in this field should be considering. I was fortunate enough to find a few folks willing to wade through the document and offer me feedback, so its now time for me to start revising. I am also continuing to work with schools on various ways to improve their computer projects and make their projects last. I am hoping that developing a critical mass of trained users is one key to long term success, so am continuing to work on staff training. I organized a short course in Excel for school secretaries and accountants, and am also setting up a repeat of the week long teacher training sessions that were held last April and August.

My plans for the future are still unknown. My volunteering will end at the end of July, and my sponsor and I both hope that the school support work I am doing here can then be turned over to a Zambian. It’s possible, though, that my sponsor will hire me to work here for an additional year if a suitable project can be found (and I decide I want to be away from Seattle for another year…). There may be an opportunity for me to help a teachers college outside Lusaka develop an in-service training course in computer skills. I also recently chatted with a yoga buddy who works for a USAID funded project who is interested in getting me involved in a possible research study on how (and if) the new low cost laptops can change teaching and learning. My last picture on this blog shows a few kids (that one of my volunteer friends works with) getting a sneak peak at two of those small laptops – the One Laptop per Child XO, and the ASUS EEE PC. The EEE had a layout that was more familiar and easier for us all to use, but the XO looks very sturdy! I would like to get a longer look at both of these machines.