Workshop on 16 November 2018 – “How to create a course plan for ‘Technical English'”
How it all began
Before my arrival at the LGTC in September 2018, I had an intense and careful preparation phase in Karlsruhe (Germany), many meetings with Prof. Martin, Johannes Zeck, and several volunteers of previous teams, and I read this blog and other literature about Laos. However, I was still not sure what to expect culturally and personally from my time in Laos, and I could not have said how I felt about my upcoming task as a tandem-partner for an LGTC English teacher.
During my preparation phase I was already facing two distinct opinions regarding the English coursebook Technical English 1: My future Lao English teacher-colleagues, who had quite a negative attitude towards the coursebook on the one hand, and Prof. Martin on the other hand, who had spent quite some time in the summer of 2016 reviewing dozens of coursebooks on Technical English together with the first LGTC volunteers Lena Wink and Denise Burkhardt (Team III). They had finally chosen this course book. I was sensing that there was a lot of work to come.
In July 2018, the LGTC volunteers of Team VII (including me) were invited to Weiherhammer (Germany) so as to get to know the responsible persons of the English department at the LGTC, Mr Saythong Insarn and Ms Moukdala Keomixai, who were visiting BHS over the summer. Johannes Zeck chaired the meeting with the Lao teachers, us three volunteers, and Prof. Martin, during which Mr Saythong and Ms Moukdala repeated again that their attitude towards the course book Technical English 1 was still problematic and they had doubts whether the course book would fit their students’ needs.1 By contrast, I was hearing and reading how positively the previous workshops on this topic had been received at the LGTC and why and how carefully the course book had been picked out.2
Shortly after our arrival in Vientiane, we held our first English teachers meeting, in which we did not only talk about our work at the LGTC, but also about the ongoing concerns and struggles of the English teachers in their English lessons which had already been mentioned back in Weiherhammer. Although the teachers had worked with the international course book Technical English 1 by Pearson for almost one year by then, they still felt overwhelmed and were not satisfied yet. These were their concerns:
- general struggle of the students learning English (Latin alphabet, big classes, understanding the grammar covered in the book)
- some unsuitable topics for Lao students but also Lao teachers, e.g. heating systems, robotic vacuum cleaners (these items are of no relevance to them)
- exhausting preparation for the teachers because of the amount of material provided by Technical English 1. The course book consists of three parts, which does not sound a lot for a person who grew up in a print-based culture, but for people from an oral culture, this is a lot to process.3
Dilara, Ms Akina, Ms Viengkhom, Ms Moukdala and I hold our first English teachers meeting.
At first, the concerns of the English teachers seemed quite reasonable to me, and I thought that the situation would improve as soon as we, the volunteers, started our tandem-teaching and mentoring. However, I soon realised that the concerns were larger than expected. The first English teachers meeting and several other individual talks with my tandem-teacher Ms Moukdala Keomixai made me understand that I would have to provide more than only tandem-teaching and general mentoring for individual lessons.
In addition to the teacher’s book provided by the publisher (Pearson), the teachers would need a well-suited and adjusted guideline for the course book material to make the content of the book more accessible for their students. “Lao oral culture” means that people are simply not used to reading books. This is the reason why it is hard for the teachers to get an overview or quick grasp of the three academically structured books – teacher’s book, student’s book, workbook – that are provided for each level.
Considering the teachers’ concerns, I reflected on our experiences during class and preparation lessons together so far, and we brainstormed how the course book situation during our time at the LGTC could be improved. It was recalled that both Prof. Martin and the previous team had already recommended to the LGTC teachers to use simultaneous time management to plan their school year, to stick to the order of the chapters in the course book, and to write lesson plans.5
As Team VI had not only recommended, but also covered the latter in a workshop, I thought it would be useful to tackle the next hurdle: Creating a course plan with the teachers. This may not sound like a big project to Western teachers who are used to making course plans for the entire year, especially when there is a teacher’s book to follow, but for me it was quite a challenge because it meant a) providing necessary and well-defined support for the Lao students to learn English with this book on the one hand, b) introducing a completely new approach and structure the Lao English teachers on the other hand, whilst c) trying to convince them that it would be worth the effort to invest extra work in this enterprise.
The course plan would include the following:
- a plan for the academic teaching year(s),
- a structure to follow,
- a collection of various tasks, exercises, and teaching ideas (e.g. games, activities), partly selected from the teacher’s book, partly added by me,
- additional material (e.g. flashcards and picture cards), created by me/us.
This led me to the idea to support the teachers not only by planning their lessons together, but also by collecting and sharing the material within the English teacher group.6
As it took some time to settle in at the LGTC properly and to collect my own impressions about the situation, I started working together with Ms Moukdala on a first draft of the course plan. I also consulted Mr Saythong Insarn to make sure his wishes for the course plan were considered, which was also valuable for me because he helped me to understand the educational system at the LGTC better.7
After creating the first draft, I started meeting up with the English teachers, which also included Ms Viengkhom Phyathep and Ms Akina Yadsadahuky, every Thursday afternoon to forward this project. My goal was to hopefully facilitate and establish satisfaction and confidence in teaching with the Techncial English 1 course book. As our regular workloads increased with this project, I realised it would need more official support and a more general standing, so we informed Mr Khamsavay Gnommilavong, the Acting Director of the LGTC, that we would make the structure of the course plan the topic of a workshop for all English teachers.
The English teachers and Dilara Erdogan get ready for the workshop…
… Ms Moukdala and Ms Viengkhom are excited to hear about the course plan…
… and Patricia Hopp starts with our workshop.
The structure of our workshop covered the following questions:
- What is a course plan?
- Why create a course plan?
- What are the goals of a course plan?
- What does the structure look like?
For the workshop, we booked a room on the LGTC campus, prepared a presentation, and every English teacher received a big folder for collecting the material for the course plan.
1. What is a course plan?
A course plan is a plan in which the teacher determines which content is taught in which week. It provides a structure for the teaching year and supports the teacher so he or she can teach and prepare in a more time-efficient manner.
Also, a course plan like ours will not only give the English teachers a structure to follow, but it will also help them to improve their own teaching through having all the material together and being able take out, edit, or add to the given material. In the course plan, the teacher finds the concrete learning goals for each unit and sub-unit of the Technical English material.8 Furthermore, it provides the teacher with a collection of activities, tasks, exercises, and teaching ideas so that the teachers gradually build up a wide repertoire and can adapt lessons every year to their new class.
2. Why create a course plan?
Through our observations, during consultations with the English teachers, and through exchanges with the previous volunteer teams, we identified three basic reasons for preparing a course plan for Technical English 1:
- The teaching content can be adjusted to the students’ needs.
- The teachers get guidance for their lesson planning.
- The teachers all teach the same content.
Firstly, the adjustment of the teaching content to the students’ needs means that we observe and experience a lot of struggles by the Lao students concerning pronunciation, the Latin alphabet, learning styles, and many other issues. The Technical English 1 material published by Pearson is the first level of an international course book series and aims to address a wide range of students, but some of the technical topics would only be known in so-called “developed” countries (e.g. robot vacuum cleaners and solar panels).9
In order to make the content accessible for our Lao students, we need to provide the students with additional material and customise the content. In order to do this, we studied and evaluated each exercise, task, or activity in Technical English 1 to see which struggles and problems could appear, and then adapted those parts accordingly: We decided which parts to leave out and where to provide extra material. For extra material, we used the course book Top Notch, which had been newly chosen by Prof. Isabel Martin for the general English classes of the volunteers, as guidance.
Secondly, the course plan gives the LGTC English teachers guidance for their lesson planning. Through the course plan, they can pick from various and customised material. As an important side effect, this will reduce the workload for preparing lessons and gives the teachers a buffer for stronger students (differentiation through time).9 As the teachers are provided with a variety of material, they can plan the lessons according to the level of the individual classes.
The third reason – that all teachers should teach the same content – was already discussed in the workshop of Team VI (“How to work with Technical English”). There are several arguments to consider here. Tasja and Anna-Lena had pointed out how essential and relevant it is to stick to the order of the tasks and exercise in the course book – as Prof. Martin had explained that language learning is sequential and good course books therefore are progressive. (One can also simply trust the authors and editors of a good series, because they are language and teaching experts with great expertise in teaching internationally and revised the series many times over many years.) Secondly, our predecessors emphasised that timing differences between the different English teachers should be avoided. If teachers worked closely together they could be more efficient and would achieve a steady progression, so all teachers should cover the same content in one particular year. This means that the course plan needs to be the product of team work. Last, but not least, the course plan facilitates fair evaluation and testing, as it provides fixed learning goals on the one hand and a variety of activities, tasks, and exercises covering the four skills – listening, speaking, reading, and writing – in a pleasant balance on the other hand.
Ms Viengkhom and I talk about the course plan…
… Ms Moukdala and Ms Akina listen to Patricia…
… and everyone concentrates to learn more about the course plan.
3. What are the goals of a course plan?
The second part of our workshop – “Why create a course plan?” – already included information about the goals. A well-organised course plan facilitates teaching that is structured, consistent, motivating, well-planned, and efficient.
So far, our focus was on the teachers, but a course plan also provides their students with clarity, transparency, and structure regarding their own “learning path(ways)“. This helps students to stay motivated and oriented in their learning.
Goals of the course plan (workshop slide)
4. What does the structure look like?
General structure of the lesson plan (workshop slide)
The structure of the course plan is divided into two parts. Part I provides an overview of all the units of Technical English 1 (12 units). The overview can be seen as the “skeleton” of the book: It includes the estimated time, the pages (of each of the three books), the name of the topic, the grammar topics, vocabulary and phrases of each unit. These categories are listed in one table for a quick and broad overview of what comes next and what was already taught.
Screenshop Part I: ‘skeleton’ of the book.
Part II is divided into sections for each unit. Each section is further divided into two parts:
1.1. Information about the unit and each sub-unit (in form of a table)
1.2. Additional material and lessons plans.
Screenshot Part II: Template (Unit 5)
The information part (1.1.) includes goals and lists of activities, tasks, and exercises taken from the course book & workbook, lists of additional material, grammar topics, list of vocabulary & phrases (which is an additional list because we added and took some words out), and possible difficulties.
1.1.1. Goals
Teaching goals of the unit, each sub-unit, and sometimes also the goals of a specific activity, task, or exercise.
1.1.2. Activities, tasks, exercises of the course book / workbook
Not all activities, tasks, and exercises are suitable for the LGTC students, so we removed the unsuitable ones.
1.1.3. Additional material
To replace the removed material, we created and added more suitable activities, tasks, and exercises. These are listed in this section. Also, for some grammar topics the LGTC students need a lot more practice than the Technical English 1 book provides, so these additional exercises are also listed here.10
1.1.4. Grammar
The grammar topics of each unit are explained accurately and in a detailed way so the English teacher can revise the grammar him- or herself, and everyone teaches the same. Of course, the grammar pages are provided in the back of the course book as is normal (for a Western course book), but I figured it would be more helpful for the Lao teachers to have all the necessary information in one place, i.e. in our folder.
1.1.5. Vocabulary and phrases
In this section all the new vocabulary and phrases of the unit are listed (word list, phrases list). It includes the vocabulary listed in the back of the course book by Technical English 1, but we added what the English teachers and volunteers felt was of relevance.
1.1.6. Possible difficulties/ problems
This last section of each unit is very important and needs to be adjusted frequently. Here the teachers write down the struggles they have with the unit or specific activities, tasks, or exercises. It serves as a reflection of the unit and is needed to self-improve one’s teaching for next time.11
The (Part II 1.2.) “Additional material” includes all the material that is created by the English teachers and volunteers for a specific unit to complement the course material. Examples for this are picture cards and word cards for the blackboard, worksheets, grammar sheets, games (e.g. Memory, Bingo), question cards, information cards, descriptions of games and activity ideas, and, of course, all the lesson plans for the unit.
What happened after the workshop?
After the workshop, I met up with the English teachers once a week – normally on a Thursday – to continue our work on the course plan. During the first few sessions, I showed them how to create material on the computer, but I soon realised that they were already quite familiar with this. Especially Ms Akina Yadsadahuk has great knowledge and experience with Microsoft products, as she holds a university degree in Computer Science. Therefore, we had a great time sharing work together. In our weekly meetings, we figured out how to sort the material, and we then provided the English teachers with all the materials that each English teacher had created. We also started filling out the tables for each unit starting with Unit 1. While filling out the templates, we practised forming and fomulating teaching goals – which is not easy! – and which worked better and better with every session. Moreover, it was very productive to go through each activity, task, and exercise of the unit, because in this process we did not only clarify questions about grammar and vocabulary, but also about methodology: Thematising how an activity, task, or exercise could be implemented in class.12 We surely made a lot of progress together!
Conclusion
All in all, I think the workshop was very satisfying for both the volunteers and the English teachers. Their attitude to the course book also changed through our cooperation.
Of course, the course plan needs developing further by the subsequent teams – by revising and consolidating. However, I think the course plan is a great first step in the right direction. After the workshop and a few weeks later, I could already feel the effect of a change because the English teachers appeared more motivated and confident to plan and prepare a lesson. I am sure that the future teams will continue successfully with this topic until all the teachers’ initial worries are dissipated.
Text by N. Wiesa, with notes by I. Martin
Photos by D. Erdogan, P. Hopp & N. Wiesa
Notes
1 I believe this attitude arose for several reasons, which are quite normal for such a huge step in the project. First of all, working with an international course book that includes three different books was a new concept for the Lao English teachers. Also, there was a misunderstanding on the German side, and the wrong book was used at first, which really was unsuitable. In my eyes, this just points out how important intercultural awareness is, and it shows how much time, effort, patience, and perseverance of all teams involved it has taken to settle the Technical English 1 course book in this College routine.
2 Editor’s note: Our thanks go to Ms Angela Bauer-Seekings from ELT Pearson Deutschland GmbH for the discount on the book order and many other book donations (e.g. “Easy Readers”) for the LGTC. Quality-wise, we think that “Technical English” is the best series in the field.
3 Also, some of our partners did not study TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language), but completely different subjects, which also may not have been teaching degrees, e.g. Computer Science.
4 Simultaneous time management means that the teachers work on the same number of units within roughly the same time frame as their colleagues – which would facilitate the transition of classes to the next teacher, the next year, or block of units.
5 Editor’s note: This had also been suggested at the outset, but there were too many new concepts or suggestions to process at one time. However, step by step and tandem-team by tandem-team the desired changes and learning processes on both sides started to materialise.
6 Mr Saythong Insarn was the Head of the English Department at the LGTC at that time.
7 Each unit in Technical English 1 is divided into three sub-units, e.g. “Unit 4 Movement” has “Unit 4.1 Directions”, “Unit 4.2 Instructions”, and “Unit 4.3 Actions”.
8 “Buffer” in didactics means time for extra material, used when one finishes early or to keep stronger students busy.
“Differentiation” within a classroom means that different learning opportunities are provided on different levels – typically three – for the different learners. One aspect is “differentiation through time”, which means that every student works on the same material but the stronger students get the chance to work on further material as soon as they finished the first task, activity, or exercise.
9 Editor’s note: “The common usage of the word developed implies that there is a gold-standard for ‘development’ overall, with a desirable (refined, superior) state of development at one end of the scale and an undesirable (‘raw’, unrefined, primitive, inferior) one at the other. The binary of ‘developed countries’ and ‘undeveloped’ or ‘underdeveloped countries’ is a value statement rooted in eurocentricism and colonialism; the criteria by which a country is deemed developed are chosen by those who deem themselves to be developed” (in: http://www.thelaosexperience.com/2019/03/01/interview-with-a-chilean-expat-in-vientiane-the-bacan-cafe/).
10 Editor’s note: For EFL Beginners, Unit 1 is already most challenging. Students coming from rural areas often had no English language lessons at school, and the Latin alphabet is entirely different from the Lao alphabet, as are the English sounds. Lao learners are also not used to a stress-based language-system (Lao is time-based and tonal on top), which makes it extra-hard to pronounce English words (word stress) and sentences (sentence stress).
11 After the workshop, in our tandem-time, we discussed possible struggles and problems of a Unit. Initially, our partners had a hard time to identify and name the problems, but after a bit of practice, it became a lot easier.
12 It was very important to clarify the vocabulary together, because we realised that Lao-English dictionaries are not very precise, especially when it comes to ambiguous terms or words with several meanings (which is normal in the English language). Sometimes we also discovered intercultural misunderstandings in the process.
Reviving the Drama Club – our performance of “The Three Goats”
A new start
In our Team VIII, we, Elisabeth Heinz and Mariana Dimtsiou, had the possibility to offer three different kinds of Activity Time1 and we had the choice between a wide range, as previous teams had already established several “English Clubs”. The purpose of these clubs during “Activity Time” is to give additional English input in a student-centered and playful way. We opted for the English Games Club and Singlish, and as we both had some drama experience, we were highly excited about the fact that there had been a drama club at Sikeud Lower Secondary School, Ban Phangheng, once before, run by Rebecca Dengler and Marie Kirsten (Team V).
We liked the idea of giving the pupils English input in this creative manner.2 Hence, we wanted to give them the possibility to come to our club and express themselves through facial expressions and body language while speaking and learning English. Of course, we had to take into consideration that many pupils tend to be very shy, especially when it comes to speaking English in front of people. Moreover, Lao people tend not to use facial expressions and body language as much as we do, but we wanted to give it a try and see what we might be able to achieve.
The first sessions
In the first two sessions of the Drama Club, we focused on loud and clear speaking, confidence in speaking, and expressing emotions. We practised emotions by giving them acting instructions, for example to walk around like they were carrying a heavy suitcase, or to walk around as if it was bitterly cold. In the third session, project leader Johannes Zeck visited our club and gave us his feedback, reminding us to concentrate more on motivating and encouraging the pupils to speak in English.
Fun at the drama club…
… while practising pronunciation with…
… “Teacher Mariana” and “Teacher Elisabeth”
Johannes’ advice gave us the idea to perform a little play at the end of our work at Sikeud secondary school with our Drama Club: Every participant gets to play a role and has to learn their lines by heart. The plan was to invite all the teachers, the director, and some pupils to come and watch the performance of the play. We picked the 10-minute play “The Three Goats”, originally a Norwegian fairy tale, which was adapted to a well-known picture book amongst other things.4 The three goats are very hungry and looking for more grass to eat – but there is one obstacle to overcome: The only way to get to the grass is to go across the bridge, under which an angry troll lives.
Preparing for the performance
The goal for the club was set, so now was time to plan our next steps. With Ms Saysamone Singhalath‘s help as an interpreter, we first asked the director for permission to perform a play in front of an audience. Secondly, we wanted the pupils to get a practice-run with another text before starting with the play “The Three Goats”. In our teacher-library in the villa,3 Elisabeth came across a sketch with the title “The Cat and the Mouse“ written by James Orchard Halliwell-Phillipps (Orchard Halliwell-Phillipps: 1849, 33-34).4 We decided to bring this text to the Drama Club to give the pupils the opportunity to dive into the world of theatre with this play first.
Unfortunately, we started facing problems: The pupils’ attendance was sporadic although we had distributed the roles and asked them to attend regularly. As time went by and the date of the performance came closer, we asked Ms Saysamone to join us once, to help interpret and make sure the pupils had understood that they needed to stick with their roles and attend every session. From then on, the pupils came regularly, practised their texts at home and learned it by heart. We saw good progress in confident body language, gesturing, speaking, and also in the intonation and rhythm of the spoken sentences.
In the last sessions before our performance, Ms Saysamone joined our club again to help us with the final rehearsals, making sure that every pupil understood the feedback which Mariana and I gave them to improve their acting as we went through the play several times. After every run-though we pointed out what was already going well and what could still be improved.
Final rehearsals of the play “The Three Goats”…
… and the last rounds of feedback before the performance
The performance
On the day of the performance, we practised the play two more times in a row to give the pupils security. Then we prepared the room, built our “stage” in the classroom and assembled seats for the audience to create the ambience of a theatre. The set consisted of only one table and two chairs, which served as the bridge.
After all the rehearsals, the studying of text, and the work and time they had invested, the pupils were thrilled to finally perform in front of their teachers, friends and the director. The following teachers honoured them (and us!) with their attendance: Mr Vienglakhone Keopaseud, Ms Saysamone Singhalath, Ms Amphaivone Chandavong, Ms Khamsee Thanbounhueang, Ms Malaythong Loungsai, and the director from Sikeud lower secondary school, Mr Khampheng Bounthalavong.
Mr Anmany in anticipation…
… and a “full house” at the performance
The audience got seated and quietened down.
The entire ensemble of eight actors began by announcing: “The three goats!” The first narrator started: “Once upon a time there were three goats that lived on a hillside” (cf. “The Fable Cottage”).6 Then the actors performed their play and did very well. Mariana and I were ready to prompt, but the pupils did not need any prompting. In the end, the four narrators came to the middle of the stage and said: “And the goats lived happily ever after. The end!”
The audience applauded enthusiastically, the actors even got a curtain call and smiled all over their faces. Some members of the audience could not wait to congratulate the pupils and talk to us. One could also tell by the faces of the actors that the tension and concentration started to give way to happiness and relaxation – and we felt this, too. At the end we proudly took some photos and said goodbye.
The following pupils performed in the play: Ms Phoudthavy Seephaserd as narrator 1 (Class 3/2), Ms Phonephachanh Vilavong as narrator 2 (Class 3/2), Ms Vongmany Chanthavyshouk as narrator 3 (Class 3/4), Ms Bouasone Seephaserd as narrator 4 (Class 3/4), Ms Alounny Phavised as the little goat (Class 3/1) , Mr Thanousone Nouesavang as the middle goat (Class 3/4), Mr Sompith Phommasing as the big goat (Class 3/4), and Mr Anmany Vanhnalat as the scary troll (Class 4/3).
The ensemble and the teachers feel happy after the final performance
Top row: Ms Alounny, Mariana, Elisabeth, Ms Bouasone, Ms Vongmany, Ms Phoudthavy. Bottom row: Mr Thanousone, Mr Anmany, Mr Sompith, Ms Phonephachanh
Elisabeth and I are filled with joy to have reached our goal. It was a great process and experience and we would like to thank the teachers and the director for coming to our performance and of course our actors for their good work and commitment to the drama club.
Thank you very much – khop chai lai lai!
Text by M. Dimtsiou & E. Heinz
Photos by C. Proels & E. Heinz
Notes
1″Activity Time” is an offer for every pupil of the school and takes place Monday to Thursday from 3 to 4 p.m.
2 Drama has a positive impact on personality development and is increasingly finding its way to foreign language lessons. Through this experience, learners become more aware of their own bodies, overcome their stage-fright, act more calmly in their social environments and expand their language skills.
3 Our teacher-library in the villa provides English books in the fields of didactics and methodology, Lao course books, previously held workshop handouts, books for pleasure reading, and all the extra material that was collected since the project started.
5 “The Three Goats” was first published as ‘The three Billy Goats Gruff” in 1859 in Peter Christen Asbjørnsen and Jørgen Moe’s collection of Norwegian fairy tales.
References
Orchard Halliwell-Phillipps, James (1849). Popular Rhymes and Nursery Tales: A Sequel to the Nursery Rhymes of England. London: John Russell Smith.
Websites
2 Goethe Institut. https://www.goethe.de/en/spr/mag/20866409.html (last accessed on 22 May 2019).
4 Pitt. “Fables about cats and mice”. https://www.pitt.edu/~dash/cat.html#tail (last accessed on 22 May 2019).
6 Fablecottage. “The Three Billy Goats Gruff”. https://www.thefablecottage.com/english/three-billy-goats-gruff (last accessed on 22 May 2019).
Letters from Germany – “My first impressions of Karlsruhe” – by Viengvilaiphone Botthoulath (SKU)
Hallo! I am Viengvilaiphone Botthoulath, a lecturer at the Faculty of Food Science, Savannakhet University, Lao PDR. At 12:08 p.m. on May 2, 2019 I arrived at Karlsruhe, Germany. I will stay here for two months as a staff exchange under the Erasmus+KA107 programme. Dr. Martin Remmele (my partner) and Mr. Napha (my Lao colleague) went to pick me up at the KarIsruhe train station. I was really excited to meet them again. I also thank Ms. Julia Friedl (Akademisches Auslandsamt – International Office) for helping me in running official documents and booking accommodation for me. The room was really comfortable and there was a sharing kitchen next to my room. I enjoyed cooking Lao and also German cuisine there.
Karlsruhe Palace where I walking passed to KarIsruhe University of Education everyday
May 3, 2019 was my first sunny day at Karlsruhe University of Education. I walked almost completely around at the Karlsruhe Palace. I was really impressed with this place. It is huge, and is where visitors can encounter the cultural history of the federal state of Baden-Württemberg. I came to Germany in Spring, and so enjoyed a lot of diverse blooming flowers beside the palace, called “Botanischer Garten or Karlsruhe Botanical Garden”. There are more than 20 species of exotic trees growing in the garden. There are stunning collections of tropical and Mediterranean plants in the greenhouses. Furthermore, there is a lake full of ducks swimming, and green grass outside the castle. Another museum impressed me is called “ZKM, Centre for Art and Media”. Here, I enjoyed art and high-tech public collections, and a media library. It acts on fast IT developments and Changing social structures. It is the combination of contemporary art, media, image media, music and acoustics. I love to visit museum a lot. I should also mention one that is called the “State Museum of Natural History, Karlsruhe”. It is well organized with a clear separation of various sections and collections of the beauties of nature. The aquarium section attracted me the most. It was my first time and I spent an hour watching aquatic life.
Karlsruhe Botanical Garden beside the KarIsruhe palace
Visited the ZKM, Centre for Art and Media with Ms. Julia Friedl
Visited the State Museum of Natural History, Karlsruhe
Well! There are still many things to describe about Karlsruhe. The population of this region is over 300,000 and KarIsruhe is a city that can be referred to as a “knowledge factory with savoir vivre”. Next, let me tell you about the city centre. It is the heart of the city where people work, shop, study, live and spend their leisure time. The city centre consists of an eastern and a western district and is organized and built systematically. Many people (including me) prefer to use the train service. It costs 2,26 Euro in the city. Also, people love ride bicycles. It is healthy, and saves the environment.
Train service in the city centre, KarIsruhe
Crossing the street in KarIsruhe Germany
I really like the Traffic and Environmental management rules in KarIsruhe, Germany. Let’s talk about crossing the street here, it is simple and respectful. Just wait for the green man! I could say that few cultures appreciate good social order quite as much as the Germans. This includes crossing against the line. They will most likely wait for the green man to showed up, even if no cars coming. Crossing against the light you may get some sterns stares and you may even be ticketed offense. I truly appreciate this rule because it is well-managed, safe, and reduces accidents. Regarding Environmental management there are waste bins located everywhere. People going to markets need to carry their own bags to carry things they buy. If you need a bag from the shops, you must buy one. This rule has been applied in European and some other developed countries, as it can reduce pollution and save the green environment.
Well! What have I learned while living here the past month? At the beginning, I was not really confident to use train to go anywhere because I always confused with the direction of the trains. After a week later, it was really easy to go everywhere, just understand the map and remember the name of the streets. Also, I have learned how’s German teachers teaching or working styles and how’s German students’ learning. These issues will be my next topic publications. Now, I seem to have a clearer understanding of living styles in European country.
Thank you, Erasmus+ KA107 program, Savannakhet University, and my special thanks goes to Prof. Dr. Isabel Martin to give me such a fantastic opportunity.
Julia Friedl, Viengvilaiphone Botthoulath, Isabel Martin
Text by V. Botthoulath
Photos by V. Botthoulath, T. Keokaisone & C. Grisot
Vegan (kin j) in Laos – reinventing traditional Lao recipes
“If we could live happy and healthy lives without harming others, why wouldn’t we?”
(Edgar’s Mission Farm Sanctuary, 2019)1
There is a growing popularity of veganism all around the world.2 In affluent western societies, more and more – especially young – people are making the decision to consider and live a vegan lifestyle.
Being vegan on ethical grounds means that the consumption of animal products such as meat, fish, dairy products, eggs, and honey are avoided. It also includes avoiding the exploitation of animals for cosmetics, entertainment, and clothing. The Vegan Society2 defines veganism as “a philosophy and way of living which seeks to exclude – as far as is possible and practicable – all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose; and by extension, promotes the development and use of animal-free alternatives for the benefit of humans, animals and the environment” (The Vegan Society. “History”, 2019).
Eating animals and animal by-products was the regular way of life for homo sapiens for millions of years. More recently, however, there has been a growing number of organisations and individuals who are bent on doing something against this. The question why vegans would choose to live this way is still a socially controversial subject. Also, not everyone is able to live a vegan life because it requires many behavioural and lifestyle changes and also some research in order to make this shift. There are several intriguing reasons to choose this lifestyle – for those who are able to do so.
Animals have been exploited for our survival, but there is evidence that roughly 2,000 years ago humans already started avoiding animal products (cf. The Vegan Society. “History”, 2019). The first and main reason is the animals themselves, which are divided into two categories: Those that we eat and those that we love. The one key factor for becoming vegan may be an emotional attachment to all living beings. Every living being should have the right to its own choices, freedom, and the right to live. According to the biological food chain and natural selection depicted in Darwin’s “law of the survival of the fittest” (cf. C.R. Darwin, On the origin of species, 1859), eating animals may be a necessity for many animals and some plants, but humans in the 21st century have alternatives. By avoiding animal products we can make a stand against animal exploitation and animal cruelty (cf. The Vegan Society. “Why go vegan”, 2019).
A second important aspect which one might consider is dairy and dairy products. Many people assume that cows need to be milked, but this is not the case: they only produce milk during pregnancy and after giving birth to their young. This milk is made for calves in the first place, for nourishing and breeding them. To sell cow’s milk, the mothers’ milk has to be taken and used for human purposes. The farmers therefore separate mothers from their calves, which causes confusion and can lead to a depressive state. In this sense, the large (unnatural) quantities of milk are produced by ill-treatment.
Thirdly, according to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, a plant-based diet that is nutritionally adequate may provide health benefits. It can prevent diseases such as hypertension, cancer, obesity, and heart disease, and it can also reduce the risk of certain health conditions. A plant-based diet has high intakes of fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, seeds, whole grains, and a low intake of saturated fat. As it provides all nutrients necessary, we do not depend on animal products for good health (cf. Vegan Australia. “Health”, 2019).
Of course, the milk that comes from a cow generally has more nutrients and fewer unhealthy additives than plant-based milk alternatives. It contains a lot of calcium, potassium, riboflavin, and protein, which is especially important for infants, and is additionally fortified with vitamin B12, A, and D (cf. MedicalNewsToday. “All about milk”, 2019). However, cow’s milk is also high in cholesterol and saturated fat, and the steroid hormones and growth factors in mass-produced dairy products may be factors in osteoporosis, heart disease, and cancer (cf. Nutritionfacts. “Dairy”, 2019). Plant-based milk products also contain protein and calcium, but vitamin 12, a key nutrient, cannot be found in plant-based milk products naturally. This is why vegan milk is fortified with vitamin B12. It needs to be supplemented in a plant-based diet because the amount of vitamin B12 in vegan products is not enough (cf. VeganHealth. “Calcium Part 2“, 2019).
Whether a plant-based diet is the only diet for optimal health remains under discussion – nutrionists and doctors hold different views on this topic.4
There is scientific evidence, though, that there are many benefits for our planet if renounce meat. Animal agriculture is a growing sector that “is responsible for 18 percent of greenhouse gas emissions, more than the combined exhaust from all transportation” (Kip Andersen. Cowspiracy. “Facts”, 2016). Thirty-two million tons of carbon dioxide per year are released due to livestock and its by-products. Raising animals will exceed our limit of 565 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide by 2030 even without using fossil fuels. Eighty to ninety percent of our water is used up due to livestock. “Two thousand five hundred gallons of water are needed to produce one pound of beef and one thousand gallons of water are required to produce one gallon of milk” (ibid). The leading cause of dead ocean zones, water pollution, species extinction, and habitat destruction is animal agriculture (cf. Cowspiracy. “Facts”, 2019).
All in all, “plant-based diets are more environmentally sustainable than diets rich in animal products because they use fewer natural resources and are associated with much less environmental damage” (Vegan Australia. “Health”, 2019).
I am a vegan myself and have been living this lifestyle for five years. Veganism has influenced my life in many aspects. The reasons above are just a short summary of why I made this decision when I was 17. Although it is definitely easy to live vegan in European countries, living a vegan lifestyle seems to be more difficult in Laos.
Food and eating out is also a practice of social interaction. Being invited for lunch or dinner or getting to know your tandem-teachers over a shared meal helps strenghten your relationship and allows you to get to know another culture and its traditional dishes, because sharing the same food will acquaint you with different traditions and rituals.
Food is an important part in daily life. Declining food that was offered to you – the guest – can implicit a cultural statement of judgement and rejection. Therefore, it is important to avoid such a misunderstanding. Especially on a first invitation, to accept and eat the food that is offered to you will show to your host that you accept this part of their culture. If you would like to keep your distance to this part, a respectful explanation why you will not eat a special dish needs to be given so that your host can understand that the values you stick are not meant to cause dismissal or judgment in any way.5
Laos has a huge variety of vegetables, fruits, and legumes. All of these foods can easily be used as vegan ingredients for plant-based dishes, so in theory, eating out as a vegan should not be difficult. Travelling as a vegan in general can sometimes be a challenge, of course, if you want to always maintain a healthy diet that suits your values without any exceptions. Therefore, living in Laos as a vegan needs some preparation.
The concept of veganism seems to be unknown to most of the people here. Having been invited several times by some of our tandem-teachers at Ban Phang Heng Secondary and Primary School, as well as at the LGTC where I now work, I noticed that the term “vegetarianism” is widely known, however.
In the Lao culture, Buddhism is the main religion. One of the Buddhist tenets, ahimsa, is the concept of doing the least harm. The concept of ahimsa implies that violence towards other sentient beings is avoided, and that all living beings are respected (cf. Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Ahimsa”, 2019). This concept is linked to vegetarianism, that one does not “hurt” animals. Lao Buddhist monks do not have to renounce fish and meat, but some choose a vegetarian diet. This seems to imply that “eating” has no connection to “hurting” in their culture.
Most Lao dishes are likely to contain “invisible” non-vegan ingredients. The following ingredients make it hard to eat out in traditional Lao restaurants: Oyster or fish sauce is often used in vegetable dishes, and soups are usually based on meat stock such as chicken, beef, or pork. Shrimp, fermented fish paste, or animal-based seasoning are used for seasoning.
The “good soul of Ban Phang Heng“, Ms Saysamone Singhalath, went to the market in Ban Sikeud with me and showed me the huge variety of Lao vegetables and fruits. With her help I was able to create an overview of traditional Lao dishes that can be veganised. There are some traditional Lao recipes that can be adapted very simply, and – even better – some recipes can be enjoyed as they are because all ingredients are vegan.
Here comes my list:
Fresh Spring rolls (Phun yor khao) is a perfectly vegan-friendly dish that can be found easily in Lao restaurants. In Laos, spring rolls are made of rice paper usually filled with fresh vegetables, herbs, tofu, and rice noodles. Rolls filled with meat and fish can usually be found on the same menu, too.
Fresh spring rolls with peanut dip
Fresh and fried spring rolls with a spicy dip
Another common and traditional dishes is Morning Glory (Phak bang). This is a stir-fried dish that is made out of water spinach, which is a semi-aquatic plant with long leaves (cf. Wikipedia. “Ipomoea aquatic”, 2019). It is fried and served with mushroom sauce, soy sauce, garlic, and chili pepper. The traditional recipe consists of fish or oyster sauce.
Lao Fried Rice (Khao phad) is a dish mixing together a lot of ingredients, i.e. Thai basil, green onion, carrot, soy sauce, and hot peppers. Sugar can be added as well. It is most delicious when vegetables are added.
Stir-Fried Vegetables (Phad phak) is another great dish that can be found nearly everywhere and consists of broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, green beans, cabbage, tomatoes, and mushrooms stir-fried in sauce. It is likely that fish and oyster paste are used for the sauce, but it is possible to ask for soy sauce which is less likely to contain those ingredients.
Stir-fried vegetables with brown rice
Plain stir-fried vegetables in soy sauce
Cooked Vegetables (Phak tom souk) is served with a dipping sauce in the middle of the plate. It might seem like a very simple dish, but it is absolutely delicious and obtainable everywhere.
Steamed vegetables with a tomato dipping sauce, served with black rice
One of the classic staples is steamed Sticky Rice (Khao mew). Lao people “often refer to themselves as “luk khao niaow”, which can be translated as “children or descendants of sticky rice” (Wikipedia. “Lao cuisine”, 2019). This can either be made out of black or white rice. “Sticky Rice” is served in restaurants and sold as street food. Lao people carry their sticky rice in baskets of varying sizes. The baskets keep the rice warm and moist. Sometimes Sticky Rice is served with red beans, a great source of protein.
White Sticky Rice …
… in a basket
Sweet Sticky Rice (Khao kum) is Sticky Rice sweetened with coconut sugar and usually wrapped up in a banana leaf with mango on side.
Papaya Salad (Tum mark hong) is a delicious option for people who like spicy food. Thinly sliced-up green papayas, four to five chilies, sugar, and vegetable broth is all that is necessary to create this traditional Lao recipe.
Papaya …
… with sugar and chilies:
… spicy Papaya Salad
The perfect meal for tofu-lovers is Tofu Larb. The tofu is fried with mushrooms, lemongrass, garlic, and onions. It is common to serve it on a lettuce leaf. Fish paste can be inside, but asking the waiters before you order may bring you a fresh dish without it.6
Soft Tofu served with raw vegetables
Laotian Coconut Cakes is vegan by nature. Also known as Kek mark phraw Lao, these fried balls are made from rice flour, sugar, and coconut milk. They will definitely satisfy your sweet tooth!
Coconut Pancakes fried in a pan
Coconut Pancakes in a banana leaf
On the market, boiled white and yellow corn, boiled pumpkin, and boiled bamboo can be grabbed and eaten as finger food.
Laos is also known for its fresh tropical fruits such as sweet and sour mango, sweet cucumber, watermelon, dragon fruit, bananas, apples, coconuts, papaya, pineapple, lemon, orange, mandarin, jackfruit, durian, melons, grapes, Asian pear, pomelos, mangosteen, pomegranate, tamarind,7 and sapodilla, to name only the best-known.
Sweet mangos
Mandarines
Fresh grapes
Nashi Pear
Honey melon
Yellow bananas
Watermelon
Sour mangos
Tamarinds
A variety of fruits
Dragon Fruits
Longan
Mangosteen
Jackfruits
Durian Fruit
Sugar Apple
Pineapples
Fresh red apples
Personally, I think living and working in Laos as a vegan is easy. If you inform yourself about the main traditional Lao recipes and their ingredients, part of the Lao cuisine can be fully enjoyed by vegans, too. In addition, for going out to eat, you can also learn the phrase “I do not eat anything that comes from animals” – “Khoy bor kin r han thou yang thee het mar chark sat”. In my experience, Lao waiters and waitresses are always understanding and happy to oblige – they simply adapt the dish to your needs.
At the beginning of my stay, being invited to a meal at one of our teachers’ homes posed certain questions. Being open, from my western point of view, actually appeared to be disrespectful. Fortunately, none of the teachers took my announcement to heart or seemed offended – moreover, they even prepared a vegan dish for me in advance. It appears to me that although veganism might not be established in Laos yet, Lao people are open-minded about it – and anyway, they must count amongst the most hospitable people on this planet.9
Text & photos by R. Vogt
Notes
1 Edgar’s Mission Farm Sanctuary. https://www.edgarsmission.org.au (accessed 5 April 2019)
2 Wikipedia. “Vegetarianism by country” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vegetarianism_by_country#cite_note-:3-19 (accessed 12 May 2019)
3 The Vegan Society. 1988. https://www.vegansociety.com/about-us/history (accessed 12 May 2019)
4 For further information on this controversy: The China Study reveals and discusses this controversy in detail by referring to several medical studies. Dr. Michael Greger, the founder of NutritionFacts.org, provides information on nutrition research.
5 As the decision not to eat certain food is linked to the “belief” of not wanting to hurt living beings, this provides a natural connection to the Buddhist culture of our Lao hosts.
6 Waiters in Lao might not be able to understand this request in English, so it is helpful to have someone at hand who is able to speak both Lao and English, or to bring a pre-written note in Lao.
7 Tamarinds are legumes used to make spicy dipping sauces.
8 Many other volunteers have been fascinated by Lao food and wrote about it. The easiest way to find their posts is via the tag list on this blog, e.g. by selecting the tags “Falang Friendship Feast” (4 posts) and “Lao food” (22 posts). Some examples: “Lao lunch with new friends by J. Porscha” (22 October 2017); “‘Foodie’s paradise’ – Lao food in pictures by Svea Roehm” (26 June 2018); “Intercultural experiences in Sri Lanka and Laos a comparison by Svea Roehm” (23 August 2018); “Eat, dance, laugh (and be sick) – our first weeks in Laos by Dilara Erdogan” (9 December 2018); “A day in the life of… a PH Kalrsruhe volunteer by Pauline Faix” (20 December 2018); “Interview with a Chilean expat in Vientiane – the Bacan Café by Malin Frahm and Jasmin Unterweger” (1 March 2019); “Spotlight on intercultural encounters – an interview with Ms Mittaphone Sichampa and Ms Phovang Inthavong by Meike Weis” (4 March 2019); “A day in the life of… a ‘Mopsy’ by Pauline Vaix and Cornelina Proels” (16 April 2019).
9 Understanding and respecting the Laotian culture has been an interesting learning process. An impulse was given to me by Prof. Dr. Isabel Martin, who opened up my awareness on this matter during her stay with our team in Laos and also helped by editing this post.
Websites
Darwin’s Theory Of Evolution. “Natural Selection” https://www.darwins-theory-of-evolution.com (accessed 12 May 2019)
Darwin, C. R. 1859. On the origin of species by means of natural selection, or the preservation of favoured races in the struggle for life. London: John Murray. 1st edition.
VeganHealth. “Calcium Part 2” https://veganhealth.org/calcium-part-2/#fuss (accessed 12 May 2019)
Wikipedia. “Lao cuisine” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lao_cuisine (accessed 5 April 2019)
Wikipedia. “Ipomoea aquatica” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ipomoea_aquatica (accessed 5 April 2019)
The Vegan Society. “History” https://www.vegansociety.com/about-us/history (accessed 5 April 2019)
The Vegan Society. “Why go vegan” https://www.vegansociety.com/go-vegan/why-go-vegan (accessed 5 April 2019)
Edgar’s Mission Farm Sanctuary. https://www.edgarsmission.org.au (accessed 5 April 2019)
Cowspiracy. “Facts” http://www.cowspiracy.com/facts (accessed 5 April 2019)
Vegan Australia. “Health” https://www.veganaustralia.org.au/health (accessed 5 April 2019)
Nutricionfacts. “Dairy” https://nutritionfacts.org/topics/dairy/ (accessed 12 May 2019)
Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. “Ahimsa” https://www.britannica.com/topic/ahimsa (accessed 14 May 2019)
Geshe Tenzin Zopa (2007). BUDDHIST TENETS. Commentary on Jetsun Chokyi Gyaltsen’s “A Presentation of Tenets”. Malysia, Losang Dragpa Buddhist Society
MedicalNewsToday. “All about milk” https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/273451.php (accessed 20 May 2019)
Further information
Campbell, T. Colin & Thomas M. Campbell (2004). The China Study. The Most Comprehensive Study of Nutrition Ever. Dallas: BenBella Books.
Greger, Michael (2015). How Not to Die. Discover the Foods Scientifically Proven to Prevent and Reverse Disease. UK London, Gene Stone.
Scully, Matthew (2002). Dominion: The Power of Man, the Suffering of Animals, and the Call to Mercy. New York. Macmillan Publishers.
“Yes, they can!” – Lao pupils become authors and illustrators
Sabaidee!
We are Pauline and Meike of Team VII. In addition to our diverse regular tasks during our stay in Laos this past winter, we took responsibility for a new, temporary project, which started shortly after we arrived in Laos: Within a course of six months, our pupils wrote their very own stories and illustrated them afterwards before they were finally published as picture books. The whole project was carried out in cooperation with Vientiane-based Pum Anh Book Promotion House, and now we both are going to take you along on the whole journey and share our experiences, findings and learning processes!
Step 1: Establishing contact
Last autumn in Melbourne, Australia, Prof. Martin and Prof. Joseph Lo Bianco continued discussing their shared academic area of interest, namely language education and policies in Asia. When Prof. Martin mentioned that she was headed to Vientiane next, Prof. Lo Bianco put her in touch with Mr Cliff Meyers, the founder of Pum Anh Book Promotion House. At short notice, a meeting between the two of them was scheduled, and both sides were interested in each other’s work. So it came that on the following day already, a second meeting was arranged, during which Team VII also had the chance to get to know Mr Cliff Meyers and his wife Ms Soukphachane Saysena over lunch.
Happy and sated after a good talk over lunch: Martin Schöbinger, Soukphachane Saysena, Shirin Ud-Din, Bouangeun Hanthavong, Madame Engel, Dilara Erdogan, Nicole Wiesa, Prof. Dr. Isabel Martin, Pauline Faix, Meike Weis, Malin Frahm, Jasmin Unterweger, Patricia Hopp & Cliff Meyers
Step 2: Setting the frame – preparatory bits & pieces
Soon after, another – more formal – meeting was organised, this time at the schools. The two of us (Pauline & Meike) were filled in on the publishing procedure, i.e. from first workshop to final product. We received enough insight into Pum Anh’s ways of working so as to be able to make the following decisions:
- How many different books could or should we realistically opt for? (between 5 and 10, depending on the children’s abilities, creativity and motivation)
- Whom would the workshops be suitable for? (year 3-5 primary school pupils)
- How many pupils would be able to participate? (around 30)
- Would we want to give them a topic about which to write, or did we want to give them complete freedom of choice? (freedom)
Once this frame was set, we derived the first and next steps, first agreeing on a time frame and concrete dates, then pinning down who would be responsible for what. In order to prepare for the first workshop, the primary English teachers, Ms Mittaphone Sichampa and Ms Bounpheng Singhalath, kindly helped us select children who had previously stood out positively or simply had shown an interest in literature, reading, writing, books, or participating in this new project.
Step 3: Workshops – writing the stories
In total, three workshops were held: Two 1-hour sessions, which took place during Activity Time on the 30th of October and 1st of November 2018, and one longer session on the following Saturday. The workshops were held in the newly built library of Ban Phang Heng Primary School, and were attended by 32 children of said year groups.
At first, the pupils were presented with a short input about the general structure of stories and were then led through different examples, with room for their own ideas and questions. Further, they discussed the criteria of an interesting story and worked out how to make it engaging for the reader, i.e. by choosing an appropriate main character and setting for starters.
Listening carefully…
…to be able to implement the said aspects into their stories.
Motivation was high!
After the children had been divided into small groups, they started writing their own group stories. Just in case that they were lacking ideas, Mr Phoulavanh Phengphavanh – Mr Cliff’s and Ms Soukphachane’s colleague – had prepared a list of possible fictional characters and settings to make the start easier for them. They entailed different animals, living objects (e.g. a pencil) or a man on the moon, to name our favourite examples. We imagined they would make a good start for a great story!
The next session was all about revising the group stories: The children received enough time to go through their story once more in order to decide if it made sense, check that it did not lack any information, make sure every group member was happy with the content, and, if not, change it accordingly. Due to the language barrier, the two of us were no big help in improving the stories, but we enjoyed observing the rare group work setting and lively atmosphere very much.
Group work – still a rare sight in Lao schools
Mr Phou helps the children revise their group story, Ms Mittaphone listens, whilst I (Meike) am trying to figure out what could possibly have been discussed
Collecting ideas
On Saturday, 3rd November, we came together for the final, longer session. In the beginning, the children presented their group stories to each other. The other children in the plenary listened carefully, gave feedback and suggestions for further improvement. Madame Engel kindly provided enough water and snacks for everybody, which we all enjoyed during our first break.
Our driver, Mr Viengkham, and Ms Bounpheng Singhalath provide snacks for the small break.
The children enjoy the variety of snacks.
Two pupils rest in the shade during the break.
Selfie-time! Pauline Faix, Ms Soukphachane Saysena, Ms Bounpheng Singhalath, Meike Weis & Ms Mittaphone Sichampa
Now that everyone felt refreshed, the children started writing their own stories, this time individually. We were both pleased and proud when we learned from Ms Bounpheng and Ms Mittaphone that the children’s stories made sense, and Pum Anh seemed to be pleased with them, too. After the hard work was done, we were all rewarded with noodle soup for lunch, which Ms Bouangeun Hanthavong had arranged for us.
The pupils are highly concentrated….
… writing their individual stories.
A little break before everyone makes their way to the restaurant…
… everyone ready?
The children enjoy the delicious noodle soup.
The soup kitchen is packed with 32 lively kids.
Step 4: Editing processes – arriving at the final versions of text
Next, a copy of each story was given to Pum Anh, who then read all of them, to choose the most well-written or creative ones out of the 32. Those stories were slightly edited and handed back with suggestions how the story could be made even better. The authors then had the right to decide whether they wanted to keep the changes or not and whether to take the suggestions into consideration.
Once the stories were finalised, they were roughly translated and sent back to us. They had also been broken down into small chunks, thus making the next step a lot easier for us.
Step 5: Illustrations
Traditionally, picture books combine text and images, so mentoring the creation of the images came next. Since Madame Engel fosters the children’s artistic competences at the AfC schools and is very proud of their achievements, it was only logical that they were involved in this process as well. Luckily, one of us (Pauline) is an arts student and was able to join Ms Khongphet Phantavong’s voluntary artwork club, which she offers at Ban Phang Heng Secondary School during “Activity Time”.
Once we had gotten the final seven stories, broken down into the individual sentences, Ms Khongphet identified eight talented students who would now work on the illustrations with us.1
Highly concentrated work on the painting…
… finishing one of the illustrations
The teenagers love to get creative with the colours…
… and Ms Thipsavanh Sylitda proudly presents her first drawing.
Pencil outlines are the first step…
… and colouring it in with watercolours afterwards.
Step 6: Constant contact between cooperation partners
As this project was carried out in cooperation between our project “The Laos Experience” (by AfC & PH Karlsruhe) and Pum Anh Book Promotion House, we were constantly in touch, either via email or meetings, thus making sure the project was progressing well.
Many formalities had to be discussed, ranging from the question of language(s) (Lao and English) to the amount of copies which were to be printed of each book, and then also financial matters. When the texts and illustrations were finally finished, there was post-production work to do still, i.e. writing the preface & thanks pages, in which we listed all the children who had been involved as authors or illustrators. After this, the original Lao versions of the texts and their English translations had to be proofread, then checked against each other. To ensure high quality, the book drafts were passed through many different hands for these processes until we could be sure that the result in each book was coherent and everything fit in the end.
Our own learning processes
Unsurprisingly, neither of us had prior experience in book publishing. The steps that were easily summarised and described above called for quite a bit of extra work in real life, which came on top of our regular workload. However, it was interesting for us to accompany the whole process from beginning to end, and it also held potential for professional, project-related, as well as culture-related learning. Here is our list of the most important aspects:
1. “Yes, they can!” – proving sceptics wrong
The Lao culture is an oral culture, in which reading and writing have always played a subordinate role. For a long time, books were used in and for school only, whilst reading a book for pleasure used to be a rather foreign concept. Nowadays, reading and writing are becoming ever more important, which is reflected in the “National Curriculum” and brings other projects to life, i.e. Big Brother Mouse. (Various teams in our project have also used picture books for teaching.) However, this is an ongoing process and cannot be expected to bear fruit immediately.
For this reason, we were a little worried beforehand. We wondered if the children would be able to write their own stories, as we were also confronted with contrary opinions on this question. Knowing that we would not be able to actively contribute much due to the language barrier further added to our initial insecurity.
It turned out that we worried unnecessarily, and we were very pleased indeed when we learned that the children came up with good stories. Even though regular lessons in Lao schools offer little room for including – or even fostering – the children’s imagination, the Lao storytelling tradition seems to make up for that. Generally, this proves once more how expedient and valuable a supportive learning atmosphere is which takes children’s competences and prior learning into account and in which new learning processes are adequately adapted.2
2. Unforeseeable changes and events – Spontaneity is the key!
Shortly before the extra workshop, it became apparent that Pum Anh and us had entered different dates into our calendars. As ours would not have worked for everyone involved, we had to move it forward. At first, we felt a little overwhelmed – not to say disquieted – as we now had to spontaneously pull it all together. However, we soon learnt that this feeling was owed to our Western (German) mind-set and – luckily – entirely unnecessary. Since weekends in Germany are usually packed and an event like this should ideally be announced weeks in advance if so many other people’s schedules have to match, we were worried that none of the children who had taken part in the first two sessions would be able or allowed to come on the Saturday as well. Even though Lao children and families have private weekend arrangements and appointments, too, of course, they do not know the concept of “free time stress”. Many of our teacher friends were kind enough to help us send a “perfect parents’ letter” home (Ms Saysamone’s words) in order to explain the situation and invite the children for two days later…. and then, 32/32 pupils participated.
Ms Bounpheng Singhalath works on the first draft during our lunchtime “emergency meeting”…
… our immediate task-force: Ms Bounpheng Singhalath, Ms Donekeo Keositthivong, Ms Saysamone Singhalath & Pauline Faix
On the day itself, we were running late (or thinking we were running late), and it was of all things on this particular day that a stray dog ran into our garden when we were on our way out. After having chased it for at least five minutes, twice thinking we had managed to get it out, yet twice realising it had found another way to sneak in again – seemingly enjoying this game very much – we could finally set off for the workshop. Despite arriving late, very much to our surprise, we were amongst the first ones to arrive. The stereotype of Germans always being on time does seem to hold some truth, at least when compared to other countries. So that worked out very well for us! Also, while running late in Germany will be excused when explained by a good reason, we experienced on different occasions that this procedure does not seem to be a feature in politeness and is therefore not necessary at all in Laos.
3. Children’s attitudes
What was even greater to see was that the children came with smiles on their faces. Admittedly, since our Lao language skills are limited, we would not have understood phrases such as “oh no, school on a Saturday!” anyway, but judging from the attendance, results, facial expressions and overall motivation it did not seem likely to us that this had been the case. We cannot say for sure, of course, that the smiles had anything to do with appreciation for this additional educational offer rather than with various other possible reasons like spending time with their friends, diversion from their usual weekend routines, enjoying free snacks and noodle soup, or a mixture of all of them; but we both thought we felt a different, more positive attitude and atmosphere than we probably would have encountered in a German school during a Saturday activity.
4. Lao children’s stories: different to ours?
Another aspect we observed is that most of the stories’ endings leave room for reflection and come with a moral as stories from the oral tradition usually do. However, this aspect left us puzzled at first and it took us a while to “unmask” what our initial astonishment was rooted in, namely the current Western tendency to spare (young) children from sensitive topics. In terms of stories and endings those are preferred that draw a rather unrealistic and sugar-coated picture of the world. Also, as future teachers we often see didactisised (EFL) books which concentrate on language development more than content, so the story “problem” usually comes with a “solution”, i.e. a happy ending. After being reminded, we realised how these influences impacted our thinking and then we of course remembered enough Western stories without happy endings, e.g. the fables and ancient fairytales we grew up with.
When we had understood that our surprise was caused by the discrepancy between our (initial) Western expectations and the actual endings written by our Lao pupils, we still kept speculating about possible explations of the absence of happy endings: They may be owed to cultural differences, i.e. Southeast Asian or Lao children’s stories generally being more serious and reality-oriented. Further, stories might generally not be as common, which could be in line with the less pronounced reading culture. Another possibility we thought of was that Laos might just not be as influenced by current Western trends. Be that as it may, it was highly interesting for us to make this discovery, and we could well imagine using our Lao pupils’ books in our future German classrooms to discuss them with our pupils.
Prospect
All in all, seven stories underwent the production procedure before being printed, and 240 copies of each story were ordered.
Half of them are going to be shipped to Germany and used as corporate gifts, whilst the other half is going to stay in the three AfC schools in Laos, and complimentary copies are hopefully going to be handed to the authors and illustrators. It would be desirable if they did not remain in the corner unread and unused, but if they were used by the teachers either for teaching or as examples of what can be achieved, and hopefully filling the authors and illustrators with the same feeling of pride as us!
Final group photo of the authors and everyone involved in the workshops…
… and the illustrators after finishing their drawings
Text by M. Weis & P. Faix
Photos & videos by P. Faix, M. Weis, J. Zeck & restaurant owner
Notes
1 Our pupils were responsible for illustrating three of the seven stories. Depending on their lengths and content, the number of illustrations varied between seven and eleven.
2 One could ask why we would ask them to write the books – or ask them to read and write at all – if it was meaningless to them and irrelevant to the Lao culture in the first place. Why not just let them enjoy their weekend by letting them do what Lao children do? We would like to point out that as invited guest-teachers we do not simply “import” ill-fitting Western traditions and competences, but carefully observe and then reflect with our partners on what is needed or wanted and can be supported by us.
Laos aims to progress from Least Developed Country (LDC) status to a Middle Income Country by 2030 (Sustainable Development Goals, Agenda 2030). One of the criteria is scoring a certain level on the Human Assets Index (HAI), which entails to permanently reduce its illiteracy rate. Helping the pupils learn how to read and write, and how to use their imagination and creativity, should help for their individual futures.
References
Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung. “Entwicklungsländer”. http://www.bpb.de/nachschlagen/lexika/lexikon-der-wirtschaft/19220/entwicklungslaender (accessed 19th of April, 2019)
United Nations Development Programme. “Lao PDR’s eligibility for graduation from LDC status confirmed”. http://www.la.undp.org/content/lao_pdr/en/home/presscenter/pressreleases/2018/3/19/lao-pdr_s-eligibility-for-graduation-from-least-developed-countr.html (accessed 19th of April, 2019)
A day in the life of three students, an English teacher and a Team VII volunteer at the LGTC
I work at the LGTC and meet many different persons every day. As I spend several hours a week with my tandem-partner and students, I was beginning to get curious about their different daily routines. Eventually I found out and decided to share those stories with you, and add my own.
At first, three BHS students talk about their day and what they like about studying at the LGTC.1 Second, you can read about the day of a BHS English teacher, and last, about the day of a volunteer (Team VII).2 I devised a template to help the authors structure their articles, but no other help was necessary.3
A day in the life of Ms Panhia Yang (Electrical Year 2 student)
Hello, my name is Ms: Panhia Yang I am 23 years old.
ET year 2 student Ms Panhia Yang
I am a ET student in my second year. I am from Vientiane province. There are ten people in my family, I have three older brothers and one sister, two younger sisters and one brother with my family.
The first thing I do when I wake up in the morning, I brush my teeth and take a shower, and then I cook for my break. I always have breakfast at 7:00 am. Before I go to school, my house s near to school so I walk to school at 7:30 am every day.
Ms Panhia has breakfast…
… and walks to the LGTC in the morning.
We always have class at 8:00 am – 11:30 am. My classroom have only 16 students, there are 9 boys and 6 girls with me, my teacher is good they are intending teaching to us. However practical subject or theory. My classmates are very friendly.
Ms Panhia’s classmates in the classroom of the ET section
Ms Panhia works on a junction box, gets some practical training…
I always have lunch at 12:00 I cook by myself and sometime my sister in-law cook. My favorite lunch is fish soup.
In the afternoon go to school at 12:40 we have class at 1:00
… and more practical training in the afternoon.
In my freetime I spend 2 hours for do my homework and read English book. After that go to sleep at 21:00.
I feel happy when I come to this college the fast day I don’t know everyone but I study with my classmate for a week. I know about them they are friendly and very kind.
I like learning at the LGTC because there is a places that teach anything that I never knew before and I like to study about electricity. I like being a BHS student because have a good time to meet and study English with Germany teacher.
A day in the life of Ms Toukta Sulinthavong (Electrical Year 1 student)
Hello! My names is Miss Toukta Sulinthavong. I am 15 years old.
ET year 1 student Ms Toukta Sulinthavong
I am a Electrical student in first year. I am from Phan heng Village, Vientiane Capital. In my free time, I like to listening to the music, play mobile phone, and clean my house.
The first thing I do, when I wake up I brush my teeth, take a bath, wash my face and get dressed. After tha I feed the ducks, chickens and the frogs. I cook breakfast by myself. The I have breakfast I take my books for study. I go to school.
Ms Toukta walks to school with ther schoolmates.
Ms Toukta Sulinthavong with her parents, who live in Phan Heng Village.
In school: My study with my teachers. I write the lesson, learn about my teacher teach. In class during the practical training, I like English. I don’t like Math subject. My favorite subject is English. My teacher is beautiful and very nice. Her name is Nicole.
Ms Toukta sits in class studying with her peer Lee Lor.
Ms Toukta with her Englisch teacher Nicole Wiesa at a baci.
For Lunch I always have noodle soup. I cook noodle soup by myself. My favorite lunch is papaya salad, sticky rice and grill chicken. Sometimes I do not have lunch because I eat breads.
In the afternoon I go to school with my friends and I study with my teachers. After school I have English class in evening. My English class start at 6:00 – 7:00 o’clock. After that in my freetime I like listen to Music, watch TV, reading books and clean my bedroom.
Ms Toukta with her classmates
She likes to read, so she reads an English book in the school library.
I like Monday about my day at the college. Because my teachers are very kind. I like learning at the LGTC because I like study to college with my friends. I like being a BHS student because my family doesn’t have enough money and etc….
A day in the life of Ms Somsanouk Phannavong (General Mechanics Year 1 student)
Hello, My name is Miss: Somsanouk PHANNANONG.
GM year 1 student Ms Somsanouk Phannavong
I am 18 years old. I am a GM student in my first year. I am from Sikeud village, Naxaiythong district, Vientiane capital. In my freetime I like to play sports: karate- Do and table tennis and read the English book and listen to English song.
In the morning the first thing I do, when I wake up I brush my teeth, take a bath and get dressed. Next I eat breakfast and check my phone, prepare the book and go to school.
Ms Somsanouk likes to read and write in English.
In class: My teacher teach me about how to measure material by vennier calipen. So I like it, my favorite subject are English subject, math and computer, but I am not good at math and computer and my classmates someone say: it easy and someone say: it very difficult.
For lunch I go to the restaurant. I always have noodle soup because I don’t have a time to cook myself, but my favorite lunch is grilled fish
In the afternoon I come back to school again for study the other subject and I have the activities with my friends. So, it make me have new friend and change an idea together.
Ms Somsanouk needs to do practical training…
… and study mechanics in theory, too.
After school I have a little freetime. So, I am reading books, do the home work for going to the evening class, sometimes I listen to music and talk with friends the next time I go to English class in the evening and after class I eat dinner and go to sleep.
At the college, I like to do a lot of thing. So, it has a lot of section and I like learning at LGTC because it help me know the new thing or something I don’t know before. And take a lot of theory to me, to be a Technical. So I like being a BHS student because: This project give the chance for the other person who really like and want to learn.
A day in the life of an English teacher
Hello, I’m an English teacher from Lao-German Technical College. My name’s Akina YADSADAHUK.
English teacher Ms Akina Yadsadahuk…
… teaches English at the LGTC.
Now, I live in Xaysavang village, Xaythanie district and Vientiane capital. My home is far from my college. So, I always get up early every day. And I usually get up 5:45 a.m. I tidy my bedroom first and I don’t tidy his son’s bed because he’s still sleeping. He often gets up at 6:30 a.m. Second, I wash the baby bottles in my kitchen. After that I brush my teeth and have a shower. Next, I comb my hair and put on my make-up. Next, I get dressed. I wear my uniform and my husband cooks for breakfast. I then have breakfast with my husband. After that I go to my college. When I arrive my office, I always drink coffee and I pack my bag with all my teaching materials in the morning. On Monday and Friday my class starts at 8:00 a.m. and ends at 4:00 p.m. These days are so tired. Every Tuesdays and Thursdays I prepare my lesson with my tandem at 10:00 until 11:30. Sometimes we have lunch in the soup kitchen. My tandem name is Patricia Hopp. She always helps me to prepare my lesson plan, teaching aids etc.… After that I continue to study Technical English with another volunteer, Nicole Wiesa. My studying starts 3:45 until 5:15 on Monday until Thursday. I often arrive my home at 6:00 p.m. After that I wash the baby bottles. Then I take a bath. Every weekday I don’t cook because my husband has to cook for breakfast and dinner. He has to cook because he starts to work at 8:30 until 4:00. He comes back home before I get home. Sometimes I only cook on weekend. We usually have dinner 7:30.
Ms Akina’s husband prepares dinner for the family.
Then I continue to prepare my lesson. Preparing my lesson at home is convenient because my jobs are teaching students and working in my office together. So, I don’t have a time for preparing my teaching. I have my printer in my home so it’s comfortable to print out my lesson. Furthermore, I save my money to buy a lamination machine for laminating my materials. I spend these times to prepare my lesson because Technical English is quite difficult.
Ms Akina prepares her English lessons at home.
Ms Akina’s son
Finally, I go to my bedroom at 10:00. During a night we have to wake up 3 times because our baby cries. When he cries that means he wants to drink milk. Then we have to prepare a milk. It’s a hard day.4
A day in the life of a volunteer at the LGTC
Hello my name is Nicole Wiesa, 25 years old and a volunteer at the LGTC (Team VII). I am from Vaihingen/Enz, a town near Stuttgart in Germany. In my free time, I like to play badminton and read books. Luckily, I was able to play some badminton in Laos, too. Mr Saythong Insarn likes to play badminton in his free time, so he takes me to play with him and his friends. It is a lot of fun but very tiring as it is very hot in Laos.
In the morning, I normally get up between 7 and 8. The first thing I do when I wake up is to check my phone. For breakfast I have cereals with milk. Before I walk to the LGTC, which is right next to the bungalow we volunteers live in, I have a shower and put on my sinh.
I get ready for school.
Ms Moukdala and I on the LGTC campus
At the college, I join the class of my tandem-partner Ms Moukdala Keomixai. She teaches English and when I see her I always feel happy because she is such a wonderful and joyful person. In class I observe her teaching and sometimes we teach the class together. After class we normally sit together and reflect on her lesson. If there is still time, we plan the next lesson.
When it is time for lunch, Ms Moukdala Keomixai, Ms Ketsana Siphonephat, Ms Ba Phengsouphy, Ms Akina Yadsadahuk, Patricia, Dilara, and I go to the “soup kitchen” near the campus. The family who owns the place already know us. Normally, I have a noodle soup, which is my favourite dish in Laos.
At the soup kitchen…
… my favourite dish in Laos, noodle soup
On Wednesday afternoon, I have the BHS student class “Intermediate”.5 The class has 14 students and I love every one of them. The English lessons are always fun and my students love to learn English. After that I teach my English teachers class. We are only 7 people, a good size for a lot of communicative activities. Sometimes we discuss technical topics that are not featured in our course book Technical English 2, which is challenging for me as well, and I learn about new technical topics from my “teacher-students”, who are experts in technical matters.
My students…
… my year 3 students, “Intermediate” group…
… and their hard-working teachers practising their English skills.
In the evening, I have evening class with the BHS students. Sometimes the students are very tired, so I try to do a lot of fun activites like memory games, vocabulary bingo, or phantomime. Sometimes we go to the Lending Library.
Sometimes we go to the library to check out the English books.
My English class Year 1 and Year 2.
After school, I help Patricia to prepare our dinner, but Patricia is clearly the chef in our team, so I chop vegetables, cook pasta, or set the table. After dinner, I usually skype with my boyfriend Patrick or my parents and tell them about my day in Laos.
Thank you very much, Ms Akina, Ms Panhia, Ms Toukta, and Ms Somsanouk, for sharing your daily routines with me and our readers!
Text by N. Wiesa, P. Yang, S. Phannanong, T. Sulinthavong & A. Yadsadahuk
Photos by D. Erdogan, P. Hopp, I. Martin, S. Phannanong, T. Sulinthavong, N. Wiesa, A. Yadsadahuk & P. Yang
Notes
1 “BHS students” are the students at the LGTC who have a scholarship from BHS Corrugated. Those students take additional English classes taught by the volunteers.
2 Team VII worked at the LGTC from September 2018 to February 2019. Dilara stayed longest and helped Team VIII to settle into their new routines.
3 Structure: Introduction of author, narration about their day starting in the morning to the evening, reasons for liking being a student or teacher at the LGTC. This had developed from the authors’ ideas about what they would like to share, and some sentences like “The first thing I do in the morning…”, “For lunch I have…”, “In the evening…” etc. provided the scaffolding.
4 In Laos it is quite normal that young parents work full-time.They may do this soon after the birth of a child because the family – which includes older family members – depends on their income. Lao babies and toddlers are then looked after during the day by an older relative, e.g. the grandparents or an aunt.
5 The BHS classes are divided into three groups: Beginners, Pre-Intermediate, Intermediate.
An internship at BHS Corrugated in Shanghai – by Ms Toukta Apphaiyalath and Mr Khiew Keobountham
Preface (J. Zeck)
One crucial goal of the BHS Corrugateds’ Recruitment and Training Programme at and with the Lao-German Technical College is to train and hire new employees for the company’s business in the Asia-Pacific region. The project is a combination of social engagement by offering scholarships to 35-40 graduates of the lower secondary school Ban Phang Hang and the company’s long term demand for skilled workers in the Asia Pacific region.
A few students taking part in the Recruitment and Training Programme will be offered practical training at subsidiaries and service teams of BHS Corrugated or even customer plants each year, in order to hire them as permanent skilled workers after their graduation from the Lao-German Technical College. Some students already took the chance to receive training abroad, e.g. in Thailand and at BHS Corrugated’s headquarter in Weiherhammer in July and August 2018. The basic requirement for an internship and later work placement abroad are English language skills, which is why the “Teaching English in Laos” project is a crucial part of the Recruitment and Training Programme.
In late 2018 a new corrugated rolls workshop was opened up in Malaysia. Corrugating rolls are the most crucial spare part in a corrugating board machine, because the roll presses the corrugation in the paper. See for yourself in this video on corrugating rolls production at Weiherhammer:
For the new workshop in Malaysia new employees will receive training in the near future in order to build up a skilled labor force there. As the BHS Human Resources Department (“HR”) has not yet found enough skilled workers in Malaysia so far, they asked whether Lao LGTC students in the Mechanical sector of the Recruiment and Training Programme might be interested in a job placement in Malaysia as from 2019.
Ms Toukta Apphaiyalath and Mr Khiew Keobountham expressed their interest in this opportunity. In order to prepare them for the job placement in Malaysia, the HR team suggested to conduct a two-month training program in the corrugating rolls workshop of BHS Corrugated in Shanghai, China. The schedule was set up and both apprentices looked forward to our joint departure to China on 7 November 2018.
I (Johannes “John” Zeck) stayed in Shanghai with them until 12 November 2018 for a few days. It was a very interesting experience for me as well – not only was it my first time in China, but it was also a revealing experience in terms of intercultural cooperation and communication. Here is Ms Toukta’s and Mr Khiew’s report on their experiences in Shanghai. As they designed it as a presentation, our readers can also download it here: Experiences_Shanghai
Lao People’s Democratic Republic
Peace Independent Democratic Unity Prosperity
Present by: MISS TOUKTA APHAIYALATH & MR KHIEO KEOBOUNTHAM
Our experience in Shanghai
On 7 November 2018 to 5 January 2019 BHS invited us MISS. TOUKTA APHAIYALTh and MR. KHIEO KEOBOUNTHAM to come to Shanghai in China. We did a practical training.
On the first day, we went to the company and company tour with JOHN. We work a lot at BHS, we rebuilt a wire model. We have learned a lot from CNC machinery about 3 weeks by professional trainer who explained clearly how to use the machine such as: Basic programing and machine operation step by step, cutting technology, etc.
After that we could design the program from the lesson that we have learn, but the trainer will give us the suggestion all the time that we did correct more information for us to it correctly.
When we learned in BHS everybody are friendly and help us everything about the machine and read the drawing we thought. We are lucky, if we learned in BHS.
Arrival at BHS Corrugated
Miss Toukta and Mr Khiew at their new workplace
Miss Toukta operates a CNC machine…
… in the corrugating rolls workshop of BHS Corrugated in Shanghai
Learning how to calculate the correct adjustments for the CNC machines
Milling and turning the corrugateg rolls
Learning how to calculate the correct adjustments…
… for the CNC machines
Very cold in Quingpu/Shanghai!
This apartment is very cleaned and Comfortable. The nearest place are a lot of offices, many kind of restaurants that good taste like the noodle soup, specially the kind of noodle. But some taste of original foods here are very strange taste for me, so I can’t eat them.
Chinese breakfast in the accomodation
Lunch in the canteen of BHS Corrugated
On the weekend I Love to travel around the Shanghai city with JOHN and my friends. There are many places are attractive and very beautiful building such as the house style, the tall building including the shopping mall. I am very interesting of there developed technology but some where they still maintained their traditional cultural.
A guided city tour with German employees of BHS Corrugated through Shanghai
The Pearl Tower, a unique sight in Shanghai
Shanghai’s skyline
Shanghai’s skyline from the Bund
Shanghai’s city center at night
The 632m high Shanghai Tower
Upon the Shanghai Tower…
… with a magnificent view over Shanghai at 526m
The ancient Zhujiajiao water town
Lunch in Zhujiajao water town
Knowledge, Skill and insights gained from internships
- The most important thing is how to work, be safe in work.
- Must be honest. To be able to work, as well as being enthusiastic to learn always.
- Able to experience and work techniques that are not book study.
- Punctuality, duties and responsibilities assigned.
- Know About teams work and communication.
- Be able to solve problem by yourself, more confident in work.
- Learn about planning of work to be done.
- Dare to express opinions and listen to reasons of others.
- Have more skills in performing various tasks.
Text and photos by T. Apphaiyalath, K. Keobountham & J. Zeck
An interview with Ms Bounpheng Singhalath – daughter, wife & mother, student, worker & teacher
After my arrival in Ban Sikeud on 21 February 2019, Pauline Faix, (Team VII), introduced to me Ms Bounpheng Singhalath,1 my tandem-partner during my internship at the Ban Phang Heng primary school. The more time I spent with her the better I got to know her. I experience her as a woman with a lot of drive. Her weekly schedule is fully packed: Preparing lessons, holding lessons, doing office work in school, taking extra teacher-lessons to improve her English, looking after two small daughters and her elderly parents while her husband stays in barracks over the week because he is a soldier.
Phang Heng primary teachers
Ms Bounpheng and “Teacher Elisabeth”
Ms Bounpheng and her family
Ms Bounpheng’s house…
… in Naxone village
This gave me food for thought. With Ms Bounpheng’s husband absent for most of the week, her weekly routine resembles that of countless single mothers all around the globe, and I found myself wondering how exactly she manages to take care of so many responsibilities and tasks with that particular ease that she radiates.
She was brought up in poor conditions but always had bigger ambitions. She worked very hard to become a teacher and made her way by going to school, working in a factory for four years to earn and save up money for university, then studying English, and finally becoming a teacher.
I asked Ms Bounpheng for an interview so that she would tell me – and you – her story.
With Prof. Martin‘s assistance, I drew up the following questions. For better readability, some of the answers were slightly edited.
When were you born?
BS: On 2 September 1980, I was born in Naxone Village.
For how long have you been married?
BS: Yes, about ten years ago.
Do you have children? How old are they?
BS: Yes I have. I have two daughter. The first, she is 8 years old. The second 4 year old.
What is/was the occupation of your parents?
BS: My parents no occupation. They are older.
Did they work before?
BS: They are farmer.
Which subjects do you teach?
BS: I teach English subject.
For how long have you been teaching at Ban Phang Heng primary school?
BS: I taught primary Phang Heng about 4 year.
(Editor’s note: Before this, BS taught English at Phang Heng secondary school.)
How long do you study to become a teacher in Laos?
BS: I study in university General English for 5 years.
What is your opinion about our tandem-teaching programme?
BS: I like, of course, because I need to learn the new team and technique I can check the move English for me and children. Yes, the programme my opinion I want to the student learn the English and I want student know speak English and student know the English with guest come to school or with the teacher foreigner come to school.
Has this changed your English?
BS: Yes, I can talk the English more and I can learn the new technique and I can learn the vocabulary more.
Has this changed your teaching ?
BS: Yes. Has the better. Example: For me I can develop the English and I can more know the English after the first I start here I don’t the English but I can know the English I can improve than last year.
Has this changed your intercultural competence?
BS: Yes, the team come they know the culture in Lao same the culture some in German and Lao and talk together about the culture in Lao. Example: For the teacher wear the skirt, Lao skirt and T-shirt some day and uniform the teacher. But in Germany wear the clothes comfortable or easy for the people but in Lao no. I like wearing sinh.
Do you now learn differently than you used to learn?
BS: It is different. I learn the writing and listening and the vocabulary and write with the programme.
(Editor’s note: Using a notebook for creating worksheets, for example. The notebook was a donation.)
Where do you live now?
BS: I live in Naxone village. I was born and the same I live.
Can you describe this place, please?
BS: From the school to Naxone village about 6 km far away.
What is it like? Is it big village?
BS: Oh yes. Many, many house in Naxone village not me only. Look like Sikeud village, the same. We have market.
Where did you grow up?
BS: Yes, my parents’ house was born no. My mother was born in Naxone village and my father from Luang Prabang Province. I was born in Naxone village in my parents’ house.
What does your parents’ house look like?
BS: Look like the middle house. Not big and not small.
How many people lived in your parents’ house when you were a child?
BS: About 6 people. My parents and my first sister, my second sister and my younger brother live in my house.
How many inhabitants live in Naxone village?
BS: About 560 people. I think for me big village.
Can you tell me about your siblings?
BS: I have siblings. I have two sisters and one brother. The first sister. She is 50 years old. She is a doctor in hospital in Naxaythong District. And second sister. She is is 45 years old. She is a worker in the factory. She has worker but now she cannot work. She is not health good and I have one brother. He is 40 years old. He is a worker. My brother is not live with me. He live in Xanthong District. He has a scientist.
You grew up in Naxone village in your parents’ house. What was it like to grow up there?
BS: Growing up in my house, we are happy and we are the move I cannot explain. We start small but now big. But now I don’t live with my parents. I move with my husband, with my daughter near from the far away with my parents. One kilometer. My brother and sister live with my parents. Two, the first she is a doctor. She moves with her husband and my brother he live in Xanthong District.
What was your childhood like with 4 children in total?
BS: I like it and my parents live small and the big for the 4 children in house. I like big family. I share room with my sisters. And my brother had a different room.
Do you have memories of your early school life?
BS: I learn the study. The first learn study alphabet in Lao in Naxone school I learn the alphabet in Lao language not the English I learn the English for the secondary school but I don’t know the English and the I go out the English to the university but I don’t know the English. I can try to read, write and listening and I can write notes when I don’t understand. I can note, I can read it, I have time but I don’t understand, I cannot ask teacher.
What did your school look like?
BS: Yes, I have the same this year but older the table older the chair when I learn alphabet in Lao. To the school I walk not ride the motorbike, ride not bicycle, I walk to school everyday. Not by Tuktuk. No no, I don’t have money. Maybe 30 minutes. Same way like secondary school to the villa. I walk. I can try to learn about to school everyday.
How was the school equipped?
BS: We had boards with chalk. When I study the primary school about 12 students in one class. Sometimes different more students 20 or 30 but for me learn 12 a class.
What subjects were taught?
BS: Lao language, math, biology and geography. I remember 10 subjects but I cannot remember I can speak to you. I can write in primary school.
How long did you go to primary school?
BS: 6 years. Secondary school 3 years. I move to the Wasang village. I move the primary school and the high secondary school in Wasang school not Naxone village only. There is no secondary school in Naxone village.
So you lived in Naxone village and walked to secondary school?
BS: I have a motorbike. Oh no, I have a bicycle, very old bicycle for my sister, my brother give to me. Some day my motorbike broken. I go with my friend. Some day I cannot come to school because I don’t have motorbike.
What happened after secondary school?
BS: Highschool 3 years in Naxaythong district.
What subjects were taught there?
BS: Biology, Lao language, the English and sport and history and geography. English to the high school to the university.
So you went to high school for 3 years and after that you went to university?
BS: After high school I go to the worker in the factory. I stayed about the 4 years. Sometimes I work in the “Trio” factory 2 years. In the “Bimack” [a factory] in Sikay Village two year. After works I have more money I go the secondary again. I stop the study I go to the work factory for the make the work for the money to pay education. I worked 4 years to get to university. I was born in poor my house not rich.
What did your parents think about school?
BS: Nothing, my parents we are work farmer not more students. They think school is important.
Who paid for your education and upkeep?
BS: My parents give a time to me and I have time I can pay I can to work and my husband sent money to me that I can go to school [university]. My parents pay for secondary school and high school. But the university… no.
Why did you want to become a teacher? Why English?
BS: I like the teacher [the profession of being a teacher]. When I study in high school I don’t know the English. My friend talk with me: “You don’t know the English. I think you cannot a teacher.” No, I think I go to the teacher and I want to the English teacher and not another subject not another biology, photography, history. I don’t like. I like English. If you look at me, I told my friend. I want to an English teacher. My decide.
What do your parents think about you becoming a teacher?
BS: No problem. My parents said: “It’s up to you. If you want the English teacher, if you want to worker. Up to you.” No, I want to be English teacher only. (smiles)
Did you ever think about becoming a farmer like your parents?
BS: No, I like only the teacher. No option for me.
Are your parents proud of you having become a teacher?
BS: Yes, my parents and my husband: “Oh, you can do it.” Yes of course. I want to improve the English. I want to learn. My friend come to school from Madame [Engel], say to me have a project to the… for the teacher English good. Thank you for the project have a teacher come to me. Another people I don’t know but for me I like and I can talk and I can speak English because some work I do it with together and I can show my friend when I worker or when I study in high school my friend talk with me: ‘”Oh, you not a teacher English.” No, I can try. But now I can Teach English. I can happy now. I can proud. I am a teacher. Thank you for my parents give a time to me and thank you for Madame give a time to me and I can speak English very well from her. Because [before] her [she] said: “No, why you don’t answer me?” When I saw her, I go to the toilet. I’m afraid of her when I saw the teacher from Germany, I afraid of her. But now I can talk, I can speak. When I don’t know I can ask them. Thank you for my friend don’t like me and don’t talk with me: “You don’t speak English.” But now I can speak English. I am teacher. I like it.
Was your parent’s schooling different?
My parents think of me: “Yes, you can do it and you can speak English with foreigner.” And my friend think…When with my friend foreigner come to my house I can interview to them. My father he is: “Oh, you very good.” My father can speak English some words. My mother no. He know the English, he know the Lao language. He [she] don’t to school my mother. My father went school. My father he learn another subject in temple. When he was young he is the Buddha. He learn the Lao language in temple not in the school. My father say when he was young he not the money, he has a war, World War II.
Do you raise your daughters in the same way your parents raised you?
BS: I don’t know in the future but in the future I want to my daughter the first she is the doctor. And my second daughter I want to she is the policeman or soldier. In the future but I don’t know my daughter. I have a plan but my daughter don’t have a plan. But my daughter she like it doctor.
What is the same, what is different in their upbringing?
BS: Yes, different. When I was young I can poor money, but my daughter I cannot for the money I can pay. Give to her. Another, if you want to go to the doctor her to the doctor. I can pay give to her. The second, she want to learn I can pay to her. I cannot poor.
How important is the opinion of others to you?
BS: My best friend, she is the important for me. My friend is important to me. Every time when I have time talk with her, if I do it Activity (Editor’s Note: “Activity Time”) I can show her, I can ask her some I write or I long the I ask her all the time. This is important.
What is your motivation to be part of our programme?
BS: The programme I ask the student the move the English [help pupils who wish to “move” by improving their English]. They know the English and I want to be the parent for me student interesting the English more. I want the students to learn more.
What are your wishes for the future?
BS: If impossible I want to go to Germany I want to invite [visit] my friend Svenja and Jessica.2 I want to know he [how she] live in Germany.3 The same me or different me. I want to know. I have more friends in Germany [from other previous teams].
What are your wishes for the future of our project?
BS: Before the student I want the student come to visit another country and China, Germany, Thailand, and Vietnam. Important that student go to another country, because some student move or speak English the better. They can more. The parent can send to them to another country. Learn about culture and another country.
Thank you very much!
It is always a special treat when one of our Lao partners agree to do an interview4 and share photos, because it gives us and our readers a more personal impression of Laotian culture, living conditions, and what it takes to “move”.
Thank you, Ms Bounpheng, for your readiness to answer my questions and for sharing so many thoughts and details of your life story!
Text and interview by E. Heinz, with notes by I. Martin
Interviewee: B. Singhalath
Photos by V. Wecker & B. Singhalath
Notes
1 Other blog articles by Ms Bounpheng: “The teacher vunlunteer from Germany” by Bounpheng Singhalaht” (21.01.2016); “Letters from Laos – ‘My ongoing education as an English teacher’ by Ms Bounpheng Singhalath“(20.12.2017).
2 Svenja Walschburger (Team VI) and Jessica Deißler (Team IV). Her other tandem-partners were Meike Weis (Team VII), Lea Hermann (Team V), and Silja Schäfer (Team III).
3 The Lao third person singular does not differentiate gender.
4 Editor’s note: Previous article-interviews on this blog and interview-videos on “Live documentation”:
Spotlight on intercultural encounters – An interview with Ms Mittaphone Sichampa and Ms Phovang Inthavong by M. Weis (4 March 2019); Interview with an Chilean expat in Vientiane – The Bacan Café by M. Frahm & J. Unterweger (1 March 2019); Traditional Lao weaving – an interview with Ms Khamsee Thanbounhueang by M. Linder & N. Wickmann (15 February 2019); Karate Kid(s) – how Mr Sai ignites a spark for karate in his pupils by S. Walschburger (27 March 2018); A wish for better education – An interview with Mr Khamsing Nanthavongdouangsy by M.-T. Kirsten (23 February 2018); The good soul of Ban Phang Heng Secondary school – An interview with Ms Saysamone Singhalath by L. Malchow (5 February 2018); Farewell to Hilderstone College – an interview and letter from England by Ms Mittaphone Sichampa by L. Shutler (2 September 2017); An Interview with Lathsamy Chanthavongsa by I. Stryj (4 April 2016); Interview with Bouangeun and Souphaphone by F. Frister (28 January 2016). Interviews with pupils by Team IV on “Live documentation”.
Collaborative research PH KarIsruhe and Savannakhet University – insects, amphibians, Germans, and an outing to Thakek
Welcome day
Hello! My name is Viengvilaiphone Botthoulath. I am a teacher at the Faculty of Food Science, Savannakhet University. This was my first time to meet my partner from PH KarIsruhe, Germany. Dr. Remmele’s arrival time at Savannakhet International Airport was 2:30 p.m. on February 25, 2019. Although I did not go to pick him up at the airport, I was really excited to meet him at dinner time, because it was our first time to meet each other after a long communication via email.
At 6:30 p.m., a driver and I went to pick him up at the Vivanouk Hotel for the welcome dinner at Kin View restaurant. Lao hot pot and Lao barbecue buffet was the cuisine we ate together with the hosts of the welcome dinner, which was organized by the Faculty of Food Science and Dr. Phetsamone Kattiyavong, Dean of the Faculty of Linguistics and head of the SKU Erasmus+ team. We had a very wonderful dinner enjoying the food a lot, while simultaneously beginning our discussion of objectives and possibilities of collaborative research concepts, and also of Dr. Remmele’s desire to observe Lao style teaching-learning lessons during his two-week visit.
Welcome dinner day: I am next to Dr. Remmele and Dr. Phetsamone Kattiyavong is opposite him.
First day on the new campus, Faculty of Food Science, Savannakhet University
At 8:30 a.m. on February 26, the Dean of the Faculty of Food Science, Mr. Satheuan Thikeo, welcomed Dr. Remmele and also introduced him to other colleagues. Beginning at 9:00 a.m., we started to give presentations in order to exchange our research work and to get to know more of each other and our distinct academic backgrounds, so as to find a fitting way to collaborate our research. There were three presentations from participants of the Faculty of Food Science, one participant from the Faculty of Natural Science, and three presentations from Dr. Remmele’ side. The presentations helped to make clear to us concepts for developing our research proposals.
Welcome Dr. Remmele by Mr. Satheuan Thikeo, the dean of the Faculty of Food Science (between Dr Remmele and me)
Exchange research presentation among the participants from the Faculty of Food Science, the Faculty of Natural Science and Dr. Remmele
Second day for seminar “Psychological Theories for Enhancing Education”…
There were 17 participants from the Faculty of Food Science, the Faculty of Natural Science, and the Faculty of Agriculture and Environmental Science who joined in this seminar. It was really an interesting and helpful approach for us, to think about applying such psychological theories to the practical work and students’ problems in the classroom. This enables us to understand more about our students’ desires. His lecture led us to discuss the differences between German students’ and Lao students’ classroom attitudes on learning-teaching. I came to know a major different between German students and Lao students is that German students are brave to show their ideas and react to answer the questions very quickly, while Lao students are shy and afraid to share their ideas because they afraid that their responses may be wrong. This may be a difference of cultural atmosphere.
Seminar on Psychological theories for enhancing education
… and setting up the scope of the proposal research development in the natural sciences
After a long discussion on finding an appropriate research topic, we agreed on the topic, “study on distinguishing useful and dangerous insects for farmers”. Another interesting topic we discussed was regarding amphibian species of Germany and Laos. These topics would be useful for education on sustainable development for farmers in Laos. To help us work effectively and efficiently, we divided our work for each member to take responsibility for an individual task. This would help us to work in effective way and be punctual sincere to work. Besides the official research, Dr. Remmele also guided me and advocated that I get my findings distributed in order to apply for an ASEAN-wide Fellowship. I have learnt a lot from him on techniques how to write an effective proposal. Of course, I haven’t heard any results yet – but if I get selected by the ASEAN-wide Fellowship, I will immediately inform Dr. Remmele, as I would not be the only one to be excited by such good news. I would like to thank Dr. Remmele for his kindness; he is a really helpful and attentive person.
Furthermore, as we worked on our collaborative research tactics with the aim of publication, we made a plan to set up deadlines to help us keep in touch as our research progresses on our topic. We also planned that our research will show up on the International Symposium day, which will be held at SKU on 11 October 2019. Hopefully, we can make our dream come true!
Setting the scope of proposal research
Tour of Thakhek, Khammoaune Province – my hometown
As it was the first time for Dr. Remmele to visit Laos, and to relax from our stress of official work, we took time to visit my hometown on the weekend. It took about 2 ½ hours to reach Thakhek by car. We went to have a picnic at “Tha Falang”. It is in fact a river with large pond and surrounded by mountains, where the French army used to set up camp in the 1950s. Then, we returned to the main road and continued for a few kilometers to visit the famous Buddha Cave, which was discovered in 2004. The cave has 229 bronze Buddhas that are over 300 years old. We gave a donation to be a part of building a temple there, and we also did some sightseeing by riding a boat inside under the cave. We then finished our trip by parking the car along the Mekong river bank, from where we could see the Thailand side and enjoy the spectacular natural view, particularly of the sunset. We spent about 45 minutes there, then traveled back to Savannakhet Province.
Dr. Rememele visited Tha Falang, Thakhek
Near Buddha Cave at Thakhek City, Khammoaune Province. My third younger sister on my right hand side and my youngest brother on my left hand side
Mekong river blank at Thakhek City, Khammaoune Province
At Landmark of the Mekong river blank, with team members Mr. Daosavanh and Mr Daungvilavanh
One week later – welcome to Dr. Isabel Martin and participating in her workshop
I was delighted to meet with the German Head of the Erasmus+ programme Prof. Dr. Isabel Martin again on 4 March 2019, and with her we had the first official meeting of Dr. Martin Remmele with our Vice-president, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Sitha Khemmarath. In the morning we had a meeting to discuss our activities, set up our activities plan, and to clarify everyone’s responsibilities. Then we headed to visit Savannakhet Teacher Training College, with the aim of extending our collaboration between PH KarIsruhe and Laos to an additional partner. There was much interest and a lively discussion chaired by Dr Phetsamone (SKU) and the Vice-President (TTC).
First official Erasmus+ meeting led by Prof. Martin and Dr Sitha with Research Department and Dr Remmele
Visiting Savannakhet Teacher Training College
It was an honor for me to participate in Dr. Isabel Martin’s workshop on “How to Communicate with German Partners”.1 Her workshop helped me to have a clearer understanding of various aspects of the German people, including culture, communications, working styles and national characteristics. From my point of view, it was not only useful to me in the short term, but also showed how we can work more effectively together and maintain our collaboration with more strength in the future. I am glad to have had the chance to be a part of her workshop.
Dr Isabel with her group of researchers from the English Department and Dr Remmele and me
Text by V. Botthoulath, with a note by I. Martin
Photos by V. Botthoulath, S. Botthoulath & P. Sibounnavong
Note by the editor
1 Besides insects, amphibians, the English language, and teaching methodology, we also study each other. I learnt “How to work with Lao partners” from observation, listening, experience, books on Lao culture and history, but also from an enlightening CIDA brochure. After three years of acclimatising to the “Lao style”, I felt it was the right time to now communicate more directly some of our own cultural peculiarities and expectations, seeing as an Erasmus+ programme requires communication by email and has hard deadlines.
New places available for internships in autumn 2019: Apply now for Team IX!
Students from all subjects from the University of Education Karlsruhe and graduates can now apply for an internship in the project “Teaching English in Laos” for autumn 2019 by 5 May 2019 (especially welcome: English, physics, math, technics). Interviews will be held on 10 May 2019. This announcement can also be found on the the AAA homepage, the StudIP course Akademisches Auslandsamt and on this blog under Internships.
How to apply
- Address your applications to the International Office of the PH Karlsruhe (Akademisches Auslandsamt). Details and documents for the application procedure can be found on the AAA homepage. Specify the proposed time and duration of your stay, starting in mid-September 2019 (min. 3 months, max. until end of June 2020).
- Send your letter of motivation and CV by email to the project leaders Prof. Dr. Isabel Martin (martin01@ph-karlsruhe.de) and Johannes Zeck (jzeck@bhs-corrugated.de) by 5 May 2019.
- Interviews will be held on 10 May 2019. You will receive feedback on your application in good time.
For any further questions please contact Johannes Zeck. You may also visit the International Office (AAA) to read some reports of students who did an internship in Laos before. Further reports can also be found on the project blog (go to tab “Blog/All Posts“). Prior ISP experience is an advantage.
Creditability of internship: If you need credit for an internship (PO 2018, PO 2015, PO 2011) please visit Dr. Steffen Wagner of the University of Education Karlsruhe personally in his office hour and submit the necessary form before starting your internship.
Bachelor and Master theses can be written within the project.
IMPORTANT NOTE: “The Laos Experience” – “Q&A” info-session on 29 April 2019 (16:15-17:45 in 3.311) in the context of the “Global English(es): Teaching English in Asia” seminar: Returnee-volunteers present their work, and two of our Lao partners and Prof. Martin are also available for your questions – save the date!
We look forward to your applications!
Prof. Dr. I. Martin & J. Zeck
“Team VIII” revisited
Hello there and Sabaidee, dear reader!
We are happy to announce that Team VIII now has its own permanent blog page among the pages of all previous teams. On this page, the volunteers of Team VIII describe their tasks, responsibilities, and roles within the team during their time in Laos.
More posts about our experiences, our work, and our adventures are also on their way – so stay tuned!
Team VIII at Wattay airport, Vientiane: Mariana Dimtsiou, Rebekka Vogt, Cornelia Proels, Elisabeth Heinz, Vanessa Wecker, Anna-Sophia ten Brink, Thomas Pelka, Siegfried Hadatsch
Text by S. Hadatsch
Photo by I. Martin
A day in the life of… a “Mopsy”
It is a Tuesday morning and we are on our way to school, as is five-year-old Anna, a pupil of Ban Sikeud Primary School, and all of her classmates. Thinking about this commonality of our days, we – Pauline and Cornelia – started to wonder if we shared more similarities with little Anna and her “Mopsy” friends in our daily routines. This question stuck in our heads, wherefore we decided to accompany Anna for one day to find out what a day in the life of a “Mopsy” actually looks like.
Editor’s note: Team I originally started calling the pre-schoolers “Mopsies” after the course book “English for Mopsy and Me” that we brought along for the pilot-phase in 2015. Jessica from Team V eventually discovered that they called us “Mopsies”, too…
6.30 a.m.: Wake-up time
Little Anna gets woken up by her mother Mittaphone Sichampa, who is a teacher at the same school Anna visits. After lying in bed for a few more minutes, Anna jumps out of her bed and goes outside to greet the hens and roosters in the garden, while her mother prepares some food.
7.00 a.m.: Breakfast
Breakfast time! In Laos, most of the time this means having noodle soup, rice with different sides like vegetables, various meat, or grilled fish. For Anna and her mother, it is leftovers from yesterday: Fried rice with chicken. They sit down on a mat next to the bedroom and enjoy their first meal together.
7.15 a.m.: Getting ready
After putting on her school uniform1 and helping her mother do the washing-up, lucky Anna has some free time to spend before leaving for school, so she picks up her colouring pencils and some paper and starts drawing her first artwork2 of the day.
A quarter of an hour later, both are ready for their ten-minute ride to school. Anna climbs onto her mother’s motorcycle and waits for Mittaphone to come and drive to school with her. She is one of the very few children in Laos we have seen wearing a helmet for this.
Mittaphone and Anna are on their way to school.
7.40 a.m.: Arrival at school
Entering the schoolyard, Anna gets off the vehicle and heads to her friends and classmates, who have arrived earlier. After greeting them, there is not much time for chatting and playing, as the school day is about to start.
8.00 a.m.: First lesson
Having entered their classroom,3 Anna and the other pre-schoolers take their seat on the floor on a big mat. They continue to whisper and laugh until the teacher draws attention to herself and everyone starts to listen carefully to what she says. On Tuesdays, the subject is mathematics.4 The pupils already know the numbers 1 to 100 in Lao and how to solve basic addition exercises with the numbers one to ten, which is what they are also practising today. The lessons in the morning are all about learning new concepts in the traditional way, whereas learning via more playful activities follows in the afternoon.
The children sit on the mat in an orderly fashion and wait for the teacher to start her lesson…
… Anna and some of her classmates
8.20 a.m.: Mopsy lesson with “teacher Cornelia”
When “teacher Cornelia” enters the room, the class teacher calls the names of up to ten pupils, who line up in front of the door as soon as they hear their names, by holding on to the shoulders of the child in front of them. In joyful anticipation, the Mopsies wait for Cornelia’s “let’s go!” and follow her to the room where the Mopsy lesson takes place. They start with a “Good Morning” song and wave their hands to welcome everyone.
On today’s agenda: The “Bear Hunt”. This is a picture book written by Michael Rosen, which was adapted to an interactive repeat-after-me song, which introduces some basic English chunks and verbs and can be acted out playfully. About 20 minutes later, Cornelia and the Mopsies sing “Goodbye” to each other with another song ritual and walk back to the classroom together.
On the way to the “Mopsy room”…
… the Mopsies listen carefully to what “teacher Cornelia” says.
8.40 a.m.: Back to the lesson
Arriving back in their classroom, Anna and the other Mopsies join their classmates again and the mathematics lesson continues while Cornelia takes the next group of about 10 pupils with her to give them their Mopsy lesson.5
9.40 a.m.: Morning sports
After one hour and forty minutes of lesson-time, the children get ready for morning sports. The pupils of the entire school – with the Mopsies among them – gather on the schoolyard and stand in lines. While two of the older pupils give commands over a microphone, the rest of the pupils follow the instructions and do some gymnastics-like exercises.
Ready for the daily morning sports?
A little break before the children brush their teeth together
10.00 a.m.: Tooth-brushing
After finishing their sportive activity, the Mopsies and all the other pupils run back to the classrooms to pick up their toothbrushes6 and wait for their teachers to put toothpaste on them. They proceed to walk to a construction made of pipes which serves as a row of sinks. There, all children brush their teeth and wash their hands and faces thoroughly before walking back to the classroom and getting the next lesson.
Construction of sinks in the schoolyard…
… teacher Ms Phoneviva Souvannpo puts toothpaste on every child’s toothbrush…
… and the pre-schoolers proudly present their toothbrushes.
The Mopsies brush their teeth thoroughly.
11.40 a.m.: Lunch and play-time
The school bell rings,7 which means it is finally time for the lunch break. Some Mopsies have lunch with their parents, who come to join their children bringing sticky rice and sides for lunch break, some take a little walk outside the schoolyard with their older siblings to buy some food from the local stalls. In Anna’s case, she meets her mother Mittaphone in the teacher’s kitchen. After having unripe mangos with chili sauce as a snack, they eat sticky rice and chicken together with some other teachers. Having finished her meal, Anna runs back to her friends, with whom she continues to laugh and play.
Anna and her mother have a little snack…
… and Anna enjoys her meal.
These little baskets are used to store sticky rice.
The Mopsies play during their lunch break.
Anna plays with teacher Cornelia…
… and spends her lunch break with her friends.
Some parents buy food for their children at the stalls in front of the school.
There is ice-cream for a little treat after lunch.
12.30 p.m.: Taking a nap
In this heat, the long Mopsy school morning is exhausting and calls for a little nap, which is what Anna and her friends are going to get in their empty classroom now. They grab a pillow out of a big bag and lie down on the floor. About five minutes later, everyone is sleeping soundly and regaining some strength and energy for the afternoon lesson.
It is time for a little nap!
Teacher Mittaphone Sichampa takes care of the little pre-schoolers.
Little Anna is fast asleep.
1.30 p.m.: Last lesson of the day
One-and-a-half more hours of lesson lie ahead of the little Mopsy children. As it is usually quite hot after 1 p.m. and their concentration decreases, the afternoon lesson is not only about learning new concepts, but activates the pupils more by integrating songs, drawing, and playing games into the lesson.
3.00 p.m.: Activity Time
The lesson is over, and the last part of Anna’s school day is about to start, the so-called “Activity Time“. This either means 45 minutes of free time playing with other pupils and running around, or taking part in an “Activity”, e.g. badminton, hula hoop dancing, football, traditional Lao dance – or the “English Activities” led by the German volunteers.8 Anna and her friends wander around the schoolyard and wonder which Activity they would like to join today. They see some children skipping rope, some others playing with marbles or carrying the dustbin to empty it, or just watching either the soccer or badminton game. After walking and running around for a few minutes, Anna and her friends decide to go for hula hoop dancing today and have lots of fun – ending their busy school day in a most enjoyable way.
The boys enjoy playing badminton…
… the girls love to dance hula hoop…
… and to practise traditional Lao dance.
Some pupils help to keep the playground clean.
Others watch the football game.
To play with marbles in the tooth-brushing sink is a lot of fun!
Some children just play with their friends, run around, and have fun!
4.00 p.m.: End of the school day
Finally, a long day of lessons and Activities comes to its end. Anna and the other Mopsies wait for their parents to pick them up or walk home with their older siblings. In Anna’s case, it is her mother Mittaphone who takes her back home on her motorbike. The little girl is already looking forward to spending some free time at home.
Mittaphone and her daughter on their way back home
4.30 p.m.: Home again!
While Anna plays outside in the garden with her friend who lives next door, her mother starts to prepare dinner, which is rice with mixed meat and vegetables today. The parts which are inedible are not thrown away but served as dinner for the chickens by Anna. After having dinner with her mother, Anna does her homework.
Anna feeds the chickens after school.
The chicken cage
9.00 p.m.: Night approaches
A full day is about to end, and little Anna must get ready for bed to rest before the next very busy school day. Anna cuddles her mother one last time, jumps into her pajamas, and falls into bed. Sweet dreams!
After we dove into the normal school day of a Mopsy, we had a better sense of what their days are like. It was a great pleasure and a very interesting experience to accompany little Anna for one whole day and we realised that there are more similarities in our daily routines than we would have thought: Getting up in the morning, having breakfast, leaving for school, having lessons, taking a little break at lunchtime, continuing our lessons, going home in the afternoon, getting some work done at home, having dinner, and going to bed.
Little difference: We do not keep chickens at the villa, and – being vegetarians – we do not eat them, either. However, at the end of our busy days we all go to sleep to the same soothing sounds of geckos and cicadas…
Text by P. Faix & C. Proels
Photos by P.Faix, C.Proels & M.Sichampa
Notes
1 All pupils (and teachers) wear school uniforms daily. For the girls this includes a dark blue sinh and a white blouse and for the boys black trousers and a white shirt.
2 Art is Madame Engel‘s passion that she likes to pass over to “her” children at school. Therefore she donates pencils, watercolours, and brushes for the pupils to create amazing little paintings during “Activity Time”. Drawing at home would not be normal routine for Lao children.
3 The preschoolers are divided into two “Mopsy classes” at Ban Sikeud Primary School with 45 pupils in each group. Phang Heng Primary School offers lessons for around 90 pre-schoolers, too.
4 The “Mopsy lessons” consist of different parts which take place on several days. The pupils learn the Lao language on Mondays; on Tuesdays and Thursdays they practise their mathematics skills; they learn English on Wednesdays and have arts lessons on Fridays.
5 We teach the pupils in small groups as teaching oral English to pre-schoolers involves a high amount of participation and speaking-time for each child. We are here to foster the development of speaking skills of young children, which is why it is not condusive to teach more than ten pupils at a time (in this age group).
6 It is a privilege for the children to have their own tooth brush as it is not Lao standard to have one at home. Very few Lao people use a tooth brush regularly, which is why tooth-brushing is included in the regular school day as a daily routine in the AfC-supported schools in Sikeud and Phang Heng.
7 The school bell rings twice. When the bell rings for the first time, the pupils and their teachers know that the next lesson will start in five minutes, and when it rings for the second time, the lesson is about to start and everyone is supposed to sit in his or her classroom.
8 The “Activities” change every day, so that the teachers may offer table tennis one day, traditional Lao dance another day, and “Singlish“, which is offered by us volunteers, on yet another.
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