On the Monday of our final week, we were told the next day would be our last day of school, as this marked the children’s last day before a 2 week break and Wednesday was reserved for a function at the center, planned in our honor.  I wasn’t sure which piece of this information was most jolting, that we learned at the last minute that we had one less day than expected with the children, the fact that the school was closed for an entire 2 weeks, or that our departure was worthy enough for a community-wide ceremony.   It was a lot of information to digest at once.

In a way, the abrupt last day may have made goodbye to our students easier. Attendance was still down, likely due to the fact that the others were already on break, and we couldn’t make a big production out of our last day that quite literally crept up on us.  Despite this, that final Tuesday was a special day.  Metze and Elaine led the class beautifully.  They did so with the most energy and creativity we’d seen from them yet.  Watching them follow the routine with smiles and excitement to lead the children, gave us confidence that we did help them to get in touch with their love of teaching. They even made homemade clay for the children to use during the floor games portion of the day.  Deena and I were so pleased.  The two women we worked with over the past few weeks came out of their shells and taught the way we knew they could - but hesitated to - all along.

One of the best measures of our work, I think, comes from what the teachers have to say about their classrooms and their students.

Below is our final meeting agenda, next to which we posted a plethora of songs, games and project ideas.

And during this session, we began with two simple questions: How are the children? And what are they doing differently because of changes you’ve made?  Deena and I generated a list of the successes we noticed in the past few weeks, but I was most eager to hear what the teachers had to say, so we started with their reflections.

And this is what we heard (in Chichewa first and translated, of course, by Diana):

-The children now know how to share better and know that they will take turns.

-We’ve never taught in small groups before, but they are working well and give the children the chance to use different materials.

-Clean up happens much more smoothly because the children take the responsibility to put their materials away.

-Now we know what activities to do in what order – before we would do different things everyday with the children, but with a routine to follow we know and the children know that time each day is devoted to something specific.

If I had scripted out what I would have hoped teachers would say as a result of our project, these reflections would be it.  This was a great start to our final meeting, a great testament to the work we did, a satisfying piece of evidence that we worked with the teachers in a way that meant something to them.  We understood what they needed. They understood what we gave them.  But at the same time, I still ask myself if this will stick.  Will this last?  When can I come back?  In the meantime, how can I continue to know how things are going for this special group of children, all of whom deserve the very best from their hard-working teachers?

After our meeting packed with idea sharing and ending with tips on how to keep their programs sustainable, we had the opportunity to say our goodbyes.  Although we would see the teachers the following day, it was important to all of us to express what we’ve felt from our collaboration and how much it meant to us.  Deena and I shared our gratitude for the opportunity we had to work with them and for feeling so welcomed into their schools.  We shared the confidence we have in them to provide their students with the programs they deserve and promised to never forget about them, the children, and this experience.  And the teachers – they were so genuine and kind.  Elaine, in particular, someone who has so often appeared unemotional in front of the children, became so full of emotion during our final days.  She spoke about how much they appreciate what we did for them and how much it meant that we traveled from so far to be there.   “We will never forget Deena and Joanna,” she promised, and I hope that’s the case.  We certainly will never forget about them.

Before we closed our meeting we took pictures and exchanged addresses.  There is so much I will miss in Malawi, these 5 women included.

Auntie Joanna showing love to little Maria.