Role reversal

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I seem to have taken up the academic role of Gandalf to my usual Frodo. Forging ever-on in the quest of learning, I’m now a teacher and hold a rather astounding amount of power.

Sunday nights from 6 to 9 PM I’m teaching Sudanese refugees English in Nasr City. So far, I can’t help but love it, for many reasons. Primarily, the laughter I illicit from people when one of my facial expressions transcends the bounds of verbal humor, or pulling answers out of a class that was, at first, too uncomfortable to make the necessary language-learning mistakes in front of their peers (and me, expect).  We started off by doing brief introductions, and I was the only one in the room not from Sudan. Funny, because even here, I’m rarely without the company of at least one other American. I played a word association game to gauge how well questions could be asked and answered, writing “Tracey”, “21″, and “New York” on a piece of paper, intending that they ask me questions about what those might mean about me (e.g. Is Tracey your sister? Why, yes! Tracey is my sister, and it’s her 13th birthday!) We ended up laughing at Pictionary and word association games, and I was floored by their reading ability (which is far beyond their conversational capabilities at this point. A goal!)

But as much as they may have learned from me in our first introductory session (can’t tell you if they did), I probably learned more. I figured out how to explain around terms in English and Arabic, how to teach, and that I actually enjoy it. “Ah HA” moments are pretty darn special. Next week we’ll work on questions, which I think is more important than the weight-loss unit proscribed by the book…

That’s another issue. Talking about one’s family, homeland, or futures may be a really touchy subject. You can’t play hangman because it might hit too close to home. Between my students’ reality and the neighboring Gaza conflict, I can’t help but wonder what kind of world really do live in, and just how whatever I’m studying can actually facilitate the quaint undergraduate vision people have of a solution and peace.

In any case, teaching these guys how to say fork, spoon, and knife feels a ton more constructive than the countless meetings I attended at BU for my various political pet-causes.

Anyway, the rest of the day is quite packed. An interview at 3:00 PM for a social development firm internship, then class, rehearsal for the Colloquial Arabic play I landed a part in, and then going out with a friend from teaching.

Did I mention no one sleeps in Cairo?

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