School in Zambia

Schools in Zambia are only free to attend up to the seventh year. Even before that time, though there are no official fees, many children are prohibited from attending because their families can’t afford to purchase the books or uniforms that the school requires for attendance (despite the cost of the eight notebooks and one pen required for one term being less than one dollar). Starting at the seventh year students must also sit for exams at the end of their second term (there are two terms per year). If a student doesn't pass the exam they can't continue onto the following year. Many students in Zambia don't finish secondary school (high school) until they are in their twenties because of problems with securing funds and failing years.

Zambian curriculum is borrowed from the British school system and the classes are taught using rote learning. Students memorize and memorize often (largely because of language difficulties) without understanding the meaning of what is being memorized. The official language after grade one is english leaving many students behind in the rural areas. Luckily, in practice, the teachers often use a bit of local language to teach though the students are still tested in english. Imagine learning history in english and then having to take a test on the material in portugese. I have a hunch it is a lot like that for most of the students, atleast in the area where I live.

In Zambia, one can see, in stark terms, the differences in opportunities available to those who have and those who haven’t finished their education (and for those who have, how good their marks, or grades, were). Here the grade twelve graduation certificate is often the difference between a life of hard manual labor in farming with little monetary reward and the opportunity for a significantly less labor intensive position in teaching, nursing, or some other service job where one receives a steady stream of income. Without a grade twelve certificate it is impossible to go to a college and in the "towns" (this is what all non-rural areas are called in Zambia) to find employment that pays a living wage.

Question: Can one be economically successful in America without finishing atleast a highschool education? How do opportunities differ in America for those who have and havent obtained a college diploma?

Life in the Village

Life in rural Zambia is very different from life in the States (even in America's most rural places). The village I live in, Muyembe, is about 15 miles from the nearest power lines and only recently had a borehole installed (a borehole is a well with a hand pump). Before the borehole people drew their water from the river. Muyembe is more fortunate than most villages because it has a basic school with grades one through nine and a clinic. There are about 100 households and 500 people living in Muyembe.

People here build their houses out of locally available materials. They use clay to mold bricks for the walls and thatch the roof with grass. The bricks are fired on the more permanent homes but some people (mostly those who live in fishing villages for part of the year and cultivate in another place the rest of the year) build their houses out of unfired bricks, wooden poles, or just thick grasses because of their frequent movements. Wood isn't used very much in building because there are so many termites. Every house has a separate insaka, or cooking hut, where the meals are prepared and visitors entertained. Typical house is probably around 20'x20' in Luapula which is a bit bigger than homes I have seen in other provinces. There are usually eight or ten people in a typical household. My house is a typical village house with the exception of it's cement floor. Cement is too expensive for most families and so most houses have smeared clay over packed bricks for a floor.

Here is a photo of my house and insaka:


What is done on a typical day is dependent on one's sex and age. If a woman, the day will be filled largely with domestic tasks and supervising children (though the children often seem to be supervising themselves). During the rainy season (oct. through april) this expands to include some cultivation and weeding of fields. Men are responsible for preparing agricultural fields, building houses, and providing things like clothes, school supplies, and perhaps a small amount of disposable income. Children go to school and help their moms with the household tasks. Young girls draw a lot of water for their mothers and help with the jobs they will someday be responsible for while young boys spend their time trying to kill birds with their sling shots and fishing in the river.

Introductions

Hi! I'm Hans' brother Kai and I'm a Peace Corps Volunteer in Zambia.

Zambia is in the central region of Southern Africa and is bordered by Tanzania, Malawi, The Democratic Republic of Congo, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Namibia, Botswana, and Angola. Formerly a colony under the British, it achieved independence in 1964. There are nine provinces and within those seven major languages and about 65 other dialects are spoken. I live in Luapula province where the language is Bemba. However, a lot of people also speak English.

If you want to know more about Zambia see these links: Wikipedia or CIA World Fact Book


The Peace Corps is a U.S. Government program (Like Teach for America) that brings American citizens overseas to provide technical expertise and exchange culture.

See this link for some more info about the Peace Corps: What is the Peace Corps?

My work is focused mostly on agriculture. I work one on one with farmers trying to introduce agricultural techniques that protect and improve the soil (the basis civilization!) and crops which add diversity and income (such as pineapples and bananas) to the farmer's system. I also work a bit with groups interested in bee keeping and topics related to gardening (compost making, green manure, etc).

I'm looking forward to sharing Zambia with you over the next few months!