It’s a cold (relatively) and rainy day in Angaur today. There has been a constant rain for the last six or seven hours. I’m not adverse to the rain, as it brings cool breeze and will inevitably help my garden grow. However, this time it is a bit excessive. There are small ponds where small ponds have not previously existed. Overall it is just the beginning of a gloomy Thursday.
Right now in school we are preparing the students for their quarterly exams. Each quarter, the Ministry of Education tests the students in Science, Math, English, Social, Palauan, and Health. About a week before the tests, we are given a “review sheet” from the MOE to provide us a guideline as what to prepare the students for specifically. Unfortunately for the students, this means an intense review/cram session. Also, since the school is so small, each student’s grade is even more significant.
I have one eight grade student. And we’ve been working this quarter doing some writing, fiction reading, character analysis, grammar rules, etc. I got the review sheet which has a list of ten items that will be covered on the test. Having just the one student, and being her only teacher, I’m starting to feel the pressure for her to succeed. If she fails the test, that means that Angaur Elementary School will have a 0% passing rate for 8th grade English, which needless to say, looks bad on paper.
Needless to say, I’m looking forward to the new quarter to begin.
Talk about the pressure to perform - that poor student. I know that the teachers I work with feel the pressure for the MCA's also - but I think I will share this story and help them put things into perspective!
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