Third Week

Carolien Brouwer

It's becoming more fun to teach in the workshop. I have much more confidence then before being in the classroom. The students and I work together more closely and the mutual trust grows every new day.

As usual, the students are waiting for me at 12.30 PM. First I receive big hugs. Also at the end of the day, I regularly receive firm hugs from the students before they head back home. Recently Seynet, as she walked out of the classroom, came back to me for a big hug. While walking away, she turns around and shouts: "I love you teacher!". To be honest, this keeps me truly motivated.

During the first week the students made necklaces using various examples which I provided to them. These necklaces will be up for sale in our shop located in the People Improvement Organization building. During the second week, I noticed that the group learns quickly and is able to create their own design. It doesn't matter whether it's a good or a bad design. It is important that they learn to apply their creativity and thus come up with different color combinations for the necklace.

This week was fun! There were many properly designed necklaces being crafted by the students. At the end of the second week we examined, evaluated and graded all necklaces based on used material, colors and finish. The program schedule shows that the students will have to start making scarves by end of next week. But we have decided to spend an extra week and continue the making of necklaces as my pupils are really in a true 'flow'now.

I have started to explain the use of a simple business model during the third week. To make it more relevant to the students, I have replaced 'business' by 'shop'. Together with Robert, I have developed a model that serves as a powerful tool in teaching the students the basic theory on how to run a shop. The model gives a clear overview of the main activities and topics (e.g. customers, suppliers and sales). I believe it will help them to start thinking about which type of shop they would like to manage in the future. To make it even more tangible, we visited the Russian Market in Phnom Penh and I provided them with different assignments. Obviously, the students enjoyed the trip to the market. I do hope that the lessons learned will stick to the final exam in April.