Trainees

As I’ve mentioned before, I’m working with the new Peace Corps volunteers. They have been “in country” for about 2 weeks now. They are all settling into their family homes in Sao Domingos just as I did a year ago. I see them struggling with the language and with their new families just as I did as well. This group is a bit different than we were. First of all, there are 33 trainees, as compared to our 26. Also, 26 of the 33 are under the age of 24! That’s right... they’re YOUNG! One of the trainees is only 20 years old. She’s living in my homestay house, and she is having a rough go of it now. I think she’ll adjust to the constant screaming and carrying on (I eventually did). Well, back to the group. The oldest is 64, the youngest 20. There are only 11 guys of this group, all of which are under the age of 25. This group seems bright and enthusiastic, which I'm sure all groups do. They also have lots of language background, so they are doing very well already.

I've been working with the TEFL trainees, as we prepare them for their first teaching experience next week. They will be in the schools teaching classes for the first time. I remember my "model" school experience well, and I'm sure these new folks won't soon forget theirs.

All-in-all it's fun to be around their energy. I love the idealism and optimism that are ever-present in the first couple of weeks. I recently had two volutneers stay with me. They were supposed to be "shadowing" me in my daily life. It was fun to have them get a sense of what I do on a daily basis. They got to see a thesis defense. They also got to see my house and meet my neighbors. It was a nice experience. It was a little early in their stay here to do it, but I hope it was beneficial just the same.

Well, that's them in a nutshell. I am still meeting them and getting to know them. I am distant form them because I am a trainer this year and don't spend time outside of school hanging out with them, but from what I've seen, they are very cool, indeed.