What Are You Doing Here?

I am half way through my first week and I am exhausted! I forgot what hard work it is to be a student, to have a weekly routine and be expected at school five days a week. It has been incredibly insightful to experience the school from a student point of view, attending classes, finding the patience to sit still for 75 minutes and listen. The amount of subject options students have is quite overwhelming, from wood working, to band, to psychology to car mechanics and many more. What an incredible opportunity these kids have to been able to choose subjects that really interest them.

Normally I am extremely critical of schools, but so far I haven't been able to find anything to criticise. The students and teachers have a genuine and respectful relationship, and during classes, most kids are interested and attentive. The teachers motivated, energetic and entertaining.

People often ask me, so what are you doing here? Are you a teacher? or a student? It is a tricky question as this experience really is quite unique, and I am constantly reevaluating what I actually am doing here. I remember the principal asking me when I first met him, 'so what are your goals for the time you are here? what would you like to achieve at the end of it?' At the time it didn't really make sense to me, however I am getting a good idea of what the time at the school might look like, and now this question is on my mind. There are lots of little things that I want to do, for example, help set up the organic vegetable garden, learn and work closely with the students who really struggle academically, documenting various groups of students working, interviewing them and creating an archive or these next three months as part of my art  project, presenting my previous art work to visual art students, visiting other schools to see different programs and styles of teaching. These are all little things that I am looking forward to doing, but I also feel I need a consistent project, something I can work towards and that I can make the most of in this school environment.