Teacher Training

Another whirlwind day. Two classes at school, including one on diversity and civic education. It seems the English teachers are the teachers who are spearheading discussion of civics, rather than the government or history teachers, as we might expect in the U.S. The teachers tell me this became their task about 15 years ago and they still struggle to get students to understand that citizenship means engagement.
During the lesson, the teachers discussed planning for the future, then showed a short video clip from the U.S. about a high school that organized the building of a handicap accessible playground. The students then discussed how they might do the same in Lutsk, and created an action plan. I worked with a group of boys to answer several questions.
Students then asked me about the student government in the United States. At Gymnasium 18, students have such a government, but it is largely ineffective because it operates outside the normal school day. I explained that our student government is a class, therefore has responsibilities tied to their progress in the class.
Next up was a discussion with eighth grade students, one of whom wanted to know if there were any crack houses near my house. After this lesson, Ievgeniia and Halyna whisked me to another large lunch in the school canteen, and then downtown to a play. I couldn't understand the dialogue, but recognized the emotion and the drama. It was a famous Ukrainian play; a sort of Fiddler on the Roof meets Grease. The end was tragic and that was easy to see, when the love triangle created out of a misunderstanding was broken with the death of one of the girls.
Next was some shopping, which is a completely separate story, then a few groceries, and back to the hotel.