Schools in Bangladesh reopened on September 12 after 543 days of closure as the Covid-19 virus eases and more people are vaccinated. We want to thank all the teachers for sticking by their students throughout this tumultuous time. We thank you for your unwavering contributions and innovative teaching techniques, which ensured learning never stopped for your students! After nearly a month of school reopening Teach For Bangladesh, Fellow Shadman Absar Choudhury reflects on going back to school with his students.
Looking back on the first day of school reopening, I can still feel the goosebumps of joy and fear together. It was delightful to see children returning to school. At the same time, several students were missing from my class. Students like Jomir, who are fighting against poverty, might not return to school. Also, many of the students are not coming back due to sickness. I hope they will soon return to the classrooms.
The best part of resuming physical classes is that we now have plenty of class time. We study Bangla, English, and Math, talk about the COVID-19 situation, practice Social Emotional Learning activities, and even talk about bringing changes in our society. But still have enough time to give addas, play games, have deeper discussions on peace, friendship, etc. It always felt like we were running out of time during online classes as I had one hour to wrap it all up. Nowadays, we even play games after school hours in the open field.
After hectic classes, classroom management investment plans, exit tickets, and documentation, I am happy to see my students learning and connecting. In the beginning, they were struggling to communicate with each other as they were meeting after a long break. Many of my students went through difficult times last year, which has affected them emotionally. With time and effort, they adjust and discover innovative ways to discuss during class times. I sometimes allocate an extra 15 minutes break during class to catch up and talk about things they like.
I love seeing my students smile and the twinkle in their eyes while chatting about their lives and experiences. After three weeks of school reopening, they do not want to leave after their class hour is over.
Once I asked my students, “Isn’t it amazing that we had one holiday a week, and now you have six holidays and one school day?” But they said that the long waiting time to meet again makes them sad. I hope their wait will be shorter, and they also want the same.
Title: Teach For Bangladesh Alumni reflect on becoming Chevening Scholars
Date: September 28, 2021
Three Teach For Bangladesh Alumni reflects on recently receiving the prestigious Chevening Scholarship and their hopes for the future.