I'm sure there are some of you who noticed that one day I was on social media - and the next I wasn't. Well, maybe it wasn't quite that dramatic. For awhile at least I was posting pretty regularly, pictures of the family and short updates about what was going on. And then I just kind of stopped. That happened for a couple of reasons. First off, we were able to get wifi (yes LTE wifi!) at our house, which in and of itself is very amazing. I found myself spending lots of time scrolling through social media, not at all worried about wracking up huge data fees. Second, a project came up for me (to be explained later) and I really needed to hone in and get it done.
At the time I was reading James Clear's book, Atomic Habits, and he mentioned that when he was working against a deadline he would have his assistant change the password for his social media accounts, and could only let him know what the new passwords were on the weekend. So I tried that - social media (in my case Instagram and Facebook) only on the weekends, except I didn't change the password, I just deleted the app from my phone. And something kind of phenomenal happened. When I went to go scrolling on the weekends, I realized how much I didn't miss it. The timeframe was around the end of November, beginning of December, and one person I follow on Instagram was going away from social media for the month of December, so I thought, why not? Might as well try!
Around the same time I also watched the documentary The Social Dilemma on Netflix. Honestly, there weren't many surprises to me in this film, companies have to make money somehow! Just a stark reality of how social media affects a large group of people when there are no boundaries. Here in Benin, people are just as encompassed in social media, mainly WhatsApp and Facebook. It isn't surprising to see a whole group of people glued to their phones. But, it only fueled the fire to not be on social media for awhile. I have to admit that I did sneak download it a couple of times, but after scrolling through the apps maybe once, I would delete it again.
And then, while I was talking to my Mom one day, she mentioned that people were wondering how we were doing in Benin, that they hadn't seen me on social media platforms for awhile. I explained why I hadn't been posting, and she said that is the way the extended family keeps up with what is going on in our lives. The positive aspect of social media, right? I realized that I never explained to any of my followers that I was taking a break (as so many others do when they leave social media for an extended period of time), and after much consideration, I started posting again.
However, I wanted to be able to connect and share our stories with family and others outside of social media and was stuck onto how to do that. Well, not so much stuck as I didn't want to pay the money to write and email and then pay for a newsletter service to be sent out. And then I was watching Ali Abdaal on YouTube, and he mentioned the platform Substack - which allowed you to have a blog post style site with email newsletter function built in - for free! (Yes, there are paid versions).
So here we are - email newsletters from Substack coming into your inbox so that you can keep up with what we, The Kouda's (from my perspective!), are up to. I have decided to also make these newsletters in audio/podcast form. I have wanted to start a podcast for awhile now, since putting one together for a "fake class" I designed while doing my master's, but was never sure what exactly to talk about. I guess I will just start out narrating my newsletters/blog posts! Give people multiple ways to receive the news of what the Kouda's are up to!
Quick Update
We are still in Benin. It has been almost 3.5 months since the last rainfall, and as someone who lived in western Washington for the last two years, that is a LONG time to go without rain! We have nice breezes most evenings as it is the end of Harmattan, the season where sands from the Sahara blow south. Lots and lots of dust! I cover my desk with a blanket and still find a thin layer of dust in the morning. Dust is everywhere - but the breezes make it totally worth it!
Since arriving in Benin in late June, we have been through two peanut harvests (one good, one bad) and a soybean harvest (fairly good!). Due to the low amount of rainfall this past year (climate change?), daily agricultural goods are in short supply - peanuts, soybeans, corn, rice, cashews. Good if you are able to buy cheap and sell for a profit, but not so good if you are the farmer with little to sell. Such is the way with farming!
The boys (Aden - 6 and Benjamin - 3) have adapted to life quite well here. Aden knows all the secret ways around the village and is always hanging out with the neighbor kids, going to the water pump or playing on the playground equipment at the school. Occasionally his brother tags along. Aden builds new train track designs on the regular and he and Ben build with Lego on a daily basis. I am homeschooling Aden and once again his brother hangs out with us (unless he is taking a nap). The boys keep me busy as only children can. We bake, work in the "schloffice" (school-office room), go for walks, and a host of other activities.
The boys and I have started taking daily walks to our cashew tree farm to check and see if there are any cashew apples/nuts ready to harvest. If you don't check regularly, people come and steal them right from your trees. Our trees are three years old and have started producing - small amounts, but there is great potential! Oh, and our two dogs, Shadow and Sklya, are our constant companions!
D'Aquin stays busy with the different businesses that he is helping out with here. He plays soccer regularly on the weekends, although every once in a while he will say that he is getting too old for the game!
Besides looking out for the boys, I have started working on pursuing my Doctorate of Education from Arizona State University (ASU). At this point, it looks like I will officially start the program in the Fall of 2021, completely online (woohoo!). When I sent my letter of intent to a connection at ASU in late December, he was thrilled by the project that I mentioned wanting to pursue once I had my EdD in hand. After multiple conversations with him, I have decided to pursue that project - creating a Center for Education Research, Innovation, and Practice in Benin - to be done in tandem with my doctorate. I have included the concept paper for the project at the bottom of this update for those that are interested in learning more about it! So, now I'm in the stages of officially applying for the EdD program and expanding the concept paper into a proposal so that I can start to apply for funding.
I am also still working with a class of students in a small village outside of Dassa, about a 40-minute drive from our house.
I'm sure most of you are curious about Covid-19 in Benin, I know I would be! Here is my perspective from living in a rural village in the middle of the country - it seems non-existent. I have a hard time grasping that so many are still under lock and key because of the virus.
Officially, there have been 4,193 positive cases reported with 55 deaths. Surely the actual numbers are higher than this. You are required to wear masks in the streets and on/in all forms of transportation . Stores and restaurants have hand-washing stations and to enter some official buildings your temperature is taken. Honestly, I have found this part to be more common in the bigger cities of Cotonou and Porto Novo, although lots of places around our house have hand-washing stations. Covid tests are required (and you pay!) before you enter and exit the country. When we arrived, it was $200/person/test - we had a test upon arrival and 14 days later. If you have symptoms, the government will treat you free of charge.
*Quick little update here - I happened into a bank in Dassa a couple of days ago and here was my experience: mask required, wash hands before entering, temperature taken at the door - and no talking once inside (just kidding, that is just what I told my kids when they asked what all the infographic signs said!).
But really, where we are, I don't even think about it - except if I call family in the US. We certainly worry about family in the US, especially when there was surge in cases reported. The world is curious as to why this virus hasn't plagued Africa like other countries. I'm not a scientist, but here is what I could offer: people are outside here more often, diabetes and obesity are not (as) common, and I would guess that people's immune systems are on hyperdrive all the time here. From yellow fever, malaria, zika, the flu, the common cold...so many viruses hitting the body all the time.
Food is going to be a big part of these newsletter and to start off I will tell you about my new favorite sauce: sauce grain. WOW. It is so delicious. The sauce originally from Ghana that my mother-in-law (Ina) knows how to make because she spent quite a bit of time there. I asked her why we hadn't eaten it here before and she said it was only recently they started selling the "palm grain" here in Benin that is used to make the sauce. As mentioned, the basis for the sauce is the palm grain, the same which is used to make red palm oil. When the sauce is finished, especially when prepared with fish and meat, it reminds me of a red enchilada sauce. Yummy!
You might be wondering what you eat with this sauce and I will get into that more later - but here this particular sauce is eaten with la pâte, pounded yam, or even on rice. It is very versatile and as sauces do only tastes better the more time it has for all the flavors to marry together.
I am looking forward to sharing more with you, don't want to give it all away in the first edition!
These newsletters will be hitting your email inbox a couple of times a week...feel free to share and ask questions so that I always have something interesting to write about!
Tout a l'heure! (See you later)
Concept Paper: CREATING A CENTER for EDUCATION RESEARCH, INNOVATION, AND PRACTICE IN BENIN
Project Goal:Establish a Center for Education Research, Innovation, and Practice in Benin as a major new program initiative of Education for Leadership (E4L). The innovative and sustainable educational not-for-profit will have a mission to develop a relevant, accessible, and culturally appropriate higher educational environment. E4L would act in partnership with the Center for Advanced Studies in Global Education at Arizona State University (ASU) and the Arrondissement of Zaffe (Borough of Zaffe) to achieve this goal. The proposed Center will conduct internationally recognized multidisciplinary research on Beninese education as well as to be a resource to transfer research, technology, and best practices from other nations to benefit life-long learning in Benin.
Problem Summary
Benin received independence from France in 1960 after 68 years under their colonial rule. Despite multiple education conferences and donor aid in the millions, a genuine Beninese education system has yet to be developed. The closure of teaching colleges in the 1980s has left a major void within the teaching profession, hampering the production of qualified teachers trained according to a recognized Beninese model. Instead, the teacher education curriculum was adapted from western post-industrial countries and uses a constructivist “put the children first” approach, a stark contrast to how the teachers were taught. While there has been success in girls attending primary school, there is a severe decline in secondary and university arenas. There is a lack of focus on the growing demand for secondary education and the assurance that education is effective in preparing Benin for long-term development and labor market needs. In order to address these long-term national issues, E4L can encourage investment along these three interrelated but distinct pathways:
* Access to higher education opportunities, both in Benin and internationally, for all of Benin’s citizens.
* Support for teacher education at all levels (includes transformation of teacher education curricula in Benin’s universities and national curriculum development)
* Enhancing school to work transitions for women
Background of the Problem
Prior to the 1892 colonization by the French, Dahomey (present-day Benin), was made up of several flourishing empires, politically, socially, and culturally, demonstrating successful traditional educational systems. The French colonists arrived and placed a substantial premium on education, limiting access to the wealthy, and working in the interest of the colonial administration. Following liberation in 1960, Benin went through 15 coups d’etats, a major economic crisis, and a switch from Marxism-Leninism (established after independence) to democracy. The 1990s sought to bring educational reforms, including improving the quality of the entire system, but was plagued by financial, institutional, and political constraints. In 2005, the New Study Program (NPE) was developed, a foreign-curriculum based on a constructivist “child-centered approach”.
Dissatisfaction among teachers continues to be prevelant for the following reasons: growing number of students in the classroom, a more heterogeneous body of students, teaching conditions, and the current NPE curriculum as it is completely different from the highly hierarchical approach that they experienced themselves. Dropout rates continue to be a problem and are responsible for low learning outcomes, the negative perceptions of schools, and low-esteem teaching quality. Foreign/donor aid has been significant in the realm of education since Benin’s independence. While certainly necessary, there are worries that the huge role of development partners is turning Benin into a “playground” for donor-led reforms, and letting the government shun its responsibility when it comes to developing and implementing plans in the education space.
Steps of the Organization
Community Center Approach - a multi-arm organization incorporating the community to instill the value of education
* Online learning center for connecting Benin students with ASU online programs - focus that they will be able to study at western institutions while living in Benin
* Educational Research department
* Community outreach and involvement in indigenous/cultural knowledge - storytelling, singing, drumming, dancing, local language writing, local artisans, etc.
* English as a Second Language (ESL)
* Library
* Research Room - legos, puzzles, computers, tablets, 3D printers, technology with regular seminars from local and visiting professionals
* Teaching seminars
* Media studio to capture oral history and other research-oriented materials
Partnership with ASU
* Provide online degree programs in relevant disciplines at the baccalaureate, masters, and doctoral levels for qualified candidates, whether or not those students who have not passed the baccalaureate test “le BAC” (similar to a high school exit exam)
* Assist in the development of a teachers college
* Provide graduate student research opportunities that would be able to work with the Beninese to start the initial research into indigenous knowledge and what the country needs in order to successfully develop
* Provide ESL courses, by way of visiting faculty and/or online
Project Methodology
The Center would be a highly innovative, technologically advanced educational facility, with a community-centric approach, in keeping with the communal atmosphere that is sewn into the cultural fabric of Benin. Education is meant to provide the necessary skills to succeed in the world they live in and the Center’s purpose is to enhance and strengthen that cultural fabric.
Apart from the Center would be dormitories and accommodations for students and visiting faculty or educational specialists. Students (men and women) would participate in running of the dorms/accomodations in order to encourage the student’s sense of responsibility for their own education.
Goals/Desired Outcomes
* Establish a methodology to identify the indigenous knowledge regarding education before colonialism.
* Development of a teaching institution/college
* Create a standard of importance for research-based educational programs
* Enhance the value of a country-owned education and a decrease in dependency on foreign aid and foreign models for education
* Develop a culturally appropriate educational environment, including curriculum, specifically for the Beninese.
* Increase the number of girls/women in secondary and higher education
* Have 5-10 Beninese graduate with degrees from online programs at ASU per year
How I keep up with US News!
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