First week at work

My first day at work at Tonongoi public primary school was a new experience. First I must tell you that in Kenya there has been a right to free primary school for all since 2002. But it is just a right, not a obligation to attend school. So at the opening of the school about 200 pupils showed up and the headmaster told them to tell their friends to come to school during the week. Every day there was more and more pupils coming. First day of school 16 out of 21 teachers showed up. The number varied between 6-10 the first week as they were following their own children to school as the teachers do in Norway too, but here in Kenya I don't think they have the money to pay a stand in. So the pupils have to study on their own from at least class four, several lessons per day.
First day of school in 2009 the pupils got to know who could advance to the next class and who had to stay in the same class one more year, based on their results at the test at the end of the year. If they got below 160 point ot of 500, they had to remain on thir previus level.

Before I went to Kenya I have been told by several persons that the pupils here are very disiplined and hard working, and that their knowledge is higher than the norwegian pupils. My experience so far is that kids are very much the same here as back home. They have the same sense of humour, the boys are a bit noisy and the girls more quiet, they like to move, they like to learn new things if they are presented with some interesting challenges. I must also say that the pupils of Minde school back home are as hard working as the african ones, at least when they are in school.