On flight from Bali to Dili, Timor-Leste. Sunday, Feb 2, 2020
In this blog I will be documenting my work as an English Language Specialist in Timor-Leste with the U.S. Department of State’s English Language Programs.
Entry #1
On a flight from Bali to Timor-Leste, the final leg of my journey from San Francisco, I look out of the airplane window, catching glimpses through the clouds of the blues and greens of the Indonesian Archipelago. I am reminded of my work in the theatre, but then again everything that flirts with both possibility and anxiety reminds me of the theatre. I have long anticipated this moment. I am on my way to Dili, the capital city of Timor-Leste. A little over a month ago I was selected as an English language specialist by the U.S. Department of States English language programs, to assist the ministry of education in Timor-Leste as they revamp their English curriculum and materials for grades 7-9 schools throughout the country. It is a seven- month assignment. Phase one begins tomorrow. Two months in Timor-Leste learning about the current curriculum, meeting with the local team that has begun the process, and getting started on the writing. Then, Phase 2, four months back in the U.S. continuing and completing the writing, followed by the final phase in August, when I return to Timor-Leste to help develop teacher trainings to implement the new curriculum I have been tasked with creating.
When I described the project to others they have similar reactions: words like challenging, exciting, daunting. My favorite comment was from a recently retired grade 5 teacher that I have known for all 40 years of my career as an educator. He wrote in an email to me that said: “Frankly, Richard, when I look at the job description, I feel a little bit sick.”
When I worked in theatre, both as an actor and a director, I remember those first days of rehearsals. Everything was possible, and yet everything also seemed somehow impossible at the same time. I know from experience what my friend meant when he described his “sick” feeling.
I think about how to create materials for the use of emerging English students in a school system I know very little about. Everything is possible, yet how to begin? In this blog I am hoping to create a narrative of my process partially to help others that might be embarking on a similar journey, but mostly to help me in organizing my thoughts to lead to a successful outcome. The next entry will talk about the preliminary work I did in the month prior to prepare myself for this project.
