I arrived in Jaipur on Feb. 22 and have been volunteering for the past three weeks at an education project in the Ambedkar Nagar slum. My feelings are mixed.

When I decided I wanted to volunteer abroad, I did a lot of research into various organizations and what kind of opportunities there were. A lot of organizations, many of which are set up from North American/European NGOs, focused on orphanages, or teaching English. I was up for a lot of different projects (when Ian was supposed to be coming with me, we were looking into Habitat for Humanity or building schools) and didn’t really have a specific thing in mind. I only knew I wanted to work with a local organization and I wanted to use my specific skill set and get involved with something I was interested in—meaning, communications of some sort, political and/or human rights, and women issues. I specifically did not want to work with children and I did not want to teach English because I figured I could get a job in South Korea or China doing that rather than “volunteering.”

So, I found Greenheart Travel which works with local organizations to send volunteers abroad. They work with Idex, the Indian Network for Development Exchange. On their website, they list a “women’s empowerment” program that I was very interested in. The brochure stated: “Teaching, make family visits of women or adolescent girls for raising awareness, care and preparation of case studies for women that have been victims of domestic violence or abandonment by their families, work on boosting morale boosting of women, impart knowledge of family planning and sexual health and help create awareness amongst women about their rights against excesses and issues like the dowry problem, alcoholism, domestic violence and the dangers of HIV/AIDS and other STDs.” It sounded perfect for me.

When I arrived, I was told that the women’s empowerment project is only one and a half hours long, and basically consists of teaching them English and basic math. As a result, in addition to that, I was put in a children’s class as well, also teaching them English and basic math. As I told my coordinator at Greenheart in an effort to get a more focused volunteer assignment in Nepal (I’ll be working again at Idex), I truly believe in education as a means to development, but singing the ABCs and doing the hokey pokey is not what I signed up for, and I definitely did not get the impression that that’s what I would be doing from the brochure.

Anyone who knows me knows I value education strongly. I love learning and reading and if I won the lottery, I would set up a scholarship fund for people who couldn’t afford post-secondary education. I have three university degrees and if I did not have to work, I would be a student forever. I believe that everyone has a right to an education, no matter their economic circumstance or background. I believe that knowledge is power, and that having an education is vital in every situation. I also believe that educating girls and women is an amazing tool for reducing poverty, saving lives and empowering them to make better choices for their children. But I am not a teacher, and there are teachers out there with the skill set and patience and enthusiasm to teach these children English and math and Hindi while doing the hokey pokey and singing heads and shoulders to them. This is where my mixed feelings come in.

I believe in this project and that the children and women are in fact learning and the volunteers here are making a small difference, but I was expecting to be in an established “women’s empowerment” program—an NGO of sorts that specifically works with women on the issues outlined above. I thought I would be working with women who already had a basic understanding of English and wanted to talk about organizing events to raise awareness about their rights especially since there is a federal election coming up soon. Or women who were empowering themselves to start their own businesses with microfinancing loans. Or women who wanted to recruit other women into politics. Or women and girls who were standing up against the cultural stigmas and discrimination simply for being born women and girls. I thought I could use my skill set and experience and educational background to help make a tiny speckle bit of difference in my four weeks here.

But as Ian said, I had too high of an expectation. Perhaps this is what the people of Ambedkar Nagar need right now, and perhaps in the future there will be talk of political rights and mobilization to end discrimination. But right now I have to be satisfied with the project I’m working on.

I do enjoy working with the women who come to the class. They are very eager to learn. They are all so young, but all have children, some in their teens, which belies their age. Our translator Archana (who I will be writing a feature on later) is 27 years old. She was married at 13 to a man 10 years older than her. She said by the time she was 17, she had both her children. She was a former student in the class and has learned English over the last two years and now works for Idex. It is success stories like this that motivate me. There is also a 47 year old grandmother, Madhu, in the class, who had an arranged marriage at 13. She now has a daughter and a daughter in law at home, so she has a lot of free time, she says, to finally learn English and math, and even reading and writing Hindi.

And, there are children in the children’s class who are also eager to learn. There are two 11-year-old girls who understand English and are very good at math. They show up every day to learn and are eager to read Hindi books. I am happy they are there, instead of simply at home or working, or worse, getting married and having their own children so young. Most of the children’s parents earn about $75 a month, and can’t afford to send their children to school. At a shop on MI Road, the shopkeeper told me that he can live comfortably on 300 rupees a day (about $165 a month) for himself. With less than half that to support a family often of four or five each month, it’s difficult to prioritize education in this community.

So, this is why I believe in the need for the project, I just wish there were better people to be working on it. The organization I am working with is huge across India, and has various projects in different cities. As I say, I believe that every little bit counts, but it is frustrating to work in an environment where there is no local leadership. The classes are run by the volunteers, and as someone with a bias against western imperialism, I have major problems with this. I specifically wanted to work with a local organization and simply step in to help where they needed me, not me coming in to offer my “expertise.” But there is no program structure, no stated goals or outcomes, no real program ‘management’ from any locals overseeing what we’re actually doing. We barely have any resources at the school for the children or women, no worksheets, no text books and pencils that the children fight over every day. The lesson planning is done on a day-to-day basis, rather than a “class-by-class” type of atmosphere wherein there is progress being measured and goals being achieved. And, with the amount of turnover, and because everything is run by the international volunteers (mostly Europeans), there is no consistency. Everytime there is a new volunteer, the lesson plan can change. It is, to say the least, very frustrating.

Idex caters to western travellers and our accommodations are pretty decent. There is a flushing toilet, hot water, wifi, we get three meals a day provided, and there is a lounge area with a television. They over charge us for trips to places like the Taj Mahal etc., but don’t reinvest in their projects. The classroom is one room, with no desks. There are chairs, but not enough, and we sit on the floor each day. There are three computers in the class, but they are not in use. It is just so frustrating to want to make a difference, but knowing you can’t because there is an organizational problem. There is no communication. Our “orientation” to the project was kind of a joke. And it seems like they are doing things for the sake of doing rather than having a clear plan.

Yeseterday, for instance, we had a math “test” for the students, but for what purpose? The new translator (new to the class, second day today, came in and started barking orders) wanted to find out where each students’ level of math was so that they could put it in a file. A file that is not organized and have been left lying around the room instead of on a computer or a filing cabinet. A test that will never be looked at again, because in a few weeks, no one will be thinking of testing progress. As my roomie said, they didn’t even put the date the test was taken when they ‘filed’ these tests. And, now that we ‘know’ what level the children are at (something that we already knew and were working around), what are we going to do with that knowledge? We have already been splitting them into appropriate groups. It is not like they are going to formalize the education and separate them into different grades. And with the amount of turnover, and no test date in the file, who will know when an appropriate level should be achieved and when to test again? There is no follow up. There needs to be a local person taking the lead with a structured program, if they want to be doing what they’re doing. Otherwise, let the children come and learn what they can in a non-competitive environment. Again: Frustrating.

In any case, that’s enough rant for one post. I have started emailing some organizations I am interested in working with in Nepal to see if I can be happier with my placement there, but I haven’t heard anything yet. For now, I guess I will just be happy with the little things. 🙂

–Bea