FLASHBACK FROM MY MEMORY (THE DEVASTATING EARTHQUAKE

30^th April, 2015

I don’t know how, when and from where to start writing about the nightmare we need to face. The local time here shows that it is 10:11 a.m. It has already been six days that we faced 7.6 rector scale earthquake. It feels like it was a dream that I saw buildings being collapsed. All the world heritage of my country collapsed within some seconds and I saw the dead body as if they are in deep sleep.  Oh my god! I wish it would be a dream but this is not a dream, it is a reality, a bitter reality.  I am not happy that I survived from this disaster to see the destruction of nature and destruction of my beautiful country.

FLASHBACK FROM MY MEMORY (THE DEVASTATING EARTHQUAKE)

Day 1

I was quiet busy early in the morning though the weather was not so good. I prepared the food but didn’t get time to eat. I checked the time and it was 11:50 a.m. I was feeding my daughter and was about to change her diaper. At the same time the earthquake occurred. At first, I couldn’t understand what was happening. At a moment later, I knew that it was earthquake and I was at the top of three storey building and my daughter was still in the bed. I couldn’t reach to her so Sampada (one of the students) brought her to the gate. The building started swinging. We three remain at the gate. I heard my glass table being crashed and I couldn’t enter in my room.  I heard people screaming. I was also terrified but I couldn’t run as I was carrying my six month old daughter neither I dared to change her diaper. The earthquake stopped for a minute and I tried to come downstairs but it started again. We three remain stuck at the top floor.  Some minutes later, we ran to the ground floor. As we reached to the ground floor the building started swinging again and cracking were seen in the house. We all were terrified by the time but couldn’t move anywhere from there as there was a fear of being injured. The weather had been so cold, I felt the chilling weather and the day was so dark. Then I understood that the weather was different that day because we were waiting for the disaster. We could feel the earthquake with the wind. About  an hour later, we came out of the home leaving our room unlocked and outside people told us that the Cahabil area was completely destroyed and a seven storey building nearby our home collapsed where  more than 200 people were praying in the church. We (me and my father in law) went to see the collapsed building. Almost all the people were outside their house and the earthquake was still shaking the earth. When I reached the place, people with police force were busy rescuing people as well as dead body. By that time 48 dead bodies were found and some people were busy counting the dead body.

We came to an open space with fearful mind. We couldn’t go back home. The evening was getting colder. We decided to spend that night on the ground. Nobody dared to go home to bring the tent.  It started getting the dark. Earthquake was shaking the earth time and again. I could see a house nearly being crashed from the ground. There was nothing to eat. We were able to manage little food for more than thirty people. My daughter needed to depend on me for her food. I knew that it was the most uncomfortable night for her but I couldn’t do anything. None of us could sleep. We could feel earthquake time and again the whole night.

Day 2

We felt earthquake early in the morning. I came to another tent because my daughter needed to drink milk. The day was still dark. We managed food for her. Deep inside I was feeling a great loss because I saw things being collapsed and still the earthquake was shaking earth including my mind and inner heart. I was thinking about the families who lost their family members and those who lost their beautiful houses that were constructed to be protected. I felt as if the time has stopped moving because it was dark. I could see people being injured. There was sadness among the people. The day passed with grim face and the night was terrible again. There was no space to sleep. My daughter slept in my lap and I remained awake.  

Day 3

The third day was yet not comfortable. We could still feel the earthquake.  We were already facing the lack of drinking water. We were waiting the time to be 72 hours patiently however, it started raining lightly. By the time we experienced earthquake several times. We were terrified again and made plan to stay under the tent again. The colder night was unpleasant again. My daughter suffered from cough. I couldn’t move anywhere by getting the news that there will be another earthquake again and we would see the more disaster. Similarly, I heard that the swine-flu patients were found nearby the place I was living.

Oh my god! Fear of death everywhere. I don’t know where to go. Still waiting,  the life to be normal again.

Flashback 2014

Flashback 2014

As an Access instructor, the year 2014 was so special for me. There were special moments that has become milestone in my professional life. I can’t forget the idea of co-teaching that I got in a week long residential training at Pokhara including new methods of facilitating Access students. I met colleagues from other Access centers who shared what they did in their Access  class that were really fruitful for teaching and learning. Similarly, the Access  camp 2014 provided us opportunity to lead a group of students and encourage them in different extra-curricular activities. Serving community has made me more responsible and think about the development of community. Therefore, the year was so fruitful for sharing and mingling ideas with my co-teacher as well as utilizing them in a real Access class.

Me and my classroom

Me and My classroom

‘Lions Club Activities’ in a real classroom

It is my pleasure to share my experience to share how i utilized club activity in my real classroom.

Some months before, as a member of Lions club of Kathmandu Peace and Education, i thought to involve students in the program organized by our club. our club organized an interaction program on corporal punishment. Along with twenty Access students i participated in the program. The U.S. Government, Department of State English Access Micro scholarship Program, in Nepal is implemented by Nepal English Language Teachers' Association. The two-year outside of school classroom program provides a foundation of English language and leadership skills to public school students.

Access students actively participated in the program at Joseph High School. Child psychologist and educational scholars spoke on the program.students listened their speeches and note down the important points related with corporal punishment. The program basically focused against corporal which is directly or indirectly related with peace because when the environment is punishment free the environment is  peaceful and students can learn in a friendly environment. 

As the speech was over, the floor was open for interaction. students along with their guardians asked their queries to the speakers. mostly, students asked the questions and very few questions were raised by the teachers and guardians. Access students raised most of the questions.As they were from government aided schools , they shared that punishment is still in existence in their schools and they express their desire to get their teacher as a counselor rather than dictator.

Afterwards, we came back to our classroom and discussed about the program. i thought to make them express the reality behind corporal punishment at their home or community. i divided them in groups and let them share their experience on corporal punishment.most oft hem shared with me that their parents punish them for their mistakes however, they don,t want such behavior from their parents. they also shared that their peaceful homely environment changes into worse environment because of argument among their parents and parent;s arguments indirectly functions as corporal punishment to them that affects their study. some of them shared that there are such people in their community who always come home late by drinking alcohol and bit their wife or children. similarly, some of them shared that there are such friends at their school who are the victim of their own parents as their parents drink alcohol and disturb them to study at home . because of such environment they are unable to complete their homework and they again get punishment at school for not completing homework in front of the class.

I had never thought that corporal punishment is still in existence at home, community and schools. I had thought that due to the advancement in teacher trainings and techniques in teaching, punishment may not be the major concern in educational sector. however, after listening to my students, i came to know that there are ample arenas of corporal punishment in educational sector and different programs are necessary to aware parents, teachers and students about corporal punishment.

After the discussion on corporal punishment, next day,i thought to make them write something on corporal punishment. i divided them in four different groups and let them think of a situation on corporal punishment either at home or school and develop such situation in a short story form. students worked in their groups and developed different stories and shared those stories in front of the class. one of the groups wrote story about a brilliant student who used to be the model student of the school left his study due to the nervousness as his math teacher punished him very badly. another group wrote developed the story that one of the arrogant teacher at school hit her student with the chalk that made that student blind and the teacher went to the prison. another group developed the story where a strict teacher changed his behavior after attending the program on corporal punishment.

This is how i conducted another interaction program at my classroom and our students developed their writing skills and were very happy that their stories were published somewhere. similarly, they shared with me that whenever they saw somebody else punishing their children or students they share such events to them and are raising awareness in the society. Therefore, our club activities are being helpful to bring change in the society.