Camp IV: Balangombe FPS

Our first day of our fourth camp at Balangombe FPS found us with a lot more students than expected. Each pair of volunteers had about 50 rambunctious students in their class. Having just come back from our safari trip at Zambia, our team was not fully prepared to get back to work. Many of us were still tired from the long drive back.

There were also many more teachers than the previous schools we worked at. Balongombe FPS had about 18 teachers and teacher assistants, most of whom were young and excited about teaching. Since the school year just started here in Malawi, many of them had just been moved to this school.

The curriculum that we “teach” the teachers is much different than the curriculum we teach the students. First of all, the teacher facilitators try to act more as a discussion starter rather than an instructor. Our set of teachers was very receptive and had many good questions and comments about what World Camp teaches to their students.

We found throughout the camps that, in some ways, a class full of Malawian middle schoolers mirrors a class of American middle schoolers. Despite language barriers, volunteers can always pick out the trouble makers, the class clowns, the teacher’s pets, and the students who are genuinely excited to learn.

Overall, the camp went smoothly, and on the last day, we enjoyed a variety of songs and dances from the students about topics that we had been talking about over the past three days. A few of the young teachers also put on a great skit for all their students to see.

During the presentations, we could see in the distance a wall of monsoon-like rain descending upon us with great speed. Just as we were finishing the presentations and handing out Cassia trees to the students, the clouds decided to pull the faucet on us. Maneuvering through half-flooded dirt roads, our rovers slowly made it back to the house.

On the way back, three courageous volunteers who discovered a goat half-drowned in a ditch full of fast-flowing rain water decided to take action. The goat had to be saved. Leaping out of the rover with raincoats and heroic hearts, two of the volunteers braved to the elements and pulled the goat from the ditch. Upon recovering from its near-death experience, the goat gave a hearty “Baah” in thanks.


Save a goat. Save the world.

John and Chris