My time in Rwanda!
Many thanks to MISTI GTL Africa
Independent Activities Period, or IAP, is a time for students to explore interests and opportunities without the pressure of semester-long classes. Taking place after winter break, IAP presents an interesting choice for students. Some people choose to stay home for an extended winter break while others work on their personal projects on campus. A lot of people also choose to take classes offered only during this period, while some take on research or an internship.
This IAP, I decided to participate in MISTI’s Global Teaching Labs (GTL) in Rwanda at the African Olympiad Academy (AOA). I’d work with my group and the Rwandan coaches to teach the IMO team, which included students from Tanzania, Uganda, Botswana, South Africa, Kenya, Namibia, and Nigeria.
We worked on developing our own curriculum, which might change in future years. This year was the first year of the AOA program, so everything was new. We selected problems for a baseline test and formed a methodology for splitting up the students into different classes. The students were amazing, and I’m sure this school will grow even more as the years go on!
I got to teach algebra and combinatorics! I didn’t realize how tiring it would be. I had to teach for four hours per day, and on top of that, there were problem-solving sessions. There was a session in the morning from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m., followed by a break, and another session from 10:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.
After that was problem solving from 3:45 p.m. to 5:00 p.m, during which I would give students problems to do. Honestly, it didn’t feel too different from the sessions in the morning. There was another problem solving session from 7:45 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., but I didn’t have to be there for that.
Overall, I had a very good experience! You definitely have a lot of time to get to know people and get immersed in the culture. People here are so incredibly kind and willing to help make sure you have a good time. It was my first time coaching in an olympiad format; it was intimidating to me at first, but the coaches all specialized in different subjects, which was enough to cover what we wanted to teach.
I would say Rwanda stands out in that it has very little corruption and is developing very quickly. It’s also pretty safe; people were surprised to learn that I didn’t generally walk out alone at night, because you can pretty much do that fine in Rwanda.
We got to go on a safari, visit a farm (where I milked a cow and held a lamb), and tour the capital, Kigali. Rwanda is a pretty small country, so while we were there for only three weeks, I felt like we got a pretty decent look at what it’s like to live there.
As my first IAP, I’m really glad I spent it in a fresh environment! I really love traveling and teaching math, so this was the best of both worlds.
Until next time!