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You
are here: Closing Thoughts
July 2004
The eighth in a series of journal reports from Cambodia on a new school leadership professional development project
As Reaksmey and I got out of the car at Angtasom School two weeks ago, Sarik, the Deputy Chief of Takeo Provincial Office of Education, took us by the arms and said, "Come, I very much want you to see this." We walked quickly to the flagpole where the children and teachers gathered, lined up by class in straight rows facing the flag. I watched Phally, a young first year principal mingle with the children, talk gently to them, bend down to hear their answers and smile at them. A sixth grade student called the children to attention and led them in the Cambodian national anthem. Phally then spoke to the children. He told them how proud he was of their work in keeping the school clean. He praised their efforts as learners and then called the names of the 16 students who had done well enough in the Provincial year-end tests to be recognized for their excellence. He knew all of their names . . . he had no list! He dismissed the children for class and he reminded them that their business was to be great learners. He asked the teachers to meet with him briefly before joining their students.
The principal, Pov Phally, speaking to the students before school at the flagpole.
The teachers gathered around Phally, smiling and laughing and clearly comfortable in his presence. He encouraged them to have a great day and reminded them that this morning there would be a lot of visitors in their classrooms. He told them that if they did a great job, he would have a reward for them at the end of the day. With that, the teachers broke out in applause and laughter. When Phally joined us, I asked what the reward was that he was giving his teachers. He said, "Well, they have not been paid in two months and today I got their May salary. I will give it to them after school."
I realized at that moment that I was witnessing the emergence of a great school principal. I told Reaksmey, "I don't believe in human cloning, but today I have changed my mind. I wish all children in Cambodia had Pov Phally as their principal." He laughed but I couldn't help but wonder what schools would be like if they all had the kind of leadership that Phally manifested at Angtasom School. We walked to the school office and I told Phally how pleased I was with his leadership. He smiled and said, "I learned this year what it really means to be a leader and I decided to become one. I hope that it is working a little."
Phally with his teachers after dismissing the students. He has just told them he has a surprse for them after school.
Before we came to Cambodia last September I said to myself that if just one school principal finds value in our time together and is able to translate it into practice, then my year will have been worth it. Phally makes the year worthwhile!
Continuing the Learning
We were at Angtasom School that day for the third workshop in a series that Sarik created for the principals who went through the training with me. He decided that it would be a shame if the momentum and enthusiasm ended after all of the work we did together, so he offered monthly gatherings for those principals from Takeo Province. Each month they explore some aspect of leadership that we covered in the workshop series. They invited me to join them for their third meeting. Although these principals were from only one of the three provinces it felt very much like a class reunion. The difference in the way the principals participated in the activities on that day compared to when we first began last October was dramatic. They were no longer timid. They spoke out in the large group. They understood complicated instructions and were wonderfully playful and eager to learn. It was a profoundly hopeful moment!
Urban Principals
I completed my work with Meanchey District Leaders the end of June. As I prepared to write this reflection I re-read what I had written in April about "Lessons Learned" with the rural principals. I realized that every one of those lessons for rural principals applied to the principals in Phnom Penh as well. I make only a few additions:
The principals in Takeo, Kandal and Kampot had three years of EQIP training for the improvement of instruction for their teachers and themselves but the urban principals had almost no professional development in teaching and learning. Recently, the chief of Meanchey District solicited the help of the INGO-- Save The Children Norway-- to help teachers learn more "student centered" approaches to teaching. So far, only a few teachers have any training and the principals have almost none. This makes it very difficult for the principals to even begin to think of themselves as "instructional leaders". They have very little to offer teachers in terms of instructional improvement.
- I have learned that Asian culture places a high value on hierarchy and urban principals seem even more dependent on the Ministry hierarchy than their more rural counterparts. I was dismayed at how completely reliant the urban principals are on the DOE (District Office of Education). Part of it may be the geographic proximity of all the schools to the DOE office. No one is very far away. In the provinces, many schools are quite isolated, have no phones and have few visits from DOE officials. The Meanchey principals are told what to do and when to do it. I encouraged some principals to solicit other NGOs to help provide professional development for their teachers and was informed that they were not allowed to do that. All professional development must come through the DOE. They do have permission to get NGO help to build school buildings but not for teacher training. When I mentioned this to the chief of the DOE, he said that they do have authority to solicit NGO help for teacher training, but must also get DOE approval. Somewhere, the communication has broken down. Not one principal that I asked felt that he or she had authority to do any professional development.
- The schools are in constant competition with each other. Inspectors from the Municipal Office of Education come to the schools to evaluate instruction, the physical environment and administration (how efficiently the paperwork is done). Each inspector assigns a score to the school and the schools are then ranked. There is no consideration given to different student populations, size of the school etc. It is all aggregated data. Schools with very, very poor students are ranked on the same scale as schools with more affluent students. Schools with 500 students are ranked on the same scale as schools with 4500 students. This competition seems normal to the principals. But I wonder if this may explain some of the reluctance on the part of the principals to share ideas in the workshops. They may be accustomed to withholding information from each other. Competitive cultures create a reluctance to be completely transparent.
- I couldn't help but notice that these urban principals in Cambodia reminded me of urban principals in the US. They felt that their jobs were far more difficult than their rural counterparts and they believed that nobody else could really understand the complexities of the problems they faced every day.
- The chief of the DOE invited me to meet with him to give him feedback. He wanted to know what I thought of the principals and the schools in the District. He wanted feedback on his own performance-- what he was doing that was not helpful and what he could do that would enable the principals and schools to get better. On June 27th we met in his office. I told him how much I appreciated his own leadership in modeling the importance of soliciting feedback about oneself as well as about others. He attended all of the workshops and was an active and enthusiastic participant. I encouraged him to model "visible presence" by spending time in at least one school every day. I knew he agreed that principals should leave their offices and visit classrooms more frequently, so his visiting schools would be an opportunity to demonstrate the importance of visibility. He told me that he had already begun the school visits and had created a schedule for his deputy chiefs to also make regular, informal visits to schools.
A typical Cambodian learning aid . . . the slate. That tool and a copybook are the major learning materials for children.
We talked about the extraordinary loss of learning time due to the many recesses, teachers' late arrivals, students sitting in classes doing nothing while teachers corrected student copy books and more. We talked about strategies to change these practices. We commiserated about the disparity in staffing levels in schools. Some schools have too few teachers and some have a surplus of teachers. He said the DOE is only the conduit through which the Municipal Office of Education allocates teachers. I told him that I couldn't find anyone who understood exactly how that allocation system worked. Some schools have classrooms with students but with no teachers assigned. They are "covered" every day by the librarian or deputy director. Some schools have "extra" teachers who serve as daily substitute teachers. And, for some reason, those extra teachers cannot be assigned to schools with vacancies. He did not offer an explanation.
The chief agreed that teachers and principals need much more professional development and he sees it imperative for him to find good quality training for them. He also needs to make it clear to principals that they can and should be seeking professional development opportunities for themselves and their teachers.
I am not sure what will come from our work in Phnom Penh. In the Provinces there were some clear signs of seeds taking root. In Meanchey District, at least the seeds have been sown.
A Collage of Memories
In three short weeks Kathy and I return to Seattle. "Unbelievable" as Reaksmey would say. I have such mixed feelings. I can't wait to see our children and grandchildren, mountains and the dark green colors of the Northwest and experience being cold again. I will miss terribly the work that we have done here, the Maryknoll Community, Wanna, Sarik, Reaksmey and the wonder that is Cambodia. I have learned so much. I feel incredibly lucky for the gift of this year and thankful to all of who have helped make it a reality. As I close my eyes and imagine this most transformative year, I see:
Lotus blossoms on the side of the road. Early morning drives through the fog in Takeo. The smell of the dump in Stung Meanchey School. The bright eyes and smiling faces of countless children. The dreary condition of the classrooms in which they sit. White shirts and blue pants and skirts. The light green of new rice growing in the planting season and the dark green and final golden colors of the harvest season. Reaksmey's delightful smile and loud laugh. Living in harmony with ants and geckos. My soul brother Sarik . . . a man of courage, resilience, wisdom and vision. Phnom Penh traffic. Sunrises and sunsets from our balcony. The grace of living simply.
My work here ends for now. I appreciate all of the people who have helped make this possible: the volunteers, Ellen Kahan, Tanya Mau and Eric Nelson, who gave their time and resources to come to Cambodia to teach; the Maryknoll Community who gave us a family and constant support; Reaksmey who is a brilliant, loving and very talented young man and all of the people who generously gave us more money than we had dreamed. I hold the good with the bad, the hope with despair. The paradox of Cambodia is profound and I recall the words of the Buddha, "The lotus flower can only grow in the mud." Amen.
John Morefield was previously Principal of Hawthorne Elementary School in Seattle, Washington. He has worked with the Danforth Program at the University of Washington on programs for school principals. He is a cofounder and board member of Powerful Schools. He is also a former member of the Board of Directors of New Horizons for Learning.
You may email John Morefield at jmore44@yahoo.com.
©June 2004 New Horizons for Learning
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