Pre-Service Training
Staging:
March 10th, 2023 14 of us met for the first time in Philadelphia for a 2-day staging event that would prep us for the next 2 years and 3 months of our lives. It was a time to get acquainted with one another, give us an overview of the Peace Corps mission, and confirm that this is what we really wanted to do.
I'm not a social person by nature, so this was a bit of a stretch for me. When the first session started I sat at one of the tables with my pre-departure language partner Sarah and later another volunteer (Angelica) joined us. I observed the other volunteers as they came into the room and sat at the various tables. They all seemed so intimidating to me and as I heard them speak and participate I began to wonder if I could measure up. I guess you could say that I felt a little bit of imposter syndrome. After that session, I went back up to my hotel room to call my sister Michelle about being invited out for drinks. I think I told her at one point, "Why do people have to be so social? I just want to chill and relax but they all want to get to know one another...If I don't go though I'll be left out when we get to Armenia because they will all know one another." Needless to say, after a confidence boost from Michelle, I decided to step out of my comfort zone and join the others for drinks and I am so glad that I did. Little did I know that later these people would become some of my close friends.
Pre-Service Training (PST):
A bus ride to New York and 2 flights later we finally landed in Yerevan, Amenia on March 14th, early in the morning. Peace Corps (PC) staff was there to greet us with a banner and we were transported to a resort for a week of quarantine and training. Our time at the resort gave us our first look at what PST would look like for the next 11 weeks: language training, technical training, seminars, and bonding time. When our week of quarantine was finished we were split into our three villages and the real training began.
A normal day in the life of a TEFL trainee consists of 4 hours of language training with the others in our village, then a break for lunch. After lunch, everyone in my village would meet up at the local church where we waited to be picked up by the PC van to go to Masis for technical training. After technical training, we'd be dropped off back in our respective villages. At the end of the day, we would normally go home to do our homework and relax with our host families. Sometimes though, we'd meet up with the other volunteers at one of our houses or at the soccer field.
TEFL training is done separately from YD training since we're different programs, but at least one day a week we'd all meet together in Masis for Central Days. These central days included seminars on safety and security, medical, and panels with various groups (NGOs, cultural officers, embassy employees, RPCVs, etc.). Generally, we enjoyed these central days so we could see everyone in our cohort.
Memorable experiences during PST: (Not listed in a specific order)
Bathroom experiences. Unfortunately, I have several awkward bathroom stories, luckily none dealing with AD, but awkward nonetheless.
Learning to use a squat toilet was a very unique experience for a lot of us volunteers. One day in particular it was quite funny to see all the male volunteers practice squatting to see how long they could hold the position for. It was during one of our breaks and I stepped away from the snack table to see several of them squatting in a circle together.
Because of my private nature and height, it made it awkward for me to use the bathrooms in the school since you can see everything. So I got in the habit of waiting for the bathroom to be free and then I'd lock the door so no one could enter. One day though it just seemed like person after person kept going into the girl's bathroom so I wasn't able to enter. Eventually, I decided to just use the boy's bathroom and asked Camden to watch the door for me so no guys would enter. I'll never forget as I was inside doing my business hearing a male PC staff member say from outside to Camden "Why is she in there, this is the men's bathroom..." He walked away, but by the time I was walking out another male PC staff member gave me a strange look as he saw me exiting the men's bathroom. It took me a few days before I could look either individual in the eye again.
A few weeks later the girl's bathroom wasn't working for a week or so and we were all told to use the men's bathroom. This time it wasn't as awkward to go in and have someone guard the door for me. However, one of the times I went to use the bathroom I awkwardly made eye contact through the side window with a teacher in the teacher's lounge...why are there windows in bathrooms?
The last day we were in Masis, like normal, I locked the door when using the bathroom. However, when I was ready to leave and attempted to unlock the door, I realized that I was stuck and that the door would not unlock. I tried several times to jiggle it loose, but to no avail, I was locked in. Luckily I had my phone and was able to call Angelica to come rescue me. I had no idea how to explain the situation to her. When she answered I froze for a few seconds before I broke out laughing and between broken words explained to her the situation. She called in reinforcements and before long a small crowd of people were surrounding the bathroom door trying to help me escape and witness my embarrassment. A teenager passing by was kind enough to yank the door open for me popping off the lock on the door in the process...
2. Dinner/movie nights at our Language/Culture Facilitator's (LCF's) house. Those of us in the Marmarashen village were blessed to have two great LCFs, Rima and Siranush. They really took the time to get to know each of us individually and help build our confidence living in a new country. They were our teachers, but we really enjoyed spending time with them outside of class as well. They made us some Armenian food and we made them American food. Or rather I should say we attempted to make them American food...Turns out tortillas are harder to make than we had predicted...also when making mac and cheese it does matter what kind of noodle you use. Lesson learned, do not use the cheapest noodle.
3. Marmarashen is a beautiful village but there isn't a lot to do there. One of the ways that I and the other volunteers liked to spend our time was by meeting up at the soccer field behind the school to play soccer. Besides Jorge and Camden, the rest of us weren't that good, but it was fun to get out and do something. The local kids saw that we'd often meet up and started playing with us as well. Some of the kids were really good too! Though, we did learn that we had to be careful with some of the little ones...One of us, not going to say who...may have accidentally kicked a few kids in the legs while playing or accidentally kicked the ball straight into someone's face...Luckily kids are resilient and they just popped right back up. Soccer was a great way to integrate into the community!
4. Practicum Week: During PST TEFL technical training we learn different strategies for how to be effective English teachers when we get into the field. During week 6 of technical training, we got the opportunity to do our practicum. This year we did it at Darbnik Secondary School. Each of us was put into a trio and then randomly assigned an age group to teach. I was lucky to be partnered with Jorge and Colton. They were both fully engaged, had great ideas, were willing to listen, and were willing to step up when needed. We were all able to balance well off of each other and teach effectively together. I really enjoyed working with the students that we were assigned. They were all so excited to meet with us and passionate about participating. It was nice to see the students help the others who didn't always quite understand what was going on. Honestly, I was very impressed with the students and how much they knew. At the end of the week of teaching them, I felt like I learned just as much from them if not more than what we taught them. Practicum was a great insight into what the next two years of teaching would be like. On the last day of practicum my group hosted a little graduation ceremony for our students and gave them certificates of participation. It was bittersweet. The week was a lot of work and preparation but we loved meeting with the kids and it was hard to say goodbye.
5. Trips: For safety reasons during PST we had to get permission to leave our villages and be accompanied by our host families. However, there were a few trips like going to Noravank (story in previous post), the Genocide Memorial Museum, Khor Virap, Garni, and Yerevan that were pre-approved for us as a group which was a lot of fun. Yerevan is the largest city and capital of Armenia. There is a lot to explore and see: Cascades, museums, restaurants, malls, theaters, etc. We had the opportunity to visit Yerevan on a few different occasions. I would definitely recommend going to see Republic Square and exploring the history museum. I would also recommend going to see the Cascades. If you do go to the cascades, you should know that there is an escalator you can take to get to the top. I didn't know that my first time and climbed all the steps to the top. I was dead at the end of it but the view was worth it. You can look out across the city and it's B-E-A-UTIFUL!
6. Site Announcements/Visit: In week 8 of PST you find out where your permanent site will be for the next 2 years. All 16 of us volunteers met up in the Masis school gym to hear the news. There was a giant map of Armenia on the floor that we huddled around guessing where we'd all be assigned to go. Due to safety reasons with the ongoing conflict in the area, volunteers are only allowed to be placed in the top 4 regions (Lori, Kotayk, Shirak, and Aragatsotn). When it was time to announce the sites we all stood in a straight line as we were called one-by-one. To say we were nervous would be an understatement. Not a bad nervousness, just an excited unknown kind of nervousness. I watched and cheered as several of my fellow volunteers were called forward to know their site placement. Finally, it was my turn and I was assigned to Vanadzor. I was beyond happy and felt some of my stress from not knowing melt away. Later that day they gave us a folder with information about our future host family and our permanent sites. We all immediately started googling to find out more information and see how close we would be to one another.
I knew when submitting my application to the Peace Corps that there was a possibility that I wouldn't be able to attend church while volunteering due to location issues. However, being able to practice my faith has always been very important to me. I prayed that when I was given my site placement I would be close enough to attend a local congregation. Being placed in Vanadzor was an answer to my prayers since there is a small branch that I can attend each Sunday.
7. Site Visits: I don't believe that each PC country does site visits, but Armenia does. Shortly after the news of our site placement we all packed our bags, met our counterparts for the first time, and left with them to our sites for a 5-day visit. The drive to Vanadzor was beautiful and the closer I got the more excited I got. Our stay at site gave us a chance to meet and bond with our new host families. I was lucky to be placed with my host parents Tamara and Samvel (who felt more like siblings) and Niko (the cutest little brother). I also had the opportunity to visit the school that I would be working with for the next 2 years and meet some of my students.
8. LPI: Language Proficiency Test...Also the most nerve-racking thing about PST (at least for me). As mentioned previously, we spent a lot of time studying the Armenian language. Part of the goal of Peace Corps is to integrate into the community and the best way to do that is to learn the language. One of the ways that PC measures how well we learn the language is through the LPI. Halfway through PST, we do a mock LPI to see where we are at and what needs to be improved on before we do the real LPI. The hope is that before leaving for our actual sites we'll have sufficient language skills to communicate our needs and converse a little with the locals in our community. The LPI is what confirms whether or not we are ready. PC does a great job at preparing each of us for this test, my issue with it is purely related to test anxiety. Everyone in the cohort did well and we all passed.
9. Swearing in: On May 24th we officially became Peace Corps Volunteers (PCV's). On the day of some of us acted as MCs, gave speeches, recited poems, and sang. So leading up to the event we had a few rehearsals to make sure everything ran smoothly. We figured out in what order we would all shake hands with the US ambassador, where we would all sit, and rehearsed the oath that would make our service official. It was a memorable day that I will never forget.
10. Move-in day: On May 26th all the volunteers with their packed belongings said goodbye to our PST host families and departed for our permanent sites. It was a bittersweet day. Bitter because we grew to love our host families and it was hard saying goodbye, but sweet because we were excited to start working in our sites. Before leaving I spent as much time as I could with my host family and promised to come back and visit.
PST was a great time, but it's just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to PC service. I've enjoyed my time so far since moving to my site and look forward to the rest of my service.
Yorumlar