First Impressions of School

I have started School. My first day was Monday July 20th, and I was shown the school, classes, dining hall by my neighbor Shalaka, who is in my class. I have been placed in 11th Grade, because 12th is all preparation for the Board exams, so that would not be beneficial/interesting to me at all. Wednesday the 22nd, we had the Solar Eclipse, which meant a holiday from school. Sadly, it was raining, so nothing was visible over my city. The rain continued, and flooded all the streets of Indore since there is no road drainage system, and school was cancelled on Thursday! I had to go back on Friday, and although my week felt complete after that, I had school on Saturday as well. Let me just say that a 6-day week is awful, and with today being Thursday, I don’t even feel the relief of tomorrow being Friday!

In school, I am in the Commerce Stream, and so my classes consist of Economics, Accountancy, Business Studies, and English. I also have an Optional Class, and I can choose between Hindi Literature(which is out of the question!), Math, or IP (Informatics Practices). I have been going to IP, which is a horrible class about computer programming. The subject, teacher, and classroom are all so dull and uninspiring, I would have to say that is my least favorite class. The school has two ‘exchange’ teachers this year, from China and Mexico. I thought I could maybe take one of those languages…but after going to the Chinese class a few days ago, I realized it was for 4th Grade! The little girls were so cute, but could not figure out why I was there. But at least I learned something…Wo jiao Chloe! So my search continues. I have already received a firm “no” from the Hindi teacher when asked about helping me learn the basics of the language. So tomorrow, I will try my last option, asking the Geography teacher if she would be willing to teach me, even though no other girl in my grade has opted for that class. If she can’t, I guess I will be switching into math, which I am hoping will be a little more stimulating than IP.

Also every week, I have one subject of PE, in which we have to line up in 4 lines in height order, and do simple movements and exercises, that don’t even raise the heart rate one beat! I also have one period in the library, one period called General Studies, which is a free period, and an craft class on Saturdays. My current project is making a pink, fluffy, stuffed dolphin! I know I am rambling, but everything about this school is so different, I have to tell it all!

My school, Sathya Sai, was founded 30 years ago by Sai Baba, and Indian man who is a self proclaimed reincarnate of a Hindi god. None of the students believe or follow him, but a few teachers, and the principal, are devotees of his teachings. Because of this, Sai Baba’s picture hangs in EVERY room in the school, dining hall and bathroom included! I feel like he is watching me, and honestly it is a little strange! Sai Baba has promised that he will visit the school, once it has become an all-girls school, but I don’t know the reason for this. In any way, the school has stopped admitting boys for the past few years, so the girls heavily outnumber the remaining boys. In school, the boys and girls are segregated at all cost. We have separate classrooms, separate hallways, separate dining halls, and even separate sections of the school bus! We are even not allowed to speak to each other, and I have seen a teacher yelling at a boy and girl for speaking in the hall!

As you can probably tell, this school is very strict. We have to wear a uniform everyday that consists of a heavy navy blue jean-like kurta (short-sleeved, knee-length tunic, that buttons up to the neck) and baby pink salwar (puffy pants that taper at the ankle), and a matching baby pink chunni (a 3-fold scarf-like thing that we drape and pin over our shoulders). The uniform also requires black clunky sneakers, mandatory calf-height white socks (that are checked by the teachers!) and a mandatory red hair elastic! And I have to wear my hair in a braid every day! Another way in which the school is strict, is lunch. We arrive in the lunch room, at 12, and all of the metal tables have already been lined with our metal plates and cups. When we sit, we are not allowed to eat the food in front of us until every girl has a seat, and we have prayed together. The food is actually pretty good, and usually consists of rice, daal (lentils), chipati (like a tortilla), some cooked vegetable, and some small portion of raw fruit or vegetable. But if you don’t like something you’re in trouble, because we are required to eat everything on our plate! Before you leave the dining hall, you must show your plate to a teacher, who will tell you to go sit down if you have just one pea remaining on your plate! I really feel like this school treats all of its students like young children, and it would be much more successful if it just gave its students some independence and responsibilities! As much as I thought I didn’t like CHS, it is really an amazing school when compared to this! Here, there is too much focus on order and discipline, and so little on the actual education.

But one good thing about the school is my class mates. They are all so interested in the US, and want to know why I am here if I have finished school already. Sometimes I ask myself the same thing! Already, one girl has brought in chocolates for me, another gave me a pair of earrings today, and another invited me to go shopping. So I am really glad that my classmates have been friendly, and understand that the school is so foreign to me! And today, a few of them told me that the school is planning a trip to Dubai that will be in a few months!! That would be so amazing to be able to visit another country while I am here, and I will be receiving info soon about the time, and itinerary of the trip. The girls said it may be about 30,000 Rupees, which is $600, so we’ll see!!!

If you have read all of this, I am impressed! Thanks for following me throughout my year through this blog!