A day in the teaching life of... Leak Hana

At a small village school in Cambodia, this head spends a lot of time in the community to try to raise school attendance
16th December 2018, 2:02pm

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A day in the teaching life of... Leak Hana

https://www.tes.com/magazine/archive/day-teaching-life-leak-hana
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My name is Leak Hana and I have an extraordinary job that changes the lives of children in Cambodia.

I’m the headteacher at Som Roung village school in Cambodia. The school is part of the United World Schools (UWS) community, which aims to improve access to education for some of the most marginalised children in Cambodia. For some, there are no schools within two-and-a-half hours’ walking distance of their homes.

Typically, my day starts early to get my young baby out of bed, fed and dressed. I try to fit in an hour of study - I have just completed my master’s degree in education. I have a team of three teaching colleagues: Rin Narith, Keo Boulin and Chorn Chhaiya.

One of our greatest challenges is encouraging older children to come to school regularly. When children attend school, it means that there is nobody to help the family at home or on the farm. During the harvest season, many families have to take their children to the fields and so they miss school.

I do believe however, that the increased awareness of the pressures on their families is often the thing that drives pupils’ ambition to learn when they are at school. There is no lack of motivation for learning, and indeed children embrace the chance to learn and discover things about themselves and the world around them.

Putting food on the table

I liaise closely with the parents, often visiting them at their farms to discuss the impact of erratic attendance. Parents understand the importance of education - it’s not something they need to be convinced about - but they explain that of equal importance for them as a family is to ensure that they have enough help to tend to their rice fields. They cannot afford labour and therefore depend on their children to help. This is quite literally what puts food on the table for the entire family.

It is a difficult balance. As I come from this region, I understand the demands and the culture. We will often spend time working out ways that would allow the children to attend school as often as is possible, and offer further ideas to the parents to help them when they can’t.

Cambodia

Language can be a barrier because families tend to speak tribal language and not all parents speak the national language (Khmer), which means the only experience children have of this is when they attend school. It will be important for the pupils to have a good grasp of Khmer to give them wider opportunities when they leave school.

I work closely with my colleagues so that I can have some input about the family background, which helps teachers understand the challenges some pupils face.

Ladder of learning

I witnessed first-hand the joy of learning and understanding when I observed the way children connected with learning through play. I watched as a group of children were taught how to play snakes and ladders. They were quick to understand the rules and the teacher demonstrated her skill in using play to teach them something completely new that relied on counting, communication and a healthy attitude to competition. With their modest lifestyles, it also offered a way for them to learn to play games that cost nothing.  

Pupils enjoy the structure of school, the opportunity to mix with other children and, of course, to learn about new things and places beyond the confines of their village farms. The school relies totally on funds raised by the pupils and community of Sherborne School in Qatar. Pupils and staff from Sherborne Qatar are due to visit Cambodia to see the school and help to train the teaching staff. My teaching staff are particularly keen to learn more about good practitioner practice.

I’m a typical 21st-century mum balancing a full-time job with a new baby while studying to improve my own future. I hope I can inspire my pupils to embrace the educational opportunity our school offers.

Leak Hana is headteacher of Som Roung village school in Som Roung, Cambodia

Sherborne School in Qatar supports Leak Hana with her studies and sponsors the school in Som Roung. If your school would be interested in raising funds for this initiative, please contact UWS partnership director Jack Clark at jack@unitedworldschools.org

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