Freshly Sharpened Pencils

Unfiltered panoramic sunset off Sharpey Shack last Friday

Aaaaand, we're right back into it.

Less than two full weeks back with the kids and it already feels like we never left. We spent the first two days rolling out our new curriculum: Independent Discoveries, Make-Your-Own-Explorations and Expertise, but there was no easing back in -- more than half of our students would be in grades 8 or 9 if they were returning to government school, so high school is upon us. Not literally (thank God), because some of their skills are still not quite up to par, but their inventiveness and work ethic kick most high schoolers' butts, so I guess we meet somewhere in the middle.

Independent Discoveries are essentially individual research projects. What do you want to know more about? Propose an idea, we will facilitate you and, if possible, connect you with a mentor. You do the rest. You have seven weeks to produce something that is portfolio-worthy, and a presentation of some sort will be made to your peers. We had almost 40 out of 50 students propose an idea, although it was not required and they only had a day to think about it. Some ideas include building a hovercraft, researching the history of Cambodian architecture, inventing a new sport, learning about birds, and becoming an expert in Adobe Muse. I don't even know what that last one is...

We have had Explorations for the past two years now, check my last entry if you don't know what they are, so we thought it was about time we turned it over to the kids. Out of the five Exploration blocks, two will be entirely student-run. They propose their idea, gather their team and write their plan. We will be there to facilitate, but they will run the show. Some of the best ideas include an interior design team that wants to learn about and then design some of the many new spaces that are being built on campus; starting a mobile library movement in Cambodia (you have all seen the little wooden bird-house "take one, give one" libraries around the U.S.?); a Robotics team that wants to send itself back to Singapore (for a third time), to compete in the high school category, while including a few students who have never been; and, a creative writing duo who hope to write fictional short stories that teach kids values like integrity and determination.

Expertise was a hell of a puzzle scheduling-wise, but is turning into a great idea. It links with our Explorations and front-loads the skills the kids will need. For example, if your Exploration is visiting the Bunong people to learn about their culture and background, culminating in a photo book, you need a class on photography. If your Exploration seeks to find old Khmer music that was lost during the Khmer Rouge and record it, you need an Expertise course on audio engineering and podcasting. The other category of Expertise aims to expand the students' frame of reference, mainly through current events and video presentations. In the first two weeks, I have introduced seven students to the Cecil the Lion controversy, and helped them get their feet under them when it comes to the meaning of "transgender."

Unsurprisingly, our little Ligers have risen to the new freedom and responsibility with open minds and incredible questions. In the Cecil the Lion debate, I had one student stick to her guns (pun intended), arguing that if someone wanted to pay $50,000 to shoot a lion, they were allowed to without consequence, that it was "just business." She was outraged that the African guides were not the ones getting into more trouble. The other kids shot her some serious shade (no pun intended), but backed down when we read about the connection between conservation and big game hunting. Watching their perspective shift and widen when I introduced the Zimbabwean point of view was probably the best thing I've witnessed so far this year.

Even today, when presenting the basics of what it means to be gay, lesbian and transgender, I trusted that they would be respectful, but had no idea how seamlessly they would ask questions and share their ideas. We talked about transitioning, identified challenges to coming out, talked about gay-marriage laws worldwide, including Southeast Asia, and I showed pictures of different people who are openly gay or transgender. Throughout, they shocked me with their maturity and excellent questions. What happens if you're gay and you like someone, but they aren't gay? What does coming out mean? How do you know you're gay? What if you're at a party and you tell someone you like them but they don't like you back, how would you feel? These are all questions that were posed by students to the group. They were so interested and had so much to say that we will be revisiting it next week, through the lens of gay marriage and citizenship, and openly gay athletes.

Besides having a great start to the school year, it has been so nice to be back in Cambodia. When we walked into one of our favorite restaurants the first Wednesday back, the Khmer bartender immediately saw me and started making my favorite drink. At the salon I frequent, the girl who usually takes care of me wasn't there, so the store manager stepped it -- talk about customer service. I was also shocked to see on their shelves the exact Clarins face wash that I use and usually have to buy at Bloomingdale's the day before I fly back. Another huge sign of progress is the insane amount of road construction on the main road that connects Liger's village to Phnom Penh. There are huge trucks out there widening and smoothing the road. Its going to be awesome and well worth it when its finished, but for now its just a huge dust cloud of potential.

These anecdotes may not resonate with you, but with me its like watching a little kid grow up. This city and the people in it are moving full speed ahead, responding to their growing economy, learning more about customer service and improving their infrastructure. I feel so connected that I take pride in their baby steps.

Also, now I never have to go to Bloomingdale's again...
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Below, the gems that were created after learning about idioms (literally and figuratively, of course). See if you can tell which one got lost in translation.