Counterpart Workshop

Sorry for the long absence from blog posts…it’s been a pretty crazy couple of weeks! I believe the last time I posted anything we were getting ready for counterpart workshop, so I’ll start the updates with that…

All in all, counterpart workshop (CPW) wasn’t really much to talk about. It basically consisted of two days of sessions on such exciting topics as expectations, the relationship between counterparts and volunteers, the SED project plan, etc. Truthfully, the thing that sticks out most in my mind when I think about CPW is being exhausted. While some lucky PCTs got to stay at the center during CPW, we Tassete people enjoyed commuting to and from Thies everyday. Not only did we have to commute, but also we were the first of four villages being picked up all by the same van. So this meant that we had to wake up everyday at 5:30 AM in order to shower and get on the bus in time for breakfast before sessions started at 8:15; and we usually got back to village around 8 PM. That’s a long day even by American standards, but after two months of living at the village pace, it was practically unfathomable. Then add to that the fact that all of our sessions were being conducted in rapid-fire French, which required me to pay very close attention in order to understand what was being said. PLUS I’m pretty sure the last time I slept straight through the night was at the hotel in D.C. during staging…you could see why exhaustion was the main theme of the workshop, haha.

Aside from the exhaustion, CPW was beneficial for a couple of different reasons. The information presented in most of the sessions was really meant more for the counterparts and supervisors than for us, but it was helpful to see how Senegalese interact in a classroom style situation. For example, while in America we are taught to raise our hands and wait quietly to be called on if we have something to say, the Senegalese custom is to snap their fingers repeatedly until someone is recognized. The first time one of the counterparts did that during a session, I was completely taken aback. After all, I think most Americans would agree with me that snapping at someone like that is quite rude. Little did I know…that’s just the way things are done here. So it’s good that I learned that now rather than being caught off guard in the future while trying to run a meeting or teach a class.

Also, as my part of the workshop, I worked with Byron, Alex and Alys (three other SED PCTs) on creating a skit regarding the relationship between counterparts (homologues) and volunteers. We came up with the idea of “Homologue Homme,” a superhero version of the counterpart, to demonstrate our expectations. So we wrote the skit and put it on thinking we were being reasonably clever and that everyone would find it helpful, and hopefully a little bit funny. Well to sum it up in a few short words…epic fail! It would seem that the underlying sarcasm of the idea (and the humor in general) doesn’t translate across cultural borders. While we were trying to portray things like wanting our counterparts to introduce us to people and show us around town; they thought we were expecting our homologues to literally swoop in and save the day whenever we cry for help. I think one of the homologues actually even raised their hand to point out that they are incapable of flying…no joke, haha. Needless to say the superhero concept did not convey quite what we had hoped, but it was another good lesson in the difficulties of communicating across cultural borders. In the future, I’ll have to be a little bit more careful about how I try to explain things.

Last but not least…CPW was also a good opportunity for everyone, myself included, to meet his or her counterpart and supervisor. As SED volunteers, we are all assigned to work under a government agency; so the supervisor acts as our contact for whatever agency we are meant to work with. The counterpart/homologue on the other hand, is more the person that shows you around and works with you on a daily basis regarding your projects. So far both my supervisor and homologue seem like really good people. I think there’s a possibility that one might be a bit more difficult to work with, but hopefully I’m wrong…only time will tell.

À la prochaine!