And then there were 5: Cambodian Lessons- Worth the Paper they are Written On?

Cambodian Students don't get the full picture
even if they pay for it.

 ~ We were ready to stump up some riel for Sarey's extra classes.*

~ We knew that her high school teachers would often be late to class, or not turn up at all.

~We knew that many of her teachers would be ill-prepared and lacking the knowledge required to teach.

~We were prepared for the amount of monotonous rote learning Cambodian kids are still subjected to.

~And we knew that there would be long periods of idleness in her classes.

But what we were not prepared for was the fact that just to get the printed information for each lesson, Sarey often has to pay 500 riel. That's a scandalous price for a few words on a piece of paper and nothing but a corrupt money making opportunity for teachers. And looking at a bought English lesson, which was riddled with mistakes, it's not worth the paper it's written on.

Of course if you refuse to pay the lesson, or you cannot afford it, then there is an alternative; stare out the window all day, whilst becoming evermore bored and resentful.

I'm told, sadly, that the selling of lessons is on the increase in Cambodia. 

 *It's common practice for Khmer teachers to charge their students for after-hour classes.Such classes are where the teachers do some real teaching. Should they not be able to afford to go to these classes students may never get good scores;the teacher reserves the top marks for his or her paying students.

** What Happens When Two Young Cambodians Enter the House?
See background here:
http://cambodianbeginnings.blogspot.com/p/and-then-there-were-four.html