Week 3

Reflection

1. Week of June 26. Report for week 3 of 6.

2. Activities and accomplishments from the week

A common water source in Uganda

This week was a lot more relaxed than expected. I was shocked because they always say the third week can be the hardest. On Wednesday, I spent all morning taking surveys with Ronald (my translator), at a borehole in Naluwooli area and the afternoon going from home to home taking interviews. In the afternoon, we were in Ronald’s area and stopped by his house to eat lunch. I got to meet his daughter, nieces and father, which was nice to see that side of Ronald. I ended Wednesday early after collecting more interviews than planned. Sydney and I visited the new compound construction site on Thursday. We met the water engineer in charge of surveying and drilling the new borehole, and he walked us through the hydrogeological processes of surveying to pick the most optimal points for drilling. Teaching on Friday went a lot better than it normally had, as the students are becoming a lot braver and will now come in front of the class and work out math problems on the board. I rewarded these students with a

pen. 

Ronald, my translator is in the white shirt

Friday was the best day for interviews. Ronald and I’s communication was the best it had ever been, and we got 10 interviews done in an afternoon, which is extremely impressive. Friday night also came with a lot of team bonding, as Mike, my supervisor, stayed up late with us playing games and bonding. He just finished undergrad a year ago, so it was nice to see him let loose with people more his own age.

This weekend, all of the service learners, interns and a few staff went to Jinja! It was a really fun weekend of shopping, taking a banana boat on the source of the Nile, hiking Itanda Falls, and dance partying! (See previous blog for pictures)

When we returned on Sunday, the Makerere students were waiting for us. We got to work on bi-national projects and teaching teams. I am really excited to work with the Irrigation Team as well as my teaching partner, Ismael. He is a self-proclaimed math genius, which will help me relax I think. He has had many good ideas so far!

On Monday, I ended up sick with a bacterial infection. I had a nasty cough and had ended Sunday night with a fever, so Dr. Masinde decided it was best for me to recover.

Taking Interviews

On Tuesday, I got to work on my bi-national team project in the morning, but our drip-irrigation system idea for Nakanyoni Primary School got vetoed due to too small of a budget and too big of fields to water. We will assess Naluwooli gardens to see if it is possible there, though. I travelled to Namasagali area afterwards to complete surveys, and I can’t wait to continue to explore this area for the rest of the week!

3.a. What is going well

Surveying is going really well in my internship. I am getting the hang of meeting new people while going from home to home, and Ronald and I are becoming quite the team.

3.b. What needs to be changed 

I am slightly behind on the number of surveys I need to have due to my sick day.

3.c. What am I doing well 

To make this internship go well, I have started taking longer days due to the fact that I am a little behind. I know that if I put in all of the necessary hours I will be successful.

3.d. What do I need to change 

I think I need to put more trust into the program that if I do become short on time, they will provide me with resources to get everything done with flying colors.

3.e. How can I affect change in the internship 

I can affect change in my internship by staying organized and on top of my schedule, while simultaneously being flexible.