Search, Ponder & the Pacific: Samoa - Part II

On day four of our trip to Samoa Elder Jacobsen and I traveled by ferry to the island of Savaii where the Church College of Vaiola and Vaiola Primary School are located. Principal Jack met us shortly after our arrival at the school, which is about an hours drive from the ferry boat landing.

Elder and Sister Budgett are the ITEP Missionaries at Vaiola. they picked us up at the ferry and played host to us while we visited (which included feeding us lunch both days at their home right by the school). They are doing amazing work in helping teachers. Sister Budgett is a literacy specialist and Elder Budgett has an administrative and teaching background. Although they are almost as new to Vaiola as we are to New Zealand, we could already see the positive impact their instruction and collaboration with teachers was having in the classroom.

Some professional development on student engagement provided to the teachers on
a Friday afternoon by Elder and Sister Budgett.

Lokeni Fafai is the school counselor at Vaiola. He has been a counselor for a year and has been a teacher and administrator before this assignment. He is really enjoying being a counselor.

The weekly devotional for all the secondary students at Vaiola. This devotional was planned and presented
by the Year 13 students (seniors). They had a choir directed by the Studentbody President and four student speakers. It was an emotional event since the school year is just ending here in the Southern Hemisphere and the senior students will be graduating. Some of them have been at Vaiola for 13 years!

The "Please Speak in English" sign seen over the door of the Library is seen in many places in the school encouraging the students to continue using English all day long.

Students working on a project in the Library. It is one of the
few air-conditioned rooms in the school so it is tempting to stay awhile. :)

Peeking into a secondary classroom. Most classrooms open to an outside corridor.

Vaiola Primary School sits just below the high school buildings. The Vaiola Campus is beautiful and has a wonderful peaceful feeling. Many years ago the entire village of Tapu ele'ele was converted to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. At that time they offered to give the church the necesary land if the church would build a school to educate their children. Because Tapu ele'ele is in a remote location the children would not otherwise have been able to attend school. The village is within walking distance of the campus. For those students who live too far from campus (on the other side of Savaii) there are two dorms on campus where 80 students can live.