"What is the first thing you're going to say in class?" a friend asked me the day before I had my first class. "Good question" I thought. Seeing as how I had never taught a college course before, I had no idea where to start. Add to that the fact that I was teaching in Swahili at a small Bible college in Tanzania I really had no idea how to begin my first psychology class.
Fortunately for me there are some excellent teachers at that school and one of the them began my first class by introducing me and then praying. I definitely needed all the prayer I could get. Looking out over the faces of the students I wondered if I could explain the importance and relevance of what I was going to teach this semester. I wondered if I could keep them awake for an hour and if they would understand anything I said. Not knowing the answers to these questions I plunged ahead.
Amazingly enough I enjoyed the class and the students were great! They understood what I was saying and felt free to ask questions and interact with what I taught. When I fumbled with my Swahili they seemed to understand anyway. I loved being up front, explaining different ideas about psychology to these students who were eager to learn.
I know there will be many challenges ahead as I continue teaching psychology or saikolojia as they say in Swahili. Trying to find words to explain classical conditioning or psychoanalysis for a language without this type of terminology can be overwhelming at times. But I have confidence in the students and most importantly, confidence in my God who has not brought me this far to leave me now.
