Good Noise Down the Hall

Ryan (L) and Wilfred (R) listen
as students work through sceanrios

It's Saturday. I'm here at school, working away. Communications students are taking exams. An English class is handing in papers. Wilfred Mushagalusha, UCBC's Applied Sciences professor, is hosting a special seminar for his students. All of a sudden there is great rumbling of voices echoing down the hall. It's the sound of students. That healthy, loud buzz of work and discussion, and excitement.

I grab my camera and pop into Wilfred's class. Ryan Metcalf, Macintosh support specialist at Wheaton College (and potential long-term volunteer/International Staff person here at UCBC), is leading a seminar on "Customer Service and Computer Support." As part of the teaching, Ryan has put together scenarios for students to work through in pairs. One person is the user; the other is the customer service/support person. For example:

• User wants to connect to the Internet, but knows very little about how to do so or how to navigate the browser. The user is frustrated. The customer service/support person has to use common language, demonstrate calmness, and ask questions to deduce the problem, then gently guide the user through the necessary steps....all the while exhibiting good customer service skills.
• User's computer is running slowly. The customer service/support person needs to problem solve, with the user, who knows nothing about de-fragging or other potential sources of the problem. The solution to the problem is that the computer needs to be de-fragged.

And that's what the noise is about.

What fun to look inside and see students talking excitedly with each other, working through the real-life scenarios drawn from real-life experiences.

Another volunteer here right now, Joost Hartog, said that he's noticed that UCBC faculty and students are different from other Congolese he's met and worked with. "They think. They try to problem-solve. It's a different mentality than I've experienced."

Forget the bad news that comes out of Congo. There is plenty of good news here! There is good teaching. There is good thinking. There is skill-building. There is a desire to serve and strengthen communities. There are sounds of life and learning! The noise and the news are good!