Covid-19 hit Cambodia too, and the schools had to close down. During this period, our staff immediately visited all the students and teachers of the two schools with the Mobile Clinic, measuring the temperature and delivering masks to everyone (including the teachers). Every Monday (throughout April) homework was delivered and collected up to grade 8, while for grades 9,10,11,12 besides homework there have been online lessons in April and May. In these first two months, we activated alternating lessons with small groups of 10 pupils: English language, Drawing, Computer, and Sports activities (football and volleyball).
For grade 12 (9 pupils) in June, July and August, we continued our regular lessons in a classroom adjacent to the secondary school.
Even during these months of lockdown, we continued the distribution of the reinforced snack, eggs, bananas, and milk, two to three times a week. And twice a month we distributed food to our pupils’ thirty poorest families. Luckily, the school has resumed normal activity since September 1st.
For grade 12 (9 pupils) in June, July and August, we continued our regular lessons in a classroom adjacent to the secondary school.
Even during these months of lockdown, we continued the distribution of the reinforced snack, eggs, bananas, and milk, two to three times a week. And twice a month we distributed food to our pupils’ thirty poorest families. Luckily, the school has resumed normal activity since September 1st.
Snapshots of life stories from teachers, students, and villagers
As you will read below, in general, our teachers had to reinvent themselves and, especially for the Primary School teachers, sometimes even ‘chase’ the students and find ways to pass them homework and papers. For the Secondary School teachers, the challenges were the online classes (a completely new approach), the internet connection (sometimes unstable), and having to keep up with the school program. They did a great job, and we are so thankful to them for their dedication.
We were also impressed to read what the students managed to achieve while studying online. Remember that they were not working or following online classes using computers, as they do not own any, but rather – for those who have them – on mobile phones, and it was definitely more challenging. The students had to organize their days so that no time was wasted. All of them, besides following the online classes, had to find self-study time, help their family with various tasks, and even teach their younger siblings. Despite the challenging times, they managed to keep up with their work, catch up with the school program, and still cultivate their future dreams.
The two villagers we talked to, instead, told us about the repercussions of Covid-19 in their daily life. They still have much less business because some of their customers lost their jobs and therefore had to save money. Even their family members, if working in the factory, are making less money because they are not required to work full-time. Not to mention the fact that the villagers, who used to meet and socialize regularly, have been scared of getting infected and therefore try to avoid any social interactions. In a place where the sense of community keeps everyone together and creates long-lasting bonds, and where not many people are internet-savvy and even less can afford to have computers, mobile phones, or even televisions, it can feel quite lonely.
We were also impressed to read what the students managed to achieve while studying online. Remember that they were not working or following online classes using computers, as they do not own any, but rather – for those who have them – on mobile phones, and it was definitely more challenging. The students had to organize their days so that no time was wasted. All of them, besides following the online classes, had to find self-study time, help their family with various tasks, and even teach their younger siblings. Despite the challenging times, they managed to keep up with their work, catch up with the school program, and still cultivate their future dreams.
The two villagers we talked to, instead, told us about the repercussions of Covid-19 in their daily life. They still have much less business because some of their customers lost their jobs and therefore had to save money. Even their family members, if working in the factory, are making less money because they are not required to work full-time. Not to mention the fact that the villagers, who used to meet and socialize regularly, have been scared of getting infected and therefore try to avoid any social interactions. In a place where the sense of community keeps everyone together and creates long-lasting bonds, and where not many people are internet-savvy and even less can afford to have computers, mobile phones, or even televisions, it can feel quite lonely.
Teachers’ Voices
 | Pang Sokhim – Grade 4 Teacher Hello! My name is Pang Sokhim. I am 34 years old. I live in Vah Bors village about six kilometres from the school. I am a teacher of grade 4B, and I have been working with Missione Possibile Primary School since 2008. My husband lives in Porsat Province and he doesn’t have a stable job. I have one baby son and he is nearly two years old now. |
COVID-19 affected my teaching a lot. First of all, it was very difficult for me to go to each student’s home to hand in the lesson plans, homework, and papers. Some students were not at their homes, so we needed to find them. If we couldn’t, we would have to skip their home and go to another house. Some students tried to run away when they saw the teacher coming. Furthermore, it was harder to explain the lessons to the students, one by one or group by group. It was different from teaching to the whole class, where I did not have to repeat myself multiple times. Later, we asked the students to come to the school twice a week to take the lesson and homework, but some students didn’t come. Unfortunately, in some cases, parents did not care much about their children’s education. They took this chance to ask their children to help with their jobs, like selling products from the factory, doing more housework, and helping with construction work.
Therefore, up to now, my students’ results are about 70% pass and 30% fail. We still have some lessons and some subjects that we didn’t have enough time to teach. The Government allowed the school to reopen under the condition that the school respected and strictly and regularly implemented special hygiene measures, according to the Standard Operating Principal Rules. I really hope that Covid 19 will pass and things get better soon.
Therefore, up to now, my students’ results are about 70% pass and 30% fail. We still have some lessons and some subjects that we didn’t have enough time to teach. The Government allowed the school to reopen under the condition that the school respected and strictly and regularly implemented special hygiene measures, according to the Standard Operating Principal Rules. I really hope that Covid 19 will pass and things get better soon.
| Khem Chanvirak – Chemistry Teacher My name is Khem Chanvirak. I teach Chemistry to grade 8, 10, 11 and 12. I have been teaching at the Missione PossibileSchool for two years. When the schools were closed, I had to teach online. As I am a teacher, I did some research related to the lesson and prepared homework for my students. I found it harder to teach online than in presence, and this approach was new both for teachers and students. During that time, every week the teachers summarized the new lessons, prepared some exercises, and printed them for the students. The students had to come to school once a week to pick up their homework from the teachers, and the following week they came back to return the homework to the teachers and get the new assignments. For this year, the students will still be on schedule with their school work because we went on with the lesson through online classes and summarized new lessons on paper, even when the school was closed. |  |
Students’ Voices
 | Chey Phon Panha-17years old, grade 12 During this difficult period, when COVID-19 disrupted people’s lives, I managed to study through online classes instead of in-presence classes, and also did some extra research by using Google search, like Wikipedia and other educational websites. Moreover, I did self-study at home as well. For me, study online is fine. I do like it because it is easy to study and could study at any time of the day and at any place. I know a lot about the new IT technology as well. When I was not going to school, I organized my day by setting up a timetable to study, using online classes, did some school work assigned by the teachers, and reviewed the lessons. I also did other activities, like helping my parents with the housework, feeding the animals, editing some content to post on my Facebook page, and staying safe at home. |
Since I eventually went back to school, I was able to catch up with the program. My favorite subjects are biology and chemistry. I like them because I love to learn about human life, the human body, and organs and I like to do research about organic chemistry. In the future, I would like to be a doctor.
 | Kim Muoy – 18 years old – Grade 12 Hello! My name is Kim Muoy. I am 18 years old and I am in grade 12. During this difficult period with COVID-19, I managed to study online and practice self-learning. Although I was able to study online, I didn’t particularly like it because when the internet was slow the video was not clear, and I couldn’t understand the lessons. When I was not going to school, I organized my day by following the online class, doing some homework, and reviewing the lessons. The other activity I managed to do was helping my parents with their work. Since I have been back at school, I’ve been able to catch up with the program. My favorite subject is Mathematics because I understand it more than any other subject. In the future, I would like to be a teacher. |
 | Pirum – 17 years old – Grade 10. My name is Pirum. I’m 17 years old and I am in grade 10. During Covid 19, when I was not going to school, I organized my day by studying online, by myself, and doing homework, but it was more difficult to practice than when I was at school. I was able to study online, but it was hard for all, especially for those students who didn’t have a mobile phone. |
Besides the time I dedicated to studying, I helped my parents doing housework. Since I’ve been back at school I’ve been able to catch up with the program. My favorite subjects are English and History. I like History because I want to know about world history. I also like English, because it can help me to search online for all the information that I need. In my future, I would like to be a teacher.
 | Sem Kosal - 18 years old - Grade 11. Hello! My name is Sem Kosal. I am 18 years old and I am in grade 11. During this difficult period with COVID0-19, I managed to follow the online classes and study by myself at home. However, study online was difficult for me because I couldn’t ask for any clarification from the teachers when I didn’t understand something about the lessons. When I was not able to go to school, I organized my day by setting up a timetable for self-study time, watching online lessons, doing homework, reading books, and reviewing my lessons. Another activity that I managed to do, was helping my parents with the family housework. Since I have been back at school, I have been able to catch up with the program. My favorite subject is physics. I like working with any kind of machine. Regarding my future, I have one dream and I hope that it will come true: I want to be an engineer. |
 | Mavitey – 16 years old – Grade 10. My name is Mavitey. I’m 16 years old and I am in grade 10. During Covid-19, when I was not going to school, I managed to study online and by myself at home, but it was difficult to practice. I was able to study online, but I didn’t like it because it was harder and also more difficult for some students who had no phone to use to connect for the online classes. |
Besides this, I helped my parents with the housework, and I taught some subjects to my sister. Since I’ve been back at school, I have been able to catch up with the program. My favorite subject is English, because English is fun, and it is very important for any kind of job. In the future, I would like to be a teacher.
Villagers’ Voices
Moeun Nhem – 63 years old – Seller
Hello! My name is Moeun Nhem, and I am 63 years old. I live in Roong village, near the Missione PossibileSchools. I am a seller. Nowadays, I live with my youngest son and my grandson. My youngest son is helping my other son to sell beverages. My grandson studies at the Missione PossibileKindergarten.
During this Covid-19 pandemic, I have been facing some difficulties. Firstly, I lost my income because the buyers needed to save their money for their families and purchased much less. Because of Covid-19, some people lost their jobs, some have less work to do, so they needed to cut their expenses. When everyone saves money, also the sellers have no more income, or much less. Furthermore, we feel very unsafe when we are in contact with or close to other people, due to the virus. We don’t know who has Covid-19, so our relationship with our neighbors or relatives is not as good as before. Sometimes, we want to visit our relatives, but we don’t, because we are afraid to catch the virus.
I also worry about my grandson. Because of Covid-19, schools were closed for many months. Now the schools have reopened, but I heard some bad news about Covid-19 again. I don’t know what will happen next, but I hope everything will get back to normal very soon. I wish to see the students back to their life of school-time and activities, and I wish that my business can get back to normal too.
Hello! My name is Moeun Nhem, and I am 63 years old. I live in Roong village, near the Missione PossibileSchools. I am a seller. Nowadays, I live with my youngest son and my grandson. My youngest son is helping my other son to sell beverages. My grandson studies at the Missione PossibileKindergarten.
During this Covid-19 pandemic, I have been facing some difficulties. Firstly, I lost my income because the buyers needed to save their money for their families and purchased much less. Because of Covid-19, some people lost their jobs, some have less work to do, so they needed to cut their expenses. When everyone saves money, also the sellers have no more income, or much less. Furthermore, we feel very unsafe when we are in contact with or close to other people, due to the virus. We don’t know who has Covid-19, so our relationship with our neighbors or relatives is not as good as before. Sometimes, we want to visit our relatives, but we don’t, because we are afraid to catch the virus.
I also worry about my grandson. Because of Covid-19, schools were closed for many months. Now the schools have reopened, but I heard some bad news about Covid-19 again. I don’t know what will happen next, but I hope everything will get back to normal very soon. I wish to see the students back to their life of school-time and activities, and I wish that my business can get back to normal too.
Ket Som Oeun – 40 years old – Seller
Hello, my name is Ket Som Oeun. I am 40 years old and I am a seller. I live in Roong village, next door to the school. There are six members in my family: my older parents, my three daughters, and me. My first daughter is a factory worker. My second daughter is married. My third daughter is studying in grade 3.
I’d like to tell you about my difficulty during Covid-19. Covid-19 has been spreading everywhere in the world. Cambodia has been also affected by it, and my family too. This virus is bringing us many problems. For me, due to this disease, not many customers buy my food as it happened before. It is difficult for me to feed my family. Also, my oldest daughter, who works in the factory, gets less salary because the employer asks the employees to work fewer days compared to before. While my youngest daughter, who is studying in grade 3, could not go to school. She just got homework to do at home, but when she didn’t understand how to do them, I could not help her.
Even now that the school reopened, the students cannot attend school for the whole day like before. Moreover, the relationship with our neighbors has become more difficult. We are afraid to be close to each other and are also afraid to go out because of this virus.
Hello, my name is Ket Som Oeun. I am 40 years old and I am a seller. I live in Roong village, next door to the school. There are six members in my family: my older parents, my three daughters, and me. My first daughter is a factory worker. My second daughter is married. My third daughter is studying in grade 3.
I’d like to tell you about my difficulty during Covid-19. Covid-19 has been spreading everywhere in the world. Cambodia has been also affected by it, and my family too. This virus is bringing us many problems. For me, due to this disease, not many customers buy my food as it happened before. It is difficult for me to feed my family. Also, my oldest daughter, who works in the factory, gets less salary because the employer asks the employees to work fewer days compared to before. While my youngest daughter, who is studying in grade 3, could not go to school. She just got homework to do at home, but when she didn’t understand how to do them, I could not help her.
Even now that the school reopened, the students cannot attend school for the whole day like before. Moreover, the relationship with our neighbors has become more difficult. We are afraid to be close to each other and are also afraid to go out because of this virus.
The situation is dire for everyone, and now more than ever we hope that we can count on your precious support. Stay safe!
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