Omondi from Kenya graduates from Faroese teachers’ college

On Friday, 37 people in the Faroes were awarded their teachers’ certificates.

One of these is Omondi Reagan Ayodo, who moved to the Faroes from Kenya just over five years ago.

“This is a happy and proud moment for me,” he says in fluent Faroese.

“It’s been a tough few years, juggling a course taught in a foreign language, a full-time job, being a father and a husband, etc. There were times when I felt like giving up, but I got there in the end.”

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Omondi’s Faroese story dates back to 2013 when a Faroese woman came to work in the Kenyan school where he was a teacher, having just completed his two-year Kenyan elementary teacher course.

The two became close, and in 2015, Omondi travelled to the Faroes to visit his Faroese girlfriend. About a year later, he returned to the Faroes, married his girlfriend and they settled down in Vágar.

He completed an intensive Faroese as a second language course and then enrolled at the teachers’ college.

“I could have transferred some of my credits, but I decided to do the full four-year course here because the Faroese and the Kenyan school systems are so fundamentally different.”

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The first year of the course was hard. But with good support from teachers, his student counsellor and his fellow students, he decided to continue.

“Knowing all the general principles of teaching beforehand helped me fill in the gaps when there was something I didn’t understand, so I stayed on,” he explains.

“Being in the Faroes, surrounded by Faroese people in a study environment where everything, including student presentations, is conducted in the Faroese language has been a challenging yet incredibly rewarding learning process for me.”

Omondi recommends working with children as a great way to learn a new language.

“When you speak with adults, you tend to worry about getting the grammar right. But with children, there is more freedom. You just focus on pure communication – and the children know what you’re trying to say even if you occasionally get the inflection wrong.”

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Omondi currently works at the recreation centre (Frítíðarskúlin) at Tórshavn’s á Fløtum school.

“I really enjoy this job, but if I find a teaching vacancy in Vágar, I will definitely apply because the daily commute can be a bit of a hassle,” he says.

“We all know that demand outstrips supply with regards to teacher jobs. So, even if I don’t find a ‘proper’ teaching job immediately, I will be fine because I’m really happy in my current job.”

Listen to the interview with Omondi in Faroese here.

Translated by prosa.fo.

More Faroese News in English.