Victoria Degerman (past volunteer) – School Counsellor at Hutjena Secondary School in Bougainville

Victoria began her assignment in September 2009. Before she left New Zealand, Victoria was working as a family counsellor for Presbyterian Support in Auckland.

What Victoria did in Bougainville

Victoria worked as a counsellor with the students at Hutjena Secondary School – she was the school’s second VSA counsellor. She also helped two staff members to set up a counselling department that they can now run. Victoria also ran in-service training courses for all the staff at the school and of course met with students regularly.

Making a positive impact

Victoria's training helped her colleagues to judge how far to take matters and handle issues in confidence or when to refer more serious matters to the principal or the school administration. She worked with individual students on differing problems ranging from sexual relationships with older men in the community in exchange for gifts, to student fears of being possessed or at the receiving end of sorcery practices. In the latter situation, student counselling focused on education as well as individual choice and how to influence our own future. The fear of sorcery is really strong and a vast majority of students and teachers alike believe in the practices and effects of this culturally-anchored belief. 

In 2011 the Bougainville education board announced that every school should have a counsellor. Victoria sees this as a great step forward but hopes those trainee teacher counsellors have the time to dedicate to counselling given most will have already had a full timetable and no financial incentive to top up their wages. As she says, "counselling and working with the pupils and teachers was the easy part. The more difficult aspects of the role included trying to ensure that the school based counsellors had sufficient resources as well as time to carry out the work”.

Victoria’s highlights

“Since counselling is a support service and not compulsory (at least not for the vast majority of students here), being accepted and trusted was a priority of mine – a very important priority. I think they did trust and accept me. Also, we had a lot of fun together, which was very easy thanks to the Bougainvilleans’ quirky sense of humour.”

What Bouganiville has taught Victoria

“Storytelling is a common pastime in Bougainville and I am fascinated by the circular, colourful and often lengthy way people reach the point of their story. It has helped me re-think the boring method I usually use to get my messages across.”

“People in Bougainville are experts at just hanging out and it’s rubbing off on me.  Now I don’t worry about always letting people know beforehand that I’m popping by. It goes the other way too – people swing by, even with the intention of staying the night, without any notice. I like it.”