Oh man, so yesterday was my first day of teaching. I go into the school a few hours early to figure out what I'm supposed to do. Now I had assumed (which should send up a red flag here) that my first few days were training days and that someone would be guiding me along or something. Incorrect. I was thrown to the sharks yesterday. (I almost said literally and then I realized I'm teaching English, I should try and use it properly).
I taught seven classes yesterday, and I had no idea what I was doing in any of them. I tried to play the name game with them, but this proved impossible. Nonetheless, I played it with every class for lack of any better ideas. I hate the feeling of having a class of students looking at you for answers or something and you just look back at them like "uhh well, I guess you all know you're shapes so....ummm, colors? Damn you know you're colors too. Smart kids, I'm screwed."
Today I have six classes to teach, and I'm equally as unprepared despite my attempt to figure out some activities for them. I've decided I'm going to have to learn to do a lot of time-wasting, and procrastination activities with these kids. They seem like they know everything.
Of course I talked this over with one of the Korean teachers. I was telling her the kids were so smart and she was like "wait a week, they you'll be all 'these kids are so dumb'." I doubt it, but hilarious all the same. Although, I can see where she's coming from after correcting some papers last night. In all honesty, grading the papers just made me feel sad for my Spanish teachers throughout school. The things they had to decipher...
Some of the papers were very amusing, and some where just disturbing. The one essay question was "I wished I looked like...because..." Reading these responses just opened my eyes to how superficial this culture is in ways. A lot of the kids (these are 9/10-year-olds) talked about having plastic surgery and bigger eyes and paler skin, yada yada. But I think the fact that the question was asked is telling enough.
The other question was "If you become a mother or father in the future, how would you bring up your kids?" These were my favorite to read. Some of the kids talked about bringing up their kids strictly for revenge. My favorite quotes was "I would do motherly things so they will think "my mother was very laborious, sorry!" Laborious, gotta love it.
Moral of the story, I must work on being less efficient. That's right, less efficient. Any advice?
*your. Teaching fail.
ReplyDeleteI dare you to come here and duel me in teaching. Double dare in fact.
ReplyDeleteHere's what you do:
ReplyDeleteWrite out a select few of the incorrect sentences from their paper on the chalkboard, and then work as a class to correct them, explaining which grammar rules they are using or why the word they used was not quite right. I.e. the chalkboard says:
I would do motherly things so they will think "my mother was very laborious, sorry!
Then you would discuss how their use of the adverb "motherly" is perfect and their ability to use quotes is perfect, however, which word would be a better fit than "laborious?" And how should the single word "sorry" be punctuated to make it its own sentence?
You can do this!
Katie, perhaps instead of teaching you should just consider a career in comedic writing (did I spell that correctly)you make me laugh and laugh.....keep up the good work and email Aunt Tess at NSMamo@aol.com, she taught for years and years, a source of good ideas I am sure.
ReplyDelete