Shit.
I am teaching writing next semester, and now I must learn to both teach and write. Lauren Berlant has an interesting three-part blog post on this. I always find her both confusing and inspiring... hell, it's the very complexity of her thoughts that make my mind swoon.
I was watching myself type and I noticed that the skin between my fingers has gone raw. It really is too cold to be anywhere but in bed, yet I'm not quite ready to hibernate. I can't tear myself away from the computer (which I leave in the living room so that I don't waste entire nights on the Internet, assuming I'm wise enough to spend entire nights in bed). I've already exhausted Gmail, the Times, my regular blogs and Facebook. I need to snap out of it. There's plenty to do in bed, including my Chinese homework.
Lazy student, lazy teacher (I was counting on being able to recycle my Western Culture lectures).
Showing posts with label teaching. Show all posts
Showing posts with label teaching. Show all posts
Monday, December 21, 2009
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
body language
HO brah, I wen hit one home run in da teaching department today!
I taught my last Oral English lesson of the semester, and it happened to be my best lesson yet, as well as the one that Sandy, my laobanr from the Peace Corps, came to observe.
The topic: body language.
The message: NO BE SHAME fo talk to foreigners cuz your English stay good enuff. and even if you dunno how fo express yourself in words, just let your body talk fo you, cuz there's a good chance da foreigner will get da gist of what you trying fo say.
You see, the main problem my students have is not bad English, but a lack of confidence in their ability to communicate.
On days like today, I have trouble thinking of any job that trumps teaching.
=)
I taught my last Oral English lesson of the semester, and it happened to be my best lesson yet, as well as the one that Sandy, my laobanr from the Peace Corps, came to observe.
The topic: body language.
The message: NO BE SHAME fo talk to foreigners cuz your English stay good enuff. and even if you dunno how fo express yourself in words, just let your body talk fo you, cuz there's a good chance da foreigner will get da gist of what you trying fo say.
You see, the main problem my students have is not bad English, but a lack of confidence in their ability to communicate.
On days like today, I have trouble thinking of any job that trumps teaching.
=)
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Emotional wreck!
Phew, what an emotional weekend!
I cried more in one weekend than I have since.... since.. the day I said goodbye to my family at the airport.
The first time I cried was because I was wallowing in self pity. Side effect of Giardia?
The second time was when I showed "Miracle on 34th Street" to my class and suddenly realized how much I'm going to miss celebrating Christmas with my parents.
The third time was when I saw (via Skype) my entire extended family at their annual Thanksgiving luncheon, and learned that my cousin is pregnant and realized I couldn't celebrate with her in person.
The fourth time was when I Skyped with my parents today and they showed me the Christmas tree they bought, and I started to think how lonely they might feel on Christmas day opening gifts by themselves.
The fifth time was tonight when my students dazzled me with their performances at the host/hostess competition, and I realized how incredibly happy and proud I am to be their teacher.
Yeah, I need to get a grip.
Omg, I teared up after reading this.
get a grip, get a grip
I cried more in one weekend than I have since.... since.. the day I said goodbye to my family at the airport.
The first time I cried was because I was wallowing in self pity. Side effect of Giardia?
The second time was when I showed "Miracle on 34th Street" to my class and suddenly realized how much I'm going to miss celebrating Christmas with my parents.
The third time was when I saw (via Skype) my entire extended family at their annual Thanksgiving luncheon, and learned that my cousin is pregnant and realized I couldn't celebrate with her in person.
The fourth time was when I Skyped with my parents today and they showed me the Christmas tree they bought, and I started to think how lonely they might feel on Christmas day opening gifts by themselves.
The fifth time was tonight when my students dazzled me with their performances at the host/hostess competition, and I realized how incredibly happy and proud I am to be their teacher.
Yeah, I need to get a grip.
Omg, I teared up after reading this.
get a grip, get a grip
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
apathetic to apathy
I saw THREE kids sleeping in one of my Oral English classes today.
I almost went ballistic.
It took all the nerve I had not to drag each one out of the room by the ear.
I calmed down, though, because it's always the same three who contaminate the classroom with their apathy. I already sing and dance, what else do they want?? A nap, they want a nap. They probably want me to stop all my edutainment stunts so they can nap more peacefully.
The sad thing is that, as the weeks go by, I feel myself becoming more apathetic toward their apathy. I use to yell, my eyes used to twitch and bulge, and I would show them the big zeros I was writing for them in my grade book. Now, I do my best to ignore them, knowing that while an explosion of anger will certainly ruin their dreams, it will also ruin the rest of my day.
Have I given up on them? Perhaps, but if they're not going to meet me half way, why should I jump through hoops for them? But am I expected to go out of my way for them? Is it my job? Basically, the dilemma is: to care or not to care.
I feel bad for kids like Jany. She sits in the front and stares at me with her big eyes, eager to absorb everything I dribble out. And what does she get? A grumpy teacher.
I try not to play favorites, but there is one class that outshines the rest. Just so happens it's immediately before my dreaded apathetic class.
Today in this golden class, I happened to take a peek at a student's script for their horror skit.
The line that caught my eye went something like this:
Mr. Yuan: "Oh fuck it! Holy shit, shit, it's a ghost!"
"Um, you can't say that in front of the class, okay?"
"Okay, Kacie. Are those words too informal?"
"Yes, well, sort of. I'll tell you about them later."
Lol, can't you see why I like them?
I almost went ballistic.
It took all the nerve I had not to drag each one out of the room by the ear.
I calmed down, though, because it's always the same three who contaminate the classroom with their apathy. I already sing and dance, what else do they want?? A nap, they want a nap. They probably want me to stop all my edutainment stunts so they can nap more peacefully.
The sad thing is that, as the weeks go by, I feel myself becoming more apathetic toward their apathy. I use to yell, my eyes used to twitch and bulge, and I would show them the big zeros I was writing for them in my grade book. Now, I do my best to ignore them, knowing that while an explosion of anger will certainly ruin their dreams, it will also ruin the rest of my day.
Have I given up on them? Perhaps, but if they're not going to meet me half way, why should I jump through hoops for them? But am I expected to go out of my way for them? Is it my job? Basically, the dilemma is: to care or not to care.
I feel bad for kids like Jany. She sits in the front and stares at me with her big eyes, eager to absorb everything I dribble out. And what does she get? A grumpy teacher.
I try not to play favorites, but there is one class that outshines the rest. Just so happens it's immediately before my dreaded apathetic class.
Today in this golden class, I happened to take a peek at a student's script for their horror skit.
The line that caught my eye went something like this:
Mr. Yuan: "Oh fuck it! Holy shit, shit, it's a ghost!"
"Um, you can't say that in front of the class, okay?"
"Okay, Kacie. Are those words too informal?"
"Yes, well, sort of. I'll tell you about them later."
Lol, can't you see why I like them?
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
FML
Oh God. I don't know how to teach.
NO experience whatsoever.
Tutoring two students at a time does not equal teaching experience.
Oh God. :(
On the upside, I had a very pleasant dream about the Peace Corps last night, which is very encouraging for someone who rarely dreams. It had to do with my host family, which I can't remember anything about other than that I liked them a lot! :)
NO experience whatsoever.
Tutoring two students at a time does not equal teaching experience.
Oh God. :(
On the upside, I had a very pleasant dream about the Peace Corps last night, which is very encouraging for someone who rarely dreams. It had to do with my host family, which I can't remember anything about other than that I liked them a lot! :)
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