School Issues « lao_ocean

This weather is strange. Two hours ago, it started snowing! Just last week, it was really warm spring weather. Of course, the snow's not sticking, but it was nice to see flakes coming down. I really don't like this in-between weather. I was about to bring out my spring clothes on Monday, but then saw the weekly forecast of potential snow.

I started my new spring schedule this week. I can't believe it's even better than last term. Basically, twice a week I work 3-7pm, and three times a week, 4-8pm. It still only ends up being about 17 hours a week. Yeah, it's a coosh job - better than most jobs out there. Still, quite a few people have moved to Seoul from Kangneung trying to make more money (or other reasons), but I don't think Seoul is the great city everyone seems to think it is. I absolutely enjoy being in a city with fresh air, the mountains, and beaches nearby. The summer will be great, when I can scoot to the beach before my first class. On Thursdays, I don't teach until 4:40pm, so I'll definitely make it to the beach earlier in the day. I really enjoy going to Seoul once a month, but am so happy to come back home. This past weekend when I went to Seoul, Friday was a beautiful day... very unusual. Then the next day, the air and the sky looked horrible. It looked like a mixture of yellow dust and smog. It's not something I can get used to.

No, these aren't my students. They just seemed cute. But belive me, looks are deceiving.

This week is the beginning of the new school year, so I've been getting additional students in most of my classes. There's one class, where four of the students are in 5th grade, but one boy is in the 2nd. He's one of those ecentric super-smart kids. (You know, the kind that drops out of university to open up his own software company, but won't kiss a girl until his mid-twenties.) When I ask the other students about what scares them, typical answers were: ghosts, big dogs, my mom. His answer was, jumping off a tall building, dying, then having a car run over you again! How do you reply to that? I just smiled, nodded with fake empathy, and was grateful the other students didn't know what the hell he was talking about. Recently, I feel like I've started to become a "real" teacher, and have have a glimmer of understanding what professional teachers probably have to deal with. How do you make sure that the slower students dont' feel neglected and left behind, when other students catch on to the material faster. On the other hand, the super smart students want to answer all the questions. (Thank you Ronnie, but I was asking Angie what "stingy" means!) And today, I just noticed that Lily doesn't know how to read! She tries to remember the expressions and the songs we learn, but will never look down at her book to read any of it. In addition, I know the kids tease each other, but I don't understand everything they say to discipline them. How far do you let childhood teasing go, until it starts to emotionally scar them for life? Yes, in the 5th grade, I was "Soutthida fajita", but that was the best (comedian of the class) Jeff could come up with. Still, I had a crush on him, and let him cut some of my hair that year in class.

Posted at: 12:50:51 am

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