I've never been a classroom teacher before South Korea. Hell, the closest thing I'd ever experienced to teaching a class was doing Impromptu speeches for the High School Speech Team. Coming to Korea as green as green can be and being thrown into the fire hasn't been easy. Nothing has been quite the same from week to week, especially when I have such little time to prepare. Yet, recently I've discovered I've been growing rather rapidly in spite of being in the furnace so to speak.
The first metaphor I came up with for teaching is a bank heist. I'd say something like "teaching a successful class is a lot like pulling off a good heist, you always need a backup plan!"
I never realized how much that reflected my own emotional outlook on teaching until recently. Just look at my metaphor for teaching, a heist. Every heist has a specific goal in mind, a prize that our hero is being obstructed from obtaining. Every heist requires meticulous planning, preparation of elaborate tools and techniques, and a high speed getaway. Yet, learning is not some prize locked away in young minds, it doesn't require fancy gadgets or years of training to extract.
This metaphor I imagined has nothing to do with teaching, it has to do with how I felt about teaching. I came into teaching with a head full of tips, techniques, plans, and instructions. It was like struggling to carry a dozen small boxes in one's arms while walking a tightrope! I felt the capricious need to plan, plan, plan so not to fail. I saw student learning like a difficult thing to obtain, a precious gem that required all my cunning to unlock. More than anything, I felt anxious about teaching. There are few things as terrifying as walking into a classroom for the first time with no idea what to expect. To call my start at teaching a rocky road would be putting it lightly, and the anxiety about going into class has stuck with me over the months. There are still days I feel a little queasy at the thought of facing students I've been seeing for the last eight months, but I recently discovered a new metaphor mingled in my mind about teaching. I don't feel teaching is like a heist anymore, in fact I've come to realize teaching is more like music.
Sure you can have sheet music to guide you through songs and help guide everyone. Yet, music is organic and so it teaching. Following the music too closely makes the lesson feel cold and detached, but going in half cocked can be an even worse cacophony! Having done both in music and education I can say for certain that both outcomes occur with mutual unpleasantness all around.
Each class is a new band with new music and you just have to feel it out if you want it to sound right. Sometimes you have incredible jams, other times it's just lousy practice. In either case, the analogy holds. In teaching, like music, sometimes you have to let go and jam!
I find I've been enjoying teaching much more as I've learned to trust in my guts more while I'm in the classroom. I've been forced to produce materials on the fly, discovering incredible success with nothing but a chalkboard and a smile. I've learned to love drawing silly cartoons on the board to explain ideas, I love laughing as a game I made up a moment before becomes a massive success!
Eight months on the job hasn't made teaching much easier, I still never know what's around the next corner. Yet, since I've learned to listen for the music, I have come to enjoy teaching much more. I like to imagine when I feel the music, and enjoy it, that my enjoyment becomes contagious. I don't pretend to think I'm greatly improving my students' English ability. I'm very limited in my opportunities with them. Yet, I occasionally catch glimpses of excitement in their eyes, and I smile. Because if they're excited for my class, maybe, just maybe, they'll take that excitement to heart and learn. Not just learn English, but anything!
Most important in my book these days though, is that they learn to simply enjoy life.
Tuesday, June 4, 2013
Monday, May 20, 2013
When you suddenly arrive at where you've always been....
Legally speaking, we become adults when we turn eighteen years old. Yet, managing to endure another lap around the sun on this rock hardly qualifies one to be an adult. In fact, I've rarely felt like an adult since I've turned eighteen....
For as long as I can remember, I've always been trying to grow up. Being the youngest in a large family isn't easy, because you're always looking to the future. As the youngest, you get to watch your brothers and sisters grow up. They go through school and college, achieving different goals along the way. Some of them get married, even have kids! All the while, everyone around you whispers in your ear (both literally and figuratively) "When will it be your turn?" "What will you do with your life?"
"What will you be when you grow up?"
You spend your childhood looking up at everyone, trying to be like them. To play with the big kids and gain their respect before its time. Yet, eighteen comes and goes into nineteen, twenty, etc. And to be perfectly honest, you never feel any different. You're always little brother and in most respects you never quite feel like a grown up. You become hard wired into thinking you're still a kid and you need to keep working to be more like your siblings to make that shift into adulthood.
Until suddenly you realize you've been there all along....
It didn't hit me until I taught my final class with my 2nd Grade High Schoolers. They not only said they'd miss my teaching, but the class even went so far as to thank me for my teaching! A few of them stood up and bowed to me before I left the room for the last time. I know there are different ways of showing respect in Korea, but I'd never expected to receive such respect from my students.
It took me totally by surprise!
As I left, I thought to myself, "Holy (expletive delete) Batman! They actually think I'm a real teacher!"
But then again, I am a real teacher, I've just never felt like one until now.
Yes, it took me eight months on the job to realize I'm actually a professional teacher.
(I've been called smart, but never self-aware. I suppose there's a reason for that....)
It's strange how we put on persona in our lifetimes, son, brother, friend, employee, boyfriend, lover, enemy, writer, actor, musician, laborer, Michael, on and on and on. They're all faces we wear, they are us, but in a way they aren't. I suppose a soul is like a rough cut gemstone, each persona is a facet in the surface of our souls that shows something different when we let it shine in the light.
I brushed aside this notion of being a real teacher to cope with my active schedule, but I mentioned it in conversation to a friend of mine and its resonated with me since. She helped me consider that in spite of how I feel about my work and my school, I'm an adult in the lives of my students. I honestly never considered myself as an adult to my students, as I feel I foster no relationship with them. Since I teach at multiple schools, I always spend my time planning and thinking about all my different classes. I rarely get the time to hang out with my students and really get to know them. Hell, I can't even recall their names.
Yet, there are a couple students who I know genuinely care about me being their teacher. There is a boy in my Middle School who clearly has special needs, he can't speak a lick of English, but he loves seeing me! He's always asking me questions in Korean, and even though I just smile and shrug, he's excited to say hi.
The other week, I was waiting at the bus stop to leave the small town of Seoseok. Waiting, a boy I had taught in 6th grade who recently came to Seoseok Middle School ran up to me. He had with him a load of sweets from the local shop (as most students do once school lets out). He's another student who speaks little to no English, but he insisted on sharing his bottle of pink lemonade ice cubes with me!
(Actually he kinda force fed me the ice cubes. Silly and sweet of him, but one ended up in my breast pocket! Not that I noticed until I arrive back in Hongcheon to discover a large wet spot on my shirt. I got to walk through town looking as if I had started lactating, but to be honest, I didn't mind)
How you feel,
the patterns of thinking you persist in,
they impact your outlook,
Saying that sounds like gibberish, and it kind of is, because this is an experience you have to feel as much as know. Yet, it's an important reminder that no matter how I feel about my work and my life, I am more than I experience. In knowing I'm more I realize I have more to offer, in my classrooms, my relationships, and to myself. Though its easy to forget this, to fall back in old patterns of thinking, to forget all the sides of myself, I feel its important to be reminded of and to remind others.
We often say life is a journey, but in doing so we make life about destinations, about futures. We lost sight that life is only ever the present, the past has already slipped away, and the future is just an idea of things to come. It's funny when we obsess over a future, only to find that we've been there all along....
For as long as I can remember, I've always been trying to grow up. Being the youngest in a large family isn't easy, because you're always looking to the future. As the youngest, you get to watch your brothers and sisters grow up. They go through school and college, achieving different goals along the way. Some of them get married, even have kids! All the while, everyone around you whispers in your ear (both literally and figuratively) "When will it be your turn?" "What will you do with your life?"
"What will you be when you grow up?"
You spend your childhood looking up at everyone, trying to be like them. To play with the big kids and gain their respect before its time. Yet, eighteen comes and goes into nineteen, twenty, etc. And to be perfectly honest, you never feel any different. You're always little brother and in most respects you never quite feel like a grown up. You become hard wired into thinking you're still a kid and you need to keep working to be more like your siblings to make that shift into adulthood.
Until suddenly you realize you've been there all along....
It didn't hit me until I taught my final class with my 2nd Grade High Schoolers. They not only said they'd miss my teaching, but the class even went so far as to thank me for my teaching! A few of them stood up and bowed to me before I left the room for the last time. I know there are different ways of showing respect in Korea, but I'd never expected to receive such respect from my students.
It took me totally by surprise!
As I left, I thought to myself, "Holy (expletive delete) Batman! They actually think I'm a real teacher!"
But then again, I am a real teacher, I've just never felt like one until now.
Yes, it took me eight months on the job to realize I'm actually a professional teacher.
(I've been called smart, but never self-aware. I suppose there's a reason for that....)
It's strange how we put on persona in our lifetimes, son, brother, friend, employee, boyfriend, lover, enemy, writer, actor, musician, laborer, Michael, on and on and on. They're all faces we wear, they are us, but in a way they aren't. I suppose a soul is like a rough cut gemstone, each persona is a facet in the surface of our souls that shows something different when we let it shine in the light.
I brushed aside this notion of being a real teacher to cope with my active schedule, but I mentioned it in conversation to a friend of mine and its resonated with me since. She helped me consider that in spite of how I feel about my work and my school, I'm an adult in the lives of my students. I honestly never considered myself as an adult to my students, as I feel I foster no relationship with them. Since I teach at multiple schools, I always spend my time planning and thinking about all my different classes. I rarely get the time to hang out with my students and really get to know them. Hell, I can't even recall their names.
Yet, there are a couple students who I know genuinely care about me being their teacher. There is a boy in my Middle School who clearly has special needs, he can't speak a lick of English, but he loves seeing me! He's always asking me questions in Korean, and even though I just smile and shrug, he's excited to say hi.
The other week, I was waiting at the bus stop to leave the small town of Seoseok. Waiting, a boy I had taught in 6th grade who recently came to Seoseok Middle School ran up to me. He had with him a load of sweets from the local shop (as most students do once school lets out). He's another student who speaks little to no English, but he insisted on sharing his bottle of pink lemonade ice cubes with me!
(Actually he kinda force fed me the ice cubes. Silly and sweet of him, but one ended up in my breast pocket! Not that I noticed until I arrive back in Hongcheon to discover a large wet spot on my shirt. I got to walk through town looking as if I had started lactating, but to be honest, I didn't mind)
How you feel,
the patterns of thinking you persist in,
they impact your outlook,
but they are not (necessarily) your reality.
We often say life is a journey, but in doing so we make life about destinations, about futures. We lost sight that life is only ever the present, the past has already slipped away, and the future is just an idea of things to come. It's funny when we obsess over a future, only to find that we've been there all along....
Thursday, May 2, 2013
Walking on water, Jindo Sea Parting Festival 2013 pt. 1
Our world is incredibly small, yet it is rife with incredible places, populated by perfectly awesome individuals! This past weekend I found myself on a journey to the southernmost tip of Korea with a band of fellow adventurers to see a most rare sight. I got to witness the annual miracle of the Jindo sea parting! Not only that, but I was able to experience several incredible hikes and meet a host of awesome new friends!
This trip was coordinated by WINK (When in Korea), the same tour group I got to experience Holi in Busan with a few weeks ago. They are a fantastic group to work with, great accommodations, good event coordination, and all around great people. I look forward to attending many more events with them in the near future!
I met up with my good friend Daniel in Seoul for dinner before tracking down the rendezvous point with WINK. We had an excellent Indian dinner in Gangnam before making our way to the WINK group. 9pm rolled around and Daniel and I found ourselves in the company of several other foreigners with bags and backpacks standing around on a busy street corner. Yet, as is so often in Korea, we quickly found ourselves in a myriad of convivial conversations. As expats, it's never hard to meet and make new friends with other English speakers! Soon a large charter bus arrived to take us across the country and we all boarded to find seats for the trip south.
The drive was long and tiresome through the depths of night. Picking up extra souls along the way we soon found ourselves on a bus full to the brim, each seat occupied by another adventurous soul. I slept restlessly as the hours ticked away into early morning. Soon 5am arrived and the lights on the bus lit up. Shying away from the light we soon found ourselves creeping off the bus with still legs and sore arms to the harsh chill of the morning air. Why us so early? To hike a nearby mountain of course! We were told that if we made good enough time we could reach the summit just in time for sunrise. Armed with my new DSLR camera and a firm desire to feel warm from hiking I took off in the dark with Daniel and our new friends.
For the record, we only got lost in the dark twice...
Sunrise found us at the sky bridge, a lovely sight. Unfortunately, we didn't have enough time to get to the summit of the peak. Having to make our way down by a different trail allowed us to see more of the mountain and long awaited signs of spring in Korea!
This is the mountain in daylight, quite a different experience after having hiked it in the dark!
Soon fed on muffins and canned coffee, we were off to Jindo and a special resort for one of the island's natural treasures, dogs. Jindo is known for a special breed of dog, and this resort had a number of trained dogs in their facility for public viewing. Along with a fascinating little museum, which I would have indulged in... if I could have read the exhibit information.... but it had some cute pictures so there!
Holy awesome application of engineering batman! This resort also had hillside set up for tubing! Having missed out on sledding this last year, I couldn't wait to try it out!
The dogs themselves were kept near the slide, and we were able to enjoy a trick show by one of them who performed a number of impressive feats on an obstacle course for our amusement! I'm not a dog expert, but all in all I was very impressed by this puppy!
After the dog show we returned to our buses. Another hour long nap saw us to a town in Jindo
where we hopped off for lunch. It was a small town that could have passed for
main street America... if all the shop signs had been written in
hanguel. In any case, I feasted on kimbab before the group gathered for
the Sea Parting Festival.
The festival was full of people, vendors, food and events. On the water ships circled while sending up colored smoke in celebration. Along the sea wall was a long banner and paints for people to write messages in honor of the event!
There is a legend that the sea parting at Jindo is a miracle. Long ago the island was overrun by tigers and the people fled by boat. Yet, they forgot to bring grandma along with them. Since she was stranded, the old woman prayed that she would be saved and the seas parted for her allowing her to cross safely. Granted, it doesn't explain why the tigers didn't follow her, but hey legends are legends and sea partings are just cool!
More on the sea parting to come! Await in eager anticipation gentle readers as I leave you in suspense for my all too true account of walking on water!
This trip was coordinated by WINK (When in Korea), the same tour group I got to experience Holi in Busan with a few weeks ago. They are a fantastic group to work with, great accommodations, good event coordination, and all around great people. I look forward to attending many more events with them in the near future!
I met up with my good friend Daniel in Seoul for dinner before tracking down the rendezvous point with WINK. We had an excellent Indian dinner in Gangnam before making our way to the WINK group. 9pm rolled around and Daniel and I found ourselves in the company of several other foreigners with bags and backpacks standing around on a busy street corner. Yet, as is so often in Korea, we quickly found ourselves in a myriad of convivial conversations. As expats, it's never hard to meet and make new friends with other English speakers! Soon a large charter bus arrived to take us across the country and we all boarded to find seats for the trip south.
The drive was long and tiresome through the depths of night. Picking up extra souls along the way we soon found ourselves on a bus full to the brim, each seat occupied by another adventurous soul. I slept restlessly as the hours ticked away into early morning. Soon 5am arrived and the lights on the bus lit up. Shying away from the light we soon found ourselves creeping off the bus with still legs and sore arms to the harsh chill of the morning air. Why us so early? To hike a nearby mountain of course! We were told that if we made good enough time we could reach the summit just in time for sunrise. Armed with my new DSLR camera and a firm desire to feel warm from hiking I took off in the dark with Daniel and our new friends.
For the record, we only got lost in the dark twice...
 | |
| Not much to see of the moon setting behind the mountain, but still pretty cool! |
 |
| Sunrise |
 |
| Daniel at dawn |
 |
| Some other guy... also at dawn... |
Sunrise found us at the sky bridge, a lovely sight. Unfortunately, we didn't have enough time to get to the summit of the peak. Having to make our way down by a different trail allowed us to see more of the mountain and long awaited signs of spring in Korea!
 |
| Bridge! |
 |
| Spring! I totally saw Spring! |
 |
| it's a looooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooong way down! |
This is the mountain in daylight, quite a different experience after having hiked it in the dark!
Soon fed on muffins and canned coffee, we were off to Jindo and a special resort for one of the island's natural treasures, dogs. Jindo is known for a special breed of dog, and this resort had a number of trained dogs in their facility for public viewing. Along with a fascinating little museum, which I would have indulged in... if I could have read the exhibit information.... but it had some cute pictures so there!
Holy awesome application of engineering batman! This resort also had hillside set up for tubing! Having missed out on sledding this last year, I couldn't wait to try it out!
 |
| it is truly ridiculously stupid amounts of fun! |
 |
| yes we took our shiny new cameras careening down a hill, totally worth it! |
 |
| WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!! |
 |
| Jindo dog, showing off some skills! |
 |
| Daniel leaving his mark on the world |
The festival was full of people, vendors, food and events. On the water ships circled while sending up colored smoke in celebration. Along the sea wall was a long banner and paints for people to write messages in honor of the event!
 |
| A shiny new penny to whoever can figure out what I wrote |
 |
| Commemorative statue to the legend of the sea parting |
More on the sea parting to come! Await in eager anticipation gentle readers as I leave you in suspense for my all too true account of walking on water!
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