Lynne looses it on the final day of teaching in Nettuno, Italy

So, as you already know, I quit my job as an English teacher.

I enjoyed being in front of my students teaching them, but I didn’t like what surrounded the actual job: my schedule, the little things that happened during my first week, some people there, working more hours than I was supposed to without getting paid for it, being paid 15 dollars less than I was supposed to for my first week of work. I felt my boss kept asking a lot while she really gave nothing in return. The last straw was on a Sunday morning when I opened a file she gave me to edit: 130 pages!

Seriously?! Didn’t she tell me ”relax and have fun this weekend” when I left school on Saturday at 1.30pm? How am I supposed to do that when I have a such a file to edit, which some students need the next day? Sure she didn’t ask me to do it during the weekend, but when else could I do this kind of thing?! I simply didn’t have time during the week!

So on Monday morning I went to my boss’s office to ask her if she was still planning to hire another teacher, as she had been saying she would do for the past two weeks. She asked why I was asking with big, bulging eyes. I said I couldn’t go on like this, that she would had to pay me more for the extra work. She said I didn’t work that much more, that I didn’t need to work at home over the weekend and that I should be able to prepare each lesson in 10 minutes.

I told her I was sorry but that my method consisted of spending at least 30 minutes preparing each lesson because I didn’t want my teenagers to get bored or my adults to fall asleep. I do enjoy teaching and I try to do some cool stuff-as much as cool can be- so that my students have fun while practising what they learn. And I’d rather not teach than being a dull, boring teacher who can’t make the classroom laugh.

We talked for half an hour. It got a little heated in the middle of the conversation. She asked how much more I wanted. I said $300. I knew it was more than what she might be willing to pay, and I had really made up my mind not to work there anymore. She said she wasn’t enjoying the conversation, and I think I said I wasn’t either. Lastly, she said we couldn’t work together anymore. I said ”Bueno!*” Then I talked to her about my last paycheck.

So I’m out of a job. I should get my paycheck for my last week of work by the end of June, as well as the $15 that were missing from my first paycheck.

After I left school for the last time, I went to the park crying. I felt bad about my students, whom I really liked. And my boss had managed to make me feel bad about myself. But I know it’s the right decision and deep down I feel good about it.

And it definitely helps having support while going through this. Thanks Jenna!

*Very well.

* * * * * * *

JOBS (Partie 1): POURQUOI J’AI DEMISSIONE

Comme vous le savez déjà, j’ai donné ma démission en tant que professeur d’Anglais Langue Etrangère.

J’aimais bien être avec mes étudiants et leur enseigner la langue, mais tout ce qui gravitait autour de mon travail me déplaisait: mon emploi du temps, les bizarreries de ma première semaine de boulot, certaines personnes présentes à l’école, le fait de travailler plus sans être payée en conséquence, le fait d’avoir 15 dollars manquant à ma première fiche de paye. Bref, j’avais le sentiment que ma directrice demandait sans cesse davantage sans rien donner en retour. La goutte qui fit déborder le vase, ce fut quand elle me donna un fichier à corriger: un manuel d’anglais de 130 pages!

C’est une blague ou quoi?! Ne m’a-t-elle pas dit, au moment de quitter (enfin) l’école à 13h30 ce samedi matin, de me détendre et de profiter du week-end? Et comment cela serait-ce possible quand je sais que les étudiants ont besoin de ce sacré bouquin le lundi suivant? Bien sûr, elle ne m’a pas dit de faire ce travail durant le week-end. Mais à quel autre moment pourrais-je le faire? Je n’ai tout simplement pas le temps en semaine!

Alors lundi matin, je suis allée dans le bureau de ma directrice pour lui demander si elle comptait toujours embaucher un autre professeur, comme elle le promettait depuis quinze jours. Elle m’a demandé avec des yeux en soucoupes pourquoi je posais la question. Je lui ai dit que je ne pouvais pas continuer comme ça, que si elle voulait que je continue à travailler plus il faudrait qu’elle me paye plus. Elle a répliqué que je ne travaillais pas tant d’heures supplémentaires, que je n’avais pas besoin de travailler chez moi pendant le week-end et que je devrais être capable de préparer mes cours en 10 minutes.

J’ai répondu que j’étais désolée mais que ma méthodologie consiste à passer au moins une demi- heure à préparer un cours de 2h, malgré l’aide du manuel et du software, car je n’ai pas envie que mes adolescents s’ennuient ou que mes adultes s’endorment en cours. J’aime bien enseigner et j’essaie de faire des choses sympas pour que mes élèves s’amusent tout en apprenant. Et je préfère ne pas enseigner du tout plutôt que d’être une prof ennuyeuse et incapable de faire rire son auditoire.

Nous avons parlé pendant une demi heure. Ca s’est un peu échauffé au milieu de la conversation. Elle m’a demandé combien je voulais gagner en plus . J’ai dit 300 dollars, en sachant bien que c’était au-delà de ce qu’elle ne ferait jamais. A ce moment-là, j’avais déjà décidé de ne plus travailler dans cette école. Elle a dit qu’elle n’aimait pas trop la tournure de la conversation. Je crois avoir répondu que moi non plus. Enfin, elle a annoncé que nous devions cesser notre collaboration. Je répondu “Bueno!*” Puis je lui ai parlé de ma première fiche de paye.

Je suis donc au chômage. C’est un bien grand mot mais c’est la réalité. Je devrais percevoir mon deuxième chèque correspondant à ma deuxième semaine d’enseignement à la fin du mois de juin, ainsi que les 15 dollars manquant à mon premier salaire.

Après avoir quitté l’école pour la dernière fois, je suis allée me réfugier au parc pour pleurer. Je me sentais mal vis-à-vis de mes étudiants, que j’appréciais vraiment. Et surtout, ma directrice avait réussi à me faire sentir coupable. Mais au fond de moi-même, je sais que j’ai pris la bonne décision et que je n’ai rien à regretter.

Et avoir un soutien moral rend les choses plus faciles. Merci Jenna!

* Très bien.

Today I was called to my boss’s office. Every possible thought crossed my mind except the actual reason why she called me: to give me my first pay check! First week of work at $83.33!
The next one will be on June 30th.

First pay check!

* * * * * *
GRANDE PREMIERE!

Aujourd’hui ma directrice m’a fait appeler dans son bureau. Toutes les raisons imaginables me sont passées par la tête, toutes sauf une: elle voulait en fait me donner mon premier chèque!
Première semaine de boulot à $83.33! Yeeeeehaaaa!
Prochain chèque le 30 juin.

I’ve been working a ton which has directly contributed to this burnt out feeling. My hours at school have increased so now I have five permanent classes and I’ve been substituting as well. At home, I average a 60 hour work week so I’m no slouch to hard work but 40 hours a week here feels like an eternity. Part of this is that I haven’t mastered the whole “teaching” thing (hopefully soon), so I still need to do some preparation for my classes, and the actual teaching does not come naturally yet. Another reason is that I have to commute by  motorbike quite a distance (1 1/2 hour round trip) a couple days a week for a two hour class through crazy Saigon traffic. Normally this would be relaxing but because of the rush hour chaos on the streets, I do not look forward to it. And the last reason it feels longer and harder than it should is because I work every single day. Some days are only 4 hours of evening classes, but having that looming over my head throughout the morning and afternoon prevents me from being able to truly relax. It’s now been one month without a full day off.

And I’m starting to feel the effects.  That combined with a nasty head cold this week caused me to become a bit of a cranky bitch. I can feel it starting to set in – that painful “Ah crap, I have to work today” feeling. Dragging myself to work. The patience wearing thin. Wanting to curl up with a bucket of Häagen-Dazs and pretend I’m at home in my awesome condo with my awesome job and my awesome friends. But like Willard says in Apocalypse Now: “Saigon… shit; I’m still only in Saigon”.

I figure it’s just a phase. The ups and downs of traveling are often exaggerated, and this is simply the reality of doing what we do. It’s not all ponies and rainbows. I do realize that I’m doing something really awesome in a foreign country and I’m trying not to lose sight of that. I get two days off for Christmas so Serene, Jen and I are headed for the beaches of Mui Ne -hopefully that will reinvigorate me. But sometimes a gruelling 9 hour teaching day makes me seriously consider what the hell I’m doing here.

However, I did apply for one job since I’ve been here. I applied at a bar to be a bartender. The girl laughed and said they couldn’t pay me enough, but when I told her I was serious she went to get the manager to come over to talk to me. He never spoke to me at all, he just kinda walked by and took a look at me and the girl came back and told me the position had been filled. LIAR. Damn these good looks of mine must have been too intimidating….

So while Kris, Laurene and Serene bust their asses working, I spend my days drinking mango shakes and keepin it real.

It was SO bad, I had to photograph it. I’m an English teacher, not an Art Teacher!

My GE5 class!

]]> http://jetsetzero.tv/2009/11/23/teachers-day-yay/feed/ 0 http://jetsetzero.tv/2009/11/15/my-first-day-of-school/ http://jetsetzero.tv/2009/11/15/my-first-day-of-school/#comments Sun, 15 Nov 2009 17:30:20 +0000 Kris http://www.jetsetzero.tv/2009/11/15/my-first-day-of-school/ In less than two weeks of our arrival, I found myself standing in front of Vietnamese students in a well-respected Saigon language centre. My job hunt had been fairly straightforward – a combination of luck, skill, preparation and networking landed me at the very school that the Jet Set boys taught at one year ago (an amazing coincidence if you consider how many schools there are here).

I was incredibly nervous for my first day of instruction.  The reason for my anxiety is that I have never taught English before, and there’s not much I hate more that going into something totally unprepared with the chance of me looking like a total idiot.  I have never put together a lesson plan and it’s been a hell of a long time since I’ve had to deal with gerunds, infinitives, present perfect forms, etc., let alone have to explain them to students who are non-Native English speakers.  I looked through the material and had an evening to listen to the audio materials before I stood in front of the students.

I should mention that at this point, I consider myself extremely fortunate to have landed at the Cleverlearn Language Centre.  I have heard horror stories about giant classes (50+), a lack of any kind of discernible curriculum, and the rarity of tools such as textbooks and whiteboard markers (teachers often need to provide these themselves).    At the centre where I work, it is organized, air-conditioned, with small classes, and they provide everything you could need including supplemental tools such as audio recordings and DVD’s. There’s even a teacher’s resource centre with computers, photocopiers, supplies and an administrative staff to assist you.

But back to my first day.  My first class I had to teach is GE5, which is the highest level of English that they offer at the centre.  On the plus side, the students have a good foundation of the language already, but on the down side, the instruction is very technical, which means I really have to do my homework in order to bluff my way through it.  It’s a three hour class, and much to my surprise it flew by.  I even enjoyed myself once I got into the flow of things.  This was not expected – I had previously taught music to kids and hated it, but I think the difference now is that they don’t have instruments to honk at me, and they are adults who are paying to improve their English.  They are there because they want to be.

My main problem with the teaching is that because I haven’t done this before, I don’t have the experience to know the activities that break up the instruction.  I have been playing them songs and giving them a sheet of incomplete lyrics for them to fill in as they listen.  I have them play charades with new vocabulary words.  Anyone can lead a student through a textbook, but I am trying to make it fun and exciting for them (time will tell whether or not I succeed).  Sadly, I’ve heard of many teachers who could care less whether or not the students actually learn anything, but I simply cannot take that approach, no matter how brief my time here will be.

Eleanor Roosevelt once said, “Do one thing every day that scares you”.  Well, I’m doing just that.  I started with one class, the GE5 level, and immediately  after my first class I was given two more classes of differing levels.  Which means I’ll be trying to keep my cool more often than I’m used to.  But if my first day was any indication, it looks like I’m going to love it.

No, there is no hidden lolcat.

Instructions:

1. Stare at the center of this window as long as you can (at least 30 seconds)
2. Click the ‘Continue Reading’ link below

What you should see: My job!

If you managed to stare at the window for more than 4 hours in one sitting, congratulations… you have more of a tolerance for it than I do!

The Interview

I was introduced to my ‘student’ on Friday afternoon and spoke with him for about 2 minutes before he decided I was hired. No CV, no credentials, no discussion of the specifics of the job… just hired. Normally that would throw up a red flag, but since I’d been told that he rejected the previous candidate after 2 minutes, on the grounds that ‘he was a crook’, I was already expecting it to be a strange interview process. It seems that this guy has already tried every method possible to learn English: classes, computer programs, flash cards, living in London, etc., and hiring a full time private tutor is his last resort. Rob described it best as being an ESL version of Mr. Smithers from the Simpsons. My job is to follow him around all day and work on his English at every available moment. If he takes a drive to a client, I take a drive to a client, if he has to fly to Germany on business, I fly to Germany on business. He even went so far as to mention that ‘if I drink Ayran, you drink Ayran’, which may be my least favorite part of the job description. (For those of you who don’t know, Ayran is a really popular drink here in Turkey made from watered down yogurt and salt… yum!) Still, it’s a job, and I won’t complain if I get a free trip to Germany out of it!

Day 1

My first day on the job came with almost as little instruction as the interview had. His former tutor had given me a thumb drive full of pirated ESL textbook PDFs and mentioned that the next lesson was supposed to be on Superlatives. I arrived at the non-descript (and rather decrepit) building and went upstairs to meet the man I’ll be tutoring for the next 3 months. We sat around for about two hours discussing the textile industry, fabric swatches, color fastness, rude French people, and the Russian mafia. All the while I attempted to note any grammatical mistakes he was making frequently or vocabulary he seemed to lack, but it’s pretty difficult to hold a conversation while taking notes on a parallel topic. I probably learned more about the process of producing a shirt than what I needed to teach him. Finally I asked him if he had a place for me to plug my laptop in so that I could pull up some worksheets to test him with. He lead me to a spare office and then just left me there for the rest of the day. I wasn’t sure if he was expecting me to come back at any specific time, and every time I checked in with him he was busy, so I sat around the rest of the day googling for advice on things like ‘correcting missing articles’ or ‘ESL student dropping prepositions’.  Some professional I am!

Day 2

I arrived on my second day expecting to dive head first into the private ESL tutoring world, feeling a bit unprepared and mostly just hoping that I wouldn’t run out of topics for us to discuss over the next 8 hours. The day has turned out to be a lot less eventful than expected. When I walked into the owners office this morning, the only person there was his young son, who just shook his head ‘no’ when I asked for his father by name. I took up residence in the empty office again and have been writing lesson plans, preparing quizzes, and generally researching ESL topics for the last 7 hours. About an hour ago the owner finally showed up and told me that he may or may not call me into his office in about 30 minutes for a lesson. Since there’s about two minutes left until my day ends, I have a feeling that the only person learning a thing about the English language today will be me. On the up side, his son has been bringing me drinks all day long so at least I leave here hydrated!