Evita and I raced through AM traffic on our 100cc imperial speeder determined to make it to the school an hour before our first class started. Evita’s a well-decorated Jedi Master of ESL education, but I was rushing head-long into my first teaching experience. “Maintain the appearance of confidence,” I thought, “If they detect even the slightest sign of weakness you’re done for.” We didn’t really have a full on game plan for how we were going to run the classes and I was worried. “What if we run out of material half way through and the kids are just sitting there staring at us while we try to figure out what to do?” Despite my apprehension, Evita didn’t seemed that worried about it at all. The night before we went over our battle plans. Evita explained to me that a large part of teaching kids is having the ability to think on your feet. “Well,” I thought, “It sounds kind of like bartending or managing a corporate work group and I have experience doing both so I should be good, right? Right?”

10:55am
Make first contact with the young Ewoks. Our first class had been estimated to have 4 students, so far only two have arrived. The first student we met was Noksup, a gregarious snack-loving youngster whose pockets seem to be continuously lined with gummy candy. He’s the oldest of the bunch and despite being quite the ham is rather brilliant and unexpectedly caring.
His counter part at the moment is the seemingly aloof Onsin. She rolled into the classroom quietly, little did we know that we had just been slipped a Trojan horse in the form of a little girl. She seemed shy at first and the only intel we could gather was her name so we left it at that.

11:03am
Nogsup and Onsin suddenly spring into action and we have no idea what’s going on. They’re flipping light switches, closing blinds, messing with the AC, and generally just bouncing off the freaking walls. Then all at once they both sit down, open their notebooks, fish out their pencils and await eagerly our instruction. We were totally floored. Instead of being mischievous they were actually setting up the classroom for us. “Ok. Alright. So that’s how they operate. I think we can work with this.”

11:24am
Midway through the first exercise our third student comes sauntering through the door. A skinny kid donning thick spectacles and face mask. His name is First. Much like Onsin he doesn’t seem that interested in the new teachers and takes his time getting everything set up at his desk. “He’s probably sick,” I thought, “I feel bad for the little guy.” But then he ripped the mask off his face and slightly changed my perspective. “The kid’s a walking time bomb, I wonder if Evita has hand sanitizer in her purse.”

12:07pm { Apocalypse Now!!! }
With twenty minutes left to go we ran of material! The whole time the kids had been growing more and more boisterous, but we were able to keep reeling them back in. That’s when they played their trump card and revealed that the Trojan horse actually contained a powerful warlord capable of wreaking havoc on the battlefield, *ahem*, classroom. There was just no stopping them now. Onsin started running aimlessly around the classroom like she was chasing a ghost that only she could see. Nogsup, hopped up on innumerable bags of fruit snacks began provoking First who then starts screaming as they play fight and chase each other around the classroom. We had just lost control of the battlefield, the children have taken the high ground. I was at a total loss and didn’t know what to do. Should I start yelling at them? Am I allowed to grab the kids and make them sit down? We needed to come up with something quick. I looked at Evita, who looked back up at me with the same “Holy crap, I can’t believe this is happening” look on her face. We were so screwed.
In the end, Evita conjured up some of that think-on your-feet-ness and reeled the kids in again for one last vocabulary and comprehension exercise. I don’t really know how she did it, but I do know this: “Being an effective teacher is not easy.” I have a lot to learn, but luckily Evita’s here to help show me the ropes and ensure that I’m not run asunder by the snack wielding midget army ever again.

*sidenote: we did take the time to reconfigure our lesson plan to better suit the kids in our classroom. just saying*

Sarah and I have been assigned to a nunnery, where we will be teaching 25 children by ourselves with the help of the resident nuns. We may also be teaching with cameraman Bogden, who has volunteered to step in in case of emergency. Please wish us luck. We’ll keep you posted on our…progress. 3 minutes til we depart for school…! Yikes.

Sarah and I prepare for Day 1 at the nunnery with plenty of coffee and nutella. Sarah doesn't even drink coffee. The caffiene spike will add to the interest level I'm sure. If all else fails we can start adding Baileys Irish.

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.

Rut roh! Collaps-ation after day 1 of teaching. (I'm not really crying...)

I just opened my sister’s computer and was greeted with her latest diary entry, which was simply: “I thought about having my tubes tied today.”

We are here at her hotel debriefing after our first day of prison labor, which consisted of servicing a minefield of diabolical elves aged 5-6.

While Italian children look like dark-haired angels, shaming America’s obese youth yet again, the rest of our high expectations were not met. Here’s a glimpse into Sarah and my dialogue.

Perrin: What the f*ck?!

Sarah: We were surprise attacked by Jack and his hunters [from Lord of the Flies].

Perrin: I’m not surprised; I didn’t think the kids would understand us. We don’t speak Italian. I just felt bad when a girl had to pee her pants for me to comprehend that she needed the toilet.

Sarah: It turns out that it was the last day before summer, and the teacher had relinquished all hope for the children’s redemption. She sat in the corner laughing the whole time we were in there.

Perrin: The rest of the day was better.  The next class was wild about our “Peel peel banana!” song and dance. Those kids really shake their hips, even the little boys had Shakira-esque rhythm going.

Sarah: ACLE does offer a brilliant teaching model. They’ve rocked the typical style of “repetition and strict memorization” found in most Italian classrooms. They replaced it with energetic songs and games that get the children involved.  In just one week they have literally changed my tune regarding children: it used to be True Blood’s theme song, “I’m going to do bad things to you” but now it’s “HIP HOP! ENGLISH ROCKS!”  I rather like it.

Perrin: Agreed. ACLE’s even changing my nighttime behavior. Without realizing it, I’ve begun deploying their body-language techniques to make Italian men understand that, when I hug my chest and make slurping motions, it means “I would loooove a beer!” I’m not learning Italian but sign language is universal.

Sarah: Sdfkjfajl [unintelligible].

Sarah is dropping out of the conversation now. She completely lost her voice while hollering at The Wild Things today. Grandpa always attributes her frequent voice loss to cheap whiskey, but this time it was due to Italian-mother style yelling.

Ready for the next episode? Next week we’ll be teaching 9am-6pm.

Childish behavior is contagious.

Lynne and Courtney Circa 2007 - Cirie, Italy

Moving to a different country without a clearly defined plan is definitely the way to go, with one major exception: finding employment. On the job front, doing a little research before you leave can pay off BIG TIME.  It did for team Italy!

As of next week all four of us will be teaching English to Italian children at English immersion summer camps throughout Italy with a non-profit organization called ACLE.

JOB FACTS:

• I found ACLE through a Google search in 2007 and it was my ticket out of my corporate job.
• Lynne and I met in Italy working for this very same program three years ago. Our Jet Set Zero experience will be a reunion of epic proportions.
• Sarah and Perrin are ACLE newbies.  Hazing rituals likely.
• ACLE has an important mission: To prove that the “traditional Italian scholastic system of “chalk and talk” fails to stimulate the emotions and energy that an entertaining atmosphere can provide.
• Instead of  lectures and boring workbook lessons, we’ll be teaching English through songs, theater, art, games, sports and multi-cultural activities.
• ACLE + Italy = one delicious summer.

A lot more on our sweet summer job soon, but for now check out these excellent sites to begin YOUR international job search:

Jobs Abroad
Teach Abroad
National Association of International Educators (NAFSA)
Craigslist (Search Europe/International Jobs)
Dave’s ESL Cafe
Expat-Blog (read success stories and get tips from other expats)

So Jen and I are headed north. We plan to hit beaches, temples, cities, and everything in between. Over the next four weeks you will be seeing updates from us from various locations around Vietnam. It’s time to get out of the city!

Rich by Vietnamese standards, but it's really not all that much.

]]> http://jetsetzero.tv/2010/01/10/have-dong-will-travel/feed/ 0 http://jetsetzero.tv/2009/12/20/what-the-fk-am-i-doing-here/ http://jetsetzero.tv/2009/12/20/what-the-fk-am-i-doing-here/#comments Sun, 20 Dec 2009 17:30:46 +0000 Kris http://www.jetsetzero.tv/?p=6494 I found myself asking this exact question this week.

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.

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

**********
BONHEUR CHEZ LES TOUT-PETITS

En résumé, je dois me lever très tôt le matin pour être au travail de 7h15 à 13h. Il faut être tout le temps vigilant pour éviter que les enfants s’échappent de l’école. J’aime mon job. Et je pense que les enfants m’aiment bien. Le bonheur! (Du moins pour l’instant!)