Effective Teaching

Sometimes coming home after work is the best part of my day and sometimes it's the worst. I've had some pretty rotten days in the last month and sometimes nothing is more comforting than my bed; at other times, nothing has made me more lonely than walking in the door to an empty apartment. Today, however, is one of those days when coming home is both at the same time.

Co-teaching is so difficult sometimes. These past two weeks have been really messed up because of surprise testing days which completely threw off my lesson plans: half of my classes had the Halloween lesson, the other half didn't. To pass time in those classes that had the Halloween lesson last week (instead of making a whole new plan), I prepared a question for each student which they had to answer with 5 sentences within 25 minutes. It was completely within their capabilities. I had no doubt that they could complete the assignment. However, I was wrong.

One of my co-teachers, Mr. Nam, has the most unorganized and dysfunctional classes under the sun. Those girls are awful. I've kicked two of his students out of my class and this week I had to make about 20 girls from his classes do wall sits because they weren't listening. However, nothing has been as bad as my last class with him today. Those girls did nothing but talk the whole period despite my efforts and constant reminders to get back on task. I pulled out all of my tools and methods for organization--I even made a strategy prior to class to combat Mr. Nam's disorganization--but everything failed. I made specific instructions for my class to follow--easy but specific--and not even Mr. Nam followed them. He just sat in the back and let the students run all over instead of helping me. When it came time to read their work, no one had anything to read--save about 6 girls, they had all wasted the 25 minutes I gave them. After putting girls on the wall, I tried to salvage the period with a quick interactive example on the board but had absolutely no participation at all. I eventually had to cap my marker and make the girls spend the last 5 minutes in complete silence to communicate my displeasure. I was furious and Mr. Nam knew it (he jetted out in front of all the students as soon as the bell rang). I had to track him down in the teacher's office.

Now, I know that I can't just confront him the same way I would someone back in the States, but damn it! I am not going to let my co-teacher disrespect me, ignore me, or discredit me in front of my classes!! NO WAY!! When he pulls crap like that he shows my students that they don't have to listen to me either. Yes, I need him to help explain things from time to time, but I would much rather he just not show up and suffer my students comprehension problems than come to class and make things harder for me!

When I found him in the office, I told him he needs to help me get this class organized. I was probably a little more curt than I intended to be (or maybe it was intentional...) and I fear that I may have embarrassed him in front of the other teachers (women just don't scold men in public), but I made it clear (I hope) that his classes are THE WORST of my 24 classes. It was really hard not to get carried away and start speaking fast as I tore into him. He kept saying, "I help my students," to which I responded, "Yes, but you do it in a disorganized way and that allows the rest of the students to lose focus." I don't think he wanted to hear that (I probably wouldn't either) but I tried very hard to let him get his say too. I kept asking, "Is there anything I am doing wrong that you want me to change? What can I do to make our classes better or to help you be involved more?" He had no answer. He just repeated himself: "I help my students." Straight lipped and looking a little confused, he headed back to his desk. My parting words, "Please think about this tonight and over the weekend. We need to change things in your classes if we want to be effective teachers. Let me know on Tuesday what you think we should do."

It's really hard to be in this teaching position when your co-teachers, despite their education or skills, are often about as competent as the 10th graders they teach. The worst part is that Mr. Nam is not only my co-teacher but also the Chief Director of Administration (sort of my supervisor). I'm afraid I may have lost quite a bit of face in this whole mess. But what do I do? I am too driven, too determined, too much of a take-charge person to let some idiot prevent me from meeting my full potential. I really hope that he thinks critically about our class and starts working with me to make our teaching effective.

On the upside, just before I left work the music teacher found me with a message from the school principal. (The principal doesn't speak English so he had to send another teacher after me.) The message: "You are a good teacher and your classes are really helping. The students like you and we are glad you are here." I almost cried. After the hell I went through today, those words made me feel like maybe I'm not failing here; maybe I am doing a good job despite Mr. Nam.

That's why I hate being home tonight. I'd rather be here than at work but I have so many things running through my head and no one to share them with. I have no one to complain to and no one to just sit with and let me cry. Sticking an extrovert in a studio apartment with no one to talk to is like putting a bird in a shoe box: hell.