Yesterday I attended an English teaching conference in Cheonan, about an hour and a half north of here, toward Seoul. I couldn’t figure out why my school would want to go, until I finally found out that several other ETAs would be there. It was not until we arrived that I realized it was only ETAs and their co-teachers…now THAT would have been nice to know! I didn’t go with my co-teacher because he was still pretty sick and probably very busy trying to make up the work he missed. Kim Eun Soon, the fourth grade teacher, took me instead. It was a nice time, but the drive was a bit awkward because we can’t communicate that well. I was so tired that I actually fell asleep both ways…probably not the nicest move as the only passenger. The conference was okay, I suppose, but definitely a waste of time. It was late to start and introductions ran long, so basically all I did was try to listen to people talk about the English programs at their schools. The discussion aspect of the conference was essentially cut out because we ran out of time. We ETAs had about ten minutes to talk together in a mediated format, and all we did was state our schedules and that we liked our jobs. I did not learn a single useful thing the entire day. They did take us out to a nice dinner, though, and all of us sat together and talked. I heard all about Cara’s alcoholic host father and how easy it is to get a TKD black belt in Korea. It was good times, but probably not what my school intended when they sent me. They assume I am desperately lonely, no matter how hard I try to tell them that I actually like it better this way, and I think a big part of the reason they wanted me to go was to see my friends. I am not really close to any of these girls, though, even though some of them I would like to know better. Oh, well…at least I got to see another part of the province!
Today was our school’s big event, in which all the students displayed their artwork and performed for parents, the community, and a bunch of important-looking men. Thus, having worked my ass off to have a somewhat enjoyable and coherent lesson for my fifth-grade class, absolutely no one showed up! The teachers looked at me in surprise when I asked if they were coming, like they couldn’t believe I would think they would show up on this, the busiest of all days. And to be honest, I really hadn’t expected them, either…I just wanted to have something prepared, because given my luck, if I hadn’t done anything last night, they would definitely have come and that would have been the end of me. I wasn’t sure if anyone else would show up and I also wanted to catch up on things, so I stayed in my room, but I probably should have helped the other teachers more. Oops. Maybe next time. Anyway, I was promised by my co-teacher that things would calm down now, which I assume means that my regular schedule will resume. I hope so, just for my sanity. Even though canceled classes should mean less work for me, I feel like they actually give me more because then I stress about falling behind and work too hard on the upcoming lessons. Also, I feel like I’m not doing my job. I have seen my sixth graders only once in the last two weeks!
The performances were really cute. Kyoung Hee Sam asked me to take pictures with her students beforehand, probably because she knows how much I love them all and how much they love me. I felt very popular as they were literally fighting over who got to stand next to me. And they were in such cute costumes! I will post pictures when I get them from Kyoung Hee Sam, but just as a teaser…they were all in matching black uniforms with little black newsboy caps for the boys. Soooooo adorable! That class definitely has my heart and I’m sure they know it. The program was a little long for my taste (2+ hours!), but at least they ended with samulnori (Korean drums), which I am rapidly coming to love. I kinda want to play myself, but I can’t this semester because they practice when I teach. I hope I can next year…it rocks! Then I had to teach my silly 5/6 class and I wasn’t really as prepared as I should have been. I was looking at Erin’s curriculum for her club class yesterday because it had been included in our agenda packet, and her class at least is much more academic than mine. I felt like maybe I was doing something wrong at first and should make it much more of a learning experience, but after brief consideration I am thinking not. I want this to be a time when we can let loose and just have fun! I foresee us playing a lot of games in that class especially. I would love to do the same thing in my 3/4 class, but it’s just too big and gets out of control too quickly. And they’re young…they don’t understand as much.
I thought I was going to Daejeon this weekend with Mr. Nam, but he never called me so I guess not. I hope he doesn’t think I am coming next weekend, because I definitely can’t. I have the teachers’ retreat and possibly something with my host family. They asked me this morning if I was free then, but I have no idea why. Something to find out via the co-teacher, I think. Instead, I will enjoy a relaxing weekend at home and possibly do something with the teacher my age who lives nearby. I may or may not go to Seoul to see Professor Irish…I don’t know if I can muster up the energy to hit up Seoul again so soon, especially since I’ll be going twice more this month. It’s nice to have no obligations, though.
Tonight at TKD I terrorized all my little first graders by trying (and sometimes succeeding) to give them kisses. Even though they pretended to be completely grossed out, they must have been somewhat into it to keep coming back for more. Everyone else was doing tests today for new belts, I guess, but mine’s not ‘til Monday, possibly because I missed yesterday. If I pass, I will officially be a yellow belt (again)! I have to do this whole routine, plus front kicks, roundhouse kicks, and straight kicks. I’m on top of those and I think I’ll do the routine okay, but they still laugh at me when I do it because it’s so awkward. I never liked all these crazy blocks and stuff, and that’s all it is. My TKD teacher in Hongsan is really into these routines…I’m not sure if that’s standard or just him. Probably is standard, given Korea. Anyway, to earn new belts you always have to do a new routine of increasing complexity. I don’t know how they’re useful when you’re in combat, but I suppose they’re cool enough to watch. I spent today being coached by I Bin, who is increasingly insistant on calling me “Mommy Jen” and herself “Baby I Bin.” She is so funny. She is def my bf in this town, and I am sure she’d be really amused to hear that. We are so different in age we can’t be friends, you know. But she’s great and I love her. I think I communicate better with her, in her very limited English and my almost nonexistent Korean, than I do with most of the other teachers!