Teaching, Month 4 (from Melly's Perspective)

                Teaching in South Korea has been—at once—exactly the same as, and completely different than, teaching at home. I’m pretty sure everyone who either has a child or has worked with one knows the ridiculous ups and downs involved.  I have been working with elementary age kids…well, most of my life.  Most recently, working as teachers and aides, I have begun to understand the ins and outs of working in a classroom and working under the direction of a school district.  I am so passionate about travelling, but part of the point of coming to Korea (nerdy- I admit) was to expand my knowledge of how different societies educate their children.  My goal is to learn how to better face our education challenges at home. 

So here we enter our first Korean teaching experience.  As Scott mentioned, we LOVE our school.  We were blessed with kind and generous coworkers and bosses, beautiful facilities, and new books, curriculum and materials.  We got a crash course in teaching (a few hours of observation, a “thrilling” video presentation, and a stack of books) and jumped right in.  Honestly, I was terrified.  I knew I could wrangle my special ed classrooms into some semblance of order- but this seemed totally out of my realm of expertise.  Unlike special ed, there was no team of English speaking teachers in the classroom, and I had work books, projects and deadlines expected of me.  But unfortunately I still had the same old setback- these tiny, adorable, chubby cheeked kids could not understand a single word I said.  I was assigned to the 5 year old class, meaning they are really 3-4 years old by American standards. They have never before been to school, let alone been asked to figure anything out in a foreign language.  Kindergarten is traumatizing enough at first for a lot of kids, and I could see the terror in their eyes as their mommies left them with some crazy lady who spoke gibberish and danced around a lot. 

I stressed out quite a bit during that first month.  Am I doing this right?  Do my kids understand anything I am trying to act out for them?  What on earth are the parents going to say when number worksheets come home a complete mess of scribbling?  Honestly, what got me through the lack of confidence, expertise and sanity were the cultural differences.  I was told as I was meeting the children for the first time- “make sure to touch the children.”  Hug them, kiss them, hold their hand, pick them up- otherwise you appear standoffish and cold and uncaring!  I honestly had to shake my head and make sure I heard right.  You don’t even give a kid a pat on the back at home for fear of a lawsuit!  It was the most beautifully refreshing thing I have seen in any classroom.  Probably for that exact reason the toddlers under my care hopefully understood one thing only at first- that I loved them.  I say (and mean it) every year- I have the cutest class ever.  And yet, these kids are the most beautiful, adorable little tykes that ever crossed my path.

A few short months later, it’s hard to remember how different things were at first.  This has been my first experience seeing students really learn and progress.  You see amazing things in special ed, but changes are slow to come, and progress can sometimes be devastated by sudden regressions.  Now I see by example the genius of immersion programs at a young age.  I couldn’t possibly prepare myself for how amazing these tiny kids would be.  They are learning the excruciating art of sitting at a desk, looking at the teacher, recognizing shapes and letters and numbers- and all in a foreign language!!!!!  They sing songs with me, consistently laugh at my “hilarious” sense of humor, and risk the fury of the Korean teachers when they scream my name and jump into my arms for a hug.  I am so impressed with my kids and how much they have grown already.  I have learned maybe six essential Korean phrases (hideously pronounced), during which time they have mastered writing their English names, identifying shapes, numbers, letters, etc on top of all the other learning you do as a small child. 

Now don’t misunderstand me:  it’s not all dancing and daisies.  Sometimes I swear there is a vein in my forehead threatening to burst at the end of some days.  There are definitely times when I am counting down the minutes to the end of school.  And it seems like in every classroom there is that one kid that challenges your ability to love.  But, if you can REALLY think outside the box, those kids usually end up being the ones I love most.

Some days I swear I am still teaching special ed with a few of my kids.  Most days, though, I giggle my head off and wipe out exhausted but full of gratitude for the overwhelming adorability factor that fills my days here.  Thanks, Sun Class,  for reminding me why life is awesome.