My First Week of Classes

After substituting in the 7th grade class when I first arrived, I was terrified of teaching here. I had no idea how bad these students were going to be and how in the world I was going to discipline them. I love teaching so much, but I was scared that I wasn't going to be able to actually teach these kids. However, thank the Lord, my classes and my schedule are GREAT!!!

I'm teaching 4 classes of 10th grade students and I team-teach one 11th grade class. So, I have 2 planning periods each day, and I actually have 3 planning periods on Monday (the 11th grade class only meets 4 days a week--not sure why). And, the kids are by no means perfect, but they're normal kids. There are a few talkative or arrogant kids, but that would be the same in any 10th grade class in the States. The English levels vary, so it's tough to challenge the top kids without losing the lower kids, but I'm learning. The class sizes are pretty large with around 32 in each class, but I'm adjusting to that, too.

The hardest part for me is simply the lack of resources and technology. I was so spoiled to spend my first 7 years of teaching in such a great school, so I actually don't know how to teach without the resources I'm so used to! There's no internet access in my room. (There's also no printer for teachers to use and definitely no paper!!!) To watch a film, we have to take the students across campus to an audio-visual room that's set up like a theatre, not a classroom. The classrooms are too bright because of all the windows (needed since there's no air conditioning), so I can't use an LCD projector for powerpoints very well. And, the copies are VERY limited. But, I'm adjusting. I created my own webpage, and I have students go there and print out articles or handouts on their own. I can also upload some of the powerpoints for the students to study at home instead of during class. That has worked well so far. So, we'll see...

But, all in all, I'm pleased with the teaching part of my job. Now, if I can just learn their names!!!