Teaching at last
So...upon setting the topic for this post, I realized I'm a good month behind in my blogging... *sigh*
Well, you're all well aware by now that I'm safely settled into Sotogahama. Many a thing has happened since my arrival, but since most attempts to catch up now will be glaringly futile, I'll be taking a detour from the natural course of events to talk about...teaching. ^^
I'm several weeks into this new job, and essentially, it's so far so good. As would be expected, there have been ups and downs, hot tempers and cool laidbackiness, times when I'd like very much to gouge someone's eyes out and others when I want to jump onto a table and do a happy dance...
If you recall from my post forever ago, I am teaching in 4 schools--basically my territory is 2 towns, each with a Junior High and Elementary school. And each school is quite different from the rest, from teachers to students to my expected role.
Before I go any further, however, here's the breakdown of the school system:
Elementary school is grades 1-6
Junior High in Japan is broken into grades 1, 2, and 3 (12-15 year olds), unlike the US, which continues the course of grade # from elementary up to high school (JH = grades 6, 7, and 8).
High school starts over yet again with grades 1, 2, and 3. There are only 3 grades, and high school is non-compulsory here in the Land of the Rising Sun...but we need not be concerned about that for the sake of this journal entry, as I'm only responsible for elementary and JH myself. ^^
TAIRADATE:
JUNIOR HIGH:
Tairadate is the name of the town in which I actually live. The Junior High is a 5 minute walk up the road from my house (2 minutes by bike), and the elementary is a 10 minute walk down the hill (or a 5 minute bike ride--LONG LIVE JAPANESE BIKES!!!). The teaching staff in the JH is wonderful--I was received with a warm welcome, though no one in the office but my co-teacher speaks any English.
Speaking of my co-teacher...
Tsuruya-sensei is a middle-aged man with a wife and two sons in elementary school. He's a smiling, enthusiastic, jolly old gent who has done EVERYTHING...except for taking a 6-month cruise around the world, which is his aim for retirement. Every time we start a conversation (whether in class or out), I find out something new he's done. Example: In college, he was the kendo (traditional Japanese fencing) champion of Hokkaido. He played the trumpet in school. He loves to ski. He coaches the baseball team. He has (obviously) studied English. He's traveled all over Japan and abroad. He knows all about history and has thoroughly mastered the art of teaching. And!...he's my next door neighbor. :)
The rest of the faculty in Tairadate JH is, despite their lack of English ability, great fun. I've been taken under the wing of two women in particular--the music teacher and the lunch lady--who have taken me out on weekends to see a movie, eat conveyerbelt sushi, and celebrate my arrival through traditional Japanese dining. This coming weekend, we've decided to set out in search of fall (changing leaves, cool weather, and the like).
My experience with the English classes at Tairadate JH have been generally positive. Classes are EXTREMELY small, consisting of the entire grade at a time--my biggest class is the third years: 14 students. The first graders retain a good deal of their elementary studentage and slipped easily out of their shells on my first day of class with enough jumping around and funny faces on my part. The third years have an impressive English base and all for a good deal more complication in games, activities, answering questions, etc.
The 2nd years at Tairadate JH are a blight on my existence in Japan. Though I'm keeping at it as much as I can bear, the students are impossibly shy. They are quiet or silent the whole class through. And, the ultimate addition of insult to injury in my class, they will point their heads down at their desk and sit in silence if they lack the ability or bravery to answer a question even as simple as "how are you?" So far, my tally for criers is up to 2.
It may sound cruel and impatient for me to say these things, but after stressing that voice volume is a key to English, that any answer is acceptable, that if they do not know the English, they should say it in Japanese and I will help them translate...these students have no excuse for staying silent. It pains me to see the two or three students in this class of 11 who do hold the ability to speak up and want to try, but are discouraged by their silent neighbors. Luckily, Tsuruya-sensei and I have found a way to at least get them to practice material amongst each other.
Their shyness, you see, seems to be reserved for teachers alone, so setting them up with an activity that requires space between partners (and therefore shouting questions and replies across the room) has found some level of success on two separate occasions. The downfall of this strategy is in the fact that it has also made one student cry twice, on account of the fact that she was the last student left standing and speaking both times we tried the activity. The first time, I shuffled over to her desk after class and assured her it was alright that she had trouble--"I can't do those long sentences in Japanese!" I told her (in Japanese). "So really, you did great!" It appears that it will take a great deal more getting used to these kids, however, before I can entirely evade the urge to send them out the window.
But enough ranting on that part. As much as that second grade annoys the hell out of me, I tell myself it's good experience, should I decide to continue teaching elsewhere after JET. Meanwhile, I am loving the first and third year kids and really look forward to my days at Tairadate JH for that reason.
ELEMENTARY SCHOOL:
The elementary school in Tairadate is crazy awesome. The teachers there met my arrival with great enthusiasm, and everyone in the office uses all the English they know (be it decently broken English or the one or two words they just looked up on their denshi jisho--electronic dictionary) to interact with me. The classes/grades run from 10-20 students, and when I have an English class, it is always 2 grades together: 1st and 2nd grade, 3rd and 4th grade, 5th and 6th grade, respectively.
The thing I love the most about this elementary school (which differs greatly from the other in Kanita) is that the teachers of each grade sit down and help me make up a lesson plan far in advance of each class. This is great for me, since I have never taught before and have no idea what these particular students are capable of. During the class, the lesson part is all up to me, but the teachers help with crowd control, explanation of games, etc. This makes my job SO much easier, especially when kids ask perfectly bizarre question in Japanese, for which I am lacking proper vocabulary (questions like, "What is the population of Florida?"--FROM A 3RD GRADER!)
Tairadate Elementary has also had me set up a bulletin board to be dubbed "Mel's Corner," in which I will monthly post a new theme with pictures, fun facts, and even some of my own artwork to direct attention from one part to the next. This month, the theme is Florida, and as a special treat, I made a manatee...well...I didn't actually MAKE a manatee. I cut up a manatee-sized piece of blue paper in the shape of a manatee. ^^ (fun as it was, I was at work 'till from 7:55am to 8pm that day trying to get the damn thing to stick to the wall...but it turned out well enough).
KANITA:
JUNIOR HIGH:
The JH in Kanita town is a far cry from the way things are done in Tairadate. (and here, I must be careful what I write, for I am actually writing from Kanita at the moment) The classes are bigger, relatively speaking, ranging from 20-30 students (taught in lumps of 1st years, 2nd years, 3rd year A, and 3rd year B). Here, the first years are enthusiastic (for the most part), loud amongst themselves (though a bit more reserved in my presence--reduced to group responses by my striking gaijin-ness that makes them hesitant to offer individual answers), and really into interacting with the new American teacher. One girl in particular follows me about like a lost puppy and has shown me every bit of contents in her pencil case on a daily basis. When I walk into the room, her eyes bug out her head with the unmistakable message:
"You...are the coolest thing...I...have ever...seen..."
(much like a first year student in Tairadate who loves to tap on my long nails at lunchtime, perhaps convinced they'll one day fall off and prove to be fake)
The second years here at Kanita give me hope that I am not secreting 2nd year student repellant. They are NOTHING like the shybees that bring down my days in Tairadate. In fact, they are among the most English confident in the school and are so far no trouble to teach.
The third year students are an odd puzzle, but before I explain why, I shall give premise by explaining about my JTEs (Japanese teachers of English) here in Kanita. There are two, and for the sake of what mild respect I can afford them, I shall not use their real names, but shall call them He-sensai and She-sensei. She-sensei is (or must be, I have decided) an assistant teacher. Her English is ok, though in need of some work, but all she does in class is stand in the corner, unless she is collecting homework or standing over a sleepy student's shoulder. She is a very pleasant person to talk to...but for all intents and purposes, fairly useless in the classroom.
That makes He-sensei the main teacher. He came to meet me at the Board of Education my first day in Sotogahama, offering his services as an interpreter. He is young (probably late-20's) and has a passable English level. In college, he studied abroad in Iowa (of all places), so he loves the US (he even has a car with the steering wheel on the left!) and says that he is pleased to have me come to the school because I think like an American, not a Japanese (as my predecessor, who was some-generation Japanese did). Grateful as I was for his help that first day, fun as it was to ride in his car that felt like normal, and thankful that I am that I can express myself to him in English, in the classroom and in all things regarding the students we share, he drives me completely nuts.
Things in Kanita are done strictly according to the curriculum, so He-sensei doesn't believe in games ("they're fun, but are not useful and there is no time for them," he says). In class, I am as good as a human tape recorder, reading aloud from the book for the students to repeat. He is strict, and when the students do not offer swift answers, he takes time out of class (time that could be better spent PLAYING A GAME, or some other such useful activity) to yell at them. He is uncreative, unmoving, and has a rather frustrating opinion of his English that seems to make him believe he knows better than I which English pronunciations, etc. are more crucial to understand.
The man is driving me mad. Not only because he's about as immovable as the Titanic from its watery grave, but because the students are suffering from his lack of talent in teaching. The Tairadate 3rd years are far more secure in their English than He-sensei's "advanced" third year class, and it pains me to see the man make mistakes in class that he refuses to correct. (the word "known" for example, is not pronounced "no-wun")
I have tried on more than one occassion to explain to him that, if he wants me to help improve his students English, he must help me find the opportunity. Start and English club, I suggest. There is no time--the kids have clubs after school already, he says. Well, then how about I put together a study group? We can meet during lunch, or-- Nope. The students must eat lunch together.
It was on the day that we had this discussion that I had to grip the arms of my chair to keep from lunging at the man. So, through tightly pulled lips, I explained to him that I understand that there is a set way of doing things in the school, but if he wants me to fix anything, he must help me find room for it. If you want something to change, you have to change something! My magic wand, powerful though it may be, is not cleared for immediate improvement of English in JH students. >:(
This brings us to the 3rd year anomaly. When I first arrived, the 3rd years were broken up into two classes--advanced and regular. The advanced class sat in silence through my first class, and then for some 20 minutes at the end of class, He-sensei let them sit slouched in their seats, eyes averted, saying nothing as I urged them to ask questions about the US, FL, me--anything they wanted in Japanese or English. These are clearly his favorite students, as I cannot imagine he would allow any other class to get away with such a thing.
The "regular" class he took special time to warn me about. He said they were unruly, loud, disrespectful, and all around bad in class.
From the moment I stepped into that class, I loved them.
They listened and commented about my introductory lesson (which was all about myself, where I come from, etc), then threw questions at me in the alloted time, laughing at my jokes, nodding at my answers, and generally being a fabulous audience. He-sensei was watching them like an eagle, waiting for a chance to jump on those who weren't listening properly. One boy in the back set his head down on his arm at one point in the class, and this is what followed:
He-sensei: "HEY! Did you hear what she just said?"
kid: "Yea."
He-sensei: "What'd she say, then?" (ah, the ever-popular verbal quiz to strike down lazy students!)
kid: "She said [whatever it is I said here--I really don't remember myself] because [for whatever reason I said it]."
He-sensei: "...Well...listen properly and keep your head up!"
Mel: *stifles laughter and twirls about to point to map and hide grin*
So a few weeks ago, the "advanced" and "regular" classes merged. Two classes remain, but the students are mixed so that the advanced students can inspire the troubled ones to work harder...or so seems to be the basic concept behind the change.
Over the last few weeks, I've found the best way to combat my boring role and irritating teacher situation in the classrooms here at Kanita is to relish in the times when the stuents are set to work writing in their notebooks or practicing reading amongst each other. It is at these times that I can interact with them individually and offer encouragement to those who really are having trouble. This is one of my favorite parts about teaching anyway--being able to hear what a specific student is capable of. The boys from that previous "regular" class are my favorites. "Unruly" though they may be called in Japanese, I would guess they act rather more like standard American boys, and they love having a teacher who will take their "unruliness" in stride and laugh and joke with them. The more I do this with the students in Kanita, the more questions I get asked during an average lesson, and for a student to ask me even the pronunciation of "their" is a highlight of my day, because it means the walls are breaking down and they are really trying to learn.
The rest of the faculty in Kanita JH is decent enough. At first I felt like I had merely been dropped into the office, as I didn't receive any of the special hellos I had gotten at my other schools. As time passes, however, I'm getting more smiles, and I have to suspect that perhaps the initial silence around me was the teacher's own hesitation at speaking with someone who may not understand them in Japanes.
ELEMENTARY:
The elementary school in Kanita threw me a real curve when, on my first day in the office, I learned the classes were entirely up to me. There are no English teachers at the school and the grade teachers do NOT sit down with me to plan out lessons as they do in Tairadate (indeed, the Kanita teachers seem strictly uninterested in what I have planned). These classes are probably about 20 students each and NOT merged for lessons, so I am getting more of a feel for exact age level than I did at Tairadate.
So far I have only spent one day teaching at the school, and though the faculty greeted me warmly with smiles and used some English with me in teacher's room, that all but melted away in class. I taught 3rd and 4th graders that day, and the moment I walked in, the teachers took a seat at the back and watched me do my thing, not rising to help me understand the students' questions, to corral the kids, or to help me explain the rules of Red Light, Green Light (my first day game--a big hit with kids grades 1-6!). Even when I prompted them to give me a hand, they only shrugged and kept their silence.
Hopefully all the grade teachers won't be so passive.
The compensation for this difficulty is that the elementary students in Kanita are remarkably accepting, whereas a good many other students in Tairadate spent my first day or two among them gawking. The first day, they bounded about me as I walked, clutching at my hands and arms as though they'd known me for months already. They invited me to play with them at break time, to follow them through the hall, and they were enthusiastic to share gossip about one of the young assistant teachers they were equally friendly with throughout the day.
CONCLUSION:
All in all, things are going well so far. Breaking down the difficulty is something I am confident will happen with time. This entry's gotten long enough, though, so I'll leave you to forge your own conclusions hereafter. ^^
More to come!
Well, you're all well aware by now that I'm safely settled into Sotogahama. Many a thing has happened since my arrival, but since most attempts to catch up now will be glaringly futile, I'll be taking a detour from the natural course of events to talk about...teaching. ^^
I'm several weeks into this new job, and essentially, it's so far so good. As would be expected, there have been ups and downs, hot tempers and cool laidbackiness, times when I'd like very much to gouge someone's eyes out and others when I want to jump onto a table and do a happy dance...
If you recall from my post forever ago, I am teaching in 4 schools--basically my territory is 2 towns, each with a Junior High and Elementary school. And each school is quite different from the rest, from teachers to students to my expected role.
Before I go any further, however, here's the breakdown of the school system:
Elementary school is grades 1-6
Junior High in Japan is broken into grades 1, 2, and 3 (12-15 year olds), unlike the US, which continues the course of grade # from elementary up to high school (JH = grades 6, 7, and 8).
High school starts over yet again with grades 1, 2, and 3. There are only 3 grades, and high school is non-compulsory here in the Land of the Rising Sun...but we need not be concerned about that for the sake of this journal entry, as I'm only responsible for elementary and JH myself. ^^
TAIRADATE:
JUNIOR HIGH:
Tairadate is the name of the town in which I actually live. The Junior High is a 5 minute walk up the road from my house (2 minutes by bike), and the elementary is a 10 minute walk down the hill (or a 5 minute bike ride--LONG LIVE JAPANESE BIKES!!!). The teaching staff in the JH is wonderful--I was received with a warm welcome, though no one in the office but my co-teacher speaks any English.
Speaking of my co-teacher...
Tsuruya-sensei is a middle-aged man with a wife and two sons in elementary school. He's a smiling, enthusiastic, jolly old gent who has done EVERYTHING...except for taking a 6-month cruise around the world, which is his aim for retirement. Every time we start a conversation (whether in class or out), I find out something new he's done. Example: In college, he was the kendo (traditional Japanese fencing) champion of Hokkaido. He played the trumpet in school. He loves to ski. He coaches the baseball team. He has (obviously) studied English. He's traveled all over Japan and abroad. He knows all about history and has thoroughly mastered the art of teaching. And!...he's my next door neighbor. :)
The rest of the faculty in Tairadate JH is, despite their lack of English ability, great fun. I've been taken under the wing of two women in particular--the music teacher and the lunch lady--who have taken me out on weekends to see a movie, eat conveyerbelt sushi, and celebrate my arrival through traditional Japanese dining. This coming weekend, we've decided to set out in search of fall (changing leaves, cool weather, and the like).
My experience with the English classes at Tairadate JH have been generally positive. Classes are EXTREMELY small, consisting of the entire grade at a time--my biggest class is the third years: 14 students. The first graders retain a good deal of their elementary studentage and slipped easily out of their shells on my first day of class with enough jumping around and funny faces on my part. The third years have an impressive English base and all for a good deal more complication in games, activities, answering questions, etc.
The 2nd years at Tairadate JH are a blight on my existence in Japan. Though I'm keeping at it as much as I can bear, the students are impossibly shy. They are quiet or silent the whole class through. And, the ultimate addition of insult to injury in my class, they will point their heads down at their desk and sit in silence if they lack the ability or bravery to answer a question even as simple as "how are you?" So far, my tally for criers is up to 2.
It may sound cruel and impatient for me to say these things, but after stressing that voice volume is a key to English, that any answer is acceptable, that if they do not know the English, they should say it in Japanese and I will help them translate...these students have no excuse for staying silent. It pains me to see the two or three students in this class of 11 who do hold the ability to speak up and want to try, but are discouraged by their silent neighbors. Luckily, Tsuruya-sensei and I have found a way to at least get them to practice material amongst each other.
Their shyness, you see, seems to be reserved for teachers alone, so setting them up with an activity that requires space between partners (and therefore shouting questions and replies across the room) has found some level of success on two separate occasions. The downfall of this strategy is in the fact that it has also made one student cry twice, on account of the fact that she was the last student left standing and speaking both times we tried the activity. The first time, I shuffled over to her desk after class and assured her it was alright that she had trouble--"I can't do those long sentences in Japanese!" I told her (in Japanese). "So really, you did great!" It appears that it will take a great deal more getting used to these kids, however, before I can entirely evade the urge to send them out the window.
But enough ranting on that part. As much as that second grade annoys the hell out of me, I tell myself it's good experience, should I decide to continue teaching elsewhere after JET. Meanwhile, I am loving the first and third year kids and really look forward to my days at Tairadate JH for that reason.
ELEMENTARY SCHOOL:
The elementary school in Tairadate is crazy awesome. The teachers there met my arrival with great enthusiasm, and everyone in the office uses all the English they know (be it decently broken English or the one or two words they just looked up on their denshi jisho--electronic dictionary) to interact with me. The classes/grades run from 10-20 students, and when I have an English class, it is always 2 grades together: 1st and 2nd grade, 3rd and 4th grade, 5th and 6th grade, respectively.
The thing I love the most about this elementary school (which differs greatly from the other in Kanita) is that the teachers of each grade sit down and help me make up a lesson plan far in advance of each class. This is great for me, since I have never taught before and have no idea what these particular students are capable of. During the class, the lesson part is all up to me, but the teachers help with crowd control, explanation of games, etc. This makes my job SO much easier, especially when kids ask perfectly bizarre question in Japanese, for which I am lacking proper vocabulary (questions like, "What is the population of Florida?"--FROM A 3RD GRADER!)
Tairadate Elementary has also had me set up a bulletin board to be dubbed "Mel's Corner," in which I will monthly post a new theme with pictures, fun facts, and even some of my own artwork to direct attention from one part to the next. This month, the theme is Florida, and as a special treat, I made a manatee...well...I didn't actually MAKE a manatee. I cut up a manatee-sized piece of blue paper in the shape of a manatee. ^^ (fun as it was, I was at work 'till from 7:55am to 8pm that day trying to get the damn thing to stick to the wall...but it turned out well enough).
KANITA:
JUNIOR HIGH:
The JH in Kanita town is a far cry from the way things are done in Tairadate. (and here, I must be careful what I write, for I am actually writing from Kanita at the moment) The classes are bigger, relatively speaking, ranging from 20-30 students (taught in lumps of 1st years, 2nd years, 3rd year A, and 3rd year B). Here, the first years are enthusiastic (for the most part), loud amongst themselves (though a bit more reserved in my presence--reduced to group responses by my striking gaijin-ness that makes them hesitant to offer individual answers), and really into interacting with the new American teacher. One girl in particular follows me about like a lost puppy and has shown me every bit of contents in her pencil case on a daily basis. When I walk into the room, her eyes bug out her head with the unmistakable message:
"You...are the coolest thing...I...have ever...seen..."
(much like a first year student in Tairadate who loves to tap on my long nails at lunchtime, perhaps convinced they'll one day fall off and prove to be fake)
The second years here at Kanita give me hope that I am not secreting 2nd year student repellant. They are NOTHING like the shybees that bring down my days in Tairadate. In fact, they are among the most English confident in the school and are so far no trouble to teach.
The third year students are an odd puzzle, but before I explain why, I shall give premise by explaining about my JTEs (Japanese teachers of English) here in Kanita. There are two, and for the sake of what mild respect I can afford them, I shall not use their real names, but shall call them He-sensai and She-sensei. She-sensei is (or must be, I have decided) an assistant teacher. Her English is ok, though in need of some work, but all she does in class is stand in the corner, unless she is collecting homework or standing over a sleepy student's shoulder. She is a very pleasant person to talk to...but for all intents and purposes, fairly useless in the classroom.
That makes He-sensei the main teacher. He came to meet me at the Board of Education my first day in Sotogahama, offering his services as an interpreter. He is young (probably late-20's) and has a passable English level. In college, he studied abroad in Iowa (of all places), so he loves the US (he even has a car with the steering wheel on the left!) and says that he is pleased to have me come to the school because I think like an American, not a Japanese (as my predecessor, who was some-generation Japanese did). Grateful as I was for his help that first day, fun as it was to ride in his car that felt like normal, and thankful that I am that I can express myself to him in English, in the classroom and in all things regarding the students we share, he drives me completely nuts.
Things in Kanita are done strictly according to the curriculum, so He-sensei doesn't believe in games ("they're fun, but are not useful and there is no time for them," he says). In class, I am as good as a human tape recorder, reading aloud from the book for the students to repeat. He is strict, and when the students do not offer swift answers, he takes time out of class (time that could be better spent PLAYING A GAME, or some other such useful activity) to yell at them. He is uncreative, unmoving, and has a rather frustrating opinion of his English that seems to make him believe he knows better than I which English pronunciations, etc. are more crucial to understand.
The man is driving me mad. Not only because he's about as immovable as the Titanic from its watery grave, but because the students are suffering from his lack of talent in teaching. The Tairadate 3rd years are far more secure in their English than He-sensei's "advanced" third year class, and it pains me to see the man make mistakes in class that he refuses to correct. (the word "known" for example, is not pronounced "no-wun")
I have tried on more than one occassion to explain to him that, if he wants me to help improve his students English, he must help me find the opportunity. Start and English club, I suggest. There is no time--the kids have clubs after school already, he says. Well, then how about I put together a study group? We can meet during lunch, or-- Nope. The students must eat lunch together.
It was on the day that we had this discussion that I had to grip the arms of my chair to keep from lunging at the man. So, through tightly pulled lips, I explained to him that I understand that there is a set way of doing things in the school, but if he wants me to fix anything, he must help me find room for it. If you want something to change, you have to change something! My magic wand, powerful though it may be, is not cleared for immediate improvement of English in JH students. >:(
This brings us to the 3rd year anomaly. When I first arrived, the 3rd years were broken up into two classes--advanced and regular. The advanced class sat in silence through my first class, and then for some 20 minutes at the end of class, He-sensei let them sit slouched in their seats, eyes averted, saying nothing as I urged them to ask questions about the US, FL, me--anything they wanted in Japanese or English. These are clearly his favorite students, as I cannot imagine he would allow any other class to get away with such a thing.
The "regular" class he took special time to warn me about. He said they were unruly, loud, disrespectful, and all around bad in class.
From the moment I stepped into that class, I loved them.
They listened and commented about my introductory lesson (which was all about myself, where I come from, etc), then threw questions at me in the alloted time, laughing at my jokes, nodding at my answers, and generally being a fabulous audience. He-sensei was watching them like an eagle, waiting for a chance to jump on those who weren't listening properly. One boy in the back set his head down on his arm at one point in the class, and this is what followed:
He-sensei: "HEY! Did you hear what she just said?"
kid: "Yea."
He-sensei: "What'd she say, then?" (ah, the ever-popular verbal quiz to strike down lazy students!)
kid: "She said [whatever it is I said here--I really don't remember myself] because [for whatever reason I said it]."
He-sensei: "...Well...listen properly and keep your head up!"
Mel: *stifles laughter and twirls about to point to map and hide grin*
So a few weeks ago, the "advanced" and "regular" classes merged. Two classes remain, but the students are mixed so that the advanced students can inspire the troubled ones to work harder...or so seems to be the basic concept behind the change.
Over the last few weeks, I've found the best way to combat my boring role and irritating teacher situation in the classrooms here at Kanita is to relish in the times when the stuents are set to work writing in their notebooks or practicing reading amongst each other. It is at these times that I can interact with them individually and offer encouragement to those who really are having trouble. This is one of my favorite parts about teaching anyway--being able to hear what a specific student is capable of. The boys from that previous "regular" class are my favorites. "Unruly" though they may be called in Japanese, I would guess they act rather more like standard American boys, and they love having a teacher who will take their "unruliness" in stride and laugh and joke with them. The more I do this with the students in Kanita, the more questions I get asked during an average lesson, and for a student to ask me even the pronunciation of "their" is a highlight of my day, because it means the walls are breaking down and they are really trying to learn.
The rest of the faculty in Kanita JH is decent enough. At first I felt like I had merely been dropped into the office, as I didn't receive any of the special hellos I had gotten at my other schools. As time passes, however, I'm getting more smiles, and I have to suspect that perhaps the initial silence around me was the teacher's own hesitation at speaking with someone who may not understand them in Japanes.
ELEMENTARY:
The elementary school in Kanita threw me a real curve when, on my first day in the office, I learned the classes were entirely up to me. There are no English teachers at the school and the grade teachers do NOT sit down with me to plan out lessons as they do in Tairadate (indeed, the Kanita teachers seem strictly uninterested in what I have planned). These classes are probably about 20 students each and NOT merged for lessons, so I am getting more of a feel for exact age level than I did at Tairadate.
So far I have only spent one day teaching at the school, and though the faculty greeted me warmly with smiles and used some English with me in teacher's room, that all but melted away in class. I taught 3rd and 4th graders that day, and the moment I walked in, the teachers took a seat at the back and watched me do my thing, not rising to help me understand the students' questions, to corral the kids, or to help me explain the rules of Red Light, Green Light (my first day game--a big hit with kids grades 1-6!). Even when I prompted them to give me a hand, they only shrugged and kept their silence.
Hopefully all the grade teachers won't be so passive.
The compensation for this difficulty is that the elementary students in Kanita are remarkably accepting, whereas a good many other students in Tairadate spent my first day or two among them gawking. The first day, they bounded about me as I walked, clutching at my hands and arms as though they'd known me for months already. They invited me to play with them at break time, to follow them through the hall, and they were enthusiastic to share gossip about one of the young assistant teachers they were equally friendly with throughout the day.
CONCLUSION:
All in all, things are going well so far. Breaking down the difficulty is something I am confident will happen with time. This entry's gotten long enough, though, so I'll leave you to forge your own conclusions hereafter. ^^
More to come!