Journey to the Past

Hard to believe it’s already December. Pretty soon the semester will be ending, and then 2009 is upon all of us. I don’t know what to think of all of it.

Some days I think 9 more months in Korea is manageable…look how fast 3 months have gone by. And, then other days, I think I can’t get out of here quick enough.

Teaching went alright today. Normally I have 5 classes on Mondays, but since 1st and 2nd graders are having their final exams beginning on Saturday, some of my classes were cancelled. Luckily I only had 3 classes.

My final class is the brightest of the 5 on Mondays – they’re normally well-behaved, active, and very positive. But I had difficulty getting them to pay attention to today’s lesson since my coteacher didn’t come. She, like my other 5 coteachers, deal with the discplining. And the students have realized that. So, when coteachers don’t show up for my classes, it’s basically a free period for the students. They just gab. I literally spent 15 of the 45 minutes waiting for them to be quiet. From 3:05-3:20. I was very upset because this class is amazing when they want to be. Oh well. I guess I can’t blame the students. They’re clever enough to know that I won’t use corporal punishment.