Teaching: Week Four

First off, has it really only been four weeks?! FOUR WEEKS?! Good, Lord, have mercy on my synapses as they attempt to relay the idea that what has felt like eons (by Oxford American Dictionaries’ astronomical and geological definition, never by the general definition) was a mere FOUR WEEKS?! Let me count:

Week 1: Self-Introduction/Class Expectations
Week 2: “Flea, Fly, Mosquito”/TPR 1
Week 3: TPR 2/“The Announcer’s Test”
Week 4: Emotions

I need to sit down…

As I said, this week was on Emotions. I’m a little tired of hearing, “Fine, and you?” to the question, “How are you?” so I thought I’d print up an emotions chart (the kind some American teachers/college students put up on their walls) to give my students as a handout and show them some slides asking them for each one, “How does the picture make you feel?” Then, I would ask them a hard question: “Why?” This allowed them to practice expressing emotions and thoughts. Some took advantage of it to the best of their ability, whether that be single words or full blown sentences. Others were less interested or still too shy to even make an attempt. For the most part, it went well. The students enjoyed the pictures, even if they didn’t feel comfortable talking about them, and I enjoyed teaching the lesson, even if the rainy weather did require a bit more energy out of me to keep their interest than usual. At the end of the slideshow, I showed them a picture of the two Korean flags and asked them how these made them feel and why. I told them that this is what an American actually wanted to know from them, so it would be important for them to learn how to express themselves on the matter of national division and possible reunification. I followed that with something fun, showing a particularly emotional music video, Linkin Park’s “Numb”.

For the second graders, I added in another activity: I gave them a printed copy of “The Announcer’s Test”, which I had presented to them the week before. I told them that it wasn’t homework and it wasn’t a test. It was simply something extra. If they wanted to do it and if they had time, they could memorize—

One hen,
Two ducks,
Three squawking geese,
Four limerick oysters,
Five corpulent porpoises,
Six pairs of Don Alveero’s trousers,
Seven thousand Macedonian soldiers in full battle array,
Eight brass monkeys from the ancient sacred crypts of Egypt,
Nine diabetic, apathetic, sympathetic old men on roller skates with a marked propensity towards procrastination and sloth,
Ten lyrical, spherical, diabolical denizens of the deep whirling, swirling, twirling in the corner of an aquarium seemingly going nowhere.

(Note: This is not the actual “Announcer’s Test,” but an adapted version since even I don’t know the meaning to all the words in the actual version. Being an English teacher, I should probably learn them, however.)

—by September 28 and recite it to me in the teacher’s office, then I would give them a prize. I’ve already had one particularly ambitious student recite it to me. (She started the semester late because she was in Europe on a three week whirlwind tour, has given me a small Korean language exercise book since she knows I’d like to learn her language, and has approached me about learning her name and even given me a mnemonic device to remember it by—her given name sounds like Eugene, as in Eugene O’Neill, whom she has read. She wants to be a diplomat.) I didn’t even have the prize ready for her yet, but have since settled on wafers filled with chocolate, as a couple of others are also close.

(SIDE NOTE: I have a couple of second graders who try to visit me daily, and I appreciate their company as their English is really quite good.)

As for my adult classes, the advanced class watched “The Pursuit of Happyness” starring Will Smith. My bringing in a movie is another result of my being tired, I fear. I had intended to talk about the social issues the movie brings up though. I thought the question of family separation and who should take care of the child (the mother or the father) would have brought out some especially interesting conversation among my Korean audience. Unfortunately, my presence was requested for some filming for the Provincial Brd. of Edu., and I had to cut class short. Next week, though, we will talk about the film until I’ve exhausted it’s usefulness. After that, I want to read Mencius and Hsün Tzu’s views on human nature with them. See how they like discussing philosophy, the good, the true, and the beautiful, and all that sublimity.

With the beginning adult class, I discussed the many ways English speakers use the word “get”, both as a verb in its own right and also as a phrasal verb combined with different prepositions. We also watched “The Pursuit of Happyness” during the second half of our class periods, and thus will still be watching it on Thursday, when next we meet.

The filming for the BoE has actually been fairly annoying, as it is all staged. The BoE is interested in the hamlet’s high school because, despite the fact that it is in a rural area, it does fairly well with testing and university placement. Granted, it’s no science school or language institute, but it does alright by itself every October when the national placement tests come around. Thus, the BoE is going to visit. Thus, we’ve been filming class time to show to our visitors.

But, as I said, what we film is all staged. We filmed me “co-teaching” with two classes. During this co-teaching, I performed lessons I had never even seen before and basically acted out what the camera man told me to. In the end, it ended up being fairly close to what I do in class anyway, but it just seemed… fake. It also didn’t help that this was on a Monday, usually a day off for me where I’m at school but not actually working, and so I was in my Monday clothes—jeans and a polo. I usually wear slacks and a long-sleeved button-down for teaching. Later on in the week, I was asked to videotape for the English Zone, an English only room where students get prizes for performing scripted situational dialogues in English. (This is what interfered with my advanced adult class above.) The problem with this was that, although the high school may have used that room dozens of times, I’d never been there before, and thus had no idea what was going on.

Sigh… staying flexible is key.

Culinary Note: Goat Soup (염소탕)

In what seems like it will become a weekly ritual costing around 10,000 won, I once again went to the Dog Soup restaurant with my fellow teachers. This week, however, I decided to try the other meat option on the menu: goat. (This was the only other meat option, I might add.) You are what you eat must be true for goats, as it tastes pretty much like garbage. Of course, it is not that bad, but it certainly isn’t dog, nor is it even canned Dinty Moore stew left to burn on the stove. The meat is actually fairly decent, though certainly not worth the extra 2,000 won you have to pay over the other meat option. What one really has to be careful of with goat is the skin. This is grey in color and has the consistency of rubber.

I am clearly still alive, and I’d still recommend goat to the adventurous gourmands out there. I just wouldn’t recommend it if you want to have a good meal, and maybe it would be wise to eat it where you can easily obtain some Baskin Robbins.

Weekly Letter Home: "And then I found $5!"

Dear Family and Friends,

I’ve crossed the 2-month mark in my stay here in Korea. I’ve learned much and am still learning to be sure. Classes, TKD, and constantly trying to understand what’s going on around me are beginning to take their toll. This weekend, I slept a considerable amount, which I felt was alright since I was staying up a considerable amount during the week. I’m still getting seven hours a night, but I could be getting eight or nine with my schedule, and feel I should given what I’m doing every day. Perhaps this week I shall begin this routine. I’m still adjusting at any rate, staying flexible, which is always a good thing.

I’ve received well wishing from many of you this week. For this I thank you. Your letters and even small Facebook notes make me smile even when things are tough here. I miss you all, but know that I am doing well and certainly have manifold ways of occupying my time if I am not. Distractions are key to coping, I’ve found, and there are lots of ways for me to stay busy, even in a small town like the one I live in.

I’m still seeking adventure here, though, and there is plenty to be had.

P.S. During a break in my updating, I took a stroll around the house. I found 5000 won. So for those of you who are bored by my stories, just remember that in the end I find five dollars.

A Korean Tutor at Last?

The same friend from church that told me about Seorak Mountain has offered to give me the Korean tutoring I so desire. I am to bring my Korea National University textbook from orientation to church next week so we both have something to work with. I hope it goes well. I really do want to learn the language. I thought being in a rural area like this one would accelerate that learning, but I am finding that ironically no one knows enough English to instruct me. I pick up things through osmosis (more properly called diffusion, but that’s idiom for you) of course, but I’d also like some formal training. Perhaps next semester I can enroll in weekend courses at a larger city, but for now, the tutoring will be appreciated.

A Possible Adventure: Seorak Mountain (설악산)

I talked with a friend at church today about the possibility of climbing Seoraksan, supposedly one of the toughest climbs in all of Korea. She said it typically takes 10 hours to summit the mountain and perhaps 6-7 hours for the descent. A day trip to be sure, if not a more relaxing two-day trip. There are of course other ways to get to the top of the mountain besides walking, but none so adventurous. It’s definitely going on my to-do list for this year. Any takers?

News about the Family: Culinary Quandaries

I revealed something to my host family on Sunday last that I should or should not have revealed. I am unsure at this point of the ramifications of my action. It is said that when Mao Tse Tung was asked what the significance of the French Revolution is, he responded, “It is too soon to say.” I feel the same about what I am sure is a less significant event in the grand scheme of things, but immediately far more significant to my person and those the Powers that Be have surrounded me with. Essentially, what happened is this:

I was eating dinner slowly as per usual. To be more exact, I was eating dinner at my usual business like pace, but there was so much food that I seemed to be eating slowly. It is a habit of Koreans, so I’ve been told, to overfeed their guests and often to overfeed everyone except themselves. For instance, my host mother barely eats from what I can tell, but everyone else in the family is served heaping bowlfuls of whatever scrumptious Korean concoction she has come up with. This has much to do with having such a long history of oppression, want, and starvation. (This history, I have discovered, is also the reason Koreans “traditionally” eat dog meat. Apparently, they didn’t start doing this “traditionally” until the 1950s.)

The host mother noticed that I had not yet finished my dinner while everyone else had, and she spoke some Korean to our resident knowledgeable person in English nouns and verbs, my host sister.

“Jeremy. You do not finish?”
“No, I’ll finish. It’s delicious, it’s just so much!”
“It is ok if you do not finish. Dogs hungry.”
“Huh?”
“Dogs hungry.”
“Dogs hungry? The dogs can eat my food?”
“Yes.”
“Oh, good.”

What followed was a lengthy Konglish conversation concerning my eating habits in the United States in which I managed to get across that I rarely ate a full breakfast, and if I eat at all for breakfast, it’s usually a slice of toast and a cup o’ joe or glass of milk, certainly not the dinner like affair that Korean breakfasts consist of. Indeed, growing up I would usually have a protein shake that my American mother made for me. The host mother said it was ok if I ate just bread and coffee for breakfast. “Really?” says I, incredulously, I might add. Yes, really. The family even purchased a combination coffee brewer and toaster.

Well, needless to say I was pleased, and I looked forward to eating Monday morning’s “breakfast” with great anticipation, as I would in fact not be eating it.

That is, until I came down the stairs the next morning to find the family in front of the TV watching Korean drama as usual… and eating bread and apples for breakfast. This continued all week. It is traditional for families to eat together (thus the reason we eat dinner at 9:00 pm). Apparently, this includes any strange breakfast options the Western guest might want. Indeed, bread is permeating many meals now. Dinner tonight, for instance, we had “Ugly Donuts” (pan fried dough covered in brown sugar… delicious) and dumpling-potato soup. I had no intention of changing the family’s eating habits. This could be bad.

The situation is a little awkward to say the least, but by the end of the week the host mother served rice and kimchi again for breakfast. I think we’ve reached an understanding. She may serve whatever she wants for breakfast. If I feel like my stomach can handle it, I’ll eat it. If not, the family can enjoy it while I nibble on a slice of toast.