This week has been awesome. Granted, all I did my first two days was sit at my desk in the teacher's room and watched as all the other teachers came and went, running to their next class. This is because at some junior high schools in Japan, the students stay in one classroom and the various teachers go from class to class. At this particular school, there are four English teachers; one for 7th grade, two for 8th grade and one for 9th. But they will sometimes go to each other's classes to help out. So, while all the other teachers were keeping busy, I was experiencing what I had been warned about from other ALT's. A lot of free time. Luckily, the English teachers at this school, as well as the rest of the teachers, are all very nice and have made time to discuss the schedule for the upcoming class(es). I also killed time by grading papers. That was hilariously awesome.
I say hilarious, not because the student's did poorly, but because of either comical answers or a great imagination. For example, the students in one grade had summer homework that involved interviewing a relative, friend, etc., and writing the answers down in English. While most did interview family members, some "interviewed" anime characters or famous people. Here are a few answers that made me chuckle.
"My name is Sandwich. Please call me John."
(I let out a fairly loud laugh in the teacher's room when I read this)
"I want to be the greatest human in the world."
(This one is my favorite)
"I play soccer. I like beer. I'm fat."
(They interviewed their dad)
"My name is __________. Please call me SHOCK EYE."
(The student even used SHOCK EYE in place of their name on their homework)
Some other people used Taylor Swift, even the new Royal Baby (they had all the details perfect). I can't wait to see what else these kids will come up with.
Then came Wednesday, my first day in a classroom. I had already been greeted numerous times by students in the hallway or outside who could only say hello, nice to meet you, or tell me their name. Still, it was nice to see them enthusiastic about trying to talk to me.
Time out. I have to explain one thing or I will just confuse myself. Here, 7th grade students are called ichi nensei (first year), 8th grade students are ni nensei (second year) and 9th grade students are san nensei (third year). I don't want to say 1st years and you have no idea what I am talking about. Now, where was I...
In all my classes, at all my schools (I have 8 schools), I am doing an introduction the first time I meet the students. This varies depending on the grade and teacher. When I went to my first class, it was a 2nd year class. For this class, I did about a 10 minute introduction, and after that we jumped right into teaching students the basics of how to compose an email. I was a bit nervous my first class because remember, I've never taught before. To see kids just stare up at me with this look of "who is this tall guy" and not respond to anything, it can be a bit nerve-racking. But I got through the class way easier than I was expecting.
The next class was another 2nd year, doing the exact same thing. However, this class was the "teacher's class." Every teacher has a homeroom class. They go to this class each morning for 10 minutes before classes begin, as well as eat lunch with them. They get to know these students much more than the others. So when I got to the class, they were ready for me. I was greeted by EVERYONE. I was swarmed the second I walked in. This led to another great class. She is very nice and has been very helpful in class planning. She even surprised me today with highlighters, a red marker for grading, a multi-colored pen, an ink pad (a must have in Japan), and a case for my chalk. I told you the teachers here were nice.
Then came the 3rd year class. Those kids were crazy. And worse yet, it was right after lunch, so good luck getting/keeping their attention. Well, not all of them. Just 5 boys. They were loud and would just yell to each other at full volume. Unlike in America, where students screaming won't fly in any classroom, it is more common here. The reason is that teacher's can't really discipline students here. Aside from asking them to be quiet, or going over to them and nudging them to quiet down or wake up, they can't punish students. So when the kids start acting out, you just have to ignore them and focus on the students who are trying to learn.
What's interesting is that the students who act out and don't listen to what you are saying, still get their assignment done in class at the last second, with the correct answers. How do they do it? I will never know. Although one boy was a hellion in class, he has actually made a point to say hello to me and introduce himself, and his friends to me in the hallway. He even came in the teacher's room not even 10 minutes ago while I was writing this blog to say hello. These kids are awesome.
The 1st years today and yesterday were so much fun to work with. We played "Jeopardy" where I asked the students questions about myself and they had to talk amongst their group of 4 or 5 to come up with an answer. Those three classes were great. Every kid was responsive and a joy to be around.
Now I know that at some point, I am bound to have some bad classes, or misbehaved students. I am just glad that my first week ended on a high note. And as the final bell is about to signal the conclusion of today's classes, there's nothing left to do but smile, smile, smile.
