That’s a wrap!

I never imagined that my first year teaching would be completed in East Java, Indonesia.

Yet here I am, exactly two years after graduating from Carleton and I have just done it!

Naughty boy Hakim and I at Parangtritis Beach in Jogjakarta. We were on a school "study tour."

Gotta remind everyone of this beast!

Storyboard cards with some Sarah Prather flavor! This is about the Emperor's New Clothes.

 Some unexpected things about my first year teaching?

-       Teaching English
-       Co-teaching with an Indonesian teacher
-       Teaching in an Islamic high school
-       Having students that are failing the class and they don’t care. And the Indonesian teacher doesn’t care. And thus I have to let it go and not care. They will magically pass regardless. That’s my school.
-       My female students sit on one side of the class and my male students on the other.
-       My students wear uniforms.
-       Sometimes we end the class by praying.
-       2 female students dropped out to get married.
-       Speaking more Indonesian than English in my class.
-       Realizing that my handle on English grammar is rather non-existent. Why do we say bluer and not more blue? Crazier and not more crazy? Google it! (key word to Google: positive, comparative, and superlative)
-       Only teaching each group of students two times a week…if school is not cancelled.
-       Teaching only 64% of the scheduled classes semester two (I kept track), because of meetings, sporting events, testing, planting trees, field trip to Jogjakarta (a large majority of which was spent on a bus), elections, holidays, visiting families who had suffered the death of a family member, and other random cancellations.
-       Hardly ever, ever, ever giving homework because my co-teachers aren’t really interested in setting a precedent for the students to be held accountable for doing it.
-       Having cheating be a norm during my tests. Again, lack of co-teacher care leaves me shrugging and repeating the mantra, “only two years here, only two years here.”

Snakes and Ladders to learn verb tenses

Idul Adha, sacrificing animals at school together...

10th graders learning the ropes for some day when they go on the hajj

 

Some great things about this year?

-       My students want and try to get to know me. They are interested in me because I am so different. This is only gonna last these two years, I tell myself, so make it count!
-       I have gotten to see a lot of theories about how to teach well in action and work well.
-       I have learned that I have a knack for reading the students and knowing when they don’t get it. Thus, I directly change what we are doing so as to engage more students and make things less confusing. This is a skill I unfortunately do not see frequently enough from my co-teachers.
-       I am a workaholic. This could be both good and bad, I guess, but I think it shows dedication. I am always ready to lesson plan (unless I’m using the internet, darn it, just give me a minute!) and ready to discuss how to improve the classroom. While again, my co-teachers appear not to have as much time, I guess that’s what happens when you have a family and other responsibilities at school. At the very least, it gives me a moment to breathe and meet with students and show them that someone really, really cares about them!
-       Students think some of my ideas are crazy. This means I am shocking them, which is indicative of my spirit animal, the cockroach. Amiiiiiiin! (That’s “Amen” in Arabic/Indonesian)

Ninik!

The weekly flag ceremony

Some areas of improvement for next year?

-       Try to get to class on time
-       Try to hold students accountable for absence, lateness, doing homework, cheating (aka change the entire school culture) Good luck, me.
-       Try to speak way more English in class and encourage my co-teachers to do so, too.
-       Try to be more organized and have things ready to teach earlier.
-       Try to be more compassionate and patient.

IPS II

IPS I

IPA

 Some things I am excited for when I teach in the US?

-       Students doing their homework and not cheating (nearly as much)

-       Class not being cancelled

-       Loudspeakers and microphones that are clear and work well

-       Meeting with my students every day instead of two times a week

-       Students getting real grades that reflect their real abilities (though that raises the issue of how do I holistically grade so as to really, truly reflect their abilities?) At the very least, it’s better than the ten random grades that are randomly slapped into the grade book by my co-teachers.

-       Helping students reach their full potential, something I find a big challenge here with all the slacker boys and shy girls.

-       Being able to give motivational speeches where the students understand what the heck I’m saying.

-       Three months of summer break.

-       Understanding the schooling system. Why things work the way they do and who is accountable for what.

-       Speaking of accountability, wouldn’t it be nice if all countries had both teacher and student accountability? Guess what? This country doesn’t have that. What do I mean by accountability?

o   Teacher accountability: accurate grading, always coming to class, coming to class on time, being able to easily explain why someone got the grade they did, having prepared and engaging lesson plans!

o   Student accountability: doing the homework, not cheating on tests, coming to class, at least trying to engage in the lesson, trying to focus, cooperating with a teacher who is busting her butt to try to help you d@mmit! 

Receiving an award and salim-ing

So, final reflections?

…Teaching is great, I love it!

Teaching English? Eh, not really diggin’ it. Can’t wait to get my hands on that social studies back home!

Teaching rather innocent, village-dwelling Muslim kids? (I don’t mean that to be demeaning, but factual). Fabulous. Though it makes for an annoying time when I pick a girl and boy randomly to come to the front and everyone loudly “woo!”s as though they’ve never stood next to a boy/girl. Whoever taught Indonesians to say “So sweet!” should be punished because it’s as annoying as heck. But truly, most of these students have a sweetness to them that raunchy-film-watching, drug-smoking American teens don’t have. 

Here’s to another, more successful year… and may I have the stamina to be an American teacher in the US after these two years of such relaxed teaching!!