I decided to quit teaching a few months before I got married and the very reason to that was because my husband’s job doesn’t allow us to stay in one place long enough for me have a steady teaching job. No school director in his or her right mind would like to hire a teacher who disappears every three months.  I decided to quit instead of getting short term teaching stints one after the other because of all the hassles and because that will not look good on my CV.

But that doesn’t mean I gave up earning money. I, of course, could but I didn’t want to so I looked for ways to earn money from home. I tried my hands on writing and online tutoring at the same time. I signed up at different websites that have pay-to-blog schemes and at online tutoring websites.  Earning money from writing happened first so I focused on it. For years, I’ve been doing it and I’m happy with the results. The online tutoring is a different story. I made teacher profiles in different online tutoring sites but I never got a client. Not one.  So, I forgot about it over time.

Last month, I got a nice surprise. Something I badly need to get me through this career crisis. Buddyschool.com sent me an email telling me that a client wants to schedule an online lesson with me. I was immediately thrilled at the idea of teaching online. I have never done it before but how difficult could it be? So I accepted the schedule and prepared for it.

My first online student is a six years old girl from Czech Republic. She can already speak a bit of English and her parents like to help her cultivate her English skills by hiring an online tutor for her. The first lesson went well and it was easy. K is a bright and talkative girl. I showed her stuffed animals I had prepared before the lesson and she told me what she knows about them. I felt that it was not a problem for K to warm up to me because she was also asking me questions.  I can just tell that K enjoyed the lesson and I enjoyed it too. A week later, K’s mom scheduled another lesson but I declined because of our holiday plans.

I thought that’s it. I thought that it will just be a onetime thing but when I got another request for a lesson yesterday, I was so thrilled.

Now, this got me thinking… if I get really unhappy with my teaching job I could quit it and focus on online tutoring.  What do you think? Go or no go?

I got my teaching job last summer and I remember quite well how I wished the summer would end soon so I can already start teaching. Haha. That was a year ago. Right now, I wish the summer would stretch longer so I don’t have to go to work soon. I still have a month of vacation and God knows how I savor each day of it whether I spend it somewhere or I spend it at home.

I am still in a crisis. I still don’t know if I want to continue teaching. Thing number 1 is, I need a job and thing number 2 is, it can’t be just any job so more or less, I will just go on with the teaching. Being an immigrant is playing a major part in my crisis and I am slowly getting tired of it.

Why can’t I get a better teaching job? Because I need a nostrification. Why do I need that? Because my degree is not recognized here. Why is that? Because I got it outside of EU. So why not just get a nostrification? Because it is a very complicated and a very long process.

And why can’t you get other jobs like an office job? Because my German is not good enough. And why can’t you get a manual job? Because I am not sure if I want that and my husband definitely doesn’t want that for me.

It all comes down to being a foreigner in this country and the fact that I want to have a baby and be a mother soon doesn’t make things easy for me either.  I feel that I am running out of time and my chances are thin. At this point of my life, it is either get a better teaching job or be a mother and that’s unfair because I want both so badly.

But how am I going manage both at the same time?

All of the teachers in the learning center where I work experienced some sort of complaints already and about two months ago, I also got my share.

The complaint was: I don’t have a British accent.

It was coming from a grandmother who sat twice in my class to observe me. Normally, children ages 5 and above are going in the class without their guardians but then one day, this particular grandma asked me if she could sit in my class and being the polite person that I am (*wink), I said okay. After the second time of observing me, she talked to my head teacher and told her that she wants another teacher for this group (where her granddaughter is in). And the reason she said is because I don’t have a British accent.

The bad thing is, this gradma talked to this group’s kids’ parents and told them that the group will be better off with another teacher (Note: This group was previously handled by another teacher before I took over).

Firstly, I never claimed that I have a British accent and secondly, I never even tried to speak with a British accent. So I am quite irked that the complaint is based on such shallow reason.

My head teacher is of course, on my side. She told me, it is not her first time to hear a complaint.  She said she got worse already but she said that the learning center is more than just a learning center, it is also a business and therefore; we should give the clients what they want no matter how shallow it is.

I didn’t try to reason out. For me, if they want another teacher then it is fine with me. I have too many classes anyway.  So everything’s agreed between me, my head teacher, and the grandma. We agreed that as soon as the LC gets a new teacher, this group will have a new teacher.

So yesterday, the new teacher came and starting next semester, she will teach this group. The sad thing is, not all of the parents agree to have a new teacher for this group because their kids want me as their teacher. So half of the kids would like to stay with me and the other half would be separated and will continue with the new teacher. But the problems are: the LC doesn’t have enough rooms for this particular time. So they don’t know where to do the separated class. They (parents themselves and my head teacher) don’t seem to agree on another schedule so they have to find a way settle that.  Another problem is the fact that “half of the group” is not enough to continue a group. 8 is the maximum number of kids in a group, 5-7 is ideal, but 4 is just too less (the LC won’t earn enough). So if things are not settled, this group could be abolished completely just because of one guardian who complained.

In my last post, I expressed the negative feelings I have towards my job and until now I still have those feelings but I decided to something about it.

Teachers here in Austria are paid well. They have very good benefits and very comfortable work conditions. I want that for myself too but that means I have to get a teaching job at a public school. Right now, I am teaching in a private learning center that is why I don’t enjoy all the advantages a public teacher has. I honestly like my job at the learning center and I could imagine working there longer if I were better paid and if I would have better work conditions but I obviously don’t.

So it’s time to move on.

Or, at least, prepare to move on and that’s what I am going to do this coming September.

I am going back to school.

I will take the required German courses in order for me to be eligible for nostrification. I’ve completed A1, A2, and B1 in Goethe Institute Shanghai but that’s not enough. I also have to take the last three courses, B2, C1, and C2. If all work well and if I successfully completed those courses, I can then apply for the nostrification. That means, the university (where I would like to study) will evaluate the degree I’ve completed in the Philippines and then they will tell me what courses/subjects I still have to take up. I think I also have to pass a certain exam to be given a place in the university.

I hate the nostrification. I think it’s just a bureaucratic nonsense. I do agree with the regulation that I have to have a perfect German to be able to teach here but for me to get a nostrification? It’s like them telling me that they don’t trust in the quality of education I got just because I got it outside the EU.

I’ve been avoiding this nostrification thing for a year now but I realized that I have to face it eventually if I really want to have a better teaching job here. I am still NOT 100% sure if I want to go through it but I will take a step towards it because anyway, learning German could only be good. If I decide to take a completely different path later, having good German skills will still be an asset.

I am going to whine and I hope this is the last time.

Semester break and Easter week came and went but I don’t feel like I’ve had a break from work for months (I would say years but I only started working last September).

Honestly speaking, I am tired and I feel like giving up some of my teaching loads. I only have 15 hours each week to teach but those 15 hours need around 20 hours of preparation. All in all, it’s 35 hours a week. That’s still 5 hours less than a regular worker’s working hours. That’s not a lot, right? WRONG!

It’s a lot and it sucks that I am only paid for the 15 hours of teaching. Many of you would probably wonder why I need 20 hours of preparation. Well, you see, we (me and my colleagues) have to have props when teaching. When I say props, I am not referring to a PowerPoint presentation which can be prepared in 10 minutes. Props, to us, are things the children can touch, play with, and manipulate. It is also much better if the prop is something the children haven’t seen yet. We do have several toys in the LC but more often than not, I can’t find that which fits to my lesson.

I have a complete room allotted to my teaching materials (not a big one but still, it’s a room  filled ONLY with my teaching materials). I create bingo card games, domino games, grid games, etc. I use colored cardboards, papers, magic tapes, laminating pouches, playdoh, etc.  And here’s another thing. I pay for all of these.

When I prayed for a job, I asked for a job I love doing. I said, it’s doesn’t matter how much I earn as long as it’s a teaching job. This was months ago. Things were different.

Right now, I wouldn’t be honest if I would say that I am satisfied with my job. I love teaching. There’s no doubt in that but I wish I were better paid.

Going back to “giving up some of my teaching loads”; I think that would do me good. We moved in to a new place and though that was month ago, we never seem to be finished with the cleaning, organizing, modifying, etcetera.  In short, there’s always something to be done. I wish I could have more time to spend on our new home.

I also wish I could have more time for my writing endeavors. Although, I manage to squeeze in this hobby to my very busy days, it is not at all easy. Sometimes, I have to postpone some things so I can write an article or two but I am trying to minimize this routine because I always end up being swamped. I try to finish all house chores and my teaching preparations before writing but most of the time, when I’m finally done with the things I MUST do, I’m too tired to do anything else.

I haven’t updated this blog for more than a month and based on how things look like at the moment, posts will be scarce for the following months.

Remember when I told you that I have 10 groups each week? Well, that changed on the second week of this month. I now have 15 groups. One of my colleagues is at an early stage of pregnancy and because she is experiencing some difficulties, her doctor advised her not to work. Her classes are now divided between me and another teacher.

I think, 15 groups a week is not a big problem. I can handle all of these groups smoothly if they were of the same program (level) but they aren’t. These 15 groups are scattered in five different programs. I could, of course, still do 15 groups in five different programs easily if the groups in each program were in the same lesson.  So it would be like preparing 5 lesson plans and 5 set of props each week but then again, that is not the case. The groups in each program are not in the same lesson. Some are in just in second lesson of Unit 2, others are in another lesson in another unit, and etc. In short, I always have to prepare 15 lessons plans and 15 sets of props each week.

Our learning center badly needs new teachers but the problem is; the next teacher training course will only be in the summer of this year so even if there were applicants now, they won’t be able to teach until the first school semester (September 2010).  By right, I could refuse to accept the additional classes but I don’t have the heart to do that to my head teacher. If I won’t accept these classes, there’s no choice for the learning center but to let these classes go.

I am now in my third week of this unbelievable stressful work load and surprisingly, I am able to cope with it. By “cope” I mean, I am able to prepare my lesson plans and deliver them properly, I am able to prepare the props needed in each lesson, I am never late, and I am never absent from any of my classes. But my “coping” doesn’t extend to housework and blogging.  Gosh! Our flat looks like a bomb just detonated in it and I can’t even begin to think of the pile of clothes waiting to be ironed! I could go on and on about how I am lacking time for other things but this blog is supposed to be about the joy of teaching and not the woes of a housewife or the frustrations of a blogger so I will stop now.

I do love to teach even if it means that I have to stay up all night preparing props and lesson plans but sometimes I wish that things were a little bit less taxing.

I would, of course, quote my source if I could remember where I got it but unfortunately, I can only be sure that it is from one of the innumerable blogs I came across with. I normally take note of nicely written, powerful, amusing, or interesting lines from the blogs, books, magazine, and newspapers I read and while going through my notes, I found this:

With the preponderance of rotten kids these days, I don’t think that teaching is such an ideal profession anymore.

The one who wrote this has a point. I am not sure if she (or he) is writing this in a teacher’s point of view but the part where she says that teaching is not an ideal profession is a part I can agree with. The part where she says that rotten kids are preponderant these days is also true but there are still nice kids so that sort of even things out. Having rotten kids is hardly the reason why teaching is not ideal.

Why is teaching not an ideal profession?

For one thing, it is noble and that explains it all. I think we could see it better if we put ourselves into the shoes of those teachers teaching in public schools in poor countries. Those who still, even under extremely difficult situation, practice this profession.

How many teachers have decent salaries? How many teachers have decent classrooms? How many teachers teach appropriate number of children in one class? How many teachers have access to necessary teaching materials? How many teachers have a manageable number of working hours per week? How many teachers have the chance of availing further education?

Not a lot.

If you are a teacher who has all these, consider yourself very lucky. I could understand if you’ll say that teaching is indeed ideal. But if you are not, then you have my (and others’) respect for pursuing this profession.  Not all of us can be as noble as Efren Piñaflorida but I believe, and I think a lot would agree, that by being in this profession and by trying hard to make the best out of what we have, we are, in our own rights, noble.

Photo courtesy of cnn.com

I admit I am not good with names.

During my practicum in the Philippines and during my one year teaching stint in China, I didn’t bother remembering the names of all my pupils. Having 50 children in a class and having at least four classes a day made it almost impossible to remember everybody. I believe it is but normal for a teacher who is in similar situation not to remember each pupil in her/his class.

Back in the Philippines, I was able to remember some names and usually they belong to the best and the worst pupils. I don’t play favorites or undesirables but those who stand out in the class i.e.; those who are probably too weird, too smart, too slow, etc. for my taste, usually find a way to my long term memory.

In China, it was simply IMPOSSIBLE. First and foremost, they have Chinese names that are too difficult to pronounce and remember. And if they decided to adopt English names (solely for the English teacher’s benefit or it could also be because they can’t have their Chinese names mispronounced over and over again), be prepared to have five Marys, about seven Johns, nine Adams, and 15 Lucys in the class. Also, I don’t know it if just me or it’s a common phenomena to all foreign teachers in China, but it’s like all Chinese children look alike. Imagine going in a classroom and doubting whether you already had this class or not because you look at their faces and they just look like those who were in your previous class but you are definitely in a different classroom. Get it? This happened to me a lot of times in China.

Here in Austria, not remembering ALL of your pupils’ names is a CRIME. Having a minimal number of pupils in a class, teachers here are sort of expected to remember each pupil—not for life but at least for the whole school year.

The biggest class I have is the one with nine pupils and although I know based from experience—not just with pupils but also with acquaintances— that I am bad with names, I haven’t yet failed to remember my pupils’ names. This could be because of their minimal number but I think the biggest factor there is the fact that kids here look so different from each other. Some have blond hair, some have green eyes, etc. The diversity is just so wide. And also, some names are quite striking for me—Birgit, Chonger, Hani, Karin, Jens (Yens), Walter (Val-ter), Georg (Gay-org). Names like those are not too easy to forget.

Being a non-native English speaker who is teaching English, I always have to worry about my pronunciation and my grammar. I often find myself stopping in the middle of a sentence because I am not sure what grammatical rule to follow. In short, I am not sure how to say things the right way (grammatically speaking).

True I got this job only after a thorough interview and an intensive training. In a private school in Austria that goes to say something but I still cannot relax. I want to be better in English especially because I am teaching it so I make sure that I do something every day to further improve my English skills. Among these things is reading.

I read a lot.

As child, I learned the love of reading from my friends who would come to school and talk about the latest Nancy Drew or Sweet Valley High book. Naturally, I didn’t like to be left behind so I also borrowed their books and read them at home. Unlike my friends, I grew up in a simple working class family and although me and my sisters were encouraged to do well at school, the love of reading and writing were not really given importance. In fact I can’t remember receiving a book as a gift. We were given things we need—like school supplies and clothing but books… hmm—the only books that were lying around the house were our public school textbooks.

Now I have stacks of books to read and other than that, there are several blogs I follow. I allot at least an hour each day to read. Although the influence of reading (English texts) on my English skills is not immediately evident, I know that it helps a lot.

I also like to write.

But unlike reading, I can’t write every day because I find it difficult to do so. Sure I can express what I mean in written words but not as beautifully as I want them to be expressed. My English writing skill is very limited but I am also working to improve it.

Living in a German speaking country means that 90% of what’s shown on TV and on cinema is dubbed in German. In a way, this helps me improve my German skills (which I also need to work on) so I don’t mind but if I have the chance, I watch films in English.

And I talk in English—at home and at work.

My colleagues, although their English are really good, are also non-native English speakers like me and my husband but nonetheless, talking in English to them, understanding them and being understood by them perfectly build up a certain level of confidence.

Then of course, I am still studying English when I have the time. I check my reference books when I am in doubt. I review grammar rules and learn new ones.

I hope that someday (if not sometime soon), I’ll reach that level where I can say that my English skills are more than good enough.

It looks like I am going to get another five groups in addition to the five groups assigned to me last week. That means 10 hours teaching time each week. Not bad. And compared to the 20 hours per week I got back in China, 10 hours should be like a walk in the park.

But it is not.

Those 10 hours of teaching mean an additional 30 hours (or more) for preparation (remember: we are BIG on props). So although 10 hours is not a full load yet, I think I have more than I can handle for now. I’ll see how I get by with these 10 groups and if I change my mind in the future, I’ll accept more. But… I don’t think I will.

More loads mean more money but a one has to be careful because more teaching loads could result to a poor quality of teaching. I know most teachers strive to give the best to their pupils but teachers are also humans, they have their limits too and for me a teaching time of 10 hours per week is my limit.