I am currently in the brief limbo period between the end of
work and the beginning of my Christmas holiday back home in the states. If you
care enough to read this, I’m sure you know by now that I’m soon to return to
the USA with Sharman for the end of the year. In twelve hours, I’ll be out the door
and on my long journey back home! Assuming the apocalypse doesn’t take place before
then…
Now marks the end of my first full term working at a primary
school. Overall, I’ve been very happy with the decision to work where I do.
In a nutshell, my job is helping out 6-year-olds all day long at a school a
fifteen-minute walk from my house. Sweet. But from another perspective, I’m
gaining valuable experience at a real school and trying to figure out if this
is the type of work I want to commit to and foster a career in. I say “real
school” because the last school I was at was so unusual in structure (since it
is for such small kids) that it almost felt more like a daycare than a school.
My current school has students that stay from morning through the afternoon,
feed themselves, have one main teacher, play at recess, ride on school busses and
so on. My preschool last year had none of the above.
Another huge plus about the primary is the staff around me.
I figured this out from the get go, but this school has some very talented
teachers and though they may not realize it, they are teaching me as much as
the kids, particularly my lead teacher Katie. As our old principal encouraged
me to do, I’m looking at this time as almost an apprenticeship before I take
steps to become a real certified teacher. Sooner or later, I certainly will
advance my education beyond my Bachelor’s and my TEFL certificate. And for the past few months, I've been pondering just when, where and how I may try to do this.
One downside that I’ve found at both the schools I’ve worked
at now is the business-like aspect of the organization. Perhaps this is just
the nature of the beast, but both schools I’ve been at have seemed to be a bit
too motivated by cash. I won’t give any specific examples, but cutting general classroom resource costs, adding student fees at every opportunity and marketing like mad are among the trends.
It’s not a perfect world. Maybe one day I’ll work at a school in which quality
education trumps financial interest. I hope.
Still, in my day-to-day routine, this isn’t a significant
issue on my mind. I love the kids and I love my coworkers, and when you’re
surrounded by people you love, life is generally quite enjoyable. There are
stressful days now and again for many a reason, but holistically, my full-time
gig is a fulfilling one. Merry Christmas!
