Taking The Long Way: Internationally Known (just not on the microphone)

Well...my illustrious teaching career has hit a bump in the road. The director, Hector, and I just didn't see eye to eye on the whole teaching English thing, to put it lightly. It all began on Wednesday in my second grade class. Two boys started fighting (fist fighting) and I had to physically pull them apart. So I proceeded to do what I had seen their teacher do and send the perpetrators out into the hallway. Well one boy simply refused to go. I kept telling him to go outside and he just kept shaking his head saying no, no. So finally I forced him into the hallway where...one boy kept making faces at the rest of the class and the other boy proceeded to punch another boy through the window from out in the hallway. I went out to yell at the window punching boy only to have three more boys join in the fight from the inside of the classroom. So I go back in the classroom to break this fight up. Meanwhile, another boy takes his book and hits the boy who's been ganged up on upside the head with it. Three Stooges style. Which is funny on tv, not so funny when its second grade boys in a classroom. It was out of control so I got a boy I trusted to go down and tell the director what was going on and that I needed his help. He strolls up to my classroom ten minutes later. I told him exactly what happened and exactly who was doing what. His response: Ok, ok, everybody calm down and sit down. There's only 15 minutes left of class so why don't we all just calm down until class is over. WHAT? I have six boys physically fighting in my classroom and your response is just run out the clock? Then he turns to me and says, I'm going to need to speak with you tomorrow morning before school.

So...six boys try to beat each other up in my classroom and who gets sent to the principals office? Me!

So I show up the next morning half an hour before school starts and surprise surprise, Hector isn't there. So I wait around for fifteen minutes until he meanders in to talk to me. Then the lecture begins. Basically to sum it up, CEYCI is a very prestigious school and they've been around for 28 years and have certain expectations of their teachers and staff. They're not just a nationally known school but an internationally known school. (doubtful.) They can't afford to have their reputation slip because of me. Then he proceeds to pull out 2 students books from my first and second grade class to go over with me. He pulls out the first grade book and flips through it going nothing, nothing, nothing. Then gets mad because there's not much completed in the workbook. After repeatedly trying to explain myself he finally lets me. The first graders can't read and write! In any language. What good is having them fill in the blanks when they don't know what they're filling in. He seemed to disagree. He told me I should be going around the classroom helping them with their assignments. Which, I pointed out, I do. But they can't read! or write! So me going around helping them with their assignments was basically me going around doing their assignments. Which I thought was pointless. Then he showed me where I had the first graders write down the class rules (where I learned they didn't know what they were writing) and boy, was he FURIOUS. He yelled that the rules are something you put in the classroom, not in the notebooks! Wow. Apparently I committed a cardinal sin or something there. He was enraged I would even think about doing that. He was also very angry I had brought outside books to read to the preschoolers. Their student books were by Macmillion, and internationally known company, and should be all I needed to use. Woah, sorry for trying to get the three year olds excited about colors! By the way, they loved Big Green Monster. What educator gets pissed when you try to read to kids? That should have been my first clue this guy was nuts. Then he yells at me for not using the audio cds that came with the books. To which I responded equally vehemently because I had stopped by the office every day the previous week to try to get a CD player to use and either no one was to be found in the main office or the lady that was there either a) didn't know where the CD player was or b) didn't have a key to unlock it from where it was. Hector, by the way, was no where to be found on any of these occasion. So he rants and raves a little bit more then tells me he needs to talk to the second and third in command at the school about what to do and they'll let me know at the end of the day.

Awesome. Let me tell you, I was sooo excited to go teach after that. Not.

So at the end of the day he proceeds to tell me that he didn't have time to check with the other people and I should come talk to him before class the next day. So the next morning I show up only to be told that Hector had to go somewhere else to do something else and I should come back after class.

So I go teach my classes knowing full well that this is most likely my last day doing so. After school Hector has me wait around for another 20 minutes before talking to me. Long story short: I get fired. But not before I let Hector have it. Oh, thank you K-State Spanish department, turns out I learned more than I had thought.

I tell Hector it's probably a good idea that I not work there any more because it's clear we have very different values when it comes to teaching students. He thinks I should use a book and have students write down words that mean nothing to me and use only the book. I told him that was a poor choice because not only do many students have different learning styles and don't learn out of books I didn't feel like wasting the children's time and my time with having them "draw" letters, which is what they said when I asked them to fill in the blanks. Not write, but draw. Hector tries to tell me it's common practice to have first graders trace letters. Which I responded that I was aware it was common practice when teaching children to read and write but they had hired me to teach them English, not reading and writing, and that was what I did. I also told him I was accustomed to directors or principals or whatever you chose to call them being the leader of the school and disciplinarians and he was neither of those things. I retold the story and how I was shocked and appalled that his response to children physically fighting in the classroom was, school's almost over, just wait a few more minutes. I said maybe I just hadn't been there long enough to learn it but it didn't seem like there was any sort of system of discipline or punishment in place for kids who didn't behave. Turns out, I was right. They straight up told me there wasn't and that they couldn't punish the kids. I wasn't talking beating them with a stick (although I'm not so sure some of those kids didn't deserve a little whacking) but maybe a detention? extra homework? something for goodness sake! Nope, nada. They were also fully aware they had a bully problem but thought there was nothing they could do about it. One boy cried and told me he hates school so much because the other boys are so mean to him that he cries every night and begs his mom to change schools. Every day is the same and I hate it he told me. Turns out, the director knew about this and chose not to address it. Definitely no, "it gets better" campaign at that school! So after a few more minutes of me telling him I was of the belief that it doesn't matter so much how kids learn as the fact that they are learning and he was of the belief that it needed to appear kids were working so their parents would continue to pay the big bucks and if he had actually talked to any of the children he would have realized they were in fact learning, Hector gets up and leaves. Just plain old walks out. Finally he comes back and it's clear it's time for me to leave so I ask him for my documents (which I gave them when they said they were going to go to the immigration office the next day) The third in command lady gets confused and gets them but doesn't understand why she's giving them back to me. She asks, wait, is she not going to teach preschool any more either? A resounding NO was the answer. Looks like they had thought about having me teach the two preschool classes only but I think I pissed Hector off too much. Sorry buddy, but if you're going to make me sit there and listen to what a horrible teacher I am I'm going to have some of my own things to share with you.

So I was sitting on my high horse staring Hector down when he gets up and leaves again. Welp, see ya later? The third in command lady, who is still somewhat confused (and actually a very nice lady) prints out a sheet I have to sign saying I no longer work there then proceeds to tell me that she has all my contact information so if anything comes up for like after school activities or something she'll give me a call. (thanks but no thanks) then she proceeds to thank me for everything and tell me it's a real shame things didn't work out and give me a hug goodbye. Ah, come on! I was good until someone started being all nice to me. Then the emotions started to surface. She lets me out (because the place is locked up and you need to have someone with a key let you in & out) and it is just POURING. and of course, I don't have an umbrella. So I'm walking to the bus stop in the pouring rain when I just start crying. hard. Even though I was thinking about quitting and I hated going to work everyday, it still sucks to get fired! Plus it was like a scene out of a damn movie. I get fired from my first job and it's raining cats and dogs and I'm walking in a downpour crying. All I needed was a sad song playing in the background or a bus to drive by and splash me for it to be complete.

But, I've never had to quit a job either and I was leaning towards doing that with this school. And I'm not too sure I would be better at quitting a job than getting fired so maybe it's for the best I just got to tell Hector off then make my way home (in the pouring rain.) Also, making a proud, graceful exit (which was my original intention) after being (unjustly, in my opinion) fired is much more difficult when you're soaked.

So this week I'm back to applying for jobs so we'll see how round 2 goes!

On a less comical note, pictures from Octavio's birthday weekend:

Octavio's friend (in the blueish-purple) plays that little guitar so we went to a "fandango" where a bunch of people were playing, singing, and dancing. And eating really tasty tamales!