When I
first found out my practicum placement my reaction was excitement and then
hesitation.
Wait, they use first names to address teachers there.
That’s going to be a bit of a culture change.
While I was
focused on losing the, in my mind, affectionate moniker of ‘Mr. Willems’, I
didn’t really contemplate the section that informed me I would be teaching ESL.
I figured it would essentially be an English classroom—my traditional area of
focus—with a few students who really struggled at reading.
Turns out I
was a bit off.
The program
that I was thrown into was not quite what I was expecting. It is a unique
classroom that deals specifically with refugees from Nepal. Students who have
been in the country anywhere from two years to two weeks enter in to the classroom
to essentially learn how to adapt to Canada. There is no curriculum, as the
students have had almost no formal education in their lives, and there is no
assessment, as the idea of them graduating with a diploma is nothing more than
a distant concept.
In my five
years of teacher education I have not had a single class on how to teach a
classroom where the students don’t speak English, the culture and religion are
vastly different from anything I have known, the students are dealing with the
impact of living in refugee camps their entire lives, and the outcome and
assessment is entirely relational.
I met with
my cooperating teaching and he warned me that the job was really spontaneous—we
couldn’t plan in advance because our classroom direction was steered almost
entirely by the students and their individual needs. He warned that there would
be a lot of counseling—these students have a hard and sordid past; they have
experienced hardships we cannot wrap our brains around. He warned that it’s a
bit of unique bubble—the program is essentially separate from the school as it
is run through the district not the administration. He warned that the culture
shock may be large—these students have often no idea how to respond
appropriately to Canada.
I warned him
that I was a guy who had a preference for flying by the seat of his pants, had
a passion for travel and unique culture, a dislike for going by the books, and
a personal belief centered around caring for others above all else. I warned
him that this was my dream job.
I was set.
I just had
to work on the fact that literally the only thing I knew about Nepal is that it
is the home of Mt. Everest. And that I have zero knowledge on how to work with
students who have come from refugee camps. And that I haven’t the faintest clue
on how to plan a unit without a curriculum or an outcome.
But other
than that I was set.
I’ve been
with the kids for a month now and I have become extremely aware of how lucky I
am to be placed in this classroom. I get to spend my days studying culture and
building relationships as opposed to stressing about curriculum and assessment.
I get to have extremely candid conversations (albeit in pretty broken English)
about life and death from a perspective that I didn’t even know existed until a
month ago. The university is still watching me to make sure I am cut out for
all added pressure that being a teacher brings on, but I’M not sure I’m still
cut out for all the added pressure that being a teacher brings on. After only a
month of this alternate perspective, this program has opened my eyes, which I
have kept very intentionally shut for the past 5 years of university, to the
fact that I hate a lot of the administration and expectations that surrounds
education. I have said that I wanted to be a teacher all of my life, but ‘being
a teacher’ was the only socially acceptable response for where my passions
pointed. I want to see people grow and learn, and when filling out a career
questionnaire that automatically places me in the category of teacher.
And now,
I’m not so sure.
I don’t know what this will amount to. I really don’t. But I just know that I am super excited about these next three months, super tentative about the shift that is happening in my head, and super blessed to be able to experience it all.
I don’t know what this will amount to. I really don’t. But I just know that I am super excited about these next three months, super tentative about the shift that is happening in my head, and super blessed to be able to experience it all.