Things have been busy around here since Josh and I both started working. He found a job working for a medical device company on the North Shore and I just started teaching ESL. At first I was surprised to find out there's so much demand for this job in an English-speaking country, but now that I've had some exposure to it, I realize it makes complete sense: if you're really committed to learning a language, why not do it all the way and immerse yourself completely? It's much easier to get student visas in NZ than it is in the US or the UK, so there's quite a demand for English language teaching over here. While it's been really amazing getting to know people from around the world (and to have a job that makes a concrete difference in people's lives, sorry Real Housewives) it's definitely some of the hardest work I've ever done. When I had a (somewhat normal) office job, I got to go home every day and forget about work for a few hours. The weekend? All mine. Now I work almost every waking moment, and when I'm not awake, I dream about it. I have so much more appreciation for my teachers now. Before this I couldn't have imagined the amount of sweat and tears it takes to learn to teach well. Added to that, you're not getting paid for all that extra time planning, reviewing homework, or talking with your students after class. That's all you, going on your own steam. It takes a lot of love to do this job, and this experience has made me so much more grateful for all the wonderful teachers I've had, who freely gave me so much of their time and energy (and more sympathetic towards the bad ones who sat around growling between spoonfuls of yogurt). If everyone had to try this for a month, we'd be paying teachers so much more than we do. As it is, 3 weeks in I'm not completely sure I have what it takes.
|
Like our photos?You can thank the talented
Josh Salim for taking most of them. Check out his other work at joshsalim.weebly.com © Lady on the Tramp, 2016
Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without written permission from this blog’s author is prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Lady on the Tramp and www.ladyonthetramp.weebly.com with specific direction to the original content. Thanks! Archives.
April 2017
Categories.
All
|