9/4/07
Laura has a job. Staci is here – and she likes to make food. YAY. Except that much of what she makes is contingent on someone else doing the baking (someone last year loved to bake) – so I am the new baking trainee. Hm… we’ll see I guess.
Yesterday was the worst teaching experience so far. I set up a measurements lab, so that we could learn how to measure length, volume, time, mass, and temperature. We don’t really have the equipment to do temperature, so I just pretended with a blackboard thermometer. Anyways, 4 out of 5 classes went really smoothly. Then the 5th, the last period of the day, was awful. The kids would not listen to the instructions but then when the lab started they would ask questions. They would get up and walk around and sing and dance and stuff, after I had repeatedly yelled at them or politely asked them to stop. So, finally, I lost it. I asked them how old they were – “15”… ”16”… and I said really?! Because you are acting like 5th graders! (which does not sound as cliché when your first language isn’t English)… then I went on to say “some of you are out getting pregnant or impregnating people – if you are old enough to do that then you are old enough to shut up and follow directions!” That shut them up. And while it may have been abrupt, it’s true – I have 5 students on my roster that haven’t come yet and have cancelled their registrations because they got pregnant or found out they were pregnant between the time of registration and the time school started. This is not because they don’t have access to birth control or don’t know how to use it – condoms are free at the hospital and the school (we have a box in our house that kids will come and ask for) and they have had sex-ed since 7th grade. So I told them, if you’re old enough to make adult decisions, you’re old enough to act like an adult. Then I cancelled the measurement lesson and made them write a composition on why they were in school. I got some interesting responses. Most of them were “I’m sorry,” or weird clichés like “education is key for our children and future.” Some were like “so I can get job on Kwaj” (the American military base that is the reason for Ebeye’s massive influx of people) or “so I am ready for family.” Anyway, at the end of class, I told them not to come back tomorrow and to stay in Ebeye unless they changed their attitude and decided to follow the rules instead of making my life miserable. I explained why I am here, how I am not getting paid, and how I think their education is important but I can’t help them unless they help me. Today was a million times better. Three or four kids didn’t show up for class, but the class actually got to learn. And now the kids in that class are terrified of me.
A friend of mine recently emailed me some questions – and I thought they were good ones, so I am going to post the answers here. You guys should all do the same thing – if you want to know, chances are other people do too and I am just forgetting to state the obvious… so email me.
Do you still feel like you made the right decision? Yes, I do. I’m glad I am here. Part of me wishes I had gone somewhere that would allow me to use more of my econ degree (instead of teaching science) but yeah, I am still excited about being here.
Is it beautiful there? Yes and no. Ebeye is a ghetto – there are virtually no trees or vegetation, people defecate in the ocean and urinate on the streets, and it is more impoverished than any American city I have ever seen. Its “beaches” are covered in trash, and the ocean around it smells of sewerage. On the other hand, most of Gugeegue is absolutely awesome – there is still some trash lining the shore – in particular old machinery is just left wherever it last worked to rot away for eternity, including a huge ship that appears to have rammed into the old dock (before the causeway was built). The beach we sometimes go to is one of the most beautiful places in the world, but it’s owned by the chief, so we have to be very discrete when we go there.
Have you made any friends? Yes. Mostly just the other American teachers, but there is a family (the mom is Phillipina, the dad is from the Gilbert Islands, but the 16 children (!!! the origin of all of them is unclear) are Marshallese since they have lived here forever. They come over and hang out every night, and vary in age from a senior in high school to little 5 year olds. Last weekend we had a little welcome party and sang karaoke with them and danced and then the adults played cards, all at laura’s apartment next door.
What do you do in your spare time? In my spare time I like to go spear fishing (usually without the intent to spear anything) or just hang out at the beach, or read Harry Potter – I started when I got here and I am halfway through year 3. Also, I eat. Lots and lots of food. The heat has made my metabolism even (unbelievably) faster