End of Practicum Phase III

I've been through 12 weeks of practicum, and this practicum has been the best one ever.

I love everything about SK TRJ, except the canteen food. The admin and teachers there were so nice to us and treated us like real teachers instead of their personal assistants/free labour. Everyone was eager to help us and make our stay the best one possible. I am so in love with that school.

I can only conclude that if the school admin is ok, everything else falls into place. I love SK TRJ, and I even miss the admin there more than the students. =P

In terms of students, other than the discipline level, SK TRJ has a wonderful bunch of kids. They are still...kids, not teenager wannabes. I was impressed that the young girls didn't send the handsome male trainees love letters and stalk them like what I'd previously witnessed in other schools. The kids were really sweet, too. I entered some classes only for relief, but the kids in those classes still greet me and beam at me happily every time I see them. Some children even gave us gifts and cards even though we did not teach them. The whole school practically oozed affection for us.

I had a really great practicum experience in this school, and what's more - I learnt that the small things matter. When the GB smiles at you genuinely every time you meet him, and he sincerely asks if he can help you with anything, it means a LOT. When the technician and clerk in charge of photostating never grumble when you ask them for help and fulfill their duties willingly, it makes you feel like a part of the school with equal rights.

I can only hope to get posted to a school like that in future.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Not Everyone who Speaks the Language can Teach It

One of my latest undertakings is signing up for an online TESOL certificate by Arizona State University through Coursera. The course started this week, but it's a pretty laid-back course since it only demands about 2-4 hours of study each week. The downside is that it would take perhaps a year or more to get my certificate since it's going at such a leisurely pace. What I do have is time, however, so I'm not too concerned about that. Anyway, I completed my first assignment two days ago, and felt like posting it up here. The assignment was to state my opinion in 1-4 paragraphs on the statement "Anyone who speaks the language can teach the language". Since many believe just about anybody can teach and that teachers aren't really professionals, here's my two cents about it. Not Everyone who Speaks the Language can Teach It My name is May, and I strongly disagree with the assumption that “Anyone who speaks the language can teach the language.” My reason
Read more

Things I wish I had known before I started working

Teaching is something I've always known I wanted to do. I went through a rigorous teacher training course - well, it was rigorous in the way it took me out of my comfort zone, even if not rigorous in an academic sense - and had practicums in 3 different schools for a total of 6 months, so I thought I was prepared for the world of teaching. Make no mistake, I was about 70% prepared, but there were still some things that took me by surprise. Here's a list of what I've discovered over the past 10 months of being in an international school. #1 How physically and mentally tired I am every single working day I usually get off earlier than JW does because school lets out at 4pm. When I get back home, though, I'm so drained from the day that I don't want to do anything that requires physical or mental resources. JW, on the other hand, is relatively fresh at the end of the work day. We've figured out that teaching in the primary school is more physically taxing tha
Read more

Library membership woots!

Bright, cheery sunshine certainly makes everything else in the world seem brighter and cheerier. On that note, it's mid December and the weather has been surprisingly pleasant - think 24 degrees Celsius last week, and right now it's still pretty warm (for December, that is). Checked the weather forecast for Christmas, and it's going to be 21 degrees Celsius! Every Malaysian's dream come true! =D And to think that just a month ago, it hit -1 degree Celsius. Uncanny, eh? Apparently the South fluctuates pretty unpredictably when it comes to the weather. Warm winters aren't all that uncommon, and I'm hoping this one stays warm for a longer time. It'd be a wonderful Christmas gift to have Malaysian-like weather instead of the bitter, dry cold. =D On another note, Jia Wern and I finally went to the library to get our library cards made! I wonder why I never thought of this earlier. Perhaps it's because e-books are cheap here and can be auto-delivered in
Read more