Well, it is a lazy Sunday evening even though it has been a rather busy but uneventful day. Catching up on my homework is an unenviable task, but necessary nonetheless. It has been an interesting week because I met a very fascinating person in a rather unconventional way, and am looking forward to meeting in person soon. The difficulties of living a significant distance apart may be worrisome, or may dissipate, depending upon one's point of view.
Testing will rev up again tomorrow and will keep me (and my poor students) busy for another couple of weeks. It would be lovely to think I could wrap it all up more quickly, but it does not seem likely. This past week saw me on the verge of tears watching my lovely fourth grade Arabic-speaking student practice her test on a laptop, in English, when she could not understand anything on the screen. The test was previously administered with paper and pencil and, if a student could not, or did not, answer more than a few questions in a row, one could stop the test. With this lovely computerized interactive version, the student, regardless of English level, will begin with the listening portion, which consists of a great deal of verbal computerized instruction followed by approximately 30 questions, all in English. In order to advance from one question to the next, an answer choice is required. After wading through this first trial, a student goes on to a similarly-formatted reading segment and speaking as well. The writing is the last segment and, even if a student could not answer a single question, he or she must begin an online writing portion. After spending several weeks trying to work with newcomer students and trying to show them (and their instructors) ways that they can be successful in a classroom, we sit them down in a desk and say "have at it" without any supports at all. It is thoroughly disheartening. And, when I went to get the poor girl to take the actual test, her classroom teacher said that the student had stopped doing any work at all since the day we practiced the test. Not something that is nice to hear.
This week one class ends for me while another has just gotten under way. On top of these two, I am participating in a Coursera class on Sustainable Development and an East Asia Society book group on "Reading the Mao Years". I would love to just get away for a few days with no worries,but I would probably be worried no matter where I am. Better to stay on track and keep the shoulder to the wheel, right?
Fingers crossed that I get some good news from Colorado on a seminar I hope to attend, good news from a seminar in Chicago, and that all goes well for my presentation of action research at the GLOBELT 2016 Conference in Antalya, Turkey! Thank God for a very cool friend who will be meeting me there for moral support. Thank you, Sarah Healy!! Also, I have my fingers crossed for continued luck with a very special person as we continue to get acquainted.
Sunday, February 21, 2016
Monday, February 15, 2016
Slow Day, Snow Day
Anticipated bad weather has made a regular mid-February weekend into four days and that is good and bad. Since I was rather sick last week and had to work due to test administration for my students, I have taken advantage of the extra time to recuperate as well as I can. However, testing for my students has now gotten seriously off track and, with everything being online this year for the first time, it may create issues down the line when we are trying to finish up and get on with our Spring Break. I hope that will not be the case this year!
When the weather is grey and cold, it seems as if time passes more slowly when, of course, it does not. Catching up on work missed while sick is probably the most boring and annoying pastime one could possibly engage in, but that has been mine for the last three days. I hope to finish it all up today because I begin a new course tomorrow for my full licensure, and it looks to be rather time-consuming....on top of the doctoral class, preparing to present at the GLOBELT Conference and being a single parent. I said last time that I would try to write more this year and take advantage of opportunities which present themselves. Well, sometimes there is an over-abundance of opportunities presenting themselves at once, so I have begun to fill up my Google calendar like never before. I wish that I had the time to put all of my miscellaneous deadlines into it as well, rather than carry around several calendars of mixed efficiency-levels. Perhaps I will show myself how after wrapping up all the craziness of the day.
You may or may not know this about me, but I have written poetry and fiction off and on (more off than on of late) since my high school years, and am taking it up again in earnest to try to write an anthology of poems about major historical events (and minor ones which have gotten a lot of misguided press) directed toward students of various ages. I want for them to be catchy enough that kids can understand the major players and political situations, but interesting enough for other audiences as well. Wish me luck! I have eight written and would like to have it at about fifty before submission.
When the weather is grey and cold, it seems as if time passes more slowly when, of course, it does not. Catching up on work missed while sick is probably the most boring and annoying pastime one could possibly engage in, but that has been mine for the last three days. I hope to finish it all up today because I begin a new course tomorrow for my full licensure, and it looks to be rather time-consuming....on top of the doctoral class, preparing to present at the GLOBELT Conference and being a single parent. I said last time that I would try to write more this year and take advantage of opportunities which present themselves. Well, sometimes there is an over-abundance of opportunities presenting themselves at once, so I have begun to fill up my Google calendar like never before. I wish that I had the time to put all of my miscellaneous deadlines into it as well, rather than carry around several calendars of mixed efficiency-levels. Perhaps I will show myself how after wrapping up all the craziness of the day.
You may or may not know this about me, but I have written poetry and fiction off and on (more off than on of late) since my high school years, and am taking it up again in earnest to try to write an anthology of poems about major historical events (and minor ones which have gotten a lot of misguided press) directed toward students of various ages. I want for them to be catchy enough that kids can understand the major players and political situations, but interesting enough for other audiences as well. Wish me luck! I have eight written and would like to have it at about fifty before submission.
Tuesday, February 9, 2016
Another year. Another project. Another opportunity.
Well, I have not been as prolific as I should have been in 2015, although I must say that I was as prolific as my time and schedule allowed me to be. I hope to do better as this year progresses because there are great things on the horizon, all things considered.
On a personal note, I am still employed in a rural Southern high-needs school district as an ESL teacher. I am half-way through my Ed.D. studies in transformative leadership. Let's not get started on the craziness of having a doctorate and not qualifying locally for a job which requires a master's degree in leadership...because my master's degree was in something else. That rant alone could go on for days. One of my sons recently turned 17 and another one 16, so the hormones and attitude level in my abode is a bit, shall we say, charged? Testing my ESL students has begun and this year most will be done in an online format. It will be an interesting few weeks, but I am anticipating that all will go swimmingly.
Since we last spoke, I have had some very interesting experiences, including an incredible educators' seminar at the University of Colorado at Boulder on Korea into the 21st Century, which I did not want to end, a research grant in Boston at the Massachusetts Historical Society (and a stay with a wonderful group of people while I was there, along with meeting others :)) which I found enlightening and fascinating. Both of these occurred in the Summer of 2015. In the Fall, I began back at work, traveled to Mexico to present a project at the MEXTESOL 2015 Conference and traveled for the first time to Korea. Since it was the second year at a MEXTESOL conference, it was not terribly interesting, although I did meet some interesting people. BUT KOREA. If I had brought my sons along, I would never have come back! I certainly had not expected to fall in love with Seoul, with Gimje, with Iksan City. With the people. With the history. With the technology, transportation and food. I wanted to take my sons there to see how they like it so I can start applying to teach, but finances will not allow it this year due to my next fascinating news...
I will be presenting some research at the GLOBELT2016 Conference in Antalya, Turkey, in April! It is disappointing that my business-related travel must come out-of-pocket, but the opportunity to be published in a European linguistics journal is too great to pass up.
So, on top of my doctoral courses, licensure courses and study of Korean, I am also studying Turkish and maintaining my family and my employment obligations. Ah, to spend Spring Break in Korea smelling cherry blossoms, but alas! Not quite yet.
Paperwork for Summer opportunities is coming due fast and furious, and trying to maintain everything in order is much harder than it has been in recent memory. Fingers crossed that all will come to pass as I am anticipating, and that all is well on the horizon for this year!
On a personal note, I am still employed in a rural Southern high-needs school district as an ESL teacher. I am half-way through my Ed.D. studies in transformative leadership. Let's not get started on the craziness of having a doctorate and not qualifying locally for a job which requires a master's degree in leadership...because my master's degree was in something else. That rant alone could go on for days. One of my sons recently turned 17 and another one 16, so the hormones and attitude level in my abode is a bit, shall we say, charged? Testing my ESL students has begun and this year most will be done in an online format. It will be an interesting few weeks, but I am anticipating that all will go swimmingly.
Since we last spoke, I have had some very interesting experiences, including an incredible educators' seminar at the University of Colorado at Boulder on Korea into the 21st Century, which I did not want to end, a research grant in Boston at the Massachusetts Historical Society (and a stay with a wonderful group of people while I was there, along with meeting others :)) which I found enlightening and fascinating. Both of these occurred in the Summer of 2015. In the Fall, I began back at work, traveled to Mexico to present a project at the MEXTESOL 2015 Conference and traveled for the first time to Korea. Since it was the second year at a MEXTESOL conference, it was not terribly interesting, although I did meet some interesting people. BUT KOREA. If I had brought my sons along, I would never have come back! I certainly had not expected to fall in love with Seoul, with Gimje, with Iksan City. With the people. With the history. With the technology, transportation and food. I wanted to take my sons there to see how they like it so I can start applying to teach, but finances will not allow it this year due to my next fascinating news...
I will be presenting some research at the GLOBELT2016 Conference in Antalya, Turkey, in April! It is disappointing that my business-related travel must come out-of-pocket, but the opportunity to be published in a European linguistics journal is too great to pass up.
So, on top of my doctoral courses, licensure courses and study of Korean, I am also studying Turkish and maintaining my family and my employment obligations. Ah, to spend Spring Break in Korea smelling cherry blossoms, but alas! Not quite yet.
Paperwork for Summer opportunities is coming due fast and furious, and trying to maintain everything in order is much harder than it has been in recent memory. Fingers crossed that all will come to pass as I am anticipating, and that all is well on the horizon for this year!
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