As usual, things have been very busy in the past week. I finally handed in all my remaining assignments today, and I feel great! Like a big load is off my shoulders. I still have other things to do, however. I was supposed to do a supervised teaching on Friday, but because of various reasons, only 1 student showed up. So I'm doing it tomorrow instead. I'm a little nervous, but we'll see how it goes.
I just wanted to write some thoughts down... Some people lately have been venting about how they're not happy in their chosen field of study. Many of you can attest to this feeling, especially in December when the stress levels build. One person told me that he wishes he had studied something else, that he hates his current job and that he's miserable. He wonders how I had the courage to change majors when I was already done 2 years of economics. Well, I figured, it was making me miserable, so I'd rather do something I enjoy.
I enjoy teaching. This term, I was placed in a community class. My students are all women, and they're also all mothers. They have a bit of a common bond, even if they're from very different parts of the world. It's a bit like social work, which is what I was thinking of going into. The way I see it, these women are so brave. Being in a new country, learning the language, taking care of the kids (with or without a husband), keeping their families together, everything. It is truly rewarding to be able to help empower them to learn the language that we speak. The smiles I get when I help them get through a simple paragraph of text, and the "thank you, teacher" that they tell me... makes the whole day sunnier (easy enough tho, since we're stuck in a basement room).
The pay sucks, but hey, I might not even find a job. The hours are long, I don't get paid for prep-time, and I might get burnt out. But it feels so darned good that I just don't care. If I wanted the money, I would've tried to stay in econ. I am going to do what I like doing. It makes me happy and it makes a lot of other people happy too.
In a way, I realize that I take it for granted being a second-generation Canadian. My mom went through English classes, that were probably somewhat similar, although I'm sure the theoretical teaching methods were different back in her day. She had kids soon after she got to Canada - she must've gone to lamaze (sp?) classes in English too. Heck, my family used to live in Kemptville, I'm sure EVERYone there speaks English (and nothing else). You'd be surprised what we take for granted... things like how to fill in a form, learning about greeting cards and occasions, people-describing adjectives, and all sorts of things. I kind of see it like giving back to the community. My mom learned English from someone who cared - I want to give these students some of that too.
Thanks Mommy.
