Friday, July 09, 2010
[11:35 PM]
So just for experience sake (or perhaps for kicks), we had our first real taste of primary school education. And it was very much enlightening I must say. At the risk of sounding cheesy, I have to say I really did learn a lot of things. My notebook is living proof. Every new thing I learned and observed were recorded down in ink and each day took up at least 8 pages.
Long gone are the days when children are smitten by the presence of their teachers. I will never forget the likes of Cikgu Aziz and Cikgu Esa who each were mightily fearsome that going for their classes was like a trip to hell. Such teachers don't exist anymore. We have advanced so far ahead in time that everything has now changed and I don't even know where to begin.
Since I have already made up my mind about my future destination, this past week at E. Pri would probably be the one and only opportunity I would ever have taking kids, unless I can make time for more RC classes in the future. Each day spent with those cute little things was like an episode of Southpark. I was simply waiting for some Mr. Garrison to walk in to class and some short fat smart ass Cartman to say something stupid. And I was hoping to see a canteen vendor that looks like Chef and waiting for an opportunity to call them 'children' just like he does. So here's a look back at some of the interesting things I've managed to pick up or do during my short time there..
- A Pri 5 kid came up to me and asked, "Teacher, teacher, your dream is to become a teacher is it?"
- I taught Pri 5 kids how to use Flash to turn their Manga drawing into animation. This was for Art lesson by the way. When I was a kid Art was drawing on a drawing block and colouring it with crayons or coloured pencils or poster colour. After which a student asked, "Teacher, teacher, you learnt Flash at polytechnic is it?"
- One of the teachers pronounced words ending with '-rs' as '-ls'. So 'beakers' was 'beakels' and 'answers' became 'answels'. Yes I made a list of the mispronounced words. This is potentially good stuff for a thesis if I ever have to write on Singapore English haha.
- A Primary 2 kid came up to me and complained, "Cikgu, budak tu cakap 'kaki ayam tetek besar'!" which when translated to English means, "Teacher that boy said 'chicken feet big nehneh' (boobies)."
- A Pri 5 class had a discussion on the different political systems available in the modern world. After which they discussed if Singapore could be considered as an entirely democratic country. And they learned about freedom of speech, women rights, ancient Greece, communism, and the division between North and South Korea. Needless to say I felt stupid to have not learned about all this at their age.
- In a Pri 5 class, one kid has ADHD, another diagnosed with mild retardation and another one under observation for possibility of either one of those two mentioned. They seem to be spreading like a contagious disease.
There are plenty more of course but I think they should be classified as confidential matters and are securely protected in my special notebook, which some students thought was my diary. The best part of this experience was getting to gather tips and tricks of this trade from really experienced teachers who have seen it all. Every little story shared was recorded down for future reference. They are more valuable than a 24K diamond ring I believe.
So here's the end of our primary school experience. Next up, secondary school, land of the rebels and annoying teenagers...
So after all that, my horoscope for today reads:
"A dramatic change in career fortunes could have you considering a change in jobs or your career path. You are feeling you need more responsibility, a greater leadership role. Be aware that you will be incredibly impulsive today, and it may not be the best time to decide on a course of action."
I'm not a believer of horoscope but that sure scared me nuts.