Tag: Teaching in Thailand

Flashback

On By rrainefioreIn Teaching, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Here is a blog I wrote quite a while ago.  Thailand has very strict Les Majistae laws.  You can’t say anything negative about the King or royal family.  They don’t have the same laws about other things, Thai, but I still thought it best not to post this while I was living in Thailand.

I’m a bit frustrated with the Thai school system.  When half my class failed their exams, I’m told I should let them re-test.  I tell the students they can re-test and I’ll average the two scores.  I tell them exactly which subjects to study and show them pages in the workbook they can do for practice.  Almost all of them got the same exact score the second time.  These are supposed to be the advanced English classes.  They show up late, they don’t turn in their homework and they are constantly doing some school activity or another instead of having classes.  No matter how bad they do on homework, classwork or tests, I cannot fail them.  I should give them extra work to make up their marks.  This extra work should help them learn, but shouldn’t be too hard or time consuming.  This extra work shouldn’t have a deadline and neither should the homework.  Basically, the concept of consequences for your actions doesn’t exist.  If they misbehave, there isn’t much I can do.  I can’t assign extra work.  I can’t keep them late even though they showed up 20 minutes late to my class because some other teacher kept them late.  The Thai teachers can hit them for discipline.  How is any of this preparing them for the world outside school?  I guess, if their world is just Thailand maybe it’s ok.  But, the country wants to prepare its students for being part of the world outside of Thailand.  The world outside of Thailand will eat them alive and spit them out.  When I asked about teaching curriculum I was told “up to you”.  I have no idea what they already know or don’t know.  I have no idea what topics I should be teaching.  “Oh just teach speaking and listening”.  Thanks.  That’s useless.  Then two weeks before the midterm exams, I’m told I have to create exams.  I create exams, but then I’m told they need to match the objectives in my curriculum, the curriculum I was never told I needed to write.  So, I make up objectives.  I’m told 3 will be enough.  Then after the exams I have to do grading, but everyone tells me a different way I need to report the grading.  And now I have 10 objectives I need to use, not 3.  They have to be these specific objectives, not the 3 I came up with.  Why on earth wasn’t I given these before the semester or before the midterms?  None of the objectives match anything I have taught and are all just a random jumble of words on a page that sound like a good plan.  Is this the way the whole education system works?  Then this week, I find out that final exams are after my last day of work.  Who do they assume will grade my exams and fill out my grading sheets?  No one notifies me of anything ahead of time, but I’m supposed to jump when asked or somehow miraculously have something ready when asked.  Then I’m told I’m taking things too seriously – so teaching students is not important or it is?  Apparently reading minds is a skill they think I should have.  I spend most of my free time alone working and most people wonder why I would ever want to leave.  I see other western teachers posting on facebook about how wonderful Thailand is, how much they love it here, and how much they love teaching.  Are they lying or am I the only one having this Thailand experience?  Don’t get me wrong, there are wonderful things about Thailand and I’ve met wonderful people.   I came for the experience, not to stay forever and I’ve gotten an experience.  And I’m pretty sure I’ve been more engulfed in the culture than any of them have.

(c) All Rights Reserved Kimberly Fiore

Goodbye

On By rrainefioreIn Teaching, Thailand, Uncategorized1 Comment

I didn’t teach much my last week.  I was so sick most of the time.  My last M4 MEP (advanced 10th graders) was Today.  After we took photos, the bell rang for the end of class and they just stood there awkwardly.  Finally, one girl asked if she could hug me.  They all wanted to hug me.  They were awkward at hugging and I just cried.  Even after the hugging, they wouldn’t leave.  I spent most of the rest of the day aimlessly staring at my computer.  One of my M1 MEP (6th grade) found me and brought me a gift of a pair of massage pants and a t-shirt.  The t-shirt has Tak, Sam Ngao and the zip code on it.  She picked that t-shirt so I could always have Sam Ngao in my heart.  Later, some of my M4/2 students came into my classroom just to sit with me and ask me questions – where you go? – When you go to America? – What you think of M4/2? – Why no boyfriend?

This evening I said goodbye to Tip, Fai, Ging and Tent.  I’m sad to say goodbye to them.  I imagine there will be some more crying tomorrow.  Tomorrow morning there are no classes so the school can say goodbye to me and the teacher who is retiring.

(c) All rights reserved Kimberly Fiore

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MEP 4
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Some M4/2 Students
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Last coffee
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M6/2 Class
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M6/1 Class
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Peeling a pomelo
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Gift from one of my MEP 1 students
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Goodbye Laundry Roosters
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Tip and Ging
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Well, their English still needs some work, but that’s not the point

School Farm

On By rrainefioreIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

I stopped by the school farm today.  The lime trees are budding and most of the dragon fruit has been planted.  I’m not sure any vegetables have been planted, but it makes for a great ghostly kind of picture.  The banana trees are looking sad, but I think they will bounce back if someone waters them.  My kitten buddy is waiting for me almost every day.  He’s so cute and then he tries to destroy my screens.  Too bad he didn’t show up when I first moved here.  I might have took him in.  Oh, and 2 days to go.

(c) All rights reserved Kimberly Fiore

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Lime Trees
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Dragon Fruit
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Veggie Gardens

$%#&^(*&(* Trail

On By rrainefioreIn Teaching, Thailand, Uncategorized2 Comments

This weekend I didn’t have much to do.  I packed.  I cleaned.  I rode my motorbike up to the top of the dam again.  There’s a shrine up there I haven’t seen before so I walked up the steps to see it.  There’s a shrine near the bottom of the dam too that I had never been to.  I rode my motorbike up this ridiculous hill.  I didn’t make it the whole way and had to push the bike the rest of the way.  I barely made it.  Then behind the shrine, I saw trails.  What?  They looked like mountain bike trails from the race not too long ago.  This whole freaking time I could have gone hiking?  My friend Gerry had asked why I didn’t go out into nature to process since I don’t have privacy at home.  I told him there were no hiking trails and most everything is thick dense jungle that has monsters hiding in it.  Then this trail appears.  Damn it, too late.

Sunday I napped.  I never nap.  Monday I woke up feeling like death.  My head is stuffed up and I can’t stop coughing.  Oh, that’s why I napped.  Noi took me to the hospital.  The doctor said I have a cold or the flu.  They gave me medicine and sent me on my way.  I’m not convinced I don’t have a sinus infection.  I slept most of the rest of the day Monday and half of Tuesday.  I started feeling better today, but now I feel horrible again.  I’m not surprised.  I’ve been trying to hold it together and get a lot done in a short period of time.  I’m stressed.  I’m going back to bed.

(c) All rights reserved Kimberly Fiore

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This is what most of where I live looks like – No hiking here
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No hiking here
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And no hiking here
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What?  A trail?  Too late.
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I’m not good enough to ride all the way up this

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Tiny Giant
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Of course, stairs

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A Buddha, elephants, zebras and chickens

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Karaoke house boats going out for the night

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Magic String

On By rrainefioreIn Teaching, Thailand, Uncategorized1 Comment

Yesterday was all it was promised to be.  There were around 300 teachers from the Sam Ngao area for the retirement ceremony.  There were 11 teachers retiring.  I must have looked lost because a teacher from Tak decided to take me under her wing and take care of me.  Her name was Kru O.  She spoke very good English.  She showed me where to sign in and get my goodie bag.  Then we went and sat up in the second row.  She had heard of me.  Some of my advanced 7th graders use to be her students.  She asked me a ton of questions.  When she found out I was leaving, she seemed shocked that I would want to leave.  I told her I wanted to live in a bigger city.  She now has a new job for me in Tak.  It would be at a small school – class size of 10 students instead of 30 or 40.  And that’s how you get a new job.  Not real sure I want that job or want to live in Tak, but I’ll throw it on the back burner in case.  Kru O reminds me of Noi, She’s tiny, so full of energy and quite forceful.  She scares me a little.

A lot of the teachers were dressed in matching school shirts.  Some of the teachers were dressed to the nines in silk dresses, silk suits, silk, satin or lace shirts or traditional Thai dress.  I saw some of the most beautiful silk I’ve ever seen, vibrant colors that you couldn’t look away from.

The day started off with someone talking over the microphone, but no one listening.  Then they lit the candles on the Buddha altar.  The monks came in.  The altar like things were actually chairs for four of the monks to sit in.  The rest of the monks sat on the stage.  The retirees sat in a circle around the arch.  There was chanting.  Kru O explained that the ceremony to ask for a happy life.  Then at some point we took the string hanging down and wrapped it around our heads.  The retirees did the same.  The string started wrapped around the Buddha statue then went to the arch.  From the arch it went out to the retirees and the four monks.  Then the string went out to everyone else.  This must be some powerful string.  There was more chanting with each of the monks reading something different.  After a long time, we took the string off our heads and one of the monks walked around with the reeds in his hand using them to throw holy water on everyone.  I got video of only the tail end of this.  Then there were offerings of food and other things given to the monks.  Then speeches.  Then the giving of gifts.  Each retiree got a pretty wrapped package and a glass box with what looked like a statue of the King in it.  After all that, it was time for lunch.  I tried one of the things that looked not to spicy.  Wrong – it was spicy.  They had the dessert of jelly things in coconut milk with ice on top.  That just didn’t cut it.  I snuck home for some steamed veggies.

I came back to find most people had gone home and they were cleaning up the mess in the meeting hall.  I helped a little, but it was mostly students doing the work and teachers directing so there wasn’t much I could do.  I spent the afternoon grading tests.

I went to Tip’s for dinner.  She made tom yum which is one of my favorites, but I can rarely eat it because it’s usually too spicy.  It always smells so good and breaks my heart that I can’t eat it.  Fai doesn’t like spicy either so she made it with no peppers!  After dinner I played crosswords again with Ging and her husband.  Ging won again!

I got home around 9:00 to find the gate closed and locked.  It’s been closed before, but never locked.  How do I get home?  I texted Q, Noi and Pat.  Pat got back to me and told me she texted Ton and he’d let me in.  He came up to let me in.  Apparently everyone that lives at school has a key to the gate except me.  Wtf?

Today I started cleaning the house.  Yuck.  I usually don’t mind cleaning, but the amount of cobwebs was gross.  It took 3 hours and I still have to clean half my bedroom and the bathroom.  I’m just hoping there is no bug apocalypse or some other natural disaster in the next week that will make me have to re-clean.  Now my challenges for the week are to get laundry to dry without smelling bad and get everything packed into two suitcases.  Go!

(c) All rights reserved Kimberly Fiore

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International Peach Day

On By rrainefioreIn Teaching, Thailand, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Yesterday, the day started off with a small ceremony.  It involved speeches and all the teachers standing on the stage for photos that I will never see.  Thompien told me it was International Peach Day.  Huh?  Ok, that could be a thing, I guess.  But based on the two peaches I’ve had here, it’s not worth celebrating.  After asking her a few questions I figured out it was International Peace Day.  That makes way more sense, but I like International Peach Day better.

Tomorrow is a ceremony for all the teachers in the District who are retiring.  They spent most of the afternoon getting the meeting hall ready.  I went down to see it at the end of the day expecting the normal podium, brightly colored satin fabric and a bunch of flowers.  It was that and more.  At the front of the room is a three sided arch made of sticks and leaves.  There are four gold and red altar like things around it.  Then there is a network of wire leaving the archway going out over the chairs.  There is string hanging down from the wire in various places and over each chair.  Someone tells me that tomorrow we will put the string on our heads for good luck.  Noi tells me that the string will connect everyone’s aura.  We will be connected to someone, who I assume will be in or near the archway.  Maybe the people retiring?  She tried to explain what an aura was as if I didn’t know.  I have no idea what will happen tomorrow.  She lost me at aura.  I’m excited to see what happens.

(c) All rights reserved Kimberly Fiore

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Tie it up

On By rrainefioreIn Teaching, Thailand, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Tuesday one of my M4 girls came in to class tied to two M1 boys.  One tied to each of her wrists.  The boy on her right had to write in the answers to the exam she was taking.  The other one just sat there.  No one batted an eye as if this was a normal thing.  True, I have seen two students tied together before, but it doesn’t seem normal to me yet.  I wondered who was being punished – her, the boys or all three of them?  What action warrants being tied together?  Does it work?  None of them seemed shamed, upset or in any way punished.  What classes were the boys missing?  If this works, I like it better than hitting students.  That happened again.  After two of my classes this week, I was asked to wait outside.  You can ask me to wait outside if you think I disapprove, but I can still hear the crack of the stick.  Or maybe having me wait outside was to spare me being uncomfortable, but now it was uncomfortable and awkward.

I have to mail some boxes home because I have too much stuff.  Noi helped me by finding boxes for me.  Then she showed me where to buy the brown paper and string.  Then she showed me how to wrap the boxes in brown paper since I don’t know how to wrap a box in paper.  It involved a lot of glue and tape so that paper should be good.  Then she wrapped string around the box and had me tape the string to the box.  I thought the string was to make a handle, but she said it made the paper stronger.  I told her we were not allowed to use string in America, but she didn’t care.  It has to be done this way.  I hope the packages make it ok to America.  They were ridiculously expensive to mail.

I went over to Tip’s.  I thought it was for dinner, but she wasn’t eating.  I ran quickly to the market and got a salad for dinner.  Ging came over and we played crosswords (generic scrabble).  It was fun.  Ging won!  Tip’s son, Dam asked me to come over again so he can play crosswords with me.

Pat was real nice on Wednesday.  I asked her to help me buy a bus ticket.  She sent the school driver to get it.  I got my change from the ticket, but no ticket.  I texted her to see if she could check on where the ticket went.  She replied where to pick it up.  I was confused why I still had to pick it up.  How did he buy a ticket for me without getting a ticket?  I was confused when to pick it up and how they would know I was the one that paid for it.  I also have no idea when the bus arrives.  One of her answers was Saturday 1.  Saturday the 1st of October, or Saturday at 1:00?  If it’s Saturday at 1:00 is that the time I need to be there or the time the bus will arrive?  She wouldn’t be clear and then today when I tried to talk to her in person she said “I told you, but you don’t want to understand”.  I give up. I don’t know what to do.  Anything I do or say is wrong.  I try to take a deep breath and not be frustrated, but I’m frustrated.  I wonder where my patience and compassion have run off to.  I can’t seem to find them.

I gave tests to 6 different classes.  Almost every student failed.  Why am I here?

(c) All rights reserved Kimberly Fiore

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The Plan

On By rrainefioreIn Teaching, Thailand, Uncategorized1 Comment

My plan for Saturday was to go to the coffee shop and figure out my trip to Kuala Lumpur since I have to get out of town fast.  Then massage, then dinner with Robin.  I got a text from Noi in the morning that she had a plan for my day.  We were going to go to Tak for lunch, then I could work on my computer while she went to a seminar and then there was a thing going on that Kru Chelon was doing her history display at and we’d go to that until about 7:30pm.  Does she forget I’m sick?  That sounds like a long day.  Wasn’t I on the say yes to everything plan?  I rearranged massage and dinner and told her I’d go if we could leave earlier.

She was late picking me up so we didn’t have lunch.  The hotel she was doing the seminar in had good enough wifi, but no air conditioning.  I was able to book my flights to Kuala Lumpur, but felt so sick within a couple hours as the heat was making me feel feverish.  Lack of food or drink was not helpful in this situation.  Oh god, why did I say yes?  She texted to check on me and I told her I was hot and hungry.  She was hungry too so she skipped out of the seminar early and we went to the mall for “lunch”.  By now it was after 3:00pm.  Lunch was unexciting, but after being sick for a week, unexciting food was perfect.  We wandered around the mall.  I bought new flip flops since Teva has fallen down on the job and the pair I bought in the US before I left are useless if there is a drop of water on the ground.  The ones I bought are pretty ugly, but Noi told me they make me look younger.

Then we headed to the thing where Kru Chelon was.  Several students and teachers were there.  It was youth day.  Many students from schools all around had displays or were doing dance or music performances.  Thai dancing bores me, but there was a band that played on wooden and bamboo instruments that was so fabulous.  I really enjoyed that.  Noi told me the style of music was from North East Thailand.  It had a great beat and a lot more passion than most Thai music I’ve heard.  She said their music was faster because their history is war so they are not a relaxed people.  She likes Northern Thai music better because Northerners are more laid back and don’t worry about anything.  I found this funny coming from the tiny lady who has more energy than 5 normal people combined.

Ok, now time for another story lost in translation.  On the way home Noi asked me if I would be here in December.  There is a natural firework in Northeast Thailand and Laos.  It’s more like a fire bomb than a firework.  It comes out of the ground.  It only happens near the full moon at the end of the enlightenment season.  Legend is that it’s the fire bomb from a dragon.  Scientists have not been able to figure out how it happens, but they have verified that it is not a human prank.  She wants to go.  I asked her when it was, when is the end of the enlightenment season?  Maybe October.  None of this makes sense, but I’m pretty sure I want to go see fire shoot out of the ground from an ancient dragon.  If I google NE Thailand Fire Bomb, will I get a clearer picture?  That didn’t go well.  It was just about the recent bombings in Thailand.  More digging I found there is a festival before the rainy season called Bang Fai (Rocket Festival).  It sounds fun, but there was no mention of dragons or a mysterious firework.  It was in May.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_Festival

(c) All rights reserved Kimberly Fiore

 

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New House Critter

On By rrainefioreIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

I have a new house critter.  Well, he wants to be a house critter, but I won’t let him in.  An adorable kitten.  I’d love to have a house kitten, but he probably has fleas.  He has a salty disposition and just sits outside my door or window and demands that he has the right to come in.  He has already ruined one of my screens trying to get in.  I tried to feed him, but he just wants in the house.  He is adorable.

I woke up Monday with a wicked cold.  I went home early.  Noi was so nice and went out to buy me soup and medicine.  Everyone is very concerned that I have medicine.

If I wasn’t giving final exams next week, I would have skipped Tuesday altogether, but I didn’t think it was fair to give them exams without a exam review class.  It was the longest day ever.

Wednesday still sick.  Now everyone is asking me if I need to go to the doctor.  What is a doctor going to do about a cold?  “Do you have medicine”?  So, I just kept saying I had medicine.  I will go to the hospital if I’m still sick after a week.  Colds usually last a week for me.

Wednesday Pat told me I had to sign a resignation letter.  They also made me sign a copy of each page of my passport.  Awhile ago I had asked Pat about when the school would cancel my work permit and she said they wouldn’t.  I’m pretty sure everything I signed cancels my work permit and I have 24 hours to leave the country.  I was trying to explain to her that this is what we talked about before and this means I have to leave as soon as the work permit is canceled.  I need to know when that date is.  She almost had a melt down.  ‘They have to report correctly and cannot lie.  Thai people don’t lie.  Thai people are nice.  What do I expect her to do?’  She got all defensive and tried to pick a fight with me in the office.  wtf, Pat?  I just want to know the date my permit is being canceled so I can plan accordingly.  She is completely invested in having me believe that Thai people are nice civilized people as if her whole identity depends on it.  What on earth did I do or other Americans before me do to make her think that Americans are such horrible creatures and that we think Thais are?  And what gave her the idea that I was expecting her to do some illegal reporting?  Relax.

So, what is this requirement that you have 24 hours to leave the country after your work permit is over.  I have to work a full day on Friday and be out of the country on Saturday.  “Thank you for your service in teaching our children, the future of our country.  Now get out and don’t let the door hit you in the ass on your way out”.

I just felt like dying, but I had to go do laundry after school.  I have to pack.  I have to finish my last lesson plans and now I have to figure out where to go for 4 days the day after I finish teaching.  I saw a guy limp down the street with no shoes and clothes that were so dirty they looked like they had never been washed.  He was muttering to himself as he walked.  Ok, no matter how horrible I feel, my life is probably 2,000 times better than this guy’s.  Perspective.

Sidenote, Thai washing machines are confusing.  You put the clothes in, the soap in and then the coins in.  There are 20 buttons on the machine, but you don’t push any of them.  Then it flashes 3 or 4 different numbers, the last one I think is the total time the washing will take.  And then it does it’s thing.  I don’t think there are any dryers in the entire country.  This is the second washing in a row for half this load since if it rains, my clothes don’t dry fast enough and then they smell musty and I have to wash them again.  I miss dryers.

It’s been raining a lot.  After about 2 days of rain when it stopped, the sky was so full of dragon flies.  It was kind of like lemon yellow butterfly season, but dragon flies.  I’ve never seen so many at one time.  It’s mesmerizing.

Today after lunch, Noi and I went to get coffee.  I’m not allowed to get cold coffee because cold drinks are bad for a cold.  I always thought the idea that you should drink warm liquids when you are sick was just an old wives tale.  I looked it up.  They did research and found that people that drank warm liquids got better faster.  Ok, hot coffee will do.  While I was waiting for my coffee, Noi went behind the counter and cut up some limes and made some concoction for me.  She told me to sip it and it would help my cough.  It was the juice from about 5 limes and a pound of salt.  This is one of the most painful experiences I’ve ever had.  It burned my throat and my stomach.  I got instant heartburn, felt weak and dizzy and an instant headache.  Yep – cold symptoms gone, replaced with heart attach symptoms instead.  Did it help the cough?  Maybe.  She told me I should drink this at home every day.  Will I ever drink this again?  No.

(c) All rights reserved Kimberly Fiore

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