1. i went to get a coke at mcd's before i tutored this afternoon. i heard a family speaking in russian behind me and was intrigued bc the dad stood in line to order while the kids waited. i listened in on his convo with the cashier: he ordered a chicken sandwich, in semi-broken english. she asked [in semi-broken english, with a really-difficult-to-understand-in-my-opinion indian accent] "what kind of chicken: grilled or crispy?". he didnt understand. she repeated the same thing. he still didn't understand. she repeated the same thing AGAIN. finally he asked his daughter to come and answer the question. she understood the question & answered it. everything was fine. but I was super annoyed... that lady was a non-native speaker. shouldn't she be particularly patient? shouldn't she know that it's embarrassing to have to ask your child to translate for you in public? shouldn't SHE know that if someone doesn't understand, it helps to re-word your question?
2. while iryna and i were walking after lunch, she mentioned our student patricia and asked how things were with roberto. i told her that i had put an end to that whole fiasco & she sympathized with the awkwardness of the situation. she then proceeded to encourage me [very subtly and with great kindness] to be more reserved around my students. we both understand that we're in a tricky position-- our students are really open and honest about things in their lives. it's natural to feel compelled to be open and honest about our own lives. they care! they ask questions! they're fun to talk to! but it's important to maintain a professional attitude and keep some aspects of our personal lives under wraps. all that to say, i'm going to start this year a little more carefully.
[p.s. this is one of my fav books. probably because it's about a teacher. with blond hair. named miss nelson.]
1 comment:
woah! I want a book written about me!
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