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| Ramblings of an AID Alumni at 2 am
by Vincent S.
Thursday, April 3, 2008 at 2:08am
A random compilation of what happened at AID 2007. Hopefully, new 2008ers can gain some sort of insight into what will happen this summer =)
Feel free to post questions/comments/random stuff; I'll try to respond.
Starting from training, since people arrive at different times on different flights etc etc.
At training, you meet a lot of really cool people (well in your case you'll probably be meeting in person people you're talking with on Facebook, the forum, and AIM right now). You spend a week developing and refining a lesson plan with your teaching group (which, if your lucky, will last you through the 3rd day). Teaching plans never lasted long, because we didn't know what to expect from our kids. At training, you room with 3 others; its a lot like college dorming. Depending on chemistry, you'll either get really really close to your roommates and teaching partners, or splinter off and avoid each other =P You usually do most of your activities with your teaching group. All meals during training are eaten in a common dining hall. Last year, they staggered us so that the boys of teaching group 10 would eat with girls of teaching group 9, girls of teaching group 10 ate with boys of teaching group 11, girls of 11 ate with boys of 12, etc. When you're not going to "class", you can pretty much do whatever you want on "campus" (training center grounds). You can play sports with friends (outdoor basketball and indoor badminton were most popular last year), play cards, wander around, use the computer lab (I recommend bringing your own laptop...there were way too many people who wanted to use the limited # of computers last year, and at one point we crashed the network from overusage of internet xP)..etc. Classes can range from boring to superfun depending on the teacher. They invite a bunch of guest teachers from Taiwan to give you tips for teaching, share their own experiences, etc. Lessons can be as simple as brainstorming ideas to karoake-ing. (singing songs really helps when teaching kids in my experience). Each numbered group contains 2 schools' teaching groups, and is assigned one girl scout and one military guy (the military guys are fulfilling compulsory military service by going to remote areas and helping schools for a year).
I think breakfast was 7:30 to 8:30, class in the morning until lunch, a long (hour or two) long break during/after lunch, classes until late afternoon, dinner, another long break, and an evening class. They then set you free, and you can do whatever before curfew/room checks. The roomchecks aren't really serious; most of the counselors (the girl scouts and military guys) are cool with you just staying in your room playing cards or whatnot; the lounge also had a TV that we hooked up Zen's and Ipod Videos to watch stuff). If you abuse the curfew stuff though, they'll get really strict; one night we had 3 checks because a guy and girl had gone off to do....private activities. After that they didn't trust us as much xP People weren't allowed to explore the roof anymore (though they still did). The training center grounds had a minimart that's analogous to a 7-11; you can go and buy food and stuff.
About washing clothes: Do it by hand. And hang it up to dry with everyone else's. The counselor dorm had a washing machine that took forever, cost money, and wasn't effective.
Oh, and get used to the heat xP or stay in rooms that have a/c (not all do; dorms will only at night)
So after a week of training you say goodbye to all the cool people you met, and go to your school. Most are bused, some fly (I think some schools in 花蓮 flew their teachers over). Depending on where your school is, the ride can be less than an hour to...several hours. As in 8 hours. They're all tour buses though, so comfort isn't an issue.
At this point, experiences differ by school, but generally I'm guessing you'll figure out how you live (some schools have dorms, others house you with students). A military guy will go with you, and pretty much be your guide to the school, seeing as he works there. You'll probably meet with administration at your school. Over the weekend, you'll figure out what kind of kids you'll be teaching (elementary for current HS'ers, junior high for college'ers), finalize your teaching plans, and come up with an opening day performance.
Monday: Opening ceremony. School administrators will probably give speeches, you do your performance, and most importantly, you meet the students!!! This is the tricky part. You have to get to know them, figure out their English levels, see how they fit in your teaching plan, and figure out the intricacies of the social net ASAP. Depending on the students, they may speak broken English, single words in English, or not know their ABC's. You may even have trouble simply communicating with them: my students talked exclusively in Taiwanese, which I barely understood xP Teaching varies by school; some schools pretty much give you free reign; others have activities planned out at certain times. It's a full day of teaching. I recommend mixing in a variety of mediums; use videos, music/singing, sports (Baseball is super super popular due to the Taiwanese NY Yankees pitcher), etc etc. so the kids don't become bored. Also, you're not there to just teach them English; you're also there to (I know this sounds cliche) "open their eyes to the world". My kids thought the US was 1000 km from Taiwan (It's like 10000) and thought 高雄 and 臺北 were mythical cities that people got to visit if they were super lucky.
Food, laundry, etc. vary by school. Some schools will buy you bento boxes every day; others may have you cook your own food (rare). In the evenings, some of the teachers may volunteer to take you to night markets and stuff; others may leave you to your own devices. My school happened to have a washing machine/dryer, but others may not. Facilities vary greatly by school;ask your school rep on the forum when you are assigned schools. On the weekends they may have tours of the local area arranged for you; those can be pretty fun (my school got together with 4 others and we had a tour of 美濃 on a Saturday/Sunday; the next weekend we went to 夢時代 and an aquarium; where I took my profile pic with a giant stuffed penguin =D).
Every single day, when you finish teaching, you should be doing some sort of reflection and new "lesson plan" for the next day. Those can be tedious, but you'll feel a lot better than if you completely dont' prepare and freeze in front of your kids because you have nothing planned. If you sense that your kids will be rowdy, don't be afraid to discipline or yell at them a couple times the first two days; after that they'll respect you. You can always get the help of the military guy or teachers if they happen to be there for extreme cases of disruption. Usually this shouldn't be a problem.
One of the days of the week, you'll probably be "inspected" by an OCAC rep. Keep you living area, classrooms, etc neat so that you don't have to do last minute cleaning =P But if you don't want to give a speech to everyone at AID closing ceremony, don't make it *too* attractive XD After two weeks, you'll hopefully be really really close to your kids. The ending ceremony can be very emotional for some people. The principal or dean may have you give speeches during the school closing ceremony, so be prepared. Remember to exchange emails and whatnot with your students if they have them. OCAC will probably ask you for a school review, and everyone will need to do a reflection essay (they'll withhold the program compilation DVD if you don't do it). Afterwards, you'll meet at a predetermined location and go on a tour of Taiwan. My group skipped the tour, so I can't comment on it, but I do remember there were 2 typhoons that totally screwed up the South to North Tour. You'll eventually end up back at another location (last year it was 劍潭), where you'll have a closing ceremony with EVERYONE (not including the kids). They'll ask "model" schools to give speeches and presentations about their experiences (this is why I mentioned looking good, but not too good if you don't like this sort of stuff).
Before I forget, they'll interview you at your school one of your teaching days, so be prepared for that too!
Back to closing ceremony: you get to meet up with all the cool people you met at training again =) Groups can put on shows (talent shows; last year we had juggling, choreographed dancing, singing, chinese yoyo, etc.). Lots of people bring camera's and take pictures with their new friends. You'll all receive your certificate as well. The next day, they'll take you to the airport, the train station, or your relatives can pick you up.
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| Vibe ~ Geu Nahm Jah, Geu Yuh Jah (featuring Jang Hye Jin)
hohk shee nee gah dah shee dohl ah ohl kkah bwah
dah reun sarang... juhl dae... moht hae...
nahm jah ool lyuh sseu myuhn chaek eem jyuh yah jee
nee gah mwuhl ahl ah nahm jah ae mah eum eul~
moh deun guhl dah joo nee kkah dduh nahn dah neun geu yuh jah
nae juhn boo reul dah gah jyuh gahn geu yuh jahn hahn ddae neun nae gah jung mahl sarang haet duhn geu yuh jah
dah mee duh ssuh ssuh bah boh gaht ee...
yuh jah neun... dah ddohk gaht nah bwah...
hohk shee nee gah dah shee dohl ah ohl kkah bwah
dah reun sarang... juhl dae... moht hae
yuh jahl ool lyuh sseu myuhn chaek eem jyuh yah jee
nee gah mwuhl ahl ah yuh jah ae mah eum eul...
moh deun guhl dah joo nee kkah dduh nahn dah neun geu nahm jah
nae juhn boo reul dah gah jyuh gahn geu nahm jahn
hahn ddae neun nae gah jung mahl sarang haet duhn geu nahm jah
dah mee duh ssuh ssuh bah boh gaht ee...
nahm jah neun... dah ddohk gaht nah bwah~
oo reen mee chee doh rohk sarang hae ssuht jee...
oo reen mee chee doh rohk sarang hae ssuht jee (I'M GOING CRA--ZY~)
moh deun guhl dah joo nee kkah dduh nahn dah neun geu nahm jah (JUST THINKING ABOUT YOU BABY~ OH~ YEAH~)
nae mahm hah nah (OH~) mohl lah joo neun geu nahm jah (I'M GOING CRAZY, I'M GOING CRAZY)
hahn ddae neun nae gah jung mahl sarang haet duhn geu nahm jah (I'M ?????)
dah mee duh ssuh ssuh bah boh gaht ee (OH~~)
geu ddaen sarang ee ee byuhl een jool moh reu goh...
ee ruhn jool doh moh reu goh...
dah mee duh ssuh ssuh... oo ree dool ee...
CRED HUAY @ Aigoo Lyrics [ http://aigoolyrics.net ]
Posted for the purpose of whoever wants to duet this song with meeee_e!
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| My heart hurts...... So why can't I cry?
-HUAY
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| Good morning friends D:
It's been a while ne D:
It's currently 4:08 am PST. Yes, PST. Huay is in California now O__O!
I actually have a good cowload of homework, but I'm like uploading pictures on facebook right now and writing this xanga entry, what on earth?
Anyway. Update on life?
I want to be in TAU Choir >____<
That kid broke up with me during the first few days of summer, in Taiwan.
This kid that I taught with this past summer liked, then didn't like me.
I like this other kid... like a lot, and I don't even know why and I don't know what to do.
The end.
I reeeeeeeeeleee need to do Chinese homework.. Rawr.
-HUAY
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| Omigosh, gomen O__O.
It's been so long D:
So, from my last entry. Little did I know, I would have someone to love in a matter of 9 days. Kyakyakya. (Well actually I think I wrote that after I realized that....).
Anyway. So yeah D:
Today isssss ... 108 days. Kykaykaya <3
Anyway.
Also. O__O. I'm going to UCLA.
Rawr. And so ends my entry because i have a lot of work to catch up on.
-HUAY | | |
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