Thursday, 29 November, was an absolutely horrible day for Valerie. It was an even worse day for our principal. It was a wonderful day for me. I kind of feel bad for feeling so happy...
1) The straw broke the camel's back. Valerie, in tears, turned in her resignation, along with a long list of reasons why.
2) The principal's wife burnt her hand (3rd-degree burn!) and then one of his few English-language teachers turned in her resignation.
3) I signed up for Internet, paid the money, and bought a modem! Not only that, but I got to leave early in order to do that! All that I need now is for the IT guy to come to our apartment and set up the Internet!
So at the end of the day, I was skipping home. I doubt Valerie or the principal were doing that.
On to our individual stories...
1) Valerie has 29 class lessons a week; I have 21. I have never had so little time with students before. I don't think it's good for my students--they need more English, they need a Morning Meeting. But it's good for me. I have time to relax, to prepare. And if something frustrates me, as frequently happens, I have time to cool down.
Valerie has worked previously at four different international schools. She has never worked this many hours; she has always left at 3:00 or a little afterwards; she has been paid better. She hasn't had to deal with the duties of being a regular teacher--all the stupid requirements and paperwork a government or other agency puts upon teachers, as if attempting to take away all of our planning time.
So, both of us have complained--a lot. Both of us have looked, at least casually, at other job opportunities. This week, she came back from having been out sick a week, to find that the few things she had hanging in her room had been torn down and stacked so that the tape stuck to the papers and they were ruined. Her stuff had been ruined and now she had barely a shelf on which to keep all of her teaching materials. (I have extremely little room, too. What a contrast from my room in Laurens! I had so much space--and so much stuff!)
Valerie and I both teach 16 lessons a week to our 1st grade classes--8 hours of English, 5 of math, 3 of science. We each teach an upper grade class. I teach 5th grade math--that adds 5 lessons a week to my schedule. She teaches 3A English (the weaker half of the 3rd grade class)--that adds 8 lessons a week. Because 3A is so weak in English, she also must each "supplemental" English every afternoon to the students, from 4:10 pm until 5 pm. The students frequently don't show up, and hate being forced to be there--they don't learn.
Yesterday, at our English-language teachers meeting, we learned that what we had presumed to be a bad rumor was true: Teachers must work during the week-long break between terms. It is not a holiday for us, as we had assumed!
This morning, she went to make copies before school started, and the door to the copy room was locked. She asked the secretary for the key, who told her that she couldn't make copies until the IT guy, who works in the copy room & keeps a record of how many copies we make, arrived. She was then told that she shouldn't make so many copies. (Our books suck! The math books have about 8 problems per lesson, no practice or review. The pages in the English workbooks take about a minute to complete. We need copies or better books in order to teach, we've said many times.)
Today, during her one planning period (not so bad when you compare it to the US--however, she also is teaching from 9 am to 5 pm, she has no time after school to prepare), she was in her room on the computer preparing lessons. Another class was going on. The Russian vice principal came in, saw her, then went and got my assistant to translate. She was not allowed to be on the computer when another class was going on. Where could she use the computer, then? she asked. She was told to go to the library. (Remember how far away that is?)
This afternoon, I found her, red-eyed and crying, in the teacher's lounge. She was writing her resignation, and a list of reasons why.
The assistants tried to console her--just don't use the computer when the Russian vice principal is around. But that is not the reason behind her resigning--it's just the straw that broke the camel's back. Why isn't there a teacher's handbook? So she knows the rules regarding copies and the computer? (Oh, wait, really, I think they just make these rules up on the spot! We used to make copies without having to tell the IT guy how many we were making, and what for.)
Other complaints: The meetings are disorganized; the kids staying until 5 pm, long after the point at which they become uncontrollable and stop learning; student behavior; no discipline; the stupid 10 minute breaks between periods; that she was told this was an international school and it's obviously not (yet); head administrators don't speak English; she had been told that the vacations were for everyone, teachers included.
All valid complaints. This school needs work!
She did mention in her letter that the principal and other teachers have been very nice. He has gone out of his way to accommodate the foreign teachers and help us. The local teachers are also very nice.
So she went to tell her last class that she was going home; she turned in her resignation, and left. She said she'd give them two months to find a replacement for her.
(2) I don't know the details, but the principal's wife burned her hand during the day. A third-degree burn, with oil. So he had to run to the hospital. I think he was on his way to the hospital when Valerie turned in her resignation. Ouch.
(3) Shortly after I talked with Valerie about her resignation, the IT guy saw me and said that Megaline, the company I was getting Internet through, had called. I could go sign up for Internet!
He had signed me up on the phone over 2 weeks ago; they had told him in 3 to 7 days they would call him back. Then I would have to go to them, sign some papers and pay some money. Then I would need to get a modem. It seemed like a forever process, especially since they took longer than 7 days to call back!
He was willing to leave immediately to do the paperwork, and I was excited. It was after 4:00, and Sophia was still a bit under the weather, so I bundled her up and we left together. Sophia was quite content to play in the snow while we waited for the bus.
The Megaline place is not too far from our home (bus 14 passes our stop on its way to Megaline). There was no line, so we took a number and were seen immediately. I just stood there, monitoring Sophia, while he talked in Russian and filled out all sorts of documents for me. He had forgotten my address, but luckily I had it written down in my daily planner in my purse. All I had to do was sign wherever he told me to.
Then we took another number and went to pay. I had to pay in cash. Every month I will have to go to this place and pay in cash. If I forget, no Internet. There seems to be no bill or reminder or anything! I've never paid anything on time without a bill or reminder!
Then we walked about half a block to "Bellie Veter"--"White Wind"--a computer store that he had described as a Kazakh "Best Buy." Best Buy it was not, but a computer store it was. It was small, and full of computers and computer-related equipment. I tried to look at prices, to get an idea of how the items compared to similar ones in the US, but I really don't know how much things cost in the US.
Again, I did nothing, while he found the modem that I would need. He did ask my approval--of the modem, of the price--I had no idea, just that he said it would give me wireless Internet.
Now, I had paid for the Internet--set-up and first month--in cash. I had miraculously brought a lot of cash with me that day to school. But I did not have enough for the modem. We were going to leave and come back another day when I asked if they accepted credit cards! They did! Hooray! So the purchase was made (with me not doing much more than signing) and I left the store extremely happy. The IT guy had to run to go to a class, and all I could do was hope that he'd be able to come tomorrow to set it up.
We weren't far from Eurasia, the shopping complex where we had bought Sophia's hamster, so we went in. I had no money on me, but I was happy to see a cheese whose label appeared to say "Parmesan." (Sophia won't eat pasta without it.) Sophia was happy to stare at the animals in the tiny pet store, and then we went upstairs to explore. On the 3rd floor we found a book store and--hurrah!--maps of Astana, including the bus schedule! I definitely will return!
I had 1000 T on me, and no food at home, so we stopped at Sulpak, the cheap grocery store that's on the way home from Eurasia. I had to be very careful to read the Russian-language signs, making sure I knew the prices of the items I bought. Then we walked home in the snow. Sophia was happy and skipping and kicking the snow. I was happy and skipping too. Hooray! Snow! were Sophia's thoughts. Hooray! Internet! were mine.
What a good day, for me. Too bad it wasn't so great for everyone.
Tomorrow will be even greater.
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