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Monday, April 7, 2014

Training future English teachers in Siberia.



We arrived at the Barnaul Linguistic institute and had a few moments to review the textbook for future English teachers. 
Check out the second sentence. 
True. 

And the personal view expressed below about healthcare:  perhaps this book is a bit out of date? ;-)


We viewed a class of third years as they debated the merits of having single and multiple children in a family. 



The teacher gave her class over to one student to lead. 


Nearly all students thought it was better to have a sibling than to be an "only". Again, I am struck by how fluent all are in ither languages. 

Out of 12 students, six were only children (they called themselves "onlies"). Nadia explained that all were born in the 90s after the collapse of the USSR. The economy was in shambles and prospective parents didn't feel safe having more than one child.


The professor is much more playful than any other teacher that I've seen.  The atmosphere in this class reminds me of my classes. There is joking and teasing. Students are uninhibited. 

The teacher, Nadia, pictured below, was particularly candid with us about how it made her feel to have only one child.  Under different circumstances, she would have had many  more kids.  Now she gives her overflow of love to her students.



Before we taught our class of teachers-to- be, we were treated to a delicious Russian tea.  See those cookies in the front?  We waxed so poetic about these that the professors surprised  us with take home packages.  I would love to make them last for our trip as I'd like  for you all to try them.  These were yummy little pockets of caramel goodness.  I think they may have a market in LA.  

The delightful tea was followed by an intense class with new teachers to be.  They wanted to know everything from how we organized our days to what our exams were like.    They found it fascinating that teachers kneel  next to their students when kids need help: clearly this is not done here. Teachers should not sit lower than their students. Again, Tracey and I talked about the regional differences between our school systems. Both of us teach highly competitive kids in highly competitive districts.  
They wanted to know what books we taught and seemed entranced by the fact that we have no national concensus on a standard.  Here their schools are highly centralized by the government.  Students are in school by age three.

Later we particpating in observing a wild poetry slam and musical competition.  Students theatricized  poems and songs by groups.  There was a prize (cupcakes!) which is just as exciting for kids here as in the US.


The DJ was a hoot.  He is a recent graduate of the Pedogological Institute.  You can't teach personality like his.


For our second tea of the day we heard a little about how the US sanctions are impacting the Russians though we didn't know if it was rumor or fact.  We heard that Russians are heading up to Moscow for Visas (I think you have to apply in Moscow and only in person) to be rejected because of the tension between our two countries.  Again, I was unclear as to whether this is true or rumor.

Commercial break for these shoes:  high heeled booties are just as hot in Russia as in the US.  The walking conditions are significantly worse though.  These women take their lives into their own hands on the slippery, weathered streets of Barnaul.

Still: they're cute.  Right Newman?



From the Institute, we returned to Baker Street School where Tracey and I were rapidly fading. We started our final class at 5:30 and would have finished close to 7 PM if we hadn't asked for a shorter session.

As happens in our own classroom, all of my technology dreams were quashed: there would be no Prezi or video. What's a teacher to do?  

Turn the tables of course. 

I asked the kids to explain  Siberia to me.  According to their teacher, she just wanted them to practice their English--it didn't matter about what we spoke.  And practice is what I gave.  I used my sad little iphone map to give our discussion   about Siberia some illustration.


To the point of why these kids are here:
young  children go to school in one of two shifts: from 8-1 and 1:15 to 6:15.  There's no other way to fit all the bodies in the school.  Parents who really want their children to get ahead in the world, send them to these private school institutes to become more proficient in languages. 

 These kids were extremely reluctant.  I tried to get them to ask me questions about Beverly Hills, Los Angeles or even California to very little avail. But they were interested in answering questions about their dachas and about Siberia at large. 
They loved their T-shirts from BHHS sports teams and the BHEF.  Thank you to all of my donors. 


The back to back sessions are challenging for us.   We want to see as much as we can, but we also want to be rested for our teaching/student contact sections.  This is always the challenge in a trip like this.  So much to learn, so little time.  

On to the Siberian public schools tomorrow. 


1 comment:

  1. Your days sound full of remarkable experiences. I can only imagine that it might be overwhelming at times to process everything in the moment. I think it's wonderful you're getting so much time to work with students. Thanks for sharing.

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