The difference between just traveling through a place and actually living in it has started to really dawn upon me. When I first moved to Chiang Mai, there was an immediate spark and glamour to the experience of living abroad in my new home. I was living the dream and I could hardly believe I was actually in Thailand. I could have thought I had died and gone to heaven. It was a completely new life-- new surroundings, and an all-new world to explore.
Two months in, however, it has started to strike me that I've been falling into the same routines as before, and that life has begun to feel not so different from how it was back in the States.
That is, as filled with wanderlust as I had been when coming back from my 8 week summer trip, and then upon returning to Thailand just a month later, I recently find myself again not so far from being in the 'settled' state of life.
On that note, I should point out how I find that living in the 'settled' state of life is a danger-- in which one runs the risk of becoming permanently settled down with staying in the same place in life and never finding anything more than what they have already known. For some people, this is fine. But for me, I wanted to find something a little different, maybe in search of a certain destiny, or perhaps simply the next level of personal growth.
In traveling, there's a whole sense of adventure, a wonder at going out and taking a risk, and many challenges to overcome. And while there are growing pains and the inevitable discomforts, what you find are new stages and ways of thinking you would never have found before, experiences to be discovered, and new potentials to be reached.
And so coming back to my point, I was finding that even living abroad, in a former third world country, I once again found myself getting so caught up in the day-to-day of things: in my job, in trifle worries, in things that I simply need not worry or think about. And I was forgetting that I am not just living in the same town where I had grown up for the past 20 years, but I am now living in Chiang Mai, Thailand: a place that is a landmark the world over for travelers, a haven for retired business workers, and a must-see on the list of many an adventurer.
There is a completely new world surrounding me anywhere that I can step foot. And all I have to do is step out of my box.
And so, my recent realization has been to simply remember where I am, and don't take for granted all of the opportunity for exploration and adventure that there is around me.
In one sense, I don't place too much guilt upon myself, as one of my primary goals was to find new friends in my new home first. But making friends, I suppose, is a process that can take quite a long time, and one that requires a lot of patience. Also, I am currently caught in the pickle of neither finding much common ground with the other 'farang' (foreigners) here, nor being able to meld in all that well with the Thais-- who I do find more common ground with, but perhaps because of language barrrier, cultural barrier, or some other reason, am not yet able to bridge the gap with.
In the meantime, I may as well not get caught up in the little things, and simply remember to enjoy myself a little better. To remember that my just being here in Thailand--and, on top of that, teaching at a highly respected university, is an opportunity of a lifetime-- one that many Americans may dream about, but few ever step out and pursue.
Yes, I am here to work, and work is certainly a significant part of my life and the time that I spend here.
But it is not everything.
And so, perhaps from this point I should remember that while I'm a teacher and that I do have a fair amount of routine-- that my life here in Thailand is still an adventure-- a dream come true, in a sense, and that I should be enjoying that adventure and living that dream a little bit better than the day before!
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Monday, November 29, 2010
Sabbaii Sabbaii / mai bpen rai krap
"Why worry about it? What would be the point in that??"
Brilliantly said words from Desmond, the LOST character, and the only man in the world known to have survived a catastrophic blast of electromagnetic radiation :p
But that basically sums up the attitude of your average Thai here in Chiang Mai. No need to worry about things. Enjoy the day and the moment for what it is, and don't get too caught up in your worries.
Now, at the end of my first post, I said I was going to write more about my classes at a later time. Well, I have time for it tonight :)
Contrary to what I expected before getting here, I am not writing curriculum, nor did I have to create my own syllabus or select any materials for my courses. Since I've arrived here, everything had been pre-prepared already. The curriculums had already been written, and the plans laid-out; you only need to familiarize yourself with the lessons to prepare how you will approach teaching them all to the students. Most of the hard work is already done for you, but its still a lot to prepare handouts and worksheets and think of ways of explaining things to students in a manner in which they will understand.
The students here at very passive compared to Western students. Most do not want to speak up in front of the class, unless prompted. They prefer to sit back and let the teacher lead for the entire lesson. You become a lecturer rather than a facilator of learning. This is not really teaching-- and I believe does not really increas "learning"-- you only train your students to de dependent. Students learn from engaging and interacting with a lesson, not from being talked at for 75 minutes without a cease. But that is exactly what would happen if you did not think of more creative ways to elicit the participation of the students.
The trick is to get them to work together in small groups. Since they can't bear to work alone, or to speak their opinion or put themselves out in front of the class, you have to teach to their culture, to the style of learning which they are used to. They may not be "stepping out" and taking that "risk" that you wanted them to make, but at least its a start.
So you give them an assignment and you say to everyone "do this individually," and not a single one of them will do it. You assign homework in this matter, and you come to class the next day, and nothing has been done.... But when you assign it to them as a group-- when you allow them to work in pairs, in groups of 3, or 4, or 5-- its like magic :) You give them a task in-class as a small group, and this time, they do it! You assign them a page for homework as a group-assignment, and next time you come to class, they bring it in.
I once read that to be a successful teacher in Thailand, one has to be 1/3 teacher, 1/3 entertainter, and 1/3 businessman. And so that is what I have become for them. All things for all students, so that a few might learn. You prepare for your lessons, gather your materials, and know your stuff. But then you find a way to present it that engages them, in a way that expresses your own passion for learning, and for problem solving and figuring things out. And then you make it fun for them-- miming the difficult vocabulary, acting it out and looking a fool in front of them at times just so that they will "get it".
But its all for a good cause, and if they are getting it, then that's the whole point. If I have to act everything out in front of them, raise my voice, and make it all dramatic; if I have to do something spontaneous like walk out of the room all of sudden to get them to learn the word "spontaneous", then I will do it. If playing memory games with cartoony flash cards will teach them relative clauses better than a boring textbook explanation, then I will use them. And if I have to strap a roll of tape across the room and run through just it to demonstate what it means to "cross the finish line" in a sprinting competition, then so be it. It will be done.
And often, I find, its simply the little things that count. Learning names; remembering faces; using multi-colored chalk instead of just white chalk all the time; using the overhead once in awhile; letting students write on the board instead of me; drawing students into the lesson by using them as the example; changing the stories in the text to fit the students' own context in their everyday lives. These are the types of things that will help to draw in your students into the lesson.
I only teach one or two classes a day, depending on the day, so I try and put as much energy as I can into each of them. I look at it like I would a game of soccer, where professional soccer players have to pace themselves throughout a 90 minute game. Similiarly, whereas I was once putting in 5-6 hours of teaching in one day, I now have the same energy as I had before to put into no more than 2-3 hours a day, or just a third to half of what I was putting in before. Admittedly, teaching is an exhausting job. And talking in front of people-- moving around and exerting yourself, trying to get 30+ students to understand words and concepts unknown to them, is something that I am glad to be doing for only the amount of time a day that I am currently doing it.
So, in all, my new work schedule here in Chiang Mai has been a welcome change. Outside of the teaching, I have been writing the quizes & exams alongside my Thai co-teachers, doing editing & proofreading, and helping with course materials i.e. preparing handouts and worksheets. We may eventually be writing a new curriculum for one of the courses I am teaching, but that will not be happening today :)
So to recapitulate on the point at the beginning of this post, why worry about today that which can be saved for tomorrow? If it is something that is out of your hand, or if nothing can be done from worrying about it, then why do so? That's not to say that you should simply ignore problems as they arise, or forget about planning for tomorrow that which needs to be prepared, but just to take things in stride and not worry about the things for which you have no chance of having any impact through your actions.
Well, that's enough for now, I think. I will write more later-- on the happenings outside of the workplace, as more has happened here than just the teaching...
Brilliantly said words from Desmond, the LOST character, and the only man in the world known to have survived a catastrophic blast of electromagnetic radiation :p
But that basically sums up the attitude of your average Thai here in Chiang Mai. No need to worry about things. Enjoy the day and the moment for what it is, and don't get too caught up in your worries.
Now, at the end of my first post, I said I was going to write more about my classes at a later time. Well, I have time for it tonight :)
Contrary to what I expected before getting here, I am not writing curriculum, nor did I have to create my own syllabus or select any materials for my courses. Since I've arrived here, everything had been pre-prepared already. The curriculums had already been written, and the plans laid-out; you only need to familiarize yourself with the lessons to prepare how you will approach teaching them all to the students. Most of the hard work is already done for you, but its still a lot to prepare handouts and worksheets and think of ways of explaining things to students in a manner in which they will understand.
The students here at very passive compared to Western students. Most do not want to speak up in front of the class, unless prompted. They prefer to sit back and let the teacher lead for the entire lesson. You become a lecturer rather than a facilator of learning. This is not really teaching-- and I believe does not really increas "learning"-- you only train your students to de dependent. Students learn from engaging and interacting with a lesson, not from being talked at for 75 minutes without a cease. But that is exactly what would happen if you did not think of more creative ways to elicit the participation of the students.
The trick is to get them to work together in small groups. Since they can't bear to work alone, or to speak their opinion or put themselves out in front of the class, you have to teach to their culture, to the style of learning which they are used to. They may not be "stepping out" and taking that "risk" that you wanted them to make, but at least its a start.
So you give them an assignment and you say to everyone "do this individually," and not a single one of them will do it. You assign homework in this matter, and you come to class the next day, and nothing has been done.... But when you assign it to them as a group-- when you allow them to work in pairs, in groups of 3, or 4, or 5-- its like magic :) You give them a task in-class as a small group, and this time, they do it! You assign them a page for homework as a group-assignment, and next time you come to class, they bring it in.
I once read that to be a successful teacher in Thailand, one has to be 1/3 teacher, 1/3 entertainter, and 1/3 businessman. And so that is what I have become for them. All things for all students, so that a few might learn. You prepare for your lessons, gather your materials, and know your stuff. But then you find a way to present it that engages them, in a way that expresses your own passion for learning, and for problem solving and figuring things out. And then you make it fun for them-- miming the difficult vocabulary, acting it out and looking a fool in front of them at times just so that they will "get it".
But its all for a good cause, and if they are getting it, then that's the whole point. If I have to act everything out in front of them, raise my voice, and make it all dramatic; if I have to do something spontaneous like walk out of the room all of sudden to get them to learn the word "spontaneous", then I will do it. If playing memory games with cartoony flash cards will teach them relative clauses better than a boring textbook explanation, then I will use them. And if I have to strap a roll of tape across the room and run through just it to demonstate what it means to "cross the finish line" in a sprinting competition, then so be it. It will be done.
And often, I find, its simply the little things that count. Learning names; remembering faces; using multi-colored chalk instead of just white chalk all the time; using the overhead once in awhile; letting students write on the board instead of me; drawing students into the lesson by using them as the example; changing the stories in the text to fit the students' own context in their everyday lives. These are the types of things that will help to draw in your students into the lesson.
I only teach one or two classes a day, depending on the day, so I try and put as much energy as I can into each of them. I look at it like I would a game of soccer, where professional soccer players have to pace themselves throughout a 90 minute game. Similiarly, whereas I was once putting in 5-6 hours of teaching in one day, I now have the same energy as I had before to put into no more than 2-3 hours a day, or just a third to half of what I was putting in before. Admittedly, teaching is an exhausting job. And talking in front of people-- moving around and exerting yourself, trying to get 30+ students to understand words and concepts unknown to them, is something that I am glad to be doing for only the amount of time a day that I am currently doing it.
So, in all, my new work schedule here in Chiang Mai has been a welcome change. Outside of the teaching, I have been writing the quizes & exams alongside my Thai co-teachers, doing editing & proofreading, and helping with course materials i.e. preparing handouts and worksheets. We may eventually be writing a new curriculum for one of the courses I am teaching, but that will not be happening today :)
So to recapitulate on the point at the beginning of this post, why worry about today that which can be saved for tomorrow? If it is something that is out of your hand, or if nothing can be done from worrying about it, then why do so? That's not to say that you should simply ignore problems as they arise, or forget about planning for tomorrow that which needs to be prepared, but just to take things in stride and not worry about the things for which you have no chance of having any impact through your actions.
Well, that's enough for now, I think. I will write more later-- on the happenings outside of the workplace, as more has happened here than just the teaching...
The First Blog
The perception back home might be that living in a third world country is more difficult, and filled with hardships. But the reality here in Chiang Mai is quite the reverse. Living in Thailand is in fact more relaxed and easy-going than living in the U.S.
I've been a teacher here now for a full month, and I must say that my work schedule here compared to home is both a breeze and a breath of fresh air. No longer do I fear the work-week and the dreaded Mondays, like I did back at home. The infamous "case of the Mondays" syndrome is now a thing of the past. Here, Monday is now just another day of the week, and just part of the whole enjoyed experience. And while yes, there is still work to be done, and yes, I still work as hard at it as I did before, gone is the constant, imminent pressure to optimize one's output, as well as the perpetual strive toward maximzing efficiency for the sake of quality.
The work place here is also much more social, friendly, and family-like. The Thai model for the work place is to be both a hard worker and a social contributor. Thus, to be a competent and successful leader, one must be balanced; investing both in their work, as well as in their fellow workers.
I just remember always being stressed out about my job back at home, getting home late after rush-hour traffic, and then never getting enough time to do the things I wanted to do in the evenings. Moreover, every weekend was a long-awaited saving grace that never seemed to arrive soon enough, and never stuck around long enough to be a satiable amount. And by the time it hit Sunday morning, I was already beginning to worry about having to prepare and go back to work again the next day.
I still do that here, to some extent, but it's just different....
The major difference, I think, is in the attitude towards work. Here, work is a place to have fun, as much as it is to get done the things that you need to do. At times, you wonder, "well, couldn't we be getting a lot more done if we pushed ourselves a little harder?" But then you sit back and think, "why is that even necessary? if you're going to have to get a little work done in life, you may as well enjoy it."
Not to say that the work place here resembles that of the TV show, the Office. The attitude is still professional and the standards still high, its simply a different philosophy, a different way of life. Why not have more of a balance-- get done the things that you need to do, but do so in a manner in which you can enjoy it :)
And when little problems and stresses ever do occasionally arise, the reaction to that is simply "mai pen rai krap" / don't worry about it ;)
Well, the Milk Shop here is about close. I'm sitting here at a small authentic wood table in one of my favorite places to hang out in Chiang Mai. It's a sizable drink and snack shop right across from campus, where they specialize in sugared-flavored milks (including chocolate Milo's!) as well as Mash Potatoes of all things.... two of my favorites!!
So far, all is well. All is good. 'sa ba dii, sa ba dii' (the same here as it is said in Laos!)
In my next posting-- likely later tonight or tomorrow, I will tell you more about my classes and how teaching here has been going so far.
As always, that's all for now,
Peter
I've been a teacher here now for a full month, and I must say that my work schedule here compared to home is both a breeze and a breath of fresh air. No longer do I fear the work-week and the dreaded Mondays, like I did back at home. The infamous "case of the Mondays" syndrome is now a thing of the past. Here, Monday is now just another day of the week, and just part of the whole enjoyed experience. And while yes, there is still work to be done, and yes, I still work as hard at it as I did before, gone is the constant, imminent pressure to optimize one's output, as well as the perpetual strive toward maximzing efficiency for the sake of quality.
The work place here is also much more social, friendly, and family-like. The Thai model for the work place is to be both a hard worker and a social contributor. Thus, to be a competent and successful leader, one must be balanced; investing both in their work, as well as in their fellow workers.
I just remember always being stressed out about my job back at home, getting home late after rush-hour traffic, and then never getting enough time to do the things I wanted to do in the evenings. Moreover, every weekend was a long-awaited saving grace that never seemed to arrive soon enough, and never stuck around long enough to be a satiable amount. And by the time it hit Sunday morning, I was already beginning to worry about having to prepare and go back to work again the next day.
I still do that here, to some extent, but it's just different....
The major difference, I think, is in the attitude towards work. Here, work is a place to have fun, as much as it is to get done the things that you need to do. At times, you wonder, "well, couldn't we be getting a lot more done if we pushed ourselves a little harder?" But then you sit back and think, "why is that even necessary? if you're going to have to get a little work done in life, you may as well enjoy it."
Not to say that the work place here resembles that of the TV show, the Office. The attitude is still professional and the standards still high, its simply a different philosophy, a different way of life. Why not have more of a balance-- get done the things that you need to do, but do so in a manner in which you can enjoy it :)
And when little problems and stresses ever do occasionally arise, the reaction to that is simply "mai pen rai krap" / don't worry about it ;)
Well, the Milk Shop here is about close. I'm sitting here at a small authentic wood table in one of my favorite places to hang out in Chiang Mai. It's a sizable drink and snack shop right across from campus, where they specialize in sugared-flavored milks (including chocolate Milo's!) as well as Mash Potatoes of all things.... two of my favorites!!
So far, all is well. All is good. 'sa ba dii, sa ba dii' (the same here as it is said in Laos!)
In my next posting-- likely later tonight or tomorrow, I will tell you more about my classes and how teaching here has been going so far.
As always, that's all for now,
Peter
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