teaching here has been quite an experience already. the kids are in school and enjoying meeting new friends and being so far ahead in subjects like english and math. emma is taking biology, physics and chemistry-this is different and both kids are taking history (bhutanese history). instead of the students switching classes, the teachers move around from class to class and the students stay in the same room. i am the class teacher for class 11 science. there are "streams"-science, commerce and arts. science is for the highest level kids and arts is the lowest. i teach class 10, 11 science and 12 science. after school, i run the nature club which consists of hiking up the mountain and gardening on the campus. last thursday, we found five different species of mushrooms on our short hike. the students range in age from 14 to 19. it doesn't really matter what age the student is-they are placed in their class level. for example, an 18 year old can be in class 8 if that is the appropriate level for him or her.
all the students wear the required uniforms and appearance is taken very seriously in bhutan. hair must be neat and not "jazzy", shoes must be polished and rabneys and kachus must be used during assembly.
most of the students are very pleasant and share the same strife that high schoolers in the US face-oppression and misunderstanding from adults. but the students here are much more respectful and helpful. they get in trouble for many things-this makes me cringe several times a day. of-course, i just want to teach and i'm not that concerned with hair that is too "jazzy" or mud that is on shoes.
Enjoy seeing all the pictures. Wondering whether all the classes you teach are in English? Do they have textbooks?
ReplyDeleteYes, all the classes t school are taught in English except for Dzongka-the national language. Most of the textbooks are printed in India. The Biology textbook is very much like a compilation of four college classes in one-very dense! The English classes, on the other hand, entail short stories, poetry and essays-no novels or lengthy texts.
ReplyDeleteI love reading your blog and finding out how daily life is for you, Henry, and Emma. It makes me miss you all, but cheers me up too, to read about how you're acclimating to your new home.
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