School & Work - Not Boring, Surprisingly!

Thanks to House of Rose I have an important topic to talk about - school and work! How fitting that this topic should come up as I had just finished lesson planning for next week and thought that I should update my blog. Doesn't hurt that Spotify is playing an eclectic mix of music in the background as I'm typing away. 

Where to begin...

First, I must declare that everyone, and I mean every, single EMT, HoF, or whomever, has had a totally unique experience traveling to, living, and working in Abu Dhabi. Therefore, my journey is not a one-size-fits-all and cannot be considered as a generic preview of what can be expected when coming to teach in this country. In fact this is the main reason that it's fun meeting and talking to other educators, heck anyone living in the UAE, since everybody has a one-of-a-kind story to tell. I have had the pleasure of acquainting with and befriending people from England, Ireland, Cameroon, Jordan, India, Palestine, Nepal, the Philippines, Pakistan, Egypt, Scotland, Mauritania...and the list goes on and on.  

Okay, let me get into the main subject at hand, starting from the top. I must create a list/timeline to help me with this...

- I got my medical check and fingerprinting for my residency visa/Emirates ID done 3 days after arriving in Abu Dhabi.

- I found out my region placement (Abu Dhabi) and that I was on "reserve" during the general orientation, which took place on the first day of the following week (6 days after arrival)...and this was followed by 3 days of subject-area, cycle-relevant training at a hotel.

- I finally received my school placement at the end of the next week, almost 3 weeks after arrival. I'm placed at an all male-staffed, all-boys school about a 35-40 minutes drive from city center. The school serves students from Cycles 1-3 but it's divided into two buildings with Cycle 1 on one side and Cycles 2 & 3 on the other side. Due to a limited amount of space on the Cycles 2 & 3 side, Grade 6 is in the Cycle 1 building even though this grade level is a part of Cycle 2. 

Since my school is all-male staffed and teaches boys exclusively, I have been assigned there with another female EMT so that we could co-teach and manage our students more effectively together since this is a very interesting and unique situation for all parties involved - teachers, admins, pupils, etc. Nobody was sure how this would play out or how it would affect school culture and the learning environment, especially how our students would respond to us. Luckily, things have been moving along just fine and our boys work quite well with us. All limbs & fingers are still intact, our brains remain in our heads, and we are still breathing and going to work! Woot woot! They adhere to our routines and listen to our directions for the most part - well with plenty of reminders, of course, and one of the reminders involves being sent to our social workers/disciplinarians (they don't enjoy that very much so they try to redirect themselves and behave). 

Our kids are silly, animated, sometimes unmotivated, sometimes eager to learn, sometimes too much to handle, but sometimes will melt your heart...all in all I have enjoyed working with them and grown to like them quite a bit. Not that they don't make me want to pull out my hair or at least sprout some white ones from time to time but they are not vicious or violent or mean...they just eat too much candy and have too much energy for their own good. Could they be more focused? Sure. Could they behave better? Sure. Is there room for improvement? Yes and always - this goes for everybody in general. However, I can't blame them or anyone working with them for some of the challenges that are present because of the language barrier. Imagine being asked to do something that you're not good at (and don't find enjoyment in doing for some) and having to do it every day. This explains some of the frustration, lack of motivation, and disengagement.  It's an uphill battle but also a unique opportunity for everyone. There's a lot of hand gestures and facial expressions involved, that's for sure, and you have to celebrate small victories when they happen - they do happen and they will happen.  It definitely helps being surrounded by positive staff members whom you can exchange stories with and lean on for support. Healthy doses of intrigue, amazement, breakthroughs, and laughter are injected in the work week as well.  Like I said, work is definitely not boring.   

- The AMTs and EMTs at my school teach anywhere from 18 to 24 to 30 periods each week. Most classrooms have about 25, plus or minus a few students, each class.  

- We're not overflowing with resources but we're not necessarily lacking in them either. The essentials are there for the most part and we make do with what we have for the rest.  Some of us use our own funds to bring in the things we want but they're not like do-or-die items.  If it's reasonable and permission is given in advance, my school reimburses what we purchase, which is awesome.  Sometimes what we need is right there in front of us but sometimes we need to ask around and hunt those materials down. Communication is key. 

- Oh and finally, my daily routine consists of getting up around 5-5:30am, start driving around 6:15am, and get to school before 7am. The school day kicks off with a 15-minute, all-school assembly where the kids do a few exercises to get their blood pumping, sing the national anthem, and watch a presentation put up by one of the classes. Then some talented students play live music to dismiss everyone from the assembly. After a full day of teaching with a prep period or two and a short lunch break in there, I usually make my way home around 1:30pm on Sundays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays while I do the same around 2:30pm on Mondays and Wednesdays due to professional development. 

Welp, this is all I can come up with for now.  I was hoping that this entry would be more logical and structured when I first started writing but it ended up being a jumble of disorderly thoughts. I blame this on the caffeine-sugar rush I got from the cup of coffee I drank. Nonetheless I hope this post sheds some light on what the work could be like and is somewhat helpful in preparing you for what could be coming your way.

Balance

People always talk about work-life balance but what about the balance between being social and finding solace in solitude or being fit & healthy and finding complete satisfaction in eating something guilty & sinful? Part of my goal of being in Abu Dhabi is discovering who I am, what I'm made of, and what I want in life. Honestly it is a lot harder that I thought it would be. Not that I believed it would be without its challenges but I also wanted to be ideal that this self-discovery and its revelations would come to me like it did for Isaac Newton with the fall of an apple beneath a tree. I was too optimistic, too ideal but one can only wish and dream, right? 

I have met some really amazing and incredible people since I've been here in the AD. Heck, I felt like I knew them even before I landed in Middle Eastern soil, thanks to Facebook and other social networking avenues. Truly, I should be counting my blessings that I have the opportunity to build on some solid friendships that have begun to develop here, and I should be further grateful, and I am, that I have found happiness in many aspects of my life plus living in such a phenomenal place on top of it all.  Abu Dhabi is exciting - it's full of culture, it's diverse, and most importantly it's safe - many people can attest to that. Yet somehow, some way, I still find myself feeling completely empty inside, filled to the brim with loneliness and sadness and worries, and I don't even know why, which is the hardest and most mind-boggling part. As people get older, they become wiser (hopefully) but this wisdom also comes with a price - they begin to see the truth. With truth and knowledge they become more guarded with whom they let into their inner circle, whom they call friends, in fact whom they count as family. Not only is money an important commodity but so are time, effort, and trust. Right now I'm just rambling. I have a lot on my mind and in my heart but I don't know what to say, how to say it, or who to say it to. Everyone seems to be incredibly busy these days and has their own set of problems to deal with - I just don't want to add mine on top of theirs. Even if I wanted to talk or try to they could only listen for a little while and then have to rush to take care of their own matters. How can I blame them? So I ramble and let this blog be my escape. I guess if I have my closest around me, right here with me, I would feel so much better. Unfortunately, they are not. 

Spring break is officially over in t minus 4 hours and it's back to lesson planning, classroom management, and teaching. I just made it sound a lot worse than it actually is but really who wants to go back to work and reality? During this holiday I have visited Dubai twice, went out West to bbq with friends over food & music, biked along the Corniche, ate pastries sprinkled with gold leaves at the Emirates Palace, and so much more. I have also experienced several difficult conversations with family, had massive headaches and heartaches over them, and dealt with not 1 or 2 or 3 but FOUR floods in my kitchen, thanks to my nifty little washing-drying-combo machine. Currently, I'm waiting for them to call me and hopefully bring me a new one in the next few days. Not that I am in love with doing laundry but having clean clothes is kind of essential. Anyways, I hope to blog with a more upbeat attitude in my next post but until then enjoy the videos below. Looking at them does make me happier and know that it's not all bad after all.