bookaddict88 | Summer School in Morocco, Day 2 (Reply)

Summer school went quickly again today. We had a new student today, Youssef, which brings our total up to 12, a nice, even number that makes splitting into pairs or groups easy. Some of the activities we had them do today, such as looking up dictionary definitions and writing a description of their own fantasy world took a bit longer than we expected. Also, the CD player we were using to have them listen to the next chapter of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe kept losing it's place (esp. after we had it on pause for a discussion). So we didn't get everything done that we had planned. Overall, though, I still think it went really well, and it should only get better as we learn what works and what doesn't and how long it will take the students to do certain tasks. The students really are well-behaved, especially since they aren't getting graded for this course. We had some problems with talking and laziness, but no real attitude problems. We'll be assigning the students seats tomorrow, so hopefully the students will stay even more on task.

This summer school is actually great for helping me decide if I want to be a teacher. It's not quite the same as teaching during the regular school year in the US, but though cultural differences are very real and present, kids are still kids everywhere. Plus, the lead teacher for our class teaches in the US (though for junior high and high schoolers), so the methods we use are more American than Moroccan, though we make things more fun since it is the summer. So far, I'm not sure if I'd like teaching and if I'd be any good at it. I love the kids, and I love working with them and teaching them. I also really do like the lesson planning we're doing. On the other hand, I'm not the best at maintaining discipline. Things wouldn't be chaotic without the other teacher, but it would definitely be harder for me. I don't think any teacher likes it when kids misbehave, but I'm afraid a classroom would be out of control with me in charge... I definitely need to learn to be more assertive, whether or not I go into teaching.

After class was over, we visited a mosque. It's the only mosque in Morocco that non-Muslims can visit (for a fee, of course). It's the third largest mosque in the world, and has the tallest minaret. It was absolutely beautiful! I took a ton of pictures (though not all of them turned out, as it was kind of dark inside), and I was going to post them here for you, but I don't have time since my mom wants to use my computer soon. Maybe I will later...