Second day of classes

Monday was nothing compared to today. Let’s just say it didn’t go as well as I’d hoped.
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One of the only things that the lectora from last year told me was that you have to be strict. Today I learned how true this is. Here’s a rundown of my day:
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My first class was wonderful. The students all seemed to follow directions and understand what I was saying. They even told me that they could understand my English better than previous lectoras because I didn’t talk too quickly. I really liked the students and left the class feeling really good about teaching.
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Fast forward an hour and a half, where I had two classes in a row. The first class was a shock compared to the others, but now looking back on it, it was one of the better classes. The girls were angels and one was really interested in the US because she spent a month in an exchange program in California, but the boys were another story. At least they weren’t sitting together, so it wasn’t impossible to manage. One student insisted I call him Borat.
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The next class was in a different room, so I had to run downstairs and try to get things organized before the students arrived. This class would have been fine, except that there was one group of four who wouldn’t stop talking. One of them had transferred from a different school and had never taken English before (why the school put her in third year English is beyond me). My class notes look something like this: Pol (Horrible), Andrea: (speaks English but goofs off), Albert: (Horrible), Jessica: (Horrible)… I feel bad for the kids who do want to learn, because as long as the others goof off, it’s not going to happen. One thing that surprised me: I had a book about Seattle and they all wanted to look at the pictures! If only I had a projector, I could show them more things like that, but the school just isn’t equipped… this year will take a lot of creativity because there are no projectors unless you book them a week ahead (but if I want one for one lesson, then I need if for 6 class periods…) and you aren’t allowed to make copies (instead you must order them from the school about 2 or 3 days ahead of time, or if there are more than 30 copies, you must order them from the government two weeks ahead of time)…
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Luckily I had a lunch break next and got to meet some other teachers (though I can only remember what they taught and not their names). They spoke Spanish with me a little while, but then switched to Catalan, at which point I usually tune out because I just can’t understand it yet.
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My next class was the first second level class of the day (all of my other Thursday classes are third level). Another teacher warned me about them, but honestly, they weren’t the worst. The funny thing about this class was that after the bell, I waited and waited and nobody showed up. I walked through the hall to see if they were waiting in another classroom, and then I went down to the secretary where all I could say was: “Um, I don’t know where any of my students are… I waited and nobody came.” Luckily there was another student there who was actually from my class and she took me to where everybody was. The teacher there was confused because her schedule said that she had them that period, but she didn’t notice that she has them from February to June. That class was bad, but I think the worst part is that they don’t understand any English. I just don’t think they are ready for a conversation class, which makes it hard for me when I am required to pretend not to speak any Spanish. We’ll see how long that lasts.
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The last class of the day. I’m not sure if this was the worst, but if not, it’s a close tie. I think two people paid attention and all the others goofed off. One tried to tell me that he is hyperactive, but he kept making a sign for glasses, so who knows what that’s about. He said he spent his summer smoking drugs. Great. Another was throwing erasers. When I tried to send somebody to get an aid to take him to the principal, they kept telling me that the person I chose would get lost because he was new, then when I wrote their names down, they would tell me that they weren’t their real names… My computer was frozen too so I couldn’t show them the PowerPoint and ended up with 10 extra minutes which I tried to fill by asking easy questions. This worked in other classes where only one or two goofed off, but when everybody is off task…
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As I write this, my day doesn’t seem as bad as it did in the moment. Though it does sound bad, doesn’t it? It could have been worse. Hopefully months down the road I can look back at this and laugh or at least see some improvement. There are just so many challenges piled up on top of each other. I am a new teacher. I have never been trained. The students don’t speak English and I am not supposed to speak Spanish. My class only counts for 30% of their grade, so they don’t care. I don’t understand the discipline procedures for the school. I have over a hundred students and don’t know their names. And they are in middle school for crying out loud. I am just praying that tomorrow goes better, that the other English teachers can help me sort out the discipline problems, and that I am able to learn and improve as a teacher. Otherwise it will be a long, long year.
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Vacation is over. My two and a half weeks of fake Andorra have ended and now my real life begins.