A long time since pen to paper

My internet radio is lulling me into quiet contemplation as I stare out from behind my desk in my classroom. I'm free from kids for the moment, but I know my Grade 9 Advisory will be invading these walls in a brief seventy minutes. Psychology texts cover my desk and world maps stare at me from three walls. Although the radio plays pleasantly in my ears, I can also hear chants and marching orders out the window, coming from the nearby Chinese school. Local schools often begin the year with mandatory military "training", where they learn to chant and high-step and stand with straight backs to show their obedience and loyalty to the state.The hallways in my own school, though, are quiet. The classrooms are full.

The past few months have been full of transitions, and it's hard to believe that I've already been back to work for more than two weeks.

(**Side note: As a teacher, I hope you'll never hear me complaining about the length of my holidays. If I do, I hereby will allow one stiff slap upside the head for such nonsense. I've got a pretty sweet life.)

These transitions could seem ground-breaking when looking through an outsider's eyes... new job, new home, new colleagues, new domestic situation, new classes, new students, and a whole new life. I'm now living in a new city, teaching at a new school, and have started a new life with my partner and friend, M. There has been so much change, and I'm loving every minute of it.

I'm mainly writing this to reconnect a bit with some people I've lost touch with, and since I just received an email from one of my oldest, best friends this morning from her vacation spot, I thought I'd start here.

In her message, J wrote, "I am wondering how you are, and where your head is at, and what makes you happy and causes you worries lately. What are you reading and have you been writing? It has been too long since we had a good long talk."

Too true, my friend. Too true. In that spirit, I'll leave just a simple response:

At this moment in time, I am full of happiness and reasons to thank the cosmos, and I can only hope for more to come. I'll try to find time to fulfill the rest of J's inquiries soon. Until then...

T

圣诞节快乐 and 新年快乐! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

I hope no one reading this is convinced that I have suddenly acquired some new-fangled Chinese skills. This would not be the case. However, since I'm writing from the future and since 2013 is already here, who knows what will come of the new year.

I won't dwell or reminisce too much about 2012, other than to say I'm a wee bit glad it's over. It was one of the most... full... years I've probably ever had. I'm tired, but the time has flown. Teachers at our school usually feel like the first semester is never ending with no Christmas/New Year holidays and multiple 6-day work weeks between October and January. However, this year the sand has slipped through the glass at a ridiculous rate. It's January 1st. In 3 weeks I'll be on a plane south. And next year will move me out of the PRC's northeast down to the sprawl of Shanghai.

Yup, I'll be on the road again this summer, but China seems to have kept it's grip. MM (my endlessly delightful lady friend) and I have both acquired jobs at an IB school in Shanghai for the 2013-2014 school year, and we'll be packing up for the move south in coming months. Although I had my heart set on SE Asia, Shanghai will be an excellent stepping stone and will hopefully provide me/us with more experience with which to pursue jobs elsewhere in the world. And I'll be able to get my fill of fake China shoes and hockey jerseys. If anyone is interested, start putting in your orders now!

For the timebeing, I need to stop procrastinating and begin facing the endless pile of papers in front of me. Only 3 more classes remain in the semester and I need to get a move on.

To all the fam and friends around the world, much love from China and I"m hoping that 2013 brings ya'll a bucket of happiness, a wagon of good health, and a dump truck full of prosperity. Make sure you're in Western Canada in July. And don't hesitate to book a flight so you can come and visit. All the best...

T

With great power comes great responsibility (I'm not the one with great power)

Participating in the democratic process through the media is a challenging thing. As an audience member wanting to join in, one has little power to choose what is published and what isn't, what voices are brought to the forefront of a discussion and which are ignored. And even when someone chooses to present an alternative perspective, the writers at the newspaper have the ability to edit, omit, and spin whatever words come their way. This is the nature of the beast, and I put my hand in its mouth.

I didn't actually get bit. In reality, I got what I wanted: publication. Of course, leaving my words in the hands of someone else allows room for  comment, editing, and a careful portrayal of the words which were sent out. This I knew and expected. And it's what I received. Regardless, for those people who took the time to read my complete response, thank you. I feel strongly that the articles are not representative of my school reality. I do not work for a perfect system, but I've seen a great deal of improvement this year and more hope is on the horizon. Our students don't deserve the bad press, nor do our teachers.

After my first email (with the letter seen previously), the writer at the Sun responded with a link to further stories which are also very critical of the company I work for. I sent a follow up email the same day  which was a little bit more strongly worded. Of course, she used all of this email and less than half of my original letter. However, I don't regret sending it. It makes some points that otherwise would not have been shared.

The link to that article is at the bottom of this post, and my most recent letter to the aforementioned Education columnist is below. I edited it quite a bit from the letter I'd planned earlier in the day. Hopefully I won't add any more flammable fodder to an unreasonably well-stoked fire. Thanks again for all the support.

My final correspondence to the Sun:

Thank you for printing part of my correspondence on your blog. It's unfortunate that you didn't point anyone toward the positive comments from 10 or more current or former ML teachers, two former students, and more than one non-ML teacher which can be found in response to a number of your articles; it was to these comments I referred to in my letter, not simply the few emails you received directly. However, you printed important parts of my letter and email, which I appreciate. It's good to see that a little balance found its way into the column, even if these alternate perspectives were perhaps portrayed negatively.

I hope that the graduates from our program who work hard to legitimately earn their Dogwood Diplomas aren't hurt by your articles. The same goes for the dedicated teachers who invest their time in the students of our school. I am sure that wasn't your intention; however, it's a potential reality because of the way you've chosen to develop your articles.

Thanks again for your time.

The article can be found HERE.

And for those who are still reading, consider sending a letter yourself one day. Putting pen to paper is still a powerful expression of the democratic process. Even if you can't tether spoken words to your tongue to pull back in times of embarrassment, saying it is better than silence. 

T

My letter to the Vancouver Sun

As promised yesterday, below is my letter to the Vancouver Sun editorial staff. J.S. is the Education writer for the Sun, and recently wrote an article about the company I work for. I will admit that I have my own criticisms of the system that has been in place, but things are continually improving. The accusations made in the article are unbalanced, are an example of poor journalism, and represent the views of a disgruntled employee who had a number of reasons to complain publicly that were not connected to the reality of her job. I've never been one to keep my opinion to myself, so I responded. The content of my letter is below if you're interested. The link for the article in the Sun can be found at the bottom of this post. Read if you have time and have any interest in keeping journalism in western Canada balanced.

T

*          *           *           *

Hi,

I am a BC certified teacher working for the Maple Leaf International School in Dalian, China. I teach high school English in the BC program and recently read your article and the related blog posts about the school in Tianjin. As I'm sure you've guessed, many of our teachers have read it. 

I first want to say that I thought your article seemed to be missing a great deal of information about the school program accused of academic dishonesty, and you did a good job of making it seem like the Maple Leaf program and the BC offshore programs were in dire straits.

Shannon Davis, the principal complainant, is not a BC certified teacher, doesn't work in the BC program or even in the BC high school, and doesn't teach any BC curriculum. She is an ESL/EFL teacher at the middle school, which is independent of the BC program. My first year with Maple Leaf was with our ESL Middle School program in Dalian, and I was never directly connected to the BC academic program at the high school until I applied for a transfer. I worked with 4-5 other foreign teachers, but I was under the jurisdiction of the Chinese school program staff. The curriculum taught was locally developed, as are most ESL programs overseas. To an outsider this difference can seem irrelevant. However, when you're criticizing a Ministry-certified off-shore program, you should be making a differentiation between certified BC teachers in academic courses under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Education, and those teaching ESL/EFL/ELL. You do mention that one BC teacher was involved in the complaint, but the person goes unnamed and it is unclear if they are merely lending support to Ms. Davis or if they are making accusations toward the BC program. There is a large difference between the two.

Did you inquire into the reasons for the complaints? Did you attempt to contact other teachers not named in the emails to see if they supported these accusations beyond those who have left? I don't know Ms. Davis, but I would expect that other people beyond the two mentioned in the email would have something to say. I have been working with Maple Leaf for a few years and my dealings with administration in our program have always been professional, and they have never pressured me to increase or inflate grades. I know pressure comes from students, parents, and sometimes from non-BC staff for English grades to be higher, but at the end of the day, our students in the BC program are made accountable by the 40% provincial exam mark in English/Communications 12, which is graded in BC by a group of experienced, trained, and non-Maple-Leaf-affiliated teachers. Furthermore, the accusation of inflating grades would typically refer to report cards and transcripts; however, the middle school (where Ms. Davis is/was an employee) doesn't issue report cards until December. If the accusations were made weeks/months ago, how was Ms. Davis being influenced if the teachers never provided reports to students/parents? Likewise, if her immediate supervisors were forcing her to "give inaccurate grades", in what way did this happen? An ESL curriculum developed for middle school students would obviously be much different than a fully-integrated, BC certified course.

You refer to Ms. Davis by name. You also said that "a couple of the teachers who shared their stories with [you]" were "fleeing China with a plan to write a book about their experiences." Not to nitpick in the details, but using a word like "fleeing" implies that the teacher is in danger of some sort of repercussions beyond losing her job. Refugees flee genocide. Criminals flee a crime scene. If these teachers were leaving, they did not "flee". If people want to leave this job, the door is there. If they are let go, there would be a reason.

I'm curious, too, about the details relating to the school "harass[ing]" them and creating "an unsafe environment". Some detail here would be helpful. Making such statements without specific evidence or detail allows readers to create any sort of myth they choose. I know this rhetorical strategy is effective to sway the minds of your audience, but doesn't it take away from your professional sense of integrity?

As to the inclusion and reference to the audio tape of the staff meeting, you include a single, frustrated quote from Mr. Ryan Waurynchuk, the Tianjin high school principal. You say that it was "possibly the most interesting" piece in the puzzle you were trying to assemble. The thing I found interesting was the reality that the quote doesn't show him being offensive, demeaning, or unprofessional.  If Ms. Davis wasn't the one taping the staff meeting, don't you think you should tell readers who it was and explain why they don't step forward to share their grievances publicly? In contrast, it is extremely unprofessional to send a recording of a staff meeting to a newspaper without raising concerns in the proper and expected way first. If a BC teacher was taping this staff meeting, he/she would be stepping outside of profession expectations; teachers are expected to discuss problems and bring issues to administrative bodies before taking them to the next level.  Also, if you're going to imply that there was something untoward said in the meeting, why not quote it? Why hide behind the veil of insinuation?

My final point is again related to your intimations that all BC off-shore schools were under fire from the Ministry; you do so in one way by referencing your own article from last year in a related blog post on the Vancouver Sun website. I read last year's article. The accusations in the current article against the BC program refer to the practice in the school of inflating grades to get kids into universities. However, the article you reference from last year stated the following: "Alberta's inspections are much more robust [than Ontario's] and although Cosco didn't review B.C.'s inspection process, she concluded, based on interviews with staff, that they are similar to Alberta's." Wouldn't this show that the BC off-shore schools are actually "robust" and rigorous in meeting and maintaining the standards of the Ministry according to your own references?

Inspectors from the Ministry check planning and curricular documents from the department level (overviews and calendars developed by departments) down to the individual teacher (term, unit, and lesson plans showing both long-term and short-term planning and assessment) to make sure everything is in line. These documents are developed in conjunction with the Ministry-created Prescribed Learning Outcomes for all courses. And this happens every year—schools in BC are inspected only every 5 years. I wonder what your motivation is in criticizing a BC-accredited program that is faithfully maintaining teaching standards in accordance with BC standards.  The effect of your article could have ramifications for our students, who legitimately graduate with a BC Dogwood diploma; they could also negatively impact the hard-working teachers who plan to seek employment elsewhere in the future.

My sincere hope is that future articles are more balanced and more thoroughly researched than this current article and other related blog entries.

Articles referenced:

http://blogs.vancouversun.com/2012/11/23/teacher-distress-at-a-b-c-certified-school-in-china/

 http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Teachers+allege+grade+inflation+contract+violations/7603331/story.html

Participating in your democracy

Although I currently live in a place where democracy isn't effectively or widely practiced, and the governmental style is one of control rather than discussion and debate, I've always felt it necessary in my life to share my opinion when I felt people were out of line and speak up publicly when things needed to be said. More will come tomorrow, but I'll be sending a letter to the Vancouver Sun regarding the education reporter's most recent article concerning accusations of grade inflation, intimidation, and academic dishonesty in a BC off-shore school. After sending it, I'll post the text of the letter here on the blog. Stay tuned...

T

A Challenge

Friends,

A good friend and colleague, has made a small challenge. As you know, I'm currently growin' a Mo for Movember. He is a reluctant supporter, but he said he'd donate $60 if I shave HALF my moustache this week while allowing the other half to grow for the rest of the month. However, $60 isn't enough to ruin the beauty (and make me feel okay about alienating the delightful Miss M).

My challenge to you: Donate. If my total donations exceeds $600 by Friday and my colleagues raise an additional $300 for my MoSpace, I will do it and look like a fool for the final week of the month. Any supporters out there? Making me look ridiculous is just one more reason to donate. Rally your friends... call your parents. Make it happen. 

http://mobro.co/TMoRAK

My message to MM today via Facebook

This is a message I sent to MM today over Facebook... it may get me into hot water, but with the taste sensation exploding in my mouth, I simply don't care.

"So, our friends think we're competing with each other and attempting to one-up each other over the food we make on a nearly daily basis. I tried to go on the defensive and explain to them how absurd they were being. Then, as my southern-style chipotle and black bean chili simmered on the stove, and I thought back to my amazing pre-lunch indulgence of homemade Greek salad (two kinds of olives, a bucket of feta, and more sauce than Granny shakes her wooden spoon at) and my lunch-lunch of red Thai curry (of which my student from Thailand said, "smells just like Thailand!"), I thought they might be right. And I'm winning."

Don't judge me too harshly. But do, please, come by for dinner sometime. It's only a short flight to DongBei.

T