Guru-Guru Jocelyn - or - The KL Workshop

I have done sixteen workshops since arriving here in Malaysia.

It should have been more, but sixteen is enough: enough to give me confidence in getting up in front of a group and presenting material I know.. material I have prepared myself. Enough that I am finally having fun with it all.

At least I don’t get sick anymore.

Good thing too, because yesterday was the final big workshop in KL.

Along with SMR’s 36 mentors there were about 300 teachers, the minister of education who also acts as the deputy prime minister of the country, his entourage from the ministry and a rather large contingent from the press. Of course, I was also in attendance: one of the presenters, and it was great fun!

According to the article in the paper this morning, we are Guru-Guru Bahasa Inggeris (teacher-teacher of English).

Cool.

According to Vas, I am not in this picture.

I’m pretty sure I am.

I don’t know what else it says.. I can’t read Bahasa Malay. We all have one finger up, indicating the ‘One Malaysia’ policy they try and promote.

It was a photo-op.. and why not. We are part of a good thing here. The English mentor program is really bringing education in the primary schools to life.. not just the English classes. Teachers are saying we should do workshops for others at the schools.. "their classes are so boring compared to ours!"

I was approached by a teacher I had never met and earnestly informed that she had been empowered by our presentation. She finally understood why all the mentors do things a little differently. She finally figured out why we did so much ‘stuff’ and then changed it..

“I didn’t get it until today” she said. “We can do it differently.. we don’t all have to teach the same way. Please make sure you tell the other mentors how important this is to me.”

It was one of those ‘uhuh’ moments they talk about on the Oprah show.

Teaching is very individual, personal: a living, breathing ‘thing’ between one teacher and one class. It changes and lives and develops and grows…

We spent 45 minutes presenting the Reflective Cycle.. a rather sterile topic.. but apparently a good one. Wouldn’t have been my choice, but I am glad I went along with it.

We made up lovely hand-outs, but they weren’t copied.

We planned to provide the teachers with personal journals: but they weren’t printed in time.

Heck, I planned on staying in the country for three years, but am leaving after one.

Again.

“Life is what happens while we are making other plans”.. Someone said that.

I think it was my mother.

And really, it all seems to work out pretty well. (Yes.. I said that)