While I had the foresight to take home evaluations before the deadline loomed, I was alone in getting things done. My coworkers, Korean and foreign, were working like crazy. I was still only half done with my own evaluations when I arrived at work. My hour preparing was spent quickly making a quiz, then getting back to more drudgery of copying scores and writing vaguely helpful positive commentary.
When the students started to arrive later after lunch, I asked for the door to stay closed, and that students be barred entrance to the office for the rest of the day. This is a play out of my old psychopathic coworkers book, but the students love to suck our attention away. While 90% of the time the kids are the reason teaching is so great, when you are under a paper deadline, you can’t have them in your hair.
The office door being locked was so unusual the students thought there was something wrong. They’d come by and jiggle the lock, try to get our attention by knocking on the glass, and even barge in, only to be tossed out. One of us had to act like a bouncer, because the students all wanted in. I even had to turn down helping someone prepare for the quiz I had prepared because I had too much work to do.
Eventually, I handed off all my classes to others when I got all my comments and scores recorded. The Korean teachers have more work to do because they still have to copy over scores for their books, and get their comments written too. They have to present it to a director, who signs off on it, and get it in the hands of the students tomorrow.
I have a feeling that some of the students that had blown off my speaking tests all year before I developed my new “method” are really going to regret seeing their reports this year. The number of “Did not attempt” or “Zero” scores was up dramatically this time around. A lot more of my students had a significant increase in their scores, so I don’t think I’m being an unreasonable teacher.
The scores hold up a undeniable truth: The more effort students do to prepare for class at home, the better they do in EVERYTHING in class, even things they can’t directly prepare for. Homework might be a time sucking bitch goddess, but those that do it, do well in class overall.
