Was my interview as strange as I think it was? (LONG post)

Discussion Open Forum
1

I interviewed yesterday in a tinsey, itty bitty, small town (wal-mart will not build in a place with fewer than 20,000 people and I didn’t see a wal-mart for miles and miles and miles), for a position teaching high school English. Now, most interviews I’ve been on have been all about pedagogy and classroom management. This was a bit different. I brought in samples of lesson plans I’ve written and assessment rubrics and the like, but they barely glanced at them.

I know that in theory, a diverse background is supposed to be a good thing, but no one here in Arkansas can ever even relate in the slightest bit to living overseas. Truly, I’ve learned to just not talk about it because most people think I’m talking about Thailand and will ask about the ramen noodles there, or they just seem to have an complex and think I must think I’m better than they are because I flew on a big airplane. So, I don’t usually mention anything about it anymore.

I have listed my language skills in Spanish and Mandarin on my resume, however, and the superintendent was very interested in talking about them, though never asked me to speak a word of either. In fact, he started out asking me to talk about myself and I didn’t mention anything at all about any of that. I was interviewing to teach English, after all. He then asked me directly to talk about my foreign experiences and asked me to teach Spanish and Mandarin.

Spanish was my second language and I could teach it—next August. I need to pass content knowledge praxis exams for Spanish and it’s been ten years sense I really used it, so I’d like to study a bit. Mandarin, boy I would never have thought of teaching Mandarin! But there is still no standard for the teaching of Mandarin or Japanese (which I have 8 hours of on my undergrad transcript, but they don’t know that yet) and I would be free to teach what I know of it in elementary school. I might consider this. I’ve forgotten more Mandarin than I realized I knew since I’ve been here, I’m sure, but I have a good base and only have to be one step ahead of my students—so long as it doesn’t go beyond beginning classes. It also means I’d be writing the curriculum as I go along.

They also seemed to wonder about National Taiwan Normal University, listed on my resume because I taught in the language center there for a time, not long before I left Taiwan. They had a lot of questions, really, about how someone just moves to another country, or studies so many languages. They really seemed impressed at times, and totally dumbstruck at others.

They did not ask me much about teaching, other than what is my preferred position, high school or middle school, as they have two positions open for English. And even then they looked at me like I was mad when I answered truthfully that, because of a class I have this semester I might be willing to give middle school a chance, though I would not have before-- and went on and on about how eighth grade was the most difficult time in a boy’s life. (It was odd because it was like a mantra or something.) And when I was walking out the door. . . .

One of them MIGHT have called me a bold, bald-faced liar. It sounded like that to my mind when I was thinking it over later.

What do you say? Are they just awestricken by actually meeting a real person who lived overseas? After all, this is a VERY small town. Or did they have me in just to have a little fun with my wildly diverse resume? They’re supposed to be back to me before the end of the week and I’ll let you know—but what’s your take? Was I so deep in the delta that even I am having culture shock—or was it them.

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I’m sorry but I don’t believe you. :discodance:

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:raspberry:

Actually, I though Iris would post and want to be the very first to call me a bald faced liar.

4

I’m just not sure that Forumosa is the best place to discuss small-mindedness … I mean, irishstu, for instance, is now looking up ‘Mandarin’ in the dictionary (suggestion: use ‘Chinese’ next time, as I taught him that one). And the Chief is unable to type because he’s never knowingly encountered someone who’s been on a big plane either and is feeling intimidated.

All I’m saying is, don’t be surprised if you get nothing but gawkers stopping by this thread.

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Pedagogy?
You have a degree in cutting dogs’ toenails??

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You see what I mean? God bless your naive hopefulness, though. :thumbsup:

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[quote=“Stray Dog”]I’m just not sure that Forumosa is the best place to discuss small-mindedness … I mean, irishstu, for instance, is now looking up ‘Mandarin’ in the dictionary (suggestion: use ‘Chinese’ next time, as I taught him that one). And the Chief is unable to type because he’s never knowingly encountered someone who’s been on a big plane either and is feeling intimidated.

All I’m saying is, don’t be surprised if you get nothing but gawkers stopping by this thread.[/quote] Oish! Now we’re gonna have to spend all week explaining about oranges. You should never leave him alone with the dictionary!

Yeah, I know, but there has to be someone out there who’s had some experience going “home” to a black hole. I’m just not sure what to make of things. Quinten might actually be useful here, as he’s from Arkansas, too. Should I just make up an entirely fake, but non-threatening resume? Should I just get as far away from here as possible?

Chiefy, your Mandarine (Sorry, Iris, “Chinese”) is getting all mixed up with your Latin. What did I tell you about codemixing in the open forum?!!!

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de lo que piensa de mucho

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Try being educated at a fairly decent international school in a country that prides itself on unstratified education (where all the universities in the country are fairly equal to one another). It’s easier to be just part of the system. Come in with questioning attitudes, overseas education, and international experiences, and you’ll be treated with suspicion by resentful midlings. To me, this mindset is behind the country’s “D” in innovation. People like to play it safe too much.

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Ja ja ja! Eres la tercera persona que me diga eso! (Not perfect, no doubt. I said I need to study!)

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Try being educated at a fairly decent international school in a country that prides itself on unstratified education (where all the universities in the country are fairly equal to one another). It’s easier to be just part of the system. Come in with questioning attitudes, overseas education, and international experiences, and you’ll be treated with suspicion by resentful midlings. To me, this mindset is behind the country’s “D” in innovation. People like to play it safe too much.[/quote]

I don’t see what the problem is.
Just tell them that there’s hundreds of dog grooming places in Taiwan.
And that doggies are the same, wherever you go.

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Chieeeeefffyyyyyy. I guess that might have been just as good as my resume, anyway.

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Sorry, I got roped into doing work this morning. Work, seriously. The cheek of it.

Anyway, let me be the VERY FIRST to call you a bald faced liar.

Okey, bromeo, pero en serio piensas demasiado (Ves? Hablo castillano de verdad. Soy guapo y ademas, listo).

I think they may have been a bit dumbstruck, and don’t encounter many folks like you. I wouldn’t put too much thought into it and just see what happens. They probably, honestly, didn’t know how to react interviewing you.

They may think you’re gonna be a great language teacher for the school. After all, you’ve lived overseas. On the other hand, they may think you’re full of crap, or be jealous. Who knows? Time will tell.

Tranquila.

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[quote=“irishstu”]Sorry, I got roped into doing work this morning. Work, seriously. The cheek of it.

Anyway, let me be the VERY FIRST to call you a bald faced liar.

Okey, bromeo, pero en serio piensas demasiado (Ves? Hablo castillano de verdad. Soy guapo y ademas, listo).

I think they may have been a bit dumbstruck, and don’t encounter many folks like you. I wouldn’t put too much thought into it and just see what happens. They probably, honestly, didn’t know how to react interviewing you.

They may think you’re gonna be a great language teacher for the school. After all, you’ve lived overseas. On the other hand, they may think you’re full of crap, or be jealous. Who knows? Time will tell.

Tranquila.[/quote]

Si. Puedo ver en tu avatar que eres muy guapo, y de tus palabras, es claro que eres muy intelijente tambien. El hombre perfecto? Por supuesto–eres casado pero no con migo! Pero, no. Porque no sabes la diferencia entre una vaca grande y una vaca piqueno.

But seriously–handsome and ready? Ready for WHAT . . . . ? Hhmmmm.

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The other “listo”!

Maybe it’s only used in Spain proper…

Hmm…

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[quote=“housecat”]

Yeah, I know, but there has to be someone out there who’s had some experience going “home” to a black hole. [/quote]

Kinda. England.

There are certain ‘markers’ of intelligence in different cultures, and in monoglot cultures, speaking Mandarin is one of them. (people who have lived in Chinese speaking countries think slightly differently; it becomes a ‘stuff’ language, not a romantic language of imagination). As any fule on flob kno, kabillions of spazzer waiguoren speak Chinese. Don’t mean nuffink. Likewise, people tend to romanticise things like travel, which seems weird to people like us who have spent years trailing around, looking at stuff. Always seems kind of weird and dumb to me.

And then I go home for a while. I recently attended a family funeral. Afterwards, at the, ahem, Irish part of the proceedings, there was a ‘foreigners table’; all the half Indonesian, Thai, HongKong cousins and the strange uncles from abroad and the cousins. There are things that my ‘back home’ cousins isolate in the family as ‘success/status markers’. Some are understandable, some are funny. My sister’s half finished law degree yet not her completed comparative religion degree. My languages and travel experience, and working for a ‘prestigious’ company down south. My cousin working as a Chanel counter girl, another with a bar in Bali. Another cousin plays guitar in a band.

At first it was funny, then I realised how sad it was that they ‘look up’ to us and see us as different. I love all my cousins dearly, but some have taken paths that I can’t imagine and now are living in single mother poverty, and can’t see any way out. Chances are, they will never go to Bali, play in a band, study at university, wear Chanel lipstick or travel to a beautiful little island in East Asia. Although ‘we’ are not special in any way, we do the things they dream about. Nowadays, as one of the elders of my extended family, I’m conscious that some of the young ones think I’m cool, heaven help 'em. Growing up with little education and little hope, I want to show them that education, though a pain, gets you some way towards what you daydream about. Getting knocled up in your teens has many pros (I wouldn’t ever knock someone for taking that path), but there are definite cons as well.

My housemate asks me about Taiwan sometimes and kind of sighs and says ‘you are so brave…’. That’s not how I see myself; as a kid I was a foolhardy drifter who couldn’t commit to anything.

On the negative side, some people do expect you to be just like them and see any changes in you as an affectation (no, I genuinely find it easier to eat noodles with chopsticks rather than a fork!). It smooths the way to play up all the things they do well because most of it is just insecurity. They like to see you experiencing life but won’t tolerate any suggestion of rejecting their way of life.

British teachers seem keen to let you know just how much they suffer for their profession and are very quick to suggest that other ways are not ‘correct’. They like their paperwork and procedures.

Even within teaching, there are ‘markers’ that will always get you hired (in Brit EFL, dunno about your field) I’ve never read much about the Pareto principle, but from what I googled a while back, it seems related. Once you figure out what the ‘markers’ are, you can play them up or down in order to slot into the system.

Anyway, very personal and rambly post. A bit thoughtful today.

On another note, is irishstu allowed to write in foreign? Eeek.

17

[quote]On another note, is irishstu allowed to write in foreign? Eeek.
[/quote]
Poor bastard lived in See-pan-ia for a bit. When he’d babble at the locals in what he fondly believed to be “Spanish,” they’d nod and smile – “there’s the crazy illiterate Oirish chap again!” – which he took to mean that they understood him. He managed to put some of this babbling down on paper using his own “special language.” Just humour him like everyone else does.

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Oh! It’s ‘special’ language? I don’t know any Spanish, excuse me.

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Off topic a bit (sorry), but for the OP & any others who might have advice:

I have recently been considering trying to teach foreign language in the U.S. after I return from Taiwan.

Problem is I don’t know the first thing about what schools look for when hiring prospective teachers for particular subjects (and according to the OP, maybe things aren’t very standard?).

I speak decent Japanese (& have the courses to “prove” it but no recent tests), could probably handle high school Mandarin after I leave here & basic German might be an option too… Otherwise history, social studies, etc…

I have an MA in Asian Studies, but no teaching background. If I want to teach at the high school level, what should I pursue?
An M.Ed?
Only state teaching certification?
Or do I need a language-specific degree?

Finally, can PRAXIS exams alone prove qualification enough to get hired to teach a particular subject? Not sure how they work.

Thanks ~ & good luck w/your interviewing. Arkansas, huh… Hmm…

20

[quote=“Buttercup”][quote=“housecat”]

Yeah, I know, but there has to be someone out there who’s had some experience going “home” to a black hole. [/quote]

Kinda. England.

There are certain ‘markers’ of intelligence in different cultures, and in monoglot cultures, speaking Mandarin is one of them. (people who have lived in Chinese speaking countries think slightly differently; it becomes a ‘stuff’ language, not a romantic language of imagination). As any fule on flob kno, kabillions of spazzer waiguoren speak Chinese. Don’t mean nuffink. Likewise, people tend to romanticise things like travel, which seems weird to people like us who have spent years trailing around, looking at stuff. Always seems kind of weird and dumb to me.

And then I go home for a while. I recently attended a family funeral. Afterwards, at the, ahem, Irish part of the proceedings, there was a ‘foreigners table’; all the half Indonesian, Thai, HongKong cousins and the strange uncles from abroad and the cousins. There are things that my ‘back home’ cousins isolate in the family as ‘success/status markers’. Some are understandable, some are funny. My sister’s half finished law degree yet not her completed comparative religion degree. My languages and travel experience, and working for a ‘prestigious’ company down south. My cousin working as a Chanel counter girl, another with a bar in Bali. Another cousin plays guitar in a band.

At first it was funny, then I realised how sad it was that they ‘look up’ to us and see us as different. I love all my cousins dearly, but some have taken paths that I can’t imagine and now are living in single mother poverty, and can’t see any way out. Chances are, they will never go to Bali, play in a band, study at university, wear Chanel lipstick or travel to a beautiful little island in East Asia. Although ‘we’ are not special in any way, we do the things they dream about. Nowadays, as one of the elders of my extended family, I’m conscious that some of the young ones think I’m cool, heaven help 'em. Growing up with little education and little hope, I want to show them that education, though a pain, gets you some way towards what you daydream about. Getting knocled up in your teens has many pros (I wouldn’t ever knock someone for taking that path), but there are definite cons as well.

My housemate asks me about Taiwan sometimes and kind of sighs and says ‘you are so brave…’. That’s not how I see myself; as a kid I was a foolhardy drifter who couldn’t commit to anything.

On the negative side, some people do expect you to be just like them and see any changes in you as an affectation (no, I genuinely find it easier to eat noodles with chopsticks rather than a fork!). It smooths the way to play up all the things they do well because most of it is just insecurity. They like to see you experiencing life but won’t tolerate any suggestion of rejecting their way of life.

British teachers seem keen to let you know just how much they suffer for their profession and are very quick to suggest that other ways are not ‘correct’. They like their paperwork and procedures.

Even within teaching, there are ‘markers’ that will always get you hired (in Brit EFL, dunno about your field) I’ve never read much about the Pareto principle, but from what I googled a while back, it seems related. Once you figure out what the ‘markers’ are, you can play them up or down in order to slot into the system.

Anyway, very personal and rambly post. A bit thoughtful today.

On another note, is irishstu allowed to write in foreign? Eeek.[/quote]

Thanks for your post Buttercup. It is thoughtful and insightful.

You know, I used to get that all the time before I learned not to tell people that I’d ever been farther away from my house than Wal-Mart–the comment about being so brave. My usual response was that I found it a lot less frightening to move to a foreign country than to stay here. Of course, I couldn’t say that to my interviewers!!

I don’t doubt that they really can’t relate to my experiences, but I was kinda shocked and amazed myself when I heard the super talking about my diverse background like it was a plus. No one here has said that to me before and I’m jaded enough to be suspicious, I guess. I suppose my interviewers and I arrived at that little meeting room with very different expectations as to how things were going to play out.

Anyway, you’re very correct, Buttercup, that our everyday can sound very exotic to some people. Your noodle eating comment made me think of the reaction I get if I have new friend guests over for dinner and they see me use chopsticks to cook–I almost can’t cook without chopsticks anymore because they’re so superior to the scooping and stabbing of forks and egg turners, erm, anyway–much less to eat. I was a normal person five seconds ago, but suddenly I’m kinda foreign and they’re slightly uncomfortable until I get the conversation back to other things.

And let me just say that this is what I liked so much about living overseas–at least in Taiwan I WAS a real foreigner and I didn’t have to fit in. I could be whoever I needed to be and no one had any issues with anything. Though I do need the job, and though I do like the idea of being a language teacher, mightn’t living in such a place make me NUTTSO MUY RAPIDO?

Anyway, I’ll commence to not thinking too much now.

(Don’t y’all just know that Miso’s gonna stumble upon this thread any day now and just have seizures at the thought of me teaching my bad Spanish?)