Answered Prayers

The English teaching industry suffers from a severe identity crisis. In my first English teaching incarnation in Taiwan, it was an environment filled with fresh-faced young adventurers. On this second incarnation in Oman it has, until now, been one mostly of academics slightly disillusioned to be language teachers. These experiences in just two of the environments where English is taught internationally demonstrate the professional schizophrenia of my current vocation.

But change is afoot, both in the industry and in my workplace. Within the industry there is a gradual professionalization process at work, both through experiential and academic developments in the field, creating a fusion of informed theory and passionate practice. Within my workplace, the dry and dusty academic approach has been closed in on year by year by more eager, hands-on teachers. This past week, the pillars of the old guard were officially toppled.

Our English department, which had grown from a dozen to thirty teachers in the past three years, has had to expand to fifty-three this year to meet the demand for English instruction. The arrival of so many new people has completely changed the chemistry of the department- all that within five days of their arrival. Where the response to additional work had been a grumble before, it has suddenly transformed into eager acceptance. On this fifth day of what can only be a new era, newcomers actually found things to do that would lighten the load of the head of department, improve the functioning of the department and generally make our work lives better. All this despite the obvious “challenges” (Oprahspeak for massive problems) that cannot be concealed within the department.

Two weeks ago I was job-hunting, ready to leave the country. Now I am bubbling over with excitement to see what this new era will bring.

Small Steps and Giant Leaps (Or: I am Not a Potted Plant)

Two great statements come to mind when I think of steps. No. Three.

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” – Chinese proverb

“One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” – Neil Armstrong

“Make your stumbling block your stepping stone.”- Motivational catchphrase/ cliché

Yesterday I took a step that may prove incredibly foolish or incredibly wise in the perpetual casino that is the scheme of things. I agreed to bite off far more than I can chew, evacuate my comfort zone and boldly go where I had certainly never contemplated going before. I accepted a proposal to coordinate the English foundation year programme for the college’s brand new faculty of business. There is no monetary compensation. I will still have a full teaching load. This is uncharted territory. The parallel programme in other national colleges has been fraught with frustrations. Students, whose studies and living expenses are funded by the state, are notoriously unmotivated and not academically inclined. Most of the teachers will be new to the college- and the cultural enigma of the Arabian Gulf.

So am I OUT of my friggin’ TREE?

Quite possibly. This is guaranteed to be the toughest thing I have done in my life. Ever. And for the next year, there will be no turning back.

So why’dya do it?

Comfort zones are all good and well, but I am not a potted plant. My work environment offers very few opportunities for personal and/or professional growth, and though my studies are an important step, MAs in English teaching are not particularly rare flowers. The experience is reward in itself- and the better I do the job, the more rewarding.

And that brings me to the point that probably won’t show up on a CV. Education in Oman has been developing phenomenally, but it has been a tumultuous process fraught by pendulum swings in policy, frustrated students banging their heads against brick walls and frustrated teachers who take the money and run after one contract. In a bureaucracy, there will always be mysterious forces beyond one’s control. But I think- I think- I can take the reins of those few things that will be within my control and let the teachers and students get on with what they are there for. I can help them see that they are allies, not enemies. I can put logic and simplicity to the test in a workplace that has been torn apart by their opposites. And hey, I can let this terrifying cup pass my colleagues by if I dare to drink it for them. Being the boss holds no charm for me. But serving people does. That, I know, I can do.

(And I am writing this partially because I know there will be days when I wonder whatever in the world I could possibly have been thinking. So I’m bookmarking this page to help me remember. )

Learning to be a Learning Organization

A professional note on a personal event, tonight. Tomorrow is my birthday, and in keeping with tradition I have prepared a sweet treat for my departmental colleagues at work. It is usually a substantial carrot cake, but since a cake can only have so many slices, I decided to try something different this year. Tomorrow’s treat is a tiny (cubic centimeter) piece of fondant wrapped in coloured tissue paper- one piece for each one of 120 staff members who are in my professional orbit. What makes this relevant to the matter of TESOL professionalism? During the Zen practice of wrapping 120 pieces of fondant, I recalled the venomous atmosphere of the department on my last birthday. For a long time, my work environment seemed to be a viper’s nest, and I had become so accustomed to working around this that I didn’t even notice at what moment the turning point came, or what made the difference. But the workplace I will walk into tomorrow morning is one that- despite its difficulties- houses individuals who are looking forward, rather than pulling against each other, or even backwards. This truly is something to celebrate.

Among the avalanche of reading materials for my current study module there is a review of the work of Peter Senge, whose 1990 opus The Fifth Discipline pioneered the concept of the ‘learning organization’. When discussing the concept with my tutor, I automatically considered my own workplace to be anything but a learning organization. In retrospect, I see that the workplace I had been evaluating was a construct of past experience. My image of it had not kept up with recent developments, both in the college itself and in my department. My organization does not yet reach the lofty goals set by Senge, but there has been a groundswell of dedication to making things better on a holistic, ongoing basis. Staff are no longer complaining about minute hiccups, they are conspiring to beat the negativity and poor standards that have plagued us. Though not yet what Senge would call a ‘learning organization’, it seems we may have taken the first steps towards learning to be a learning organization. And that is a gift I will not refuse.