"Are you free?" asked the young woman who stuck her head into my office during the last period.
"Yes."
"For like, ten minutes?"
"Yes."
"I'm looking for someone to practice my MUN speech, I have it on Saturday."
Thus commenced a very impressive presentation by an 11th grade Friends' School student on human trafficking and what the U.N. ought to be doing about it.
"I really want to get it. I want to travel. I've never travelled. I won't travel with my parents before I graduate. I would be able to travel alone. It would feel good and independent."
The Model UN team does get to travel internationally, with trips planned this year to Turkey, Greece, Jordan, and beyond. Even the short trip to Jerusalem, which is a great hassle for most Palestinians, and impossible for some, presents a distant horizon to be reached.
This young woman was impressive because she was so keen to hear feedback. But really, she needed little-- her eye contact, gestures, and delivery were all strong.
Some verses that remind me that I, too, should be constantly seeking feedback in my new job, are
Proverbs 1:5, "Let the wise hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands obtain guidance"
and
Proverbs 12:1, "Whoever loves instruction loves knowledge: but he that hates reproof is brutish."
Even though I am an instructor, receiving instruction is key to my ability to be of service here. This week I observed a colleague's class, and took notes almost constantly. They looked like a court report: "He walked among the rows. Checked a student's homework. Checked his watch. Minimal talking."
My own class ends up being a lab where I tinker-teach to figure out what works for me.
Unexpected meetings with students like yesterday's bring joys that I did not expect given the job description.
"Yes."
"For like, ten minutes?"
"Yes."
"I'm looking for someone to practice my MUN speech, I have it on Saturday."
Thus commenced a very impressive presentation by an 11th grade Friends' School student on human trafficking and what the U.N. ought to be doing about it.
"I really want to get it. I want to travel. I've never travelled. I won't travel with my parents before I graduate. I would be able to travel alone. It would feel good and independent."
The Model UN team does get to travel internationally, with trips planned this year to Turkey, Greece, Jordan, and beyond. Even the short trip to Jerusalem, which is a great hassle for most Palestinians, and impossible for some, presents a distant horizon to be reached.
This young woman was impressive because she was so keen to hear feedback. But really, she needed little-- her eye contact, gestures, and delivery were all strong.
Some verses that remind me that I, too, should be constantly seeking feedback in my new job, are
Proverbs 1:5, "Let the wise hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands obtain guidance"
and
Proverbs 12:1, "Whoever loves instruction loves knowledge: but he that hates reproof is brutish."
Even though I am an instructor, receiving instruction is key to my ability to be of service here. This week I observed a colleague's class, and took notes almost constantly. They looked like a court report: "He walked among the rows. Checked a student's homework. Checked his watch. Minimal talking."
My own class ends up being a lab where I tinker-teach to figure out what works for me.
Unexpected meetings with students like yesterday's bring joys that I did not expect given the job description.
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