Monday Cloudy 1st September, 2012
Dear Diary,
What a day! Today’s the first day of teaching in my new school, and it was a total nightmare.
First of all, the students had a terrible learning attitude. Around ten minutes after the start of class, I heard faint snoring coming out from the farthest corner of the classroom. I saw a boy slouching. His eyes were closed and he was obviously sleeping. I woke him up, expecting to receive an apology, but got a glare instead. What is happening to the students in Hong Kong nowadays?
I went on teaching and distributed a worksheet to the class. I told them to read the passage on it. I doubt they’d obey me, though, but I gave the students some time anyway. I read the passage to refresh my memory. Suddenly, I heard a yelp and looked up. Three rows in front of me, a boy was tugging on the ponytail of his neighbor. The poor girl looked startled. The boy teased, “Do you realize your ponytail looks like the kind of toilet flush you pull? It’s so hideous, ha-ha!” I ordered the boy to stop immediately. He shrugged indifferently and looked out of the window.
I was fuming by the time I reached the front of the classroom. I placed the worksheet under the visualizer and started highlighting key words. I told the class to follow but none of the students moved. I decided not to care. The class was hopeless. Just then, I smelt the sweet aroma of beef patties. I thought it was from the tuck shop below, but I realized it didn’t sell hamburgers. It was from the classroom. I sniffed again, hoping that I was wrong, but the smell was definitely there, and it was close.
I scanned the room for any sign of mouth movement, but the students were either sleeping or daydreaming. My gaze fell on the girl right in front of me. Her English book stood upside down on the desk, hiding her face. I stood up and saw her holding a hamburger and a cup of coke. I wanted to throw a great, big tantrum there. It was so disrespectful! I snapped at the girl to dump her food, and I gave her a demerit too. I thought this would act as a precaution to the class.
I checked my watch. Five minutes to go. Great! Just as I thought all issues in the class was settled and I could finally have some peace, I heard a scraping sound. I spotted the student immediately. He was scraping paint off the wall! I nearly swore but managed to restrain myself. What was the problem with this class? After what seemed like forever, the bell rang.
I gathered my things and charged out of the classroom. I was so angry and disappointed. I believed that the students weren’t dumb, but under this learning environment, they’d never succeed.