Well, Wednesday started off good...but there were definitely some down moments.
Valeria's class was first! I do love this class, but today was frustrating. We could not use the lab, which meant that I could not do the lesson on "The South" because it really isn't something to talk about minus the pictures and such. So, trying to think on the fly, I looked at the topics they asked to talk about and chose the teen problems/issues one because well, they are teens! I figured of all topics to not have pictures of and such, this would be a good one! WRONG...first, half of them did NOT want to cooperate, and the other half was divided between cooperating and questioning why this topic. They asked to talk about NYC, but I explained that we had tried this once before without pictures, videos, etc., and I was preparing basically a whole unit on NYC, which is true! So, reluctantly, they decided to talk to me about it. We started with 4 titles on the board: Drinking, Drugs, Smoking, and Teen Pregnancy. Now, a few things: 1. Making assumptions is never good
2. Not being open to the opinions/input of others is no good either
My students INSISTED that America is the ONLY country with a teen pregnancy problem, and that it is because ALL Americans are accepting of this and parents do not care if their teen is pregnant. They said that it is because Americans have more freedom as teens and we become adults at age 16 (I definitely corrected them on this one), and also that we have cars at 16. Now, I will not say that some of these things are not true, or that they do not contribute to the issue. However, one girl then spoke up and said that Americans get pregnant because their parents do not care what they do, where they go, and if they get pregnant. She followed it up with, "my mom would KILL me!" So, I took that opportunity to explain that my mom would have killed me, and that I was surrounded by friends whose mothers/fathers would NOT have been accepting of this, and that it would not have been seen as a positive thing. I tried to explain that many teens are "kicked out" of their houses, etc. Of course, the demon I am combating here is MTV...thank you MTV for your sucky shows about "Teen Mom" and "16 & Pregnant" that you then show in an international market, thus leading others to believe that we are all sleeping around in our teens and getting pregnant. The students said that on the shows, the families are all happy in this situation. I have seen the shows, and this comment by a student leads me to believe that there is something being lost in translation here! I also gave them a quick lesson on making assumptions! **I of course left out the famous American saying of, "you know what happens when you assume?? You make an a** out of U and ME!" Though there was a moment when I was tempted. I think what bugs me is that I've seen the Italians get heated when talking about assumptions that Americans make of them, but I have a VERY hard time convincing them that their assumptions about Americans are not all correct. The concept I want them to understand, and thus our discussions on stereotypes, etc., is that while these situations/assumptions/stereotypes may fit SOME people in a society/group, they do not fit all. Hmm...perhaps there is a lesson in this idea...if you have some advice...email me, facebook me, etc. How can I drive this point home on an international level (i.e. not just Americans and Italians).
Anyway, so they also told me that drugs were a bigger problem in the U.S.,but that alcohol and smoking were worse in Italy. THey told me that smoking occasionally is okay for you...umm...NO...perhaps there is another lesson in here somewhere! Anyway, another part of the class was spent with me getting frustrated because half of them were just talking and not paying attention. I talked about respect and learning...it did no good...so I gave up on those and just focused on the ones that were talking to me. I left there somewhat annoyed and defeated.
My second class was Rosina's. We were not able to have the lab either, but they have a brand new smart board in their room, so they were excited to use it! It took forever to get setup, and we were interrupted like a million times, but we eventually got started! Seeing as how I never took Latin, they taught me that Antebellum meant, before war. Now, if you all knew this and I did not, please dont laugh at me. One of my favorite things about this trip is that I am learning SO much from my fellow Fulbrighters, my students, and some of the teachers I am working with. So, now I know...and I already felt slightly ashamed that I did not know this. I will say this though, being in Italy has TRULY shown me something I always knew: Americans (and by this I mean the general population/education system ...and perhaps it is just southern education) do not have a great appreciation for languages. Anyway, there I go making a judgment of American, but I think that there is a great bit of validity to this statement. I know very few people who are bilingual, or who have intensely studied another language. Again, this could be more about where I am from than anything else, so, if someone reading this has some information to the contrary, I am completely open to hearing it! No, really! :)
So, Rosina's class went well, and they were interactive and engaged in the "Old South" lesson! I love getting to now share MY culture with them!
Rosina could not take me to school today, which was fine except that my knee was hurting where I fell last night. So, I booked it to the bus stop near my apartment and was able to take the bus most of the way there. I got off the bus sooner than normal and walked slowly the rest of the way; just to be out walking and not a lazy bus rider.
From here, the day was pretty much downhill for a while. Francesca's class was first. Let's just say that I left there LIVID! So, i added additional spelling differences, pronunciation differences, and other "word" differences between Americans and the British. I added two slides of like 12 different kinds of cookies, thus proving my point that in America, cookies are called...COOKIES!!!!!!!!!
The meltdown began when she tried to tell the students that Americans eat the "traditional" American breakfast of pancakes, eggs, bacon, toast, juice, milk, coffee, and biscuits every day. Umm...no we dont. I explained that a larger breakfast with some of these items might be eaten on a Saturday, Sunday, or holiday. Now, there may be some people who eat some of these things in combination more frequently, but as a whole, Americans do NOT eat all of that for breakfast every day!
So then, I skipped to the "American Pancake" recipe for the students to see. They all got really excited and started writing it down and wanting to know if they could make them. They started asking about the units of measurement, and so when I started explaining that "1 cup" is a unit of measurement in cooking, Francesca said that it wasn't. She started arguing with me that you use any cup/glass/coffee mug and it would be the same. UMMM....NO. You could do that, and your recipe COULD suck...and probably would in some cases. I'm not saying there aren't times you can't "eyeball it" or "guesstimate", but come on. If an American is standing there telling you that IN AMERICA cups are a unit of measurement (and I have a whole kitchen/baking industry to back me up on this), then why would you argue and say that it isn't. These things I do not understand.
2. Then, she said that our pancakes are NOT pancakes. Umm...yes they are. If they aren't pancakes then why do we use that name? If they are not pancakes, how have people been selling pancakes as pancakes all these years. I think you should write a letter to Bisquick, or Jimmy Dean, or IHop, and other businesses telling them that the product that they have been selling as pancakes, is not actually a pancake. I think they'd have an issue with that... So then I flipped to the "British Pancake" recipe and the students all yelled, "CREPES!!!!!!!!!" I said, "yes, in America we call these crepes, just like you do!!" SO, the Italians and Americans agree here...we call these crepes. Now, perhaps the British call them pancakes. Who am I to deny that because 1. I have never been to England and 2. WHile I've always known them as a crepe, who am I to deny that the British call it a pancake. Francesca said, "NO...that is REAL pancake." Okay...at this point, I am done with this. Are you serious? The point of this lesson was that we speak the SAME language, but sometimes have different spellings, pronunciations, and sometimes we use different words for things. No one is better or worse than the other...we are simply using different words here. So do not tell me that what an American calls something is WRONG....again I say, I've been an American for 27 years now...I think I can speak with some authority on American things.
Of course she was still fighting me to the bitter end on scone vs. biscuit. Then, when I showed the students a picture of biscuit and gravy, she crossed her arms and said, "that is NOT gravy!" Umm, actually it is! So the gravy in this particular picture was the whiter kind with sausage in it. I said, "well, there are many kinds of gravy." She turned to the students and told them that this was not gravy and I had a wrong picture. I said, "no I dont! I can google it and show you all (at this point I was only looking at/addressing the students) that there are different kinds of gravy!" So, I did. I showed them brown gravy, thick gravy, thin gravy, white gravy, gravy with sausage in it, gravy on mashed potatoes, gravy on biscuits, etc. etc. Her response, "students, I am going to England in April and I will bring you back some scones and gravy!" You do that...and all you will be proving is that those are the BRITISH VERSIONS OF THOSE PRODUCTS...you still will not have proved that scones and biscuits are the same thing because they are not.
I was so annoyed and angry. Then I was angry with myself for letting her ignorance upset me so much. I think it just drives me crazy that I would NEVER walk into these Italian classrooms and pretend to be the authority on Italian products/foods/culture/etc. Therefore, I expect the same respect in return.
Angelino's class was fine. I asked him (he lived in the U.S. for 12 years), and my student T. (who gew up in the U.S. untilhe was 12) if they thought biscuits and scones were the same thing. They both said no, and proceeded to say that the taste and texture were DEFINITELY different. T. also commented that scones usually had fruit, etc. in them and biscuits did not. T-H-A-N-K Y-O-U!!!
So, I came home and ate lunch, worked on blogs, worked on my "South" lesson some more, talked to Nick, and just spent the evening working on things.
One sweet thing that has happened the past two days: Rosa, the other teacher in my birthday pics who teaches history or something...she has seen me twice in the past two days and each time she calls me a bambola, which means doll in Italian. She starts calling me that and speaking rapid Italian, which I only catch a few words of...and then pets me a bit! She is so sweet!
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