A Batson's Education: Mid-March Madness

TL;DR or Quick Summary

Reasons some of my students chose to go to university.
Click to enlarge.

Classes continue to go well. I think I finally have a firm schedule for this semester. It is very nice to already have a rapport established with my students. I know what to expect from them and they (generally) know what to expect from me.
So far, I have focused on smaller response pieces from my writing students. It has been a fairly successful strategy so far.
With the rapid departure of winter, I decided to take advantage of the cool temperatures one last time. With two Fulbrighters, I went to Slovakia for the weekend to do some skiing.

Long story short, I survived skiing, but lost any skiing skills that I once had.

Finally last weekend, I went to Cologne, Germany for the weekend. It was a very relaxing trip with some of the best weather I have experienced in a while.
Next week, the last week of March, I am heading to Berlin for the German Fulbright Conference.

Class Updates

Classes are going well and I have a feeling the rest of the semester is going to blow by super quickly. I have continued to try to use similar themes throughout my classes; this strategy has mostly been paying off. I spend less time searching for topics and more time customizing lessons for each individual group. The main topics I have touched on so far include the value of college (discussed in my last post), types and sources of energy, and same-sex marriage. I have tried to stagger large writing assignments so that I am not overwhelmed by a torrent of papers and I have been marginally successful so far.

Conversation Class

I only see my conversation students every other week, which definitely gives the class a more disjointed feeling. The other option however, would be meeting for 45 minutes every week, which doesn't seem like enough class time; so every other week is not really a bad option.

So far we have practiced many of the potential questions for their final English practical exam. This week, the most controversial question was, 'What can be done to improve the image of the police?' Many students did not have any answers (good or bad) for this question. They said that many Poles still view the police as 'out to get them' and that they are not very respected. It was an interesting snapshot of Polish views.

After practicing the practical questions, we moved on the potential job interview questions and useful words/phrases for job interviews. I tried to make use vocabulary words/phrases that would be new to them and for once, I was successful! Next class, students will participate in mock job interviews and hopefully get hired at mock jobs!

4th Year Writing

Image from The Simpsons episode, Homer's Phobia

This week in my MA writing class, I wanted students to practice argumentative balance in their writing; basically presenting two arguments fairly and without bias before stating your view. Since it would be trivial to write about non-controversial, I decided to make the topic same-sex marriage, a sometimes touchy subject in Poland. I even had one student warn me ahead of time that any class discussions might become uncomfortably heated if we had a thorough discussion on the topic. Since the goal wasn't a verbal discussion, I forged ahead!

To bring in some good old American culture, we started off the class by watching an episode of The Simpsons. It was titled Homer's Phobia and was about Homer's friendship/fear of a gay man. While not about same-sex marriage, it does focus on discrimination and trying (and failing) to rationalize this discrimination. I think most of my students enjoyed the change of pace.

So far, I have only made it through about half of the essays and the majority of students have presented fairly balanced arguments. As for their positions on same-sex marriage, the split has been about 50-50.

2nd Year Writing

Nothing super exciting to report on my 2nd years. We have been practicing rules for article usage (I know it is an exciting topic) and when to use specific transition/linking words. I was fortunate to find a wonderful set of rules that lays out specifics for using articles in 'edge cases.' Instead of telling my students 'that feels wrong,' I can now point to specific rules that give a more satisfactory explanation. I would say that it was been useful for my students as well.

My major goal in practicing transition/linking words is to move my students away from 'what is more' and 'on the other hand.' These are effective phrases, but not if they are used every third sentence. This week, we will focus on writing process essays (and not simply how to make a PB&J). Some topics I have been thinking about include: how to make a good first impression, how to teach someone to text, and how to be successful in college.

Integrated Skills

Energy related vocabulary words. Click to enlarge

Ah integrated skills, the class that seems to get the short end of the stick. Integrated skills meets at 8am on Wednesday, which means that I cannot make copies before class (the copy room isn't open) and Tuesday is my busiest class day, so I have less time to plan and make copies. Readers who have suggestions about planning further ahead and being more prepared can send their suggestions to my suggestions box.

I have tried to devote more time to the class this semester and so far, I have been doing alright. Students have given a quick presentation and read fairly in depth articles about different energy sources. From these articles, students created a vocabulary list for the unit and will have a quiz over these words this week. Last semester I did most of the talking in class and I am trying to reverse that trend this semester.

7 Hours in Slovakia

View from the middle of the mountain

As winter starts to wind down (or rather melt away), I thought it was a good time to take advantage of something present in Poland, but (generally) not in Texas: mountains and snow. One of the Krakow Fulbrighters had previously taken a day bus to Slovakia for a day of skiing. The bus was only about three hours (one way) and the prices for the ski pass and rental equipment were pretty reasonable. It seemed like a good deal.

Getting artsy with a chimney dessert

Being back in Krakow reminded me of the great time I had over New Years with Kim and it was really nice to see many of the same places again (although thankfully at a much warmer temperature). Krakow really is one of Poland's most beautiful cities; if you are ever in this part of the world it is definitely worth a stop. With another Fulbrighter, I took a tour of the Jewish Quarter of Krakow, Kazimez. While the tour guide was not the greatest, it was still an interesting tour. I saw several locations where Schindler’s List was filmed. It was surreal to be standing where several iconic scenes were filmed.

The weather was very cooperative and that weekend's weather was some of the best I have experienced in Poland so far. The next morning, I boarded a bus heading to the Slovakian mountains. Well, more accurately I wander around the parking lot serving as a bus station looking lost until a driver asked if I needed help. The bus ride was uneventful but the scenery dramatically changed as we hurdled south.

As we approached our destination, the mountains were still concerning devoid of snow. There were some patches here and there, but nothing substantial enough to ski on. We finally arrived at the 'ski resort' and it was somewhat underwhelming. These was only one run down the mountain and it combined blacks, blues, and reds (here reds = greens). After getting all of our rental gear, we headed up the mountain for our first run.

Beautiful weather in Krakow

It is safe to say that I lost nearly all of my skiing abilities over the past 10 or so years. While I didn't have any catastrophic falls, I was not the most elegant person ~~falling~~ skiing down the mountain. In my defensive, the snow was pretty rapidly melting and there were some areas that were roped off because the snow was too melted.

The most frustrating part of the trip was the fact that most restaurants and services did not take credit cards and there was no ATM in the area. Slovakia uses the Euro and we foolishly did not come with any (although we figured they would take cards or at least have an ATM). Fortunately we were able to pay in zloty (Polish currency), although at a terrible exchange rate. Overall, I am glad that I went, but I think I have had enough skiing for now.

That night, back in Krakow, we celebrated a Fulbrighter's birthday. It was just a small group of us, but we did have a lot of fun.

Cologne, Germany

First time walking past the Bonn Cathedral

The next weekend, I traveled to Cologne, Germany. Why Cologne? Well first I really like Germany and second, round trip tickets cost less than $50, a very good deal. The downside to the flight was the terrible arrival time. I landed in Cologne at 11:30 pm. So not ideal, but certainly still worth it.

With Kim, I had traveled to three cities in eastern Germany (Hamburg, Berlin, and Dresden), but I had never been to western Germany and I wasn't exactly sure how different things would be. While much of the architecture was more modern, it still very much felt like Germany.

University park in Bonn

After arriving late in the evening, we crashed for the night. The next morning we got breakfast at one of Cologne's many small hipster cafes (it reminded me of Austin) and headed to Bonn, the former capital of West Germany. One of the Fulbrighter's I was traveling with had studied in Bonn several years ago and she was excited to see it again. It was only a quick 20 minute train ride away.

Arriving in Bonn, our Fulbright guide quickly overestimated her sense of direction in Bonn and we ended up walking past the same (beautiful) cathedral several times throughout the day. Despite the backtracking, Bonn was a beautiful city; it was very walkable and there were plenty of green spaces, shops, and restaurants. The locals were out in full force taking advantage of the great day so the park was packed with people.

Beethoven's birth house

Beethoven was born in Bonn, so of course there was a museum at his birthplace. While it was not the most interesting museum I have ever been in, I learned a lot about Beethoven's early life and career. We walked past the former capital building of West Germany, a brilliant and elegant white building. In the university park, we searched for and eventually found a bench to sit and people watch. We ate lunch at a great Korean restaurant and we ended our day in Bonn with an impromptu trip to Birkenstock's factory outlet store (not my idea, but I did buy a pair of nice shoes).

Cologne Cathedral. It really
seems to appear out of nowhere

The next day, we stayed in Cologne. Thinking ahead, we had bought groceries the night before and made a nice breakfast (for those of you wondering, my scrambled eggs were flawless). After breakfast, we toured the Cologne Cathedral, one of the largest/most impressive/most expensive cathedrals in northern Europe. Construction of the cathedral took around 600 years and it currently holds the remains of the three wise men in an ornate golden box. Our guide of the cathedral was probably the most passionate and genuinely enthusiastic tour guide I have ever had. She even made the descriptions of tile work interesting.

After the tour, we had lunch at a small cafe that claimed to serve burritos. While certainly not up to Tex-Mex standards, the burritos were pretty good. It was enough to hold me over until my next Mexican food infusion. After lunch, of course we had to have dessert and we found the closest gourmet cupcake place in Cologne.

Chocolate fountain

Finally, we went on a free walking tour of Cologne. The tour got off to a rough start, as our guide asked all 30 people in the group to introduce themselves, say where they are from, and say what their biggest dream is. Additionally, his parents were on the tour as well which seemed to make him more nervous. After a rough start though, it quickly got better and he talked a lot about how the culture in Cologne and this region of Germany is different from other parts. Apparently Carnival (Mardi Gras) is a huge deal in Cologne and the city essentially shuts down for several days. Sadly, we were a couple of weeks late :( After the tour, our guide took us to the local beer brewery that specialized in champagne beer. Essentially, it is a light beer with extra bubbles, tasty, but nothing to write home about.

My final day in Cologne was spent at the Chocolate museum. Short story, yes it was basically Willy Wonka's chocolate factory minus Oompa Loompas. There was a full functioning chocolate fountain with unlimited free samples, freshly made chocolate squares right off the production line, and more information about the culture and politics of chocolate than I ever imagined existed. It was definitely worth a visit. The rest of the afternoon, I caught up on some work before my late flight back to Poland.

Overall, it was a great weekend trip. The weather was perfect and both Bonn and Cologne had a lot to do. I would love to come back and spend more time in the area.

What's Up Next

This week my conversation students have their mock job fair, I need to finished grading my MA same-sex marriage papers, and I need to finalize topics for the BA process essays. Luckily I have the rest of the afternoon to procrastinate. On Thursday, I head to Warsaw and then to Berlin for the week long Fulbright ETA conference. I am really looking forward to it; it will be very interesting to compare my ETA experiences in Poland with those from other countries. There will be various seminar sessions and presentations, but I am not sure exactly what everything will be about.

Anyways, thanks for reading!