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In the heat of the moment
Joined: 22 May 2015
Posts: 393
Location: Italy
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 Posted: Tue Dec 13, 2016 1:51 pm Post subject: Slightly Awkward Lesson |
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I just had a student, in class, tell me one of his relations is going to have his head chopped off. The crime was murder. Apparently he's been on Death Row for twenty years, and hasn't been allowed any visits from family.
The student didn't ask for any leniency towards his grades, being on time/absent etc, but did leave a few minutes early, looking rather forlorn. He's been acting oddly this and last week, sometimes moody and quieter than normal. I asked him if he was okay last week week and he perked up after I asked. Generally he's one of the best students in class, behaviour and ability-wise (and oldest; early 40s I think), so I took him at his word.
Awkward or what. Today's classroom activities were not what I'd previously planned. |
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veiledsentiments
Joined: 20 Feb 2003
Posts: 17644
Location: USA
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| Posted: Tue Dec 13, 2016 3:58 pm Post subject: |
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The only thing close to that as far as affecting a class was the three times a close relative or fellow student had died in a car accident the night before. One of my best students seemed unusually quiet one day and when I asked him if he was OK, he began crying. I took him over and let him stay in my office until he ready to go on with the day.
Definitely changes the day's lesson. I usually used it to start a discussion on driving safety... and remembering that a car is deadly weapon...
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2buckets
Joined: 14 Dec 2010
Posts: 515
Location: Middle East
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| Posted: Tue Dec 13, 2016 4:14 pm Post subject: |
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I can recall many times that a student was not in class and the reason was he was killed in a traffic accident.
Unfortunately not an uncommon occurrence. |
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bigdurian
Joined: 05 Feb 2014
Posts: 401
Location: Flashing my lights right behind you!
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| Posted: Tue Dec 13, 2016 7:24 pm Post subject: |
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| I average 1000 km a week more or less on the roads here. The things you see on the roads here are unbelievable. |
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scot47
Joined: 10 Jan 2003
Posts: 15343
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| Posted: Tue Dec 13, 2016 7:59 pm Post subject: |
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| Avoid the roads as much as possible. That was a great bonus of teaching at KFUPM. Live on campus, walk to work, teach on campus. |
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siologen
Joined: 25 Oct 2016
Posts: 336
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| Posted: Tue Dec 13, 2016 8:15 pm Post subject: re: a veteran.. |
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| That was a great bonus of teaching at KFUPM. Live on campus, walk to work, teach on campus. |
This fellow knows what he is on about. Ignore him at your peril!!!! |
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RustyShackleford
Joined: 13 May 2013
Posts: 449
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| Posted: Wed Dec 14, 2016 3:04 am Post subject: |
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I thought I had seen the worst traffic had to offer in Vietnam...
Then I moved to Saudi Arabia and remembered how many wrecked cars I would see on the roads.
I had a kid die in a car crash. The weirdest part was how non-chalant the whole place went about it. No one at work either in or out of the classroom mentioned it. |
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In the heat of the moment
Joined: 22 May 2015
Posts: 393
Location: Italy
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| Posted: Wed Dec 14, 2016 9:27 am Post subject: |
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| scot47 wrote: |
| Avoid the roads as much as possible. That was a great bonus of teaching at KFUPM. Live on campus, walk to work, teach on campus. |
For me that would depend heavily on the quality of the campus's accommodation and facilities, and vicinity of my flat and the students! When I'm home I. AM. AT. HOME. and not work.
In China I lived on the top of the two top floors which weren't used for classrooms, so if I wanted to pop out to the shops it would often be through groups of teenage Chinese kids seeing me bring back a couple of four-packs, ha ha. In another Chinese gig the apartment overlooked the school, and I heard every syllable of the students when doing their exercises or playing sports, and every ring-a-ding-dong of the tunes announcing 'wake up' at 7:00am (it was a boarding school), 'go to breakfast', 'go to the lesson', 'the lesson has ended', go to the next lesson' etc etc until the last melody announcing they should retire to bed around 9:30pm. This included weekends and, bafflingly, when the school was closed during national holidays.
But, for me, my home is sacrosanct regardless of the general outside environment. I wouldn't want to be relaxing at home, reading the newspapers online, and hearing or seeing my students out of the window. Fortunately I'm now not within earshot of a mosque, but previously had to put bubble wrap (a good insulator) on the windows to dull the noise. If I can shut out the outside environment, stick on the BBC or a downloaded English-speaking show, cook some food and generally temporarily divorce myself from my host country for an evening or weekend, I'm a happy camper. |
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siologen
Joined: 25 Oct 2016
Posts: 336
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| Posted: Wed Dec 14, 2016 10:19 am Post subject: re: fair enough |
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All valid points and I agree, but:
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| When I'm home I. AM. AT. HOME. and not work. |
China is not Saudi Arabia. The traffic situation is probably as bad as China, or worse. And if Saudi is anything like oh-man public transport will be limited also, not to mention walking in desert heat is unbearable. So scot47s post about living on campus in the KSA is actually a sensible one. In China, yes, it is better and convenient to live off campus. |
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bigdurian
Joined: 05 Feb 2014
Posts: 401
Location: Flashing my lights right behind you!
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| Posted: Wed Dec 14, 2016 11:46 am Post subject: |
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| scot47 wrote: |
| Avoid the roads as much as possible. That was a great bonus of teaching at KFUPM. Live on campus, walk to work, teach on campus. |
I also live on site, it's the school run and wife's shopping trips that rack up the miles.
If I was single I'd probably only do 100-200 km a week.
Don't know about avoiding the roads as much as possible, you get used to the driving here, and sometimes even enjoy it. When you know you can overtake a police car on the highway doing 150kph, safe in the knowledge that nothing will happen to you, it can be quite fun!
It's driving in Riyadh that gets me down. The rudeness, selfishness, and arrogance wears you down.
Driving around Bangkok, a city twice the size, with far worse traffic problems, is a welcome breath of fresh air in comparison...
It's a funny old world. |
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scot47
Joined: 10 Jan 2003
Posts: 15343
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| Posted: Wed Dec 14, 2016 11:48 am Post subject: |
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KFUPM Campus is spacious green parkland. Unusual in the Middle East. And you do not live near the students. They are on the other side of the tracks !
Rumours that I get a commission for recruiting new teachers are grossly exaggerated. |
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bigdurian
Joined: 05 Feb 2014
Posts: 401
Location: Flashing my lights right behind you!
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| Posted: Wed Dec 14, 2016 11:50 am Post subject: Re: re: fair enough |
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| siologen wrote: |
All valid points and I agree, but:
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| When I'm home I. AM. AT. HOME. and not work. |
China is not Saudi Arabia. The traffic situation is probably as bad as China, or worse. And if Saudi is anything like oh-man public transport will be limited also, not to mention walking in desert heat is unbearable. So scot47s post about living on campus in the KSA is actually a sensible one. In China, yes, it is better and convenient to live off campus. |
Depends where you are regarding the heat. 40° in Riyadh is absolutely fine for me because there is zero humidity. It's only when it goes over 45 that I experience discomfort, and that's only for four months of the year.
Down to single figures in the mornings right now which is downright cold. I find the cold in Saudi worse than the heat, it seems to go right to your bones somehow. |
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cnthaiksarok
Joined: 29 Jun 2012
Posts: 288
Location: between a rock and a sandy place
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| Posted: Wed Dec 14, 2016 2:05 pm Post subject: |
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| bigdurian wrote: |
| When you know you can overtake a police car on the highway doing 150kph, safe in the knowledge that nothing will happen to you, it can be quite fun! |
How about anticipating that cop car and when he's going to 'drift' over into your business as you attempt to cruise by? 
| bigdurian wrote: |
| Driving around Bangkok, a city twice the size, with far worse traffic problems, is a welcome breath of fresh air in comparison... |
Sorry bigdurian but,... Bangkok....twice the size of Riyadh?
Bangkok only seems big (b/c it's so congested).
The two cities are nearly the same (along with Seoul) in terms of area.
Right around 1000 sq/kms., I believe.
But never mind that - the fact that you can refer to driving in that vehicular hellhole known as Bkk along the line of: "welcoming," "fresh" and/or "air," means: You win.  |
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bigdurian
Joined: 05 Feb 2014
Posts: 401
Location: Flashing my lights right behind you!
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| Posted: Wed Dec 14, 2016 3:02 pm Post subject: |
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| cnthaiksarok wrote: |
| bigdurian wrote: |
| When you know you can overtake a police car on the highway doing 150kph, safe in the knowledge that nothing will happen to you, it can be quite fun! |
How about anticipating that cop car and when he's going to 'drift' over into your business as you attempt to cruise by?
| bigdurian wrote: |
| Driving around Bangkok, a city twice the size, with far worse traffic problems, is a welcome breath of fresh air in comparison... |
Sorry bigdurian but,... Bangkok....twice the size of Riyadh?
Bangkok only seems big (b/c it's so congested).
The two cities are nearly the same (along with Seoul) in terms of area.
Right around 1000 sq/kms., I believe.
But never mind that - the fact that you can refer to driving in that vehicular hellhole known as Bkk along the line of: "welcoming," "fresh" and/or "air," means: You win. |
Depends what you call Bangkok, if you're going by what's within the city limits maybe, but if you go by the urban area and include Nonthaburi, Samut Prakan, Samut Sakhon, Pathum Thani etc, then Bangkok area is huge compared to little old Riyadh, which doesn't spread onwards and onwards for ever like Bangkok seems to do.
Population of Bangkok metro area is something like 12-15m.
I used to live in Nonthaburi btw, and it's not like there are any green fields separating the two.
But anyways, what I meant about the driving was that even though
The traffic is far worse in Bangkok, there is no constant hooting, people let you in, and generally don't drive around like absolute idiots.
Although people going the wrong way on the wrong side of the road is a problem.
I think as long as you have gps it's okay, and when you know you're way around a bit it's fine. Just get used to those ten minute waits at the lights, and avoid Sukhumvit Road at between 6am and 2am the next day!!!  |
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cnthaiksarok
Joined: 29 Jun 2012
Posts: 288
Location: between a rock and a sandy place
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| Posted: Wed Dec 14, 2016 6:22 pm Post subject: |
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^ concur that 
Yeah, I hear you. I've lived in...let's see here, outside or outskirts of Bkk would be: Nonthaburi, Nongkaem, Salaya and Muang Thong Thani and was just considering 'by the city boundaries,' so yeah,...it'll keep getting bigger of course - stretching further and further - along with the train lines.
One more bit on safety in Bangers (tho I could write pages), please...do NOT open (any) car door before checking behind for oncoming motorbikes!
I volunteered with the PTT foundation for 4 years and that particular call was just a little too regular = nasty bit of business to clean up.  |
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