Compulsary Training

This Saturday I was lucky enough to spend it in Treehouse training :P as I mention before Hess has a serious of compulsory trainings that they won't pay you for. Some are done at the main office, but the one I went to was a local area training and was only for people from my area.

It was interesting because I've been struggling on how to explain grammar and phonics to my Treehouse 1 class (I would also like to add that my Treehouse class is crazy. I think the curriculum is too much from them on top of regular school, and I think their little heads are rejecting the information). I also got to meet some of the local NSTs which was also fun. They talked a lot about using flashcards, but to be honest I try and avoid them. I think they're ridiculous and don't make that much sense to me. I have a lot of moments when I stare down at the Treehouse book and think, "Why are you teaching that, how is it relevant to their lives?"

The branch where the training took place was a lot bigger and cleaner than mine, but I've heard that it's a lot stricter, not very friendly, and the NSTs are under more pressure. Apparently they like to control the class through fear, and everything is drill drill drill. When I first took over my Treehouse class I had to observe a sub from the same branch who didn't smile once. I remember sitting there thinking. "Do I have to teach like that? Do I seriously have to teach like that?" On my first day of observation the teacher was already pulling the student up to the front of the class by the ear.

Apparently your experience can differ from branch to branch. I remember wanting to quit during the main training because they made teaching look very strict and intense, but once I got to my branch (which is quite relaxed) it was a lot better. A few teachers have been at my branch for a long time so I think that's a good sign.

We also had a meeting the other week which apparently I can receive office pay for. It's only have the pay that I receive for teaching, but apparently it's something.