One Thing . . .

One thing that bothers me is that my students don't like our heaters.

In summer there is no democratic process whatsoever.  If it is hot, I turn on the wall-mounted ac unit in the classroom.  I don't want it to be frigid, but I am determined not to sweat in my classroom, and I don't want my students to either.  I will admit that my attitude is not entirely Christian . . . the students just can't concentrate when they are hot, and they are in my classroom to learn.

From questioning them, I know that Korean elementary schools have ac units in the classrooms; however, most students report that the units are never turned on.  The public schools want to save money, they say.

I say kids can't/don't learn if they are sitting in hot classrooms.

If it is mild, I turn on a fan in the classroom.  There are some complaints, but the rooms--which aren't all that big--get smelly after a while.

As for heat in winter, it is a different story.  I bring enough clothes to work that I can be comfortable in a cold classroom--I often teach wearing a scarf--simply because our school is cold.

The whole building is cold.  This is normal.

There is no hot water in the bathrooms, so washing your hands feels like a lesson in artic survival.

It's not unusual to enter the teachers' room and see one or two teachers huddled next to the space heater, rubbing their hands after a trip to the bathroom.

You don't get used to it, but you learn to accept it.

However, heat, to me, should be a different thing.  I mean, heat is something I can control;  wall-mounted heating units that produce warm air were installed in each classroom last fall.

Heat, in winter, is good.

Yet most of my students would rather sit, bundled-up in their jackets, than have the heater on.

I have gone into classrooms (we have 9) where the air is cold, and asked the children, "Do you want me to turn on the heater?"

The answer is almost invariably "NO!"

So I go and get my jacket.  Sigh.

It might have something to do with the Korean belief in 'fan death' (check Wiki on that) as our heaters blow warm air, but I am not sure.

One thing I am sure of is that we will all be glad when spring gets here.