It is 6.40pm and my plane departs tonight at 11.20pm-bags are packed, passport and tickets in place and nerves are on edge!!
Thought I would take a moment to centre myself and reflect on the challenges I may face in the next 2 weeks……
naturally I expect to experience some culture shock, acculturative stress which may indeed challenge my basic values. I may face issues re. unfamiliarity with social manners and rules, language barriers and limitations re. intercultural knowledge. I expect to be confronted by cultural disequilibrium on a variety of fronts ( re. the host culture and in relation to teaching English in the host culture).
BUT enough of the negatives!!! What do I hope to gain by this immersion experience in Cambodia?
-personal growth and development of inter-cultural literacies
-cross-cultural social skills and cultural awareness
– ability to nurture my students to be better equipped to deal with the globally interdependent world in which they will live
-professional benefit in regard to reflective practice ( eg reflect on past experience and continually integrate new insights in order to increase my effectiveness in the classroom)
-living and working in a school community very different from the school where I teach in Australia I believe will be highly valuable for recognising the value of cross-cultural experience and for more broadly integrating a global perspective in the process of my teaching.
-stretch me beyond my existing personal experience and hopefully lead to a greater level of self-efficacy
According to Jarvis ( Teaching Education, 25 Feb, 2010 ) an outcome of globalisation is awareness thet the world’s citizens are new members of a global village through which we share a common belonging that previously was limited in scale and scope……..if I can grasp some understainding of this concept whilst in Cambodia it will be both my students and I who benefit!!!
Well time to pack the luggage in the car (PS my students made bookmarks, picture books, friendship bracelets etc for me to take to the Cambodian students) and head off on my adventure!!
Next post will be from Siem Reap, Cambodia……
herstorycambodia 