Thrown to the Wolves...

My lovely, lovely mentor Renu threw me to the wolves today, or more precisely to a group of 12 graders. When I arrived at school, I had a few moments to relax and then Renu walked me to my first class of the day. In India, the students don't change rooms, the teachers do. It is anyone's guess as to where a particualr group of students will be, better yet, they all know, I just can't figure it out?! That is probably more accurate. I was told many 12th graders will "bunk" (cut, skip) lectures at this stage of their school career, not today, however. They all waited outside the door and when they saw me coming, rushed in for a seat. Renu said she had never seen some of these students before, ever! "Let them stay," I said.... Renu said a word or two and disappeared.... Ok, I got this. All the boys were on one side of the room, all the girls on the other. I am not sure why. I started my discussion and the energy level was so high that I could hardly finish a sentence! Turns out the "teacher look" is universal, works every time. I continued, and in walks a young man. If a student is late for class, they wait at the door until the teacher waves them in. So, anyway, he walks in and everyone starts clapping. I stop, feign confusion, and ask the class, "is this boy famous?" They reply in unison, "YES!" "Really?" I say. I then looked at the boy and said, "what exactly are you famous for?" He froze, wide-eyed and said, "nothing ma'am." To which I say, "well then, have a seat famous boy." And so it went, for the rest of the class, I made famous boy answer every question and stand while doing so. It was hilarious and all in good fun. This group was so different than the 11th graders from yesterday. After class, I walked back to the staff room. It was "tea time" so all staff members were present. I stopped in the doorway, looked at Renu and said, "thanks a lot!" Everyone was totally cracking up. She then said, before you arrived in Mumbai, we were so worried about you and how you would interact with the staff, what type of personality you would have, etc. Now, we see that we didn't need to worry at all, you fit right in! So, there you have it, initiation by fire, I suppose.
After tea time, I accompanied Renu to her class of 11th graders. I don't have this group at all and they were feeling slighted, so I went along. They asked wonderful questions about America. They are very interested in how our schools differ from theirs, how the teaching dffers and what the curriculum is like. I said, I know you have other questions not related to school, so let me have it. What do you want to know?? They asked about pubs (bars)...finally, a topic I am a expert in! They also asked about dating, music and prom! They begged me to ask the principal if they could have a prom. "Oh no" I said. I am not going to be the cause of the downfall of education in India! All the students signed up for the "Literary Day," which has now turned into three days. We are going to have a day of drama, a day of poetry, and a day of art. I am to get the students ready for that. My pleasure, really.
My final class of the day was another group of 11th graders. All these students are so wonderfully respectful, kind and genuine. As I was leaving they said, "It is so nice to meet you. We love your accent!" So, there you have it.... Tomororw, I have a new group of students that I haven't had yet. Yes, I said tomorrow. There is school on Saturday here. Education is the biggest priority in India. Even after school hours, many students attend additional prep classes to get ready for state exams, college entrance exams, etc. Impressive. I wonder how I can bring that sort of drive and determination back to the US? Suggestions?