Timothy Baril

Teaching in Japan
Year 2, Month 3
Difficult Students
My first class is first year students again this week. The class is terrible, worse than before. They are rude, unruly, and completely ignore the teacher. She struggles, looks flustered and red faced, the class is a complete waste of time. No teaching was done at all, and needless [...]

BBC NEWS | Asia-Pacific | ‘Good Nazi of Nanjing’ sparks debate.
Just because the truth is hard to watch, it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t. It means you should pay extra close attention. The Japanese who committed such acts are now dead and gone, and only a small portion of their spirit lives on, as it does [...]

I made a worksheet which was much longer and harder, yet hopefully more interesting than the ones teachers normally use. Good English students seemed to find it engaging and challenging, and it took them approximately 20-30 minutes. Less skilled students were able to do the first few, then lost interest and gave up. Yet many [...]

バレンタインデー
Around the World
Valentine’s Day or Saint Valentine’s Day, is a holiday celebrated on February 14 by many people around the world. It is estimated that approximately one billion (1,000,000,000) valentines cards are sent each year worldwide, making the day the second largest card-sending holiday of the year after Christmas. It is estimated that women purchase [...]

Singles Awareness Day - I just don’t see the humor in this at all.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singles_Awareness_Day
Honestly, that just sounds fucking depressing. Celebration AGAINST happy people, AGAINST love? Isn’t this just bitterness, jealousy, spite and other negative weaknesses taken out on others, finding a small measure of tainted joy in trying to ruin the happiness of our fellow [...]

Once again the instructor failed to challenge the students. I suggested that students read a story that was the subject of the lesson. They were expected to listen and understand the story, then write a new original ending for it. Yet when, for practice, I suggested the students read the passage aloud, I was immediately [...]

The school I currently teach at is old. Erected prior to WWII in the 1930s or 1940s, it has received very little maintenance in the ensuing years. Little is needed for the massive concrete walls and floors, but the trimmings are falling apart.
Desks, blackboards, shelving, windows, all are original or near original. They’re wooden, [...]

It was recently asked of me: “What fancy pants gift can I get for a (coworker) who rocks my world?”
I thought I’d share some ideas with everyone, cause giving thanks to others makes the world a much better place, and I encourage you to do so. Don’t be shy - just do it.
So…
For a male [...]

The first three months of being in Japan have passed since being placed in the JET English teaching program. Life continues to evolve and develop as duties and daily life begin to habitualize.
The most prominent part of life so far has been the social aspect. Entering a new culture and country, being forced into [...]

I’ve been extremely lucky to have been paired up with Ames Lacey as a roommate, who is from Edmonton as well, and we’ve been getting along great. He’s posted about 1.5-2 hours from me, where he’ll be with his fiance, so we’ll get chances to hang out during the year. We’ve been attending the opening [...]