KuwaitRocks

Some panic in the corridors of power this week as Ministers are worried about the rumour of lesbianism rife in our single sex school system  The Arab Times reports:

”The Ministry of Education is collecting information about suspected gay and lesbian students in all ministry schools and sources say the step is aimed at preventing the ‘phenomenon’ from spreading, reports Al-Watan daily.  Reliable sources say the ministry is conducting a study on the phenomenon and is surveying all schools “to detect such cases,” especially since the talk about gays and lesbians has increased among school students at all ages. Ministry Undersecretary Jassem Al-Omar and Chairperson of the Model Mother Committee Sheikha Fareeha Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah are supervising the study and reportedly Sheikha Fareeha was very upset with the results of the study.
Though several such cases were reported during the first stage of research, the ministry will send specialists to various schools to observe “the activities of such students and make a report about them.” According to sources, it is a comprehensive study, in which all cases of tribalism, racism and violence among students too will be noted down. In a related development, sources say securitymen were given verbal instructions to arrest all gays and lesbians wherever they were found. Though it is not known why the instructions were given verbally, sources say, “the reasons will never be told but the authorities might be trying to protect the reputation of arrested people.” 

Then they are going to give them some medicine to make it all better.

Is your employer a boobist?

Do you keep geting reprimanded because your shirt is too low? Then you notice that the very person reprimanding you has a shirt lower than yours-but no chest to match…..You see it’s boobist. Body-shapist. Cleavagist. However you put it, it is wrong. Listen Mrs. get your priorities right-cut down on class sizes, get enough exercise books for everyone, fix the desks ( get me a bigger one) and leave the necklines to us. (P.S. Woolly tights in Kuwait in September just looks silly-and a tad Miss Marplish.)

One school in Kuwait is now making is staff complete sheets , ironically called “Time Out” sheets when a member of staff wants to leave school and do some business- ministry, embassy, hospital etc.

Not such a bad thing you might say, but why the sudden urge to monitor staff’s whereabouts? Somewhere in the recent months did a teacher wander off to the Ministry of Finance and leave a class of Year 4s unattended? If not , what prompted this action and does it also cover the admin staff ?

On a more disturbing note, the school in question tells its staff that they may only have 3 hours a month for any such business and any hours over this will be deducted from salaries– even though ( and correct me if I’m wrong) Kuwaiti law says workers may have time off when necessary to conduct ministry business. (The guy in question who wrote the  ” Policy Document”  (Mr I’ve -got-sweet-F.A.-else -to do-except p*** -people -off ) has obviously never been into any of the Ministry departments in Farwaniya). Takes you three hours to get a number…….

Teachers of Kuwait unite- you have nothing to lose but your indemnity…….

26.09.07 :The Legal Clinic in the Arab Times responded to this question. The answer unfortunately doesn’t look good-seems as usual the employer can impose whatever it likes on the employee- however, the Legal Clinic shows its obvious disdain for such employers!

Oh and Cindas( commenter) it’s not simly a sign out book- it’s a “we’re going to take money off you twice ( salary + indemnity) if you have to “sign out” for more than three hours a month book.)

”

Rant…rant…rant….

A while back  I worked with a very strange lady called Trina Flowers. She was tall , smoked Virginia slims,wore a Panama hat and drank Coke for breakfast. She came from the Deep South and had a Gone with the Wind type accent. Just recently I discovered what happened to her. By all accounts she was a complete nutcase, not averse to creating havoc in the school and making up a few stories along the way. I often wondered what became of her. Well apparently she became an inmate of our local prison…..read on….

She claims she was set up by the owners of the school, fired, not paid, and all because she wouldn’t fix grades belonging to ‘royal family members’. I know for a fact that those royal members were very minor members ( as it were) with little if any wasta, and who were bright enough in any case to get As or Bs without her help. Her entire story is made up, as I remember her phoning me and saying how she was ‘going to get’ the owners of the school- turns out they got her first! I stopped answering my phone.She went to jail- and has written a book. Look out JK Rowling.

My point? Please could someone in Kuwait save us from these nutcases who periodically land on our doorsteps, pretending to be teachers?Then cry ,”Wolf! Wolf!”  to the press.

It brings to mind one little old lady who worked in and around Salwa, last year- she ‘taught’ English but insisted on speaking to everyone in French-except the francophones, to whom she spoke in English. She was , inevitably, fired, and was last seen wheeling a suitcase down Salwa Street with her armchair in tow….lordy lordy. Where is she now? Whose children is she going to frighten next? So if you do come across a smiling , elderly , short, plumpish ( stunned looking) lady with a name beginning with C. and a penchant for saying “Bonjour ca va?” to all and sundry including the haris….heed my words of warning: show her the door mon ami.Vite! Vite!

And to save us all from future unnecessary trauma, could we let the PRINCIPALS of our schools be responsible for recruiting??? Not the expat sick-oh-fan-tick secretary at the door or the contract (killer) handling office worker in the corner- you know, the one who decides how little a pay rise you should get every year. There’s a chance-a slim one , but a chance all the same, that someone actually qualified in teaching may have some idea of what a quality employee should be.

Dream on sucker.

Are there any available? I would reckon so it’s getting near that “I’m going to do a runner ” time isn’t it…..So if you need a job, well probably one in Oxford….a couple in Future Bilingual……KNES for sure….KIES is a definite…..but then again would you really want to ?

The ISR is today posting this story:

”Dear ISR:

I am disturbed and saddened by your publication’s consistent willingness to withhold the names of your contributors. I believe that those who have legitimate criticisms about a school or country should identify themselves so that individuals with different views, or who can speak from legitimate personal experience, can set the record straight with your contributors in open dialogue.

I recently read a piece in ISR called Wasted by Wasta in which the author reported, what appeared to be as much as he could remember about a series of second hand, unverified, distressing rumors. I think that before you publish smears of schools or countries you should make a genuine effort to check and verify your facts – in this case especially because your so-called “reporters” can hide, what may well be falsehoods, self-serving comments and/or unfair evaluations, behind their anonymity.

I am in my eighth year as a school administrator in Kuwait. I have served as an overseas school CEO since the seventies and worked in every region of the world. I have headed two schools in Kuwait at different times. I have worked hard in both schools, and so have my teachers. In fact, I am happy to say that our schools were excellent schools, and when I was offered the opportunity to return to Kuwait as a school head for a second time I eagerly accepted the opportunity because I remembered how much I had enjoyed my first position there. Yes, we have had some serious problems from time to time in Kuwait (and elsewhere where I worked) – but I would urge your readers to remember that the problems we have in Kuwait now, and had before the Gulf War when I was first there, are very similar to the difficulties suffered in other international schools throughout the world.

No country, or group of schools, is perfect; that is for sure. Employees in ALL geographic locations have run afoul of local nationals or suffer problems that were not of their making. But when one compares the thousands of teachers who have worked in international schools worldwide with the small number of those who have truly had professional or personal difficulties, your readers should remember that the vast majority of overseas professionals in Kuwait, and elsewhere, live, work, and prosper in schools that are usually far better than those they left behind in their respective homelands.

I suggest that your journalistic objective, if you want to be a useful and helpful publication for international educators, and not remain a biased and prejudiced smear sheet, should be to report facts, which you have made a legitimate effort to verify. There are enough Enquirers in this world. No one needs another Enquirer that focuses on the educational profession.

Name NOT withheld,

Brian McCauley, Ph.D.”

By most reported acounts Al Bayan is apparently one of the best schools to work in in Kuwait- the rumour is that all cover is paid as over time!

The ISR replies:

”Dear Dr. McCauleyThank you so much for your letter. Of course it will be published as are all other letters that do not promote a direct physical threat to any international teacher.

This Dr Spilchik goes on a bit doesn’t she- would somebody give her a soap box please. Oh and is she the same “Barbara” who worked at A’Takamul with spouse Tombo a few moons ago…….?

‘….ISR publishes real life recounts of experiences as told by real life teachers and administrators who have been caught in real life situations. Some of those situations have placed teachers/administrators in danger as in the case of Katherine Phillips. I wonder if you believe that we should not have shared stories sent by the many teachers who responded to Katherine’s story, some of whom were/are teaching in Kuwait and felt it best to remain anonymous in order to preserve their own safety. These teachers felt compelled to share their own stories of working with Katherine or in situations like Katherine’s. University graduate ethics would insist upon providing anonymity for these teachers in a Masters or Doctoral thesis/dissertation. This begs the question as to whether or not you believe all Graduate research to be of Tattler quality.

I have come to the point in my life where I have begun to understand that it is important for me to listen to those stories of teacher practice and experience that have previously been kept hidden from the rest of the teaching world. I believe we must build special places where teachers can tell all of their stories of practice. We can no longer live in ivory towers in the educational world and lock our windows believing that there is a right and wrong way to go about doing something. People are messy, life is messy, and schools are messy. And the stories of the lives of people who live in schools can be messy.

You have just shown yourself to be a part of that messy existence by sending ISR a letter.

Sincerely,
Dr. Barbara Spilchuk”

Dr Spilchuk  posts three ANONYMOUS replies to Dr McCauley’s letter……

There’s trouble at t’mill down Fahaheel way….aparently some teacher has had her accom taken away from her, been forced to share (NO TEACHER / PERSON over the age of 20 should be required to EVER do that-however that is the general rule in Kuwait re accom)

The International Schools Review ( remember  the Al Bayan Katherine Phillips story ?) are hot on the case…

(Names removed in case I get sued….or  ‘lifted’ like that journalist last week….)

”
Does New Administration Mean Past Promises
Have no Validity?

ISR recently received an email from Lavinia S., a teacher at *** School  in Kuwait. In her email, Lavinia explained she had returned to her home country for the summer months and soon after received an email from her school in which they requested her apartment key.Lavinia soon understood the school was planning to move her out of her own apartment and into shared housing. The previous administration had provided Lavinia with a private apartment. Now, in her absence, the incoming administration was requesting she consent to a new arrangement and agree to live with a roommate in another apartment. Lavinia protested and ** countered with a notice of dismissal. Lavinia then contacted Dr. Spilchuk and the negations began. We have posted the major correspondences below. ”ISR then goes on with an E mail from the wronged teacher…”

Dear ISR,

Please can you help me with a query? In April I took up a position as a KG2 English Teacher for the privately owned F. B. S. in Fahaheel, Kuwait; owner Mr G.A.D.

At the end of June I renegotiated my contract for a salary increase and reiterated my opposition to having a roommate and to shared accommodations. At the time, I negotiated with my then Vice Principal, Mr Rob Bruce, and the owner’s representative, Mr Kumar.

My salary request was agreed to as was the issue of me not having to share accommodations, I signed my contract and went on my summer vacation back to South Africa, taking with me my key to my apartment.

However, they are now insisting that I resign myself to the fact that I’m to have a roommate and that it’s a fellow South African and therefore I shouldn’t have any trouble getting along with them and we can cozily share the space. This, despite my repeated objections to sharing with anyone. I’m a 40 year old woman used to having my own space and running my own home.

In my current contract, concerning the issue of housing, all it says is that the “First party shall maintain free housing” The new director then said that if I insisted on not sharing I would need to fork out an additional 125 KD of my own money for private accommodations. This is the equivalent $443.99 USD a month.

My question is, what are my options?

I had a verbal agreement with Kumar (witnessed by the Principal) not to share and now that has been pushed aside.

They want an answer from me by Wednesday to say I agree to shared accommodation before they will issue me with my return air ticket. With hindsight I see I should have gotten the wording in my contract changed but I was still a newbie (to Kuwait and international teaching) and so took Kumar’s word at face value.

I could do with some help and insight. Please can you tell me legally where I stand and what I ought to do?

Thank you.

Lavinia S.”

MY advice is : Sorry Lav, you made your bed….and you ( and your room mate) may have to lie in it. Contract, in Arabic, legally binding….oh and never trust admin….

ISR advise Lavinia

”Hi Lavinia

I’ve had contact from Debbie Dixon who is the new Assistant Principal of FBS. She indicated to me that the school would like to mediate the situation for you. These are the areas she has offered:

1. Teachers have the option of a surcharge to secure single housing. Was this made clear to you before you left Kuwait in June? If not, FBS is offering this condition to you so that you can secure single housing. (Note from ISR editor: the surcharge is 443.99 USD a month.)”

 Sorry, maybe I missed something but wasn’t the $443.99 amount what Lavinia was complaining about to start with? ! Doesn’t look like this Dr -share your pain- Spilchuk is too bright a chick…..

And it goes on…and on….and on…..Oh read it for yourself!

http://www.internationalschoolsreview.com/katherine-phillips/lavinia-final.htm

BTW- anyone who took a job with that partcular school last needed their head examined……….perhaps this year will see an improvement?Mmm, well keep an eye on those three new ladies at the top…..the 3 Degrees of deviation…..

1. Do you have your Taser?

2. Do you have batteries/charger for your taser- and are you prepared to use it?

3. Do you have your sarcastic academic  responses vocab book 2007 ready?

4. Have you highlighted all the holidays this year?

5. Do you know when the last day of term is ?

6. Have you worked out which maids to trust?

7. Have you nabbed the parking spot under the tree in alignment with the sun appearing over said tree, three hours before you open your car to go home?(Did you ever imagine it was going to be that hot?)

8. Have you realised that even going ‘up the Gulf Road’ in the afternoon still won’t get you home earlier in Ramadan ?

9. Have you been forced on to the hard shoulder yet?

10. Have you worked out who? Why? What the hell that ‘repo man’ type figure is who walks the Gulf Road day in -day out…in 50 degree heat wearing weights on his feet ? Is it Barry White ?

Welcome to your first year teaching in Kuwait……or just welcome back.

Has it opened yet ?Do the clasrooms have walls?