It's Friday and I have to realise that the holiday -about 11 weeks- is finally over. I know this because I've been handed my lecture timetable for this Autumn/Winter '09 term. It's almost like being handed an O.B.E for winning the Ashes in 2005. It looks like, for services rendered last term that I've been handed the Golden Goose of schedules: Two completely free afternoons, one totally free morning and no work at all on Friday! Someone is, and was smiling down upon me when the management put this together.

My 12-hours of computer lectures per week are balanced perfectly; 2, double sessions of 50-minutes each per week per class (I have three classes).
Moreover, this term, for my 'English' contribution to the university, I've been asked to 'Teach the Teachers'. The Chinese English teachers will have the pleasure of my company for 100-minutes each week. Oh, how I am looking forward to interacting with adults who don't laugh behind their hand and reply to every question with, 'It's a secret.' And I'm rest assured that such mundane questions as, 'Do you like bananas?' will not crop up.

Not only this but I've been given my exam dates. This means that I'll be 'working' for fourteen weeks and set the exam for the week commencing December 14. Effectively, based on last term and the spreadsheets I created to examine and mark, this means my winter holiday will start on December the 20th. I'm in for one hell of a winter break! Sir Laurence could be here to celebrate Christmas!

But, let me put this 'easy life' into perspective for you. The English teachers' here have come to ask about my schedule and to 'brag' about their 24 hours of classes. I may earn more and yet do half the hours but they don't have to prepare intense lectures in Chinese and English (not 'Chinglish'). I've worked bloody hard over the past 3 weeks since Sir Laurence and Tanya left. I admit that the hard work put in recently means no work (save actually talking in class) after hours during the rest of term.

To be honest, I'm not bothered how the schedule works out, as long as I have a period where I can go shopping in comfort, and another for laundry/housework. The fact that I have ALL Friday at my disposal opens up a whole host of opportunities: Fishing, long weekends in Beijing or simply doing nothing.

TEFL teachers in China tend to moan and groan about their schedule, especially the Yanks. i like to 'advise' teaching establishments that Yanks love the 'bad' classes -both the times of the class and the class itself- and that tends to help me. I haven't had to deploy that strategem here because I'm not in the 'English' department. TEFL teachers in China, be aware of this!

Before I close, to anyone teaching English out there reading this in China let me just say a big welcome to a new term. To those who are new to this game, let me say, 'HA HA' and to the rest... knowledge is still power.