Solely Responsible

A few weeks ago I was presented with a choice. Each class was embarking on a field trip. I was told that I could go with any one of them. Ten classes, ten choices. Well, nine choices. There was no way I was going to Busan with the grade's absolute worst class. Obviously, I put off the decision until the day before the trips so I just stuck with my co-teacher's homeroom class. They were going to stay in Daegu and go to a farm to learn about pulling sweet potatoes and peanuts out of the ground. Sounds fantastic. Plus, another class was joining in, so that's double the Korean teachers and half the communicating I need to do with anyone.

I asked a basic question to my co-teacher. "How will we get there?"

"Well," he responds, "That's sort of the issue. The school isn't allowed to rent buses that are more than ten years old, and we don't have enough money to afford the newer buses. I think everyone will take public transportation."

"Aren't the city buses older than ten years?"

"Yes."

"..."

"We'll take public transportation to the farm."

So it's settled. The only issue is that I have no idea where the place is or how to get there. My co-teacher simply resolves this issue. He says that four girls from his homeroom will meet me at the high school. Kim Min-Ji, the class leader, knows how to get there. I just have to follow them. My co-teacher says that he'll meet us there because his apartment is not near the high school. The only catch is that I have to carry the box with the lunches for the 30 students.

Mission: Get 4 students and lunch for 30 to a farm near Mt. Palgong.

I arrive at the school at 8:10AM as instructed. I turn the corner into the parking lot, and what do I see? 30 high school students. My co-teacher's entire homeroom. 25 girls, 5 boys. Over the night the word spread that Teacher Grack was going to ride the subway and buses with some students, so the rest wanted in on it.

New mission: Get 30 students and their lunches to a farm near Mt. Palgong using Daegu's public transportation during rush hour.

The first hurdle is finding Kim Min-Ji, who may or may not be the only student that knows how to get there.

"EVERYONE! SHUT UP! (added for dramatic effect) WHERE IS KIM MIN-JI?!"

"MY NAME IS KIM MIN-JI!" say four students.

I'm not good with Korean names, and never will be, but I do know that Kim is the most popular last name and Min-Ji is quite a popular girl's name. Now I've seen evidence in action, right when I need it not to be. Eventually, after a quick Q&A with the Min-Jis, I find the class leader and she says we need to take the subway first. So off we go.

We're walking to the subway, a ten minute walk, and after five minutes I instantly lose five students that forgot to bring snacks so they ran off to a corner store to fill up their sugar needs. Needless to say those snacks are consumed immediately to make my life more of a living hell. When we get to the subway, I'm trying to herd everyone together so we can get on the same car and stay together. I taught in the US before I came here and if there is one rule for field trips there, it's that if you lose a kid on a field trip you'll lose your job. Tensions arise as the train approaches.

It's something close to 9AM now - rush hour. The train is pretty full. The doors open and, being the adult in this group, I push the students in first. The doors have been open too long, the train is full, so the doors close, leaving me with about fifteen students. Less than an hour in and I've lost half the class.

Luckily, I'm with Kim Min-Ji (the one I need to be with). At least I know that I'll get to the farm. I get in touch with the other half of the class via cellphone. Thank god every teenager in this country has a cellphone. Not much is accomplished however, all I can hear from their end is sugar-induced screaming every so often making out a TEACHA GRACK. I tell Min-Ji to tell them to wait at the subway station until we get there. She shouts some Korean several times and hangs up.

"Maybe they don't hear me."

"Does one of them know how to get to them farm?"

"Maybe only I know where farm is."

We get to the subway stop where we need to transfer to the bus, and there are some of the students that were in the group that went ahead of us.

"Where is everyone else?"

"They took bus."

"What bus?"

"401."

"Is that the right bus?"

"Maybe."

"Min-Ji, do we take 401?"

"Yes."

Success! They're not with me, but they're heading in the right direction. I put the box down, and we wait for the next 401.

"What stop do we need to go to?"

"Nan-deong."

"Do they know that?"

"Maybe they don't know."

She calls them. More screaming.

"Maybe they didn't hear me."

Suddenly, out of nowhere, the other class shows up. The TEACHA GRACKs ensue. I've lost about six students and gained another twenty. The 401 bus comes a few more times, each time more full than the last. I'm able to shove a few students on each one, telling them the bus stop the need to get off at, then waiting for the next one. Min-Ji decides that it will probably be a good idea to walk to a station before this one so we can get on a less-full bus. That's why she's the leader. We walk two stops and the 401 comes and it's only partially full. We're able to nearly squeeze on. Only leaving four behind. At this point, that's a victory in my book.

Of course we miss the stop because I'm busy trying to keep the lunches from being crushed and everyone is having a blast looking at how much taller I am than everyone else on the bus. We simply enough turn around, and make it to the bus stop we need to be at. It's now 11AM. Nearly lunch time.

15 out of 50 ain't bad. But remember, I wasn't technically responsible for the other class.

I make it seem like I'm a terrible teacher and group controller, but they all made it there eventually, and it was quite a nice little day. Except the end, when I had to do it all over again.

Almost all of my co-teacher's homeroom.

I taught them SPUD.

Sure it was stressful getting them all there, but on Monday some students brought me their diaries and showed me the entry they wrote about the trip (in English!) and how traveling with Teacher Greg was the most fun they've had all year. Good students. Real good students.

Center: Kim Min-Ji.