My Pink Shoelace

I was told am crazy for going back to school at my age and I find that last part about my age downright annoying. Duh! At 26 there’s nothing wrong with going back to school … it’s not like am going back to finish my undergrad. Am taking my masters degree for crying out loud! I felt my mind has gone rusty in a span of a year and a half where I have stayed home and concentrated on work instead. The routine of my job (now that I have grown accustomed to it) has taken its toll and I felt I’ve gone “stupid”. A friend of mine actually said that am just exaggerating …

Took a break from all the studying and typing and ended up tinkering on my phone’s camera instead.

I am finally doing what I should have done last October 2009 but it cannot be helped as I was sick then but now I seem to be alright, thank God so I am taking the comprehensive exam for my masters degree this March and am hoping to ace this one.

I emailed my boss and our OM that I’d like to go on leave for a week so I could study and prepare for the exams and I am quite happy to say that he approved it. Yiipppeee! I reminded my team lead and she send an email to the FC’s to have it plotted whoooppeee! So in the next few days I will be busy compiling my notes and studying … time to hit the dusty library.

So wish me luck! and do pray for me guys I’d love to pass during the first try and be done with it.

I am going to take the exam this March [first week of March] and I cannot live with myself if I fail. Sheyt! I am book smart and it’d be a major disgrace if I don’t ace this; problem is I have been on hiatus from school for close to a year … so I’d have to cram 2 years worth of lessons into my cro-magnon skull. Grrrrr …

So safe to say I am scared shitless and I am hoping the vl I filed for a week gets approved otherwise you know what  would be EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY!

Busy busy busy busy …. super busy. *sigh* May 16 is the deadline of my portfolio for my Masters in SPED, it is also the deadline for the completion of all my TESOL modules. Am still halfway through … waaaaaaaaaaa.

On second note you might wanna join My Pink Summer Contest. Click on the banner for details.

For my masters degree, I still have 4 subjects (12 units) remaining before I can take the comprehensive exam, the result of which would determine if I can proceed in writing my technical paper alongside taking the Intensive Practicum. Getting my technical paper approved and passing the Intensive Practicum would earn me my masters degree in Special Education major in Hearing Impairment. Unfortunately students are allowed to take only 9 units every semester, but with the dean’s approval a student can carry 12 units (an overload) provided that the student is a full time student or a scholar lol and damn it am neither. Though I strongly feel that managing my time should not be any of their business but I respect the school’s decision. Given the odds, even if I finish the 12 units by March, take the comprehensive exam by summer and lets say I pass it and they’d grant me enrollment on the Intensive Practicum and Technical Writing by June of 2009, I’d still graduate by March 2009 as they don’t hold commencement exercises on October.

My course of action given the changes am facing, is to take the 9 units this second semester, enroll the other 3 units by June, take the comprehensive exam by October 2009, and hopefully with God’s grace, enroll on the Intensive Practicuum and Technical Writing by November and finish by March 2009.

Still a long shot but better that than having none to follow at all.

23 on the 23rd … presents are very much appreciated. lol!

My first class was okay, I mean it went well. Other than the fact that I tried buying a drink only to find out that I left my freaking wallet at home. What a shame!!!

The second class was okay I guess, I seem to run out of adjectives here, but it was okay really, Mykerts and I are in the same class and I’m taking over the second half of her report which am gonna deliver next Saturday.

My third subject is Music in Special Education, our professor is a musical genius. No Kidding!!! Has a bachelors degree in Music, Masters in Musicology and a Ph. D. in Ethnomusicology and at the same time a degree in Music Therapy.

She started playing the piano at the age of 3, was able to read musical notes first before the letters of the alphabet, finished college at the age of 17, was sent to Germany and Melbourne on scholarships and has had orchestral lectures all over the world. Her first grandchild, a 9 year old boy, is now Austria on a scholarship, at the tender age of 9 he’s already conducting orchestras!!!

The downside : Her marriage was a failure.

One of the things she shared with us, she can’t seem to stop competing against her husband. She wants to be on the one on top, she joined the US Navy coz her husband was in the Navy and became a Lt. Col. by rank and is a master marksman. Whew!!! She said her gift was never much of a blessing but a curse, she never had a normal childhood.

So on our discussion we were given hand outs and as there were only 8 of us, students, she asked each one of us to read one paragraph and then we’d discuss. I was the first.

Are you a graduate of CNU? I said, “No”
Are you an English major? I said. “Yes”
Are you an English teacher? I said, “No”

What are you doing now? I said, “Am working in a call center.”
Why are you wasting your time in that job? I was muted!

We discussed and I find her course requirements quite impossible to achieve.
A portfolio and a recital. The recital’s not gonna be us but we’ll have to look for special children and teach them music for the recital.

So teach the blind to play the guitar, or teach the deaf mute to dance and what not. I know this can be done, after all I took SPED to teach Special Children. What am scared of is where I’ll get the time to meet them, where I’ll get the patience to endure, and what am I gonna teach?

Damn!!! I don’t play any musical instruments, I can sing in the comforts of my bathroom, I can sign a bit but thats about it. Gosh!!! Reminds me of what Carrie said … “I’m worth nothing.”

So I went to school which was a drag actually … all I wanted to do was just curl up in bed and dream, the everlasting dream (toinks!!!). My class began at 12:00 Noon, Introduction to SPED, there were so many students and I was seated at the back I had a hard time hearing my professor as her voice was so soft. ‘Twas okay I met two new friends, my seatmates basically. So in between listening partly to the lecture we were chitchatting. Hehehe (typical student!!). My next subject though was a disaster I think, SPED 4010 – Strategies and Teaching Apprenticeship, when I got inside the classroom the first thing I noticed were the fact that my classmates were “older” and they seem to know each other pretty well. So the usual roll call was followed by the “checking” if we’re s’pose to be there in the first place. And that’s where the problem lies, am taking Intro to SPED with Strat which is not s’pose to be, all the major subjects should be taken in sequence, what’s left for me to take in my majors are Intro to SPED, Issues and Trend and Strategies.

But I cannot take Strat with Intro, I need to be done with Intro first before anything else. Wheew!! So with the professor telling me am basically lost, I was advised to change the subject and with Jyn to help me, am changing it to Music for Special Education and am adding another subject to fill in my 8-11 AM sched with Reading Readiness and Language Dev’t.

The in charge in the office was shocked why am taking Strat, when it should be the last subject to take before taking the comprehensive exams. So she approved the changes and as its 5PM already we’ll continue working on the changes on Monday and if all goes well.

This would be my new schedule.

8:00 – 11:00 AM : Reading Readiness and Language Development

12:00 – 3:00 PM : Introduction to Special Education

3:00 – 6:00 PM : Music for Special Education

 I’d be paying an additional amount for the 3 units am adding to my study load. With this schedule am taking the 6 units required for my Cognate Courses and 3 for my Major Course. Leaving me 6 units (2 subjects) more for my Major and 3 units (1 subject) for my Foundation Courses.

With all these said I’d be taking hopefully 9 units next semester, take my Comprehensive Exam next summer and work on my Intensive Practicuum and Technical Paper on the 1st Semester S.Y. 2009 – 2010. Weee … that sounds like a plan to me at least I have some sort of direction, Jyn and I are ecstatic at the thought of finishing the course and am just praying she’ll finish it first before leaving the country for the States.

Things I’ve missed : The company outing at Vistamar. I haven’t been there as I missed last year’s company outing and am missing it again this year hopefully I’d still have next year to attend to. Question is would I still be with the company to enjoy such privilege by then?

Patience is a virtue and perseverance is the key. Whew!! Today’s the last day for enrollment, and being the huge procrastinator that I am, I didn’t work on having my clearance signed till last Thursday. The Grasso Office was closed and I’ve checked on them last Friday and last Monday and again today. I was so resigned that I’ve actually made other plans for the whole semester thinking that am not going to school but with a bit of patience I was able to enroll. Not the 9 units as I have planned originally but just 6 units; most of the subjects offered for this semester are those I took last summer and the previous semester.

So I’ll have to re-evaluate on that original mindset I’ve worked on. Looks like am adding another semester to my school year.

Schedule:

12:00 – 3:00 PM Saturday : Introduction to Special Education

3:00 – 6:00 PM Saturday : Strategies and Teaching Apprencticeship

The company has been so good to me that I got the rest days I requested, Fridays and Saturdays, for now just for now I don’t see any reason why I should leave, plus they’ve approved the vacation leaves I’ve filed. Whew!!! (All unpaid though, I’ve abused this privilege way too much sometimes I wonder why they still get approved) Hehehe