Panama Update #28
August 12, 2008
For the interview at the Collegio (this is what they call the k-12 schools) today I had to catch a taxi at 7:00 AM for an 8:00 AM interview. The school is located on the other side of town. When catching a taxi here you have to stand on the corner of a busier street and put your hand out with your pointer finger extended, like you are hitchhiking. If a taxi driver has room, they stop and roll down their window. You have to shout out where you are going. If they like what they hear, they will wave you in. If they are not heading in that direction or don't want to head in that direction, they will shake their head, wag their finger, or just roll their eyes and drive away. I was turned down by at least 10 taxis because they don't want to drive through town during rush hour. I was about to call the school and tell them I needed to cancel, when one finally waved me in. He gave me a pretty good price for that distance- $3.50, and answered my questions along the way about which neighborhoods and streets we were driving through. About half of the drivers you meet are really nice like that. It took about 35-40 minute to get there.
The school was in a nice neighborhood and had a warm, welcoming feel to it. I was impressed with that and the general positive atmosphere of the students and staff. They are on a block schedule where the classes meet 3 times a week for two hours each time. The classes average about 28 per class, with about 1000 students total in the school. Like the other private schools, the students all wear uniforms. They charge less for the tuition than the international schools since it serves the local Panamanian people. Because they charge local prices for tuition, they pay the teachers on local wages. They offered me the job and wanted me to start right away, but were willing to let me think about it for a day or two. The former teacher had to leave without notice for the US. They wanted me to teach 2 sections of World Literature to 10th graders. Each section would have 2 hours a day on Mon., Tues., and Fri. For a total of 12 hours week, plus prep, they offered me $850 a month. It probably figures out to about $12 an hour with prep time. By the time I got home in the taxi I decided not to accept it and wrote them back right away so they could move on with their selection. It sounded like it could have been a fun job. If I had heard about it a few months ago and if the school was closer to us, I might have accepted. I declined because I am keeping pretty busy without it and the taxi ride was hot and polluted.
