Angie's Oral Exam

 

Angie has been studying English in an English course where I work for around three years. However, she has never been in my class, and I have never been an oral examiner in her class during the promotion test. This term—term III 2007—I almost became her class teacher in High Intermediate 3. (Un)fortunately, when Angie knew about it, she asked me to exchange the class with another workmate of mine. So, she got another teacher in her class—not me.

A week ago when the schedule for the promotion test was issued, which teacher would proctor which class, and which teacher would oral-examine which class, I found my name to be the oral examiner of Angie’s class. I told my workmate who was teaching Angie’s class this term, “I will oral examine Angie’s class. But this time, I will not exchange it with anybody else. I will not tell her either so that it will be a surprise for her.

“I want to know her capability in English,” I reasoned. My workmate smiled widely to hear that.
In the morning before the oral test, Angie asked, “Who will oral examine my class, Mama?”
“I am sorry honey, I haven’t taken a look at the schedule yet,” I avoided giving an answer. LOL.

*****

That afternoon, after the bell rang, I went to Angie’s classroom. I didn’t find her among the students crowding the classroom. However, after I entered the room, talking to some students inside, I saw Angie standing outside, trying to peep who was the oral examiner, and seemed surprised to see me there. I waved and smiled to her. LOL. I heard some of her classmates say, “Angie, you don’t need to take oral test here. You can do it later, at home.” LOL. LOL.

In her turn, as usual, Angie paired up with Nana, her close friend since they were in elementary school. When I asked Angie to read a passage, to score her pronunciation, she seemed relaxed, as if she wanted to tell me, “No need to worry about me, Mama. I am good.” LOL. And yes, she didn’t make any mistake at all! (FYI, she often complains at home when I ask her to practice her pronunciation.) When I gave her compliment, “Good” with one of my thumbs up, she made a V with her right hand on her head, confidently. LOL. By doing that, as if she wanted to tell me, “See? No need to worry about me, right?” LOL.

After the reading step to score the pronunciation, the examiner gave a case to be discussed in pairs. I gave Angie and Nana a case of “designing babies”, Perhaps because both of them—especially Angie—felt really at ease with me, they seemed very relaxed when discussing the topic. I was sometimes amazed with Angie’s answer, and I had to tell myself that she had my intellect in her. LOL. LOL.

Nana agreed with designing babies phenomenon, such as what kind of sex a couple wants to have for their baby. Nana said she wanted to have a baby girl, “So that I can do girly things to her, to make her as beautiful as me.” She said jokingly but confidently. LOL. Angie is on the way around. Although she didn’t mind people’s business to choose what sex for their future babies, Angie didn’t want to do that. “It is up to God what my baby will be. I would prefer to have a surprise rather than a made-up one.”

That’s my girl!!! LOL.

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