Could there possibly be a market, here in Korea, for my book? I'm not sure; I think the book would have to be retooled for Korean audiences (the book actually contains one rather critical comment about the effect of multiple-choice thinking on Korean culture; the remark might not go over so well with Korean readers). Homeschooling isn't nearly the phenomenon here that it is in the States, so I'd have to refocus the book on things that ought to matter to Korean parents who send their kids to multiple hagweons as a way of keeping them ahead of the curve. A lot of Korean parents have no idea what goes into proper teaching.
It was during one of our rest breaks, yesterday, that I handed my phone over to JW to allow him to look at the e-book version of my book. He started reading and had trouble stopping. One odd thing he said was, "Your writing style has really changed." When I asked what he meant, he recalled trying to read bits of my 2006 Water from a Skull, which was a collection of essays about religion, philosophy, and other deep matters. True, that was a book filled with technical language, and while JW is pretty fluent in English, he's a bit like the way I am in French: perfectly conversant with "regular" English, but not necessarily equipped to handle the specialized vocabulary to be found in the abstruse dark corners of the language. Think Like a Teacher was written to be accessible to a wide audience, so the English in this new book is doubtless more "comfortable" for a non-native to read.
The upshot was that JW pronounced himself interested and even intimated that his wife might also want to get her hands on the book, so I'll be giving JW a hard copy sometime next week.
Considering how critical Koreans tend to be of their own education system, I think you might want to actually lean into that instead of shying away from it.
ReplyDeleteI did give the book a quick read yesterday, by the way, and thought it was quite interesting. I can't say I've ever thought too much about homeschooling (for obvious reasons), but your thoughts on teaching in general were helpful and gave me a chance to take another look at my own methods.
Thanks, man. I'll be in your neighborhood probably Tuesday evening and will quickly stop by just to drop off a revised copy of the book. If you're not there when I come by, I hope HJ will buzz me in. I won't stay; I'll just be there to drop off the book.
ReplyDeleteAny idea about what time? I should be around in the evening.
ReplyDeleteI'm going to guess around 7:30 p.m.-ish. I'm gonna take a cab this time and try to leave the office by 6 p.m. The subway was a nightmare last time.
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