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July 30, 2004
Former Miss Beatty home from teaching English in Italy
By RICHARD STEPHENS
Before Hickinbotham returned home, she was joined abroad by her parents, Wenn and Laurel Hickinbotham, also of Beatty, and Diane George, who teaches with Mrs. Hickinbotham at Amargosa Elementary School. The three spent a few days in England before going on to Italy to tour the country with Kimberly acting as guide and interpreter. Hickinbotham, who earned a Bachelor's degree in art history from University of Nevada, Las Vegas in 2003, said she originally saw the opportunity to teach abroad as a way to improve her fluency in Italian. Once in Italy, however, she discovered the program she had signed up with after finding it on the Internet was not exactly what it purported to be, although it did give participants the bare minimum of what was offered. She counsels others planning to sign up with one of the services hiring English teachers abroad to do as much research as possible so they'll better know what they are getting into. She was able to earn her TEFL certificate, which is accepted as a credential worldwide, but says that if she had it to do over, she would prepare for the Oxford exams that lead to more prestigious CELTA and DELTA certificates. She gained considerable teaching experience because her assignments had her teaching in several schools at once. She taught kindergarten and middle-school students in private schools by day and adult business English classes in the evening. Those who have known Hickinbotham since childhood who meet her now might think that she is affecting a British accent, but that is not the case. In Europe, English teachers are expected to teach British English, so that is what they speak in the classroom. They also have to enunciate very clearly for their students, so her dialect has become very precise and proper, with such Briticisms as "when I was at university" and "it was horrid." After she arrived in Italy, Hickinbotham was able to find other work with a private school called International Club in the northern part of the country near Milan. Northern Italy defies the sun-drenched Mediterranean image most people have of that country. There was plenty of snow and cold weather in the winter, and she discovered she had not taken enough warm clothing with her. Most Italians have a very stereotypical image of Americans, says Hickinbotham. For one thing, they think that Americans eat nothing but hamburgers and hot dogs. She said when she described her meals at home; they didn't want to believe her. Hickinbotham says she did not find a great deal of anti-American sentiment in Italy. "With the war going on, I didn't advertise the fact that I was American," said Hickinbotham. She was surprised how many Italians, particularly children and youth, wore American fashions - things like purses, shirts, and jeans with American flags on them. "I think it was more of a fashion statement than a show of support." said Hickinbotham. She did know one young man who was always saying that Italy could not do enough for America because the Americans had saved Italy in World War II. "Italians are not patriotic in the sense Americans are," says Hickinbotham. "They are more loyal to their cities than to their country. They don't speak of themselves as Italians, but as Milanese, Florentines, and so on." She spoke of the warmth of the people. Once when she called in sick at work, her supervisor came to her apartment, cooked breakfast for her, and took her to the doctor. On the other hand, she said that Italians tend to be disorganized and inefficient, and sometimes not very professional. She said, for instance, that to avoid any difficulties getting into the country, her school advised young women to wear short skirts and tight tops when entering the country and to see that they got into a line that led to a male immigration officer. That way they would be quickly approved without any hassle. "Italian ladies always look professional," observed Hickinbotham. "Even their jeans are pressed. They wear high heels on cobblestone streets. Everything is the latest fashion, and they don't believe in second-hand stores," Noting that Italian women wear their pearls to the grocery store, Hickinbotham remarked that she once made a quick trip to the store in athletic shoes and a tank top. "I got such looks that I never went again without getting dressed." As for the schools, she says, "Middle-school kids are the same all over the world." Once a class decided to throw paper wads at her for fun. She decided to handle it by going along with it, throwing them back. A thirty-minute paper-wad war ensued until the principal walked in. He just shook his head and left without saying anything. On the other hand, when Hickinbotham had a particularly bad class that wouldn't quiet down and she went to the principal to complain, she said he simply entered the room, put his finger to his lips and said, "Shhhh," and they settled right down. In middle schools, the students stay in the same classroom all day long, and the teachers change rooms instead. The students have no lockers or places in their desks to store books, and they carry their entire books home in the afternoon and back to school each morning in large backpacks. Hickinbotham said there is some controversy about this policy, as many people develop back problems later on. After a short stay in Beatty, Hickinbotham plans to return to Italy to work with the Institute for the History of Art of Lombardy (ISAL in Italian). She wants to continue to improve her Italian. Right now, she said she is fairly comfortable speaking in the present tense. "I sound like a 1920s gangster when I talk - no future, no past," she joked. Next summer she plans to teach English in Japan to save money for graduate school. Her plan is to enter graduate school at the University of Texas in Austin, to study for a career in museum work. She has always had an affinity for historical costumery, and hopes to be curator of a museum some day. |
