Language teachers have it worst because they have to mark compositions, some (dare I say many?) of which are low-effort.

It’s not the kind of task that you can squeeze in between lessons. By the time I decompress from a hectic lesson and gather my wits to start marking, I am keenly aware of the bell that will ring any time soon.

So, I decided to devote my Well-Being Afternoon (read: no Contact Time) to marking. Here’s the point in which I blow my own trumpet. Usually, I would be squeezed dry of my responsibilities and not want to initiate any meet-up. But I messaged an ex-colleague to organise a marking party.

She was free — and we met up! Caught up on each other’s happenings for a bit, doubled down on marking, stole glances at each other’s pedagogical practices (Actually, that was mostly me. ENFPs have an insatiable curiosity about everything else but their immediate surroundings.)

That was how I managed to clear 18 essays — and send photos of fairly decent ones to a few parents. (Not that they managed to make the cut, but some of them had written more coherently than I would have expected.) At this point, when students and teachers alike are embroiled in this pressure cooker, any form of progress is worth celebrating.

I had a memorable Well-Being Afternoon, even if all I did was marking.