It's not about education

You might expect that a day of 'presentations' on things of an academic nature might be designed to inform, educate, inspire and motivate. Alas, it's guaranteed to be the opposite in France, at least it always is in my experience.

No matter what the occasion I'm always disappointed in the total inadequacy of most French speakers. Having been a serious Toastmaster for years I feel I know what I'm talking about when it comes to professional or at least vaguely interesting presentations. So what's wrong?

I spent a day in a tertiary institution north of Paris this week. I knew some of the speakers but most of them were not well-known to me. The day focused on sustainable development but lacked impact despite the fact that some projects have interesting aspects.

As I took my seat a teacher told me to move.. er I should move? Yes, away from the students and closer to the teachers because the students will make a lot of noise and disturb me. I asked if perhaps the students lacked politeness during the presentations they were supposed to be listening to? She shrugged and stood her ground. What a sad indictment on French students - and it's true. They were all doing anything except listening. The same could be said for most of the other teachers and admin staff. As I gazed around I did not see folks taking notes, instead they were using their smartphones and tablets and laptops for other purposes, chatting and joking.

OK, the presentations could have been more interesting and the lighting in the body of the lecture room could have been less sombre and soporific- brainwaves slowed, but two wrongs don't make it right. Here's what to expect from French presentations: a person, usually male, stands at a podium and has a microphone. They usually have a fully written text which they refer to heavily or actually read aloud. There is a powerpoint behind them and it's the epitome of death by powerpoint- it's definitive in it's awfulness. At least on this occasion they were standing and not sitting behind their laptops.

The slides are smothered in text, most of which is read out loud because obviously university staff and students can't read or understand what's on the slides. There might be a logo. There is little colour, no multimedia, no audience interactivity, not moving about or changes in voice modulation. Diagrams are too tiny to read. French presenters don't do their material/information justice and it shows little consideration for the audience.

What is the goal? Bore the audience? Indulge in self-aggrandizement? Pretend to be important or relevant? I don't know but it's clear from all the presentations I've seen at French educational institutions, French academics and many academics who work in France can't communicate, inspire or motivate. The information goes around in a closed circle, endlessly repeated. Even if industrial partners are involved there is simply a cascade of words without summary, pause or impact. 

My workplace doesn't seem to have a compulsory course for students on making effective business presentations so students and teachers alike lack skills to do effective public-speaking, speaking to journalists, voice projection and quality. I wish I could teach something like that to them.

One of the repetitive crimes I've noted of late is that there is absolutely no adherence to time-to the agenda. Many presentations were jettisoned because previous presenters were not expected to show courtesy and keep to time. I find this horrifying. My disappointment was so great and the effort to understand what these francophones were saying that I decided to take photos of what people were doing. I turned around and took shots. Student laptops closed. Some students tried to hide but the staff just went on doing their own thing. Is this a francophone thing not to have any idea of modern communication, learning technology, common courtesy?

I fear I'm doomed to remain disappointed.

Distraction

I needed to get out and distract myself from what was going on with my shoulders.
Having endured a shoulder joint infiltration with no local anaesthesia I was feeling miserable. My medical experiences in France always seem to be more brutal and less efficient than experiences in NZ. I seem to be a magnet for differences.



Back in 2003 when I had a frozen shoulder the sports doctor sorted that out with the cortisol within a few weeks. He gave me a local and voilà, it was tolerable. He was precise and he didn't need a specialist or to do it under Xray to get it right. I popped off to physio and this debilitating and lengthy malady got nipped in the bud. I didn't get full use of my arm for a year but I could live comfortably in the meantime.



Here in France it has taken 2 GPs a specialist, an argument over diagnosis, 2 different technicians and a torturous 7 months. Things are still not good.

Friday's infiltration was highly unpleasant, especially when the needle and it's products were pushed, twice into the tough shoulder joint capsule. Luckily for me Jean-Claude was on hand to take me back to rest at his place. I was given no pain relief or a sling for my arm. The pain became absolutely awful for the entire weekend so I was unable to attend my long-panned visit to the Paris Book Fair. I'm left with business cards but no contacts for my new book. It just wasn't to be.





By Sunday I needed to do something to distract myself from the pain. JC and I drove to Chartres to see an antiques fair there. I'd been to one two years ago but hadn't had my camera with me that time. I thought I'd show you some examples of French furniture and collectables.












A beautiful desk full of inlays caught my eye. An ancient armoire caught JC's eye. We didn't buy anything (I can't afford things like that right now) but it was fun looking and wouldn't you know it.... in the annex was a chocolate expo.








No wonder people were still queuing to get in 2 hours before the expo closed. The French are artists with food. It was much too yummy looking and I had to help the chocolate addict accompanying me to keep his wallet in his jacket or he'd have scoffed a dozen huge 'nipples of venus'-like things. A man was struggling to cut an enormous gourmet cheese, ladies were touting the delights of olives.

It was good to get out and see some of the interesting things France has to offer such as antiques and food - the like of which you'll never find in NZ.

Digging up the past

There's not much to do when when the weather is frigid, raining, snowing. I'm tempted to just hunker down but that's not very interesting for long. JC and I visited the archeological society of Chartres to check out pottery fragments. Some time ago he dug up quite a few ancient fragments so he wanted to verify exactly what they were.



Gallo-Roman Chartres was on a pedestrian highway for merchants coming and going, small travelling groups buying pottery, breaking and dumping bits. So there's quite a bit available for archaeologists to 'potter' with. A young one ran a guided tour for us, in French. It was difficult for me to concentrate because of the pain in my shoulders but the display was well put together with a good educational value.


 The old methods of working potters wheels was presented and the very different shapes of containers identified whereabouts in Europe it was manufactured and for what type of product. Most containers were only used once, sealed with clay and wax.


These sorts of exposition are interesting to me because they don't exist in NZ, it having been inhabited barely 1000 years and not by an advanced civilisation.


The building housing the archaeological society is about to be torn down so they need to find another venue - perhaps more conducive to parking. The building is one of those 1960s/70s horrors reminiscent of the communist era in Europe - gey, boring, boxy. Very much like the Auckland City council building in Greys Ave, Auckland  NZ. At least the French have, right next door,  a wonderful architectural gem hidden by the 20th century monstrosities. They've decided it makes more sense to spend a wee bit more money to demolish and build anew (sustainably) than to try to renovate a 'dog'. Good for them.
Here's the front of the lovely old building that will remain:


They'll probably have an archeological dig before beginning reconstruction of council buildings.

We just had enough time before nightfall to drive to the Chartres Expo Centre to visit a display of minerals and fossils from around the world. Some were available for sale.


I was surprised and fascinated by the range of shapes and colours of the minerals from all around the world. They were so beautiful it was hard to believe the planet had made them all by itself.




 Here's a real mammoth's tooth. It's massive and you can see the roots hanging down at the bottom. As herbivores they had to do a lot of grinding of their food. France being in Europe, it's easier to see these sorts of things, for real. There were no plaster copies this day, everything was genuine.

There were a surprising number of fossils on display and for sale, entire or sliced into layers. Fierce sea beasts, delicate sea lilies, fish, molluscs and seashells. There were many sizes of ammonites, shark teeth, skulls.






Naturally there was the opportunity to buy jewellery made from many of the stones less valuable. One exhibitor was especially knowledgeable and said his dream would be to attend an exposition in NZ because there are micro-minerals extremely rare to be found in NZ. I wasn't aware of that.

Counting animals

Licensed hunters in France conduct an annual census of the hunt animals in their area. This is to assess how well the animals and birds are reproducing and whether certain species should not be hunted in the coming year. I went along to see how it was conducted.


An early start saw us all meeting outside the church of Ymeray. . After waiting for everyone to gather there was a short briefing session by the leader, outlining where we'd all start. A predominently male affair I watched them all renewing acquaintances. 

The French hunt is dying. It has become too expensive and there are too few critters left to hunt. Numbers are very low but not because of the hunt. It's due to destruction of habitats as a result of human activity. The key culprits to the destruction of biodiversity are the crop farmers. The fields are large and monocultural (only one type of crop for miles, instead of the older system of mixed cropping). The agriculturalists use herbicides and pesticides which naturally kill the food of larger critters and kill off wild plants which would shelter birds and animals.

We wondered how many animals we would see. We didn't expect a lot but even so, everyone was disappointed and concerned at the desert that is the French countryside these days. We covered Ymeray, Montlouet, Gallardon and a bit of Talvoisin villages.


The weather was superbly uncooperative - so hard to see very far in front of us and we really needed to see. The first part of the countryside yielded absolutely nothing, even allowing for the thick fog. It was very, very cold standing still out there for hours. The hunters do this service in their own time. It was hard to see how they kept their interest going with so little to show for their efforts.

There are two teams: the counters who stand around, scattered at regular intervals across a field or along a road; the walkers who walk in a line, evenly spaced which flushes out any critters for the counters to count. Each counter counts only the animals that run between themselves and the next counter further along on their right. Things running across the front don't count. This is to avoid double-counting.

Slips of paper are filled in. sadly the most frequent digit used was zero. This processed occurred several times. At the end of a count we would all pile into vans and head to the next location. Then it was time for a snack which was set out in the barn of one of the agriculteurs whose land we were counting on. There were the obligatory baguettes and foie gras-like spreads. Not for me. I nibbled a hunk of dry bread- there was nothing else.

We bundled into vans again and off to another set of fields. The fog was lifting but it was still cold. At this time of the year the fields contain young rapeseed and wheat plants which will start growing in a month's time. It's peaceful, uninteresting and a bit depressing with the lack of animals and birds. At the last location we finally saw some hares bounding about and also some chevreuils (small deer). You'll need to zoom on this photo to see them but they are there.

Everyone drove back to Ymeray. Some went on to a lunch together at a restaurant. Jean-Claude and I went back to his place. My shoulders had become too painful in the cold to continue.

 I enjoyed watching the camaraderie amongst the men, many of whom had known each other a long time and many of whom were from another hunt club. With hunter numbers so low, clubs need to amalgamate to survive.

Photographing France

 One of the pleasures for me of living in France has been the opportunity to photograph things completely new to my experience. I have very few expectations or pre-conceived ideas of most of what I photograph. Oddly enough, that's different to how I see and feel about things when I'm not behind a camera lens. In those moments I'm more likely to judge, compare, get the head working.

 When I'm behind my camera I get to feel and just BE. Things just ARE. Usually I'm seeing things positively when I photograph them.


I've really only caught a tiny portion of France on camera. I'd like to do more visiting but that requires a financial investment and I'm not quite able to do that yet. So far I've captured some of the beauty of Brittany, Normandy, Ile de France, Poitou-Charente, Provence and Centre, the Loire Valley. 

 
Aside from the countryside regional variety to be found in France there's the history to explore and interesting characters to discover. The later only happens spontaneously. I'll do better with that when I've mastered my new camera.

Last year my trusty Nikon D60 that I bought in December 2008 in the hopes of spending time in Paris with Nicolas(well I got the camera but not the man) decided to malfunction. More specifically, my favourite lens died. 

While saving up for a decent DSLR I purchased a Nikon S1000. It has been a disappointment despite all the hype. This compact and I don't suit each other. I need to look through a viewfinder not at a screen. I need to KNOW that what I see is exactly what will be taken with no time lag. I need my camera to function well in low light. Yes it's small and fits in my handbag but it's not a pleasure to use.

For six months I've saved up and finally last Saturday I collected my Nikon D3200 from a shop in Paris. I'm determined to master this camera beyond point and click and using various scene modes. I'm also keen to explore the dimension of movies. It's not a video camera but it does shoot movies. Wouldn't you like to read my blog occasionally AND watch a little movie?


 
Cameras and me are an inseparable pair here in France. It helps me document my 'journey' for myself and people close to me who can't join me on it. Digital photography means I can afford o have this as a hobby and it means I can publish books of photos. I already have  a good collection of photos of France that could one day find themselves inside a professional, saleable publication but there's more to be done and this new camera gives me the hardware to achieve better shots. I've just got to get my personal software around how to do it and that'll take practice as well as reading the manual and any specialised books I can find.

Later this month I'm off to visit the Paris Book Fair and next month I'll be heading back to Michigan USA for work so there will be an incentive to look for different shots and play with settings. It doesn't come naturally, the technical side, so a bit of effort is required.
It's a joy to share my photos with others. Hope I'll feel the same about any future little movies.

Sadder Paris but still superb

Occasionally I still have the opportunity to do something here in France for the first time. And so it was that I took Jean-Claude to dinner, on a cruise on the Seine. We don't dine out much, hardly at all and Paris takes a lot of effort to get to but a special visit makes it all worthwhile even if the weather is rather harsh.

 
 
It can take 1 1/2-2 hours to get to Paris and the same back home from Epernon or Ymeray. We set out while there was still light, traffic was with us and we arrived at the quay early. There we were, sitting in the car with the engine running to keep warm, the Eiffel Tower barely discernable in the gloom even though we were fairly close by. Snow flakes whipped around pedestrians and settled on cars. The trees along the Seine were bare, revealing the historic architecture. It's a scene you don't see in Summer.

Paris celebrates its seasons but I'm not celebrating winter. I've had enough. It's been snowing solidly for 4 days. It seemed a trifle bizarre to be cruising the river of the most romantic of cities of an evening with snow and a very icy breeze. No one was getting very dolled up but I'd made an effort and hid it under my padded and hooded jacket, gloves and scarf.


The seating is two-tiered with all seats facing the river. It's very squashy with little individual tables very derivative of lecture seats with attached tables. A small bottle of bubbles and another of water was supplied. The first course consisted of foie gras and breadrolls. Naturally I was reduced to munching a roll. I tried the foie gras again but had to conclude I just can't tolerate what, for me, is a fatty rancid taste. JC declared it quite good. 

The second course was either chicken or salmon. Struck out again there too but I had known that when I booked. They did supply me with some rice topped with diced vegetables so that was fine. Dessert was something cube-like and chocolately with something biscuity topped by a raspberry. Not too bad. There was no cheese and no coffee.




The best part for me was sitting there in warmth and comfort watching the city slide by. The two of us declared that Paris just doesn't deliver the same experience at night for tourists as it once did. It continues to be a sad shadow of its former glory which we are putting down to austerity. The bridges are no longer lit, the buildings are no longer lit. You can't see any details. All is rather dark and invisible. The city of light is no more.

Thanks goodness for the Eiffel Tower then. In the evenings, on the hour, the lightbulbs go off and its famous sparkle plays for a few minutes and then returns to normal lighting. It's always magical.




 Our dinner cruise was shorter than we would have liked. It stopped before we got to the best part of Paris where stands the Notre Dame cathedral on Ile de la Cite. Perhaps our boat was too high for those bridges - something to keep in mind if you are booking an evening cruise - the itinerary. We used Paris en Scene company. There was car parking close to the boat as the tide was too high for the normal mooring. Consequently it was free. This is not usually the case - that you get free parking in Paris. Parking for cruises can cost as much as 55 euros - ouch!

Language acquisition at middle age

I'm a member of Kea Global Network and lately we've been discussing how a lack of second language ability could be holding Kiwis back from better job opportunities overseas. I'd agree with the assertion that this 'English is everywhere so I don't need to learn anything else' attitude really doesn't cut it in the wider world.

Now that I live in Europe I rub shoulders with people who regularly speak four languages, and they're doing very nicely thanks. Well done the Dutch who are masters of multiple languages even though their country is tiny (smaller than NZ). We all know there are intellectual reasons why learning a second language is a good thing but aside from that I'd suggest we need it as an insurance policy against unemployment.

It's no good assuming you'll get a job in NZ. Twenty-five percent of NZ's population don't think so and they are living overseas and not all of them are in Australia. They are not all young. I suppose I left it a bit late to make my move. I didn't realise I could make the move when I was younger - it would have been logistically much easier if I had and it would have been a lot easier to pick up the French language. I did study it at High School though I was never very competent in those read it and write it days. Arriving here I really struggled to understand the spoken word and to speak back. It's still the case.

I'd never consider time spent learning Maori useful to me, though I did enjoy teaching kids a few words, songs and kapa haka. I needed to go somewhere else to find a job because NZ's not in a good state at the moment, neither is Europe but somehow there's a job here for me but not in NZ so I've ended up in France just trying to survive because I couldn't survive (get any ordinary sort of work) in NZ. I'm acquiring a second language the hard way. French is far more useful  than Maori if you have to leave the country and go somewhere else.

The isolation of NZ leads to a difficulty in appreciating other thought patterns in other cultures. Frankly, I'm gobsmacked just how different France is to NZ in terms of work ethics, attitudes, behaviours, values. It may be sort of Westernised but it's nothing like NZ. I'm still trying to come to terms with the label of Anglo-Saxon. (I thought I was simply a Kiwi).

 Kiwis are insulated from natural exposure to other languages and cultures by the distance. Come to Europe and you are suddenly exposed to so much choice, richness, different ways of doing things. The problem is that Kiwis are not EU citizens and are normally shut out, so it's harder to leave NZ now and experience living in the EU.

I still find myself rearranging words in sentences on the white screen in my mind. I'm getting faster at it but that doesn't lead to fluency. If you tell me something French once or twice I won't remember it- I need to see it and hear it many times. My aging brain works well but it's not as plastic as when I was younger. Phone conversations are especially hard for me.
Less than 100% hearing ability creates a significant obstacle to determining what is being said. My tongue still hasn't found the gymnastic trick for French Rs.

The difference between me and a child learning a second language (leaving aside the plasticity) is that I arrived having to jump into the complicated adult world with its adult vocabularly. A Research Centre deals in an even more specialised area. My brain was busy trying to survive all the practical aspects, few things were repeated for me. When a child learns they learn in school with a limited vocab, limited topics, situations they can relate to, slower speech rates, plenty of encouragement,no domestic issues to worry about. As an older adult you just can't pick it up quickly unless you've a big linguistic talent.

Folks who meet me several times remark on what great progress I've made since the last time they saw me. That may be true but the progress slows down and plateaus. I've acquiring synonyms, mots d'argots, expressions, a little more speed but I have to say it's really, really hard. I live alone most of the time and I'm always tired from the concentration of trying to work out what people are saying. Language shapes thoughts. Try thinking in a different language - it's a different identity. It's starting to happen- I catch myself using French in my thoughts quite often so that's a good sign but one language interferes with the other- it's a scientific fact. I have lost the wippet-like speed of recall of English words I used to have and that's scary. The filing system has two sides to it now.

At my age it's hard to round the sharp edges of my preference for thinking and behaving and assuming as a Kiwi Anglo-Saxon (not British, American or Australian). I'm learning a bit of humility, lots of patience and hopefully acceptance of others even if I don't agree how they do and think. It's difficult to gain all this living in NZ's bubble.  Intercultural studies/communication should be compulsory in NZ schools as should learning another language (but give people a decent choice). In my opinion NZ has definitely gone backward. I don't see second language learning (except for Asian languages) being of interest to the Ministry of Education.


Back in 1977 in Wellington I was a one-woman pilot programme for teaching eight-year olds a foreign language. They made such impressive progress that the school and the inspectorate allowed the children to continue with me into the next year. And then nothing. The Ministry didn’t follow through and didn’t get back to me. Opportunity lost.

I'm not interested in Asian languages. I'm not interested in Asia or its various cultures. I belong to Europe and that's where my roots are, my enculturation. It's like that for many NZers. Thank goodness I learnt one European Language a bit, even a little bit helps. So I'd encourage every NZer, especially those under 30, to choose another language of a country that might interest you in future and learn it. You never know what opportunities it might open up for you when the ones back home aren't there.

Today I had a French conversation class in another town. With me in the class were two Russians, a Pole and a Czeckoslovak. Each Monday I'll travel to class for an hour-long class and hope to lift my language plateau. With time I just might be able to communicate adequately. I estimate I'll need another 5 years minimum. Wish I was younger.

For information on the incredible Kiwi diaspora read
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/unlimited/8273786/Flight-of-the-Kiwis?goback=.gde_2423_member_213516430