Cultural observation, with vast generalization alert

......Chileans tend to be just like North Americans in at least one respect:
Even if they speak only one language, they are generally either a) surprised, b) amused, or c) annoyed at people who have yet to master the language of the house.

Think 7-11 in the states. The guy behind the counter almost always speaks English as a second language. He is almost always highly proficient but somewhere short of fluent. And inevitably people say, Why don't they hire people who speak English! Well, he does speak English. Try learning his language and we'll see how you do.

Chileans in general are less annoyed by the whole thing than Americans, but they are just as baffled. Oddly enough, my students are often the most critical of the lot. For instance: today, I spent nearly 10 minutes trying to explain an important deadline for a class project. A good part of the class was still lost, so finally just to be sure that everyone got it I wrote what is, for me, a rather long Spanish explanation on the board.

Does everyone understand? Yes, we understand now. But then, this one guy raises his hand, and with a facial expression that is a mix of complete condescension and also disbelief, points out that in one part of the paragraph I used "por" when it ought to have been "para."

Now, really!

Like a good little profe I used the opportunity to model the idea that making a mistake is not the end of the world. I changed the word and thanked the student.

I still have some question marks floating over my head though, cartoon style.