Today my conversational English classes talked about the importance of communication. We played the “telephone game” where a message gets whispered around the class student by student. The telephone game, for those that don’t know, is nothing more than a means for a teacher to kill time will proving a quite obvious message. I found it enjoying.
Today’s initial message: Today is the first day of the rest of your life.
We spent the first half of the class talking about all the new opportunities in China and throughout the world, so I thought the message would fit the theme of inspiration.
Student’s response (class 1): Today is the last day of your life
Student’s response (class 2): Today is Tuesday
This activity, especially the simplicity of student response 2, paralleled my students’ thoughts about China. According to my two classes, South Eastern China is viewed finically as European, while Western China (Sichuan, Tibet, Xinjiang) is comparable to Africa. Students at Southwest believe they are somewhere in-between. A teachers salary is poor, they said, but worth it because they will be able to help others.
I asked the students what they would do with one day left to live. I found out that some students believe 2012 is the end of the world. Overwhelmingly the students said they would go to their hometowns. No one said they would do anything out of the ordinary.
After my 8:00 class, a friendly, albeit slightly goofy student, came up to me and asked if he could sing me a song. I said of course. He sang all verses of “I’ll be right there waiting for you” by Bryan Adams. He sang with unbelievable passion. American John would have been rolling on the floor slapping his knee in uncontrolled laughter. Chinese John hopes he will learn the words to the song. After he finished the song, he told me that he practiced English in high school by riding a bicycle around his neighborhood while shouting (his word, not mine) speeches by Martin Luther King Jr. He said his neighbors thought he was crazy. I said it sounded pretty cool.
One of my students, Cara, invited me to lunch after the second class and I happily agreed. It was my first experience in the school cafeteria, and the food was good, but still cafeteria grade. She paid for my meal without me knowing! I tried desperately to pay her back, at one point even putting money on the table and telling her that I would leave it, but she refused. I felt embarrassed and out of line as her teacher, but she insisted that it was her honor.
Side note: Chinese people do not all look alike. Many of them look like friends and family back home. Yesterday I met the spitting image of Mr. Henrich, my third grade teacher. Strange stuff. More soon,
LOVE,
John
Today’s initial message: Today is the first day of the rest of your life.
We spent the first half of the class talking about all the new opportunities in China and throughout the world, so I thought the message would fit the theme of inspiration.
Student’s response (class 1): Today is the last day of your life
Student’s response (class 2): Today is Tuesday
This activity, especially the simplicity of student response 2, paralleled my students’ thoughts about China. According to my two classes, South Eastern China is viewed finically as European, while Western China (Sichuan, Tibet, Xinjiang) is comparable to Africa. Students at Southwest believe they are somewhere in-between. A teachers salary is poor, they said, but worth it because they will be able to help others.
I asked the students what they would do with one day left to live. I found out that some students believe 2012 is the end of the world. Overwhelmingly the students said they would go to their hometowns. No one said they would do anything out of the ordinary.
After my 8:00 class, a friendly, albeit slightly goofy student, came up to me and asked if he could sing me a song. I said of course. He sang all verses of “I’ll be right there waiting for you” by Bryan Adams. He sang with unbelievable passion. American John would have been rolling on the floor slapping his knee in uncontrolled laughter. Chinese John hopes he will learn the words to the song. After he finished the song, he told me that he practiced English in high school by riding a bicycle around his neighborhood while shouting (his word, not mine) speeches by Martin Luther King Jr. He said his neighbors thought he was crazy. I said it sounded pretty cool.
One of my students, Cara, invited me to lunch after the second class and I happily agreed. It was my first experience in the school cafeteria, and the food was good, but still cafeteria grade. She paid for my meal without me knowing! I tried desperately to pay her back, at one point even putting money on the table and telling her that I would leave it, but she refused. I felt embarrassed and out of line as her teacher, but she insisted that it was her honor.
Side note: Chinese people do not all look alike. Many of them look like friends and family back home. Yesterday I met the spitting image of Mr. Henrich, my third grade teacher. Strange stuff. More soon,
LOVE,
John
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