Love and Respect in the Classroom

The Joys of Teaching

New Friends!

 One of the greatest things about being in China is the privilege of being a teacher.  It may seem like a simple thing but I love my job.  I truly do enjoy being able to help students learn how to think.  Many of the young students that fill my classroom have been pushed through a rigorous learning system.  Much of their precollege life was nothing but memorization for test taking.  They are like vocabulary and grammar machines.  However, few of them really understand how to use what they know.  They struggle with fluency of communication and the only way to get better at that is to practice standard conversation techniques.  But how does one do just that? 

The dilemma that I am facing is really one I must face alone.  I would turn to the textbook for help but I’ve realized how much an error that would be.  My textbook is nearly 15 years old and it’s written for the British population.  Its pop culture references and use of late 90’s slang is just as appalling as when your Dad thinks that wearing his old bellbottom plaid pants from the 70’s is a good idea…  It’s simply disgraceful!  Sometimes it’s highly inappropriate to boot.  What do Chinese college students really care about Prince Charles and Camilla’s love affair?  I know the idiom goes that “no news is good news.”  But what does it mean when you’ve only got “old news?”

I’d had enough of this foolishness.  So I decided that the old fossil of a textbook need to be thrown out and some new thoughts need to be introduced to the classroom.  Our appointed subject for the week was “romantic relationships” and I knew we needed something more than the question and answer session on whether Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman’s marriage would last?  “How old is this textbook again?” 

Discussion Time

Love and Respect

The answer to my dilemma was found in turning to one of my favorite modern relationship experts, Dr. Emerson Eggerich.  If you’re not familiar with Dr. Eggerich’s research than I suggest you get familiar.  His book titled “Love and Respect” is simply profound.  It looks at the psychological differences between male and female communication and it seeks to find a wise way to bridge the gap between the genders.  I won’t go into the detail here, but I’ll say that it was a big hit in the classroom.  There were many heads nodding in approval as I went over the principles laid forth by Dr. Eggerich.  I simply presented the class with some food for thought.  They had to ultimately decide what to do with it.  Thus we had many lively discussions, debates, and inquiries into the opposite gender.  Some agreed with Dr. Eggerich’s conclusions and some did not.  However, each student formed their own opinion on the subject and they all were eager to share their thoughts.  It was great to see their minds become alive.

"V" for victory.

 Singalong with Lǎoshī Ben! 

A hearty debate can be all well and good but sometimes it can bog down the class.  That’s why I like to intertwine the heavy stuff with some fun stuff.  How about adding some music?  I’m not really into pop music but China is forcing me to become more and more of a pop fan every day.  Well, maybe not a fan but my level of tolerance is increasing.  I want to find music that the students like so that means I need to listen to what the students listen to… Ever heard of Westlife or Take That?  Yeah, me neither… At least I hadn’t heard about them until I came to China.  Now I know several of their songs and can sing them from memory…  Oh, China!  What have you done to me!

Anyway, singing songs in the classroom is a great way to help the students work on their pronunciation.  Most songs demand a very certain level rhythm and require very clear articulation.  Westlife’s “My Love” is a great example.  The words are clear and easy.  Plus, the class loves it.  I had everyone bobbing and sway to the music as they sang out at the top of lungs.  Did I mention before that China really loves karaoke?

Any and all means to help students develop critical thinking is welcome at my university.  I had a rather lengthy discussion with the deputy dean of the English department and she was asking about effective ways to help the students learn English.  We brain-stormed for the better part of two hours and we both came to the conclusion that we need to help the students learn how to think.  That means we need to engage their brains.  Music and books are all well and good but there has to be more!  How about movies?

"Who wants to watch a movie?"

Movie Night!

 One benefit of being from a western culture is that I get to share the American movie experience with a good many people who may not have seen some of the more quality films that have been produced.  This Friday night was the first of many movie nights on campus.  We filled up the building 5 multimedia room with over a hundred students.  It was standing room only!  The movie that I got to share with the students was the Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.   Only a handful of students had seen the movie before and that was through internet download software.  However, the media room had a large screen, projector, and loud speakers so that everyone could enjoy a real cinema experience.  It was fun hearing the students react to the various exciting scenes and some even hid their eyes during the scene with Aslan on the stone table.  At the end of the film one of the leaders of the English club got up a said to the whole group, “I feel there is much we can learn from this movie.  I have learned that it is only through humility that we find true love.”

I was blown away by this student’s comment; however, many more students shared that same sentiment.  We had many lengthy discussions on into the later parts of the night.  There is a real hunger for learning among the young Chinese people and they are eager to hear what the Westerns have to say.  It’s also amazing to see what kind of emotions a computer animated lion can invoke in people.  This same student who made the comment about the film also thanked us for sharing the movie and handed us each a Dove chocolate bar.  We were then given a round of applause by all the students and asked to show another movie next week!  It is nice being so appreciated and loved.  It’s hard to out give and out love the students in Langfang.  We give them a movie and they give us chocolate and praise! 

Stolen Property

Bit of a tangent but one thing that really bothered me today was that I had my bike stolen.  My bike was stolen from the front of my apartment during the middle of the night.  It was an old mountain bike left by former IECS teacher Andy and I really liked it!  Biking is the main form of transportation here in Langfang and it really is required for daily life to function properly.  Having my bike stolen was like losing a leg.  I will go and buy another one this weekend but I’m still bummed out by the whole thing.  However, I will make sure that next time I keep my bike inside my apartment rather than outside.

"Sit, Boy!"

Theft is a big problem here in China.  However, it doesn’t mean that there isn’t some form of justice.  This past week I was biking in the park when I noticed a man publicly urinating in full view of passersby.  The man appeared to be intoxicated and acting rather rudely to others.  A uniformed police officer with his big German shepherd just happened to be patrolling the area at that moment and he decided to intervene.  They spoke in Chinese so I don’t know what was said but I could read the body language.  It was clear that the policemen wanted the man to stop making a scene.  The drunk became angry and began arguing with the policemen.  However, the policeman was not going to have any of it.  After a few unsuccessful attempts to reason with the drunk the policeman finally resorted to an alternative method of correction.  The policeman handcuffed the drunk to a nearby bridge and told him to sit on the concrete.  The drunk protested and the officer told the dog to have his way with the man.  The dog lunged at the drunk and the drunk went from standing to sitting faster than you could blink.  As soon as the man sat down the dog also sat down and was quite.  If the man moved ever so slightly the dog would lunge at him again.  If the man sat quietly than so did the dog.  I found this scene to be rather hilarious.  What was even better was that the policeman actually left the scene.  So the drunk was left alone with the dog as his only supervisor.  I didn’t stay around long enough to see what happened to the man but I do know he and the dog were gone when I came back through the park two hours later.  All I can say is that I think the officer has been watching too many Wild West films!  I hope the drunk man learned his lesson.