It’s really really absurdly cold today. As I walked the long walk to the not-near metro, my face hurt and fingers ached through my gloves and my core just shrank into a tight little quivery knot. For whatever reason, Shanghai somehow manages to feel colder than Romania in mid-winter (which was -20C with ice on the inside of the window). It isn’t icy or snowy but it makes me ache. I miss my two duvets and bed-hippo and bed-elephant.
Down to the last few days of classes- it would have been the last day of classes if they hadn’t rescheduled the professional development course for next week rather than the end of this week. I’m scrambling to find relevant things to teach that don’t require photocopying. We’ve done reflection-on-the-term letters to their September selves (regrets? I’ve had a few). I got a good giggle from how they addressed the letters:
Dear Former Harry…
From Current Harry
Dear Past Self
From Future Self
Dear Allen-in-the-Past
Yourself, Allen (now)
We’re working on identifying multiple intelligences today and how to adapt their learning patterns to better suit their styles. If anyone out there has ever taught a. Chinese university students or b. EFL students in a teacher-centred culture, then you’re probably laughing out loud by now and slapping your knees in delight at my absurdly inappropriate task. I have a multiple intelligences bubble chart and a self assessment quiz and a British Council podcast on learning styles and tactics. The end task is for the kids to identify three goals they have for the next term (their own goals, not their parents’) and to think about how they learn best and to critically assess how they might go about achieving these goals in a step by step plan.
Again, any university teachers/teachers in memorization-happy learning cultures, you can continue giggling. I just thought I’d give it a shot.
I am anticipating a whole bunch of "I want improving my English. I am goal I will IELTS 6.5 on June and speaking foreigner and good writing. For this I will study hard! The End!"
Oh god, laughing so hard right now. *hugs you and your intrepid spirit*
I want rich huzbannd and job locate in Guangzhou where ther is many rich jobz needing the goody Englizh that learning is. Please to help me wothy gol achiving.
Oooooo Oooooo! One boy (the spitter) handed his in early (it’s due Friday after speaking final exam. I think he might actually almost get it!
“First goal, I want to be a better speaker, become a good speaker, not only speak clearly but also have mind and nerve. Every morning I will interflow in English with myself when get up. I have a idea to practise speaking. just reflect mirror to speak English loudly.
Second goal: listening carefully and hear other class mates topic. I also listening English radio and read English newspapers so that understand what is somebody meaning.
Third goal: the most important goal is Lucrative Speaking Test Score 6.5. Everyone want to pass Lucrative Speaking Test so it reason of we lerner English here and study hard. We should study both read and write.”
Oh man, that has actual potential. One of the things that always makes me laugh is the way quite complicated words or grammatical structures can be used perfectly on occasion – or even more than once – inside a mish mash of the most appalling corruptions and mangled structures. It’s like the time I found a parking meter – a parking meter on a suburban street in Wuhan. Totally legitimate, totally familiar, completely fucking out of context and bizarre, but somehow comforting.
A parking meter? Seriously??? Damn.
I’m going through the letters to past self and am quite impressed with the glimpses of self awareness I’m finding. I’ll quote one from Ray (the super-cool singer boy I included in my photo spam last week, with the leather jacket). He’s pretty good at English but very very very lazy. And he realizes it!!!!
” Dear Ray,
Last four months, You improved your English in listening, speaking and writing. However you just did little works on them. For example You were not hardworking on your paragraphs, you did not spend enough time on it to find examples or more advices.
On the listening class, Ray were not paying attention to listen and you were so lazy on practise.
Your speaking is good but it is not said that you cannot improve it! You should know and remember more and more vocabulary and practise how to use the linking words like therefore, whatever.
I hope that you will be better, more hard working next year, Ray!”
Yes, I even have a photo of me next to it. I had to have proof, since I knew that no one who had lived in China for any length of time would find it easy to believe.
You know, to get a Chinese student to that level of being able to recognise actual, personal shortcomings instead of parroting the usual phrases is a huge achievement. I know you feel wrong sometimes about teaching this standardised syllabus to students who are not really up to it, but, seriously, if this is the level that you’ve managed to get them thinking at, then you are doing an excellent job.
I’m actually surprised myself by where I’ve got the kids up to in just 3 months. I think it’s possibly because I’m fucking brutal when it comes to not accepting stupid parrotty answers. I’m working on somehow adapting Naomi Klein’s No Logo for an intermediate Penguin Reader next to get them a bit more media savvy instead of being adamant that advertising is there to let us know about our many and varied choices.
On a different note, seriously- a parking meter! I believe you but wow, really, wow.
Meant to mention, your icon rocks. I need to get me a similar one for when I need to pontificate.
Oh, I made that icon. I love it *squishes their little faces* I don’t use it much because it sometimes seems unnecessarily pompous. But I like to have it round. You are welcome to snag it until you find the perfect one for you.