At first, it was just a passing thought. A moment later, I made the decision. The unit I teach on the Americans with Disabilities Act, with a focus on workplace accommodation, is one of the more compelling units of my course on Strategic Management of Human Resources. I was going to see the Paralympics!
I asked my Dean and he responded with enthusiastic support. I bought a ticket. A Fulbright colleague in Beijing offered me one of the tickets she had been given to the wheel chair tennis event by her University. A second Fulbright colleague in Beijing kindly invited me to stay with her in her small but cheery apartment. I was off.
The Paralympic athletes were inspiring, perhaps even more so to me, than the athletes who competed in the Olympics. When I complained to myself about my hurting feet, I was reminded that each of the Paralympic athletes had first to overcome a personal disability before even beginning to take up a sport or train for the Paralympics.
Watching the wheel chair tennis matches took my breath away. It's a game I have played and one that my Dad excelled at. I know the challenge of anticipating where the ball will come and getting my feet there before the ball has come and gone. But watching the players seated in wheel chairs meet the ball in a timely fashion was something that I could hardly imagine.
The first match played in center court was between two guys, one from France and one from Chile. Natch, I applauded for the Chilean, throwing in a few Spanish cheers. However, he was clearly outpaced in both speed and strength by the Frenchman, who had taken the gold in a previous Paralympic match. The next match was between two young gals -- a blond from the USA and an African from South Africa. It made for some torn allegiances, to be sure. They were both very good players and had some long, deep in the court volleys. Because they hit the ball with less force than the guys, the ball travelled more slowly; the long volleys and the movement of the chairs positioning and repositioning was really a beautiful site to see. The South African won several games and the first set was long. However, the American player eventually took the set.
We walked around the other tennis courts and watched gals and guys from the States, Canada, China and Germany engaged in matches. Even though I think of myself as reasonably aware, the experience was still an eye-opener. These matches were not the finals so there were no medals awarded.
However, we were also able to get tickets to the Judo event – the finals. We watched several excruciating hours of judo wrestling, men and women, in two weight classes. These athletes were legally blind, category 3 – that is, some of them had some peripheral vision, but that was their maximum visual ability. The judo was hard to watch; several times I was relieved when one of the refs from the sidelines approached the main ref and said something. The matches calmed down a bit, when this happened. ‘Just not my sport! BUT, well worth watching to be able to watch the awarding of the Bronze, the Silver and the Gold medals in each of the categories. Each of the winners was escorted by a sighted person to the medal stand, and the medals were placed around their necks with the same elegance and honor that appears on TV. Only, the athletes had to be helped on and off the stand by their sighted assistant. What an inspiring moment, whatever the sport.
And Beijing ... wow! What a city. Wonderful, but not a city for those who tire easily. I, in my impulsive way, of course, wanted to "do" the city in a long weekend! But my feet rebelled. Simply impossible. We did see the Forbidden City, now the Palace Museum, and Tiananmen Square across the boulevard. I took a bus tour of the city, so saw the location of many other monuments and skyscrapers and some old and some rebuilt “hutongs” (old neighborhoods build down a winding alleyway) as well. It is curious to observe the Chinese apparent preference for razing old buildings and building models of old buildings in their stead, instead of renovating and preserving the old building, themselves. Still, every street, no matter how high the skyscrapers, is lined with trees. It seems that landscaping arts is the one art form that escaped politicization in earlier epochs. On the ground, from the sidewalk, the streets can be quite pleasant.
It was a short trip, but seeing a couple of events at the Paralympics made it very worthwhile. My best to you! Deborah
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Settling In to the University, 9/5/2008
My home away from home is beginning to look a little more like my pad. I’ve found a few dishes and glasses and a French press for making my morning coffee for the kitchen and some silk throw pillows for the living room. Irony of Ironies is that I found most of the things at IKEA -- the Swedish department store that imitates Danish modern design; that has moved much of its manufacturing base to China.
I am getting the drift of the city of Chengdu. It is good to be able to go out and around. When I go more than a block or two from my building, the Foreigners’ Guest House, however, I carry a set of file cards with notes on them in Chinese and English. Please take me to .... It's a bit humorous, the blue-eyed woman who seems not to be able to read, but so far it seems to work. I made several outings on the weekend, and am back in my place with absolutely no fantastic stories to tell about the outings. One day, I’ll write about the traffic. For today, suffice it to say that no news is good news in this case.
My role at the university is taking shape, too. I’ve given my first class, an introduction to policy and practice challenges related to global health. Course registration is a little less organized in China than in the States, so I really had no idea what to expect. I didn’t know whether three or a hundred ‘n three students would show up. In the end, there were about 60 who came to hear and choose. My teaching assistant, Gao Bo, a doctoral student, told me that she was very pleased with the presentation. So, I was happy too. I didn’t know! From my informal conversations with students before class began and in the Q&A period, there seems to be a wide range of English language skill. This is as we had been cautioned at Orientation. But still, I wasn’t sure how to hit the mark. Gao Bo thinks that there will be 45-50 students who complete the registration process. If I can get them talking, even among themselves in small groups, I know I will learn quite a lot. What a privilege to be here among these talented young people!
Dean Ma Xiao of the School of Public Health also extended a kind invitation to me to a welcoming dinner. As those types of events go, it was excellent. The people of Chengdu seem to be very grounded, very personable, and just plain friendly. In some ways they remind me of the people of North Carolina! Neat! Dean Ma talked a little about his visit to the rural country side last week, where he is seeking to identify a possible research site. His own professional training is in health promotion and behavioral health, and the focus of his proposed work is on HIV. It will be interesting to talk more with him in the coming weeks about his work.
Another of the dinner guests had recently returned from Rochester, where she did a year’s post graduate study in a Suicide Prevention Center there. She is interested in doing some research on mental health among the migrant population in Chengdu, using the CDS screening tool for depression as a measure of mental health status. She, also will be interesting to talk with more in the next weeks.
I am also beginning to better understand my role and the roles of my colleagues as Fulbright Scholars. Some of this is subtle, but clues here and there are giving me a better picture of expectations of our time in China, painted as they are in the understated strokes of a Chinese artist painting ranges of receding mountains shrouded in a thin cloud. One key clue I found was in the background description of the U.S. Ambassador to China, Clark T. Randt. Mr. Randt is a lawyer, fluent in Mandarin Chinese. He has lived and worked for more than 20 years in Asia; he has lived for extended periods of time in both Beijing and Hong Kong; is a member of the New York and Hong Kong Bars; and a recognized expert on Chinese law.
He has been more in legal practice than in the University, but I thought it noteworthy that he is fluent in the “local” language. His background and his position also help me to understand why about half of the 18 Fulbright Scholar Awards to China for the 2008-2009 year are lawyers or political scientists. Interesting, no? There appears to be tremendous pressure – a full court press, maybe – to move China’s law to be more systematic (rational?) and transparent. The Fulbright Scholars are assigned to posts in Beijing, Xiamen, Sichuan (where I am), Shanghai, Hangzhou, Wuhan and Tianjin. You may not know all of these cities; I don’t either. But the spread of cities helps to make the point that this is a nation-wide effort.
It is also becoming clear that as China grows as a global power, it is seeking membership in some global consortia, such as the WTO. I gather from several conversations that membership comes with certain requirements. Accountability is at the top of the list, but not because it leads the Roman alphabet!
I am glad to have started classes. I feel a little like I am playing catch up with the semester in Chapel Hill. I know that my semester will be different, challenging, wonderful, frustrating, and, above all, an adventure in global understanding. I feel humbled by the opportunity to be here.
I continue to note curious little quirks. There is one that seems to fit with this narrative. I went into a rather upscale shopping mall, just to see what it was like. First, I noticed that all of the shop clerks said, “Good morning” to me, in English … translating from the Chinese word “Ni hǎo” even though it was 7:30 in the evening! Then, I found myself chuckling aloud when I rode the down escalator and noticed a sign where one could have caught one’s head leaning to examine some pricey scarves between floors saying “Please take care of your head!”
We’ll do. I hope you are each well and enjoying your work and the cooler fall weather. With best wishes, Deborah
I am getting the drift of the city of Chengdu. It is good to be able to go out and around. When I go more than a block or two from my building, the Foreigners’ Guest House, however, I carry a set of file cards with notes on them in Chinese and English. Please take me to .... It's a bit humorous, the blue-eyed woman who seems not to be able to read, but so far it seems to work. I made several outings on the weekend, and am back in my place with absolutely no fantastic stories to tell about the outings. One day, I’ll write about the traffic. For today, suffice it to say that no news is good news in this case.
My role at the university is taking shape, too. I’ve given my first class, an introduction to policy and practice challenges related to global health. Course registration is a little less organized in China than in the States, so I really had no idea what to expect. I didn’t know whether three or a hundred ‘n three students would show up. In the end, there were about 60 who came to hear and choose. My teaching assistant, Gao Bo, a doctoral student, told me that she was very pleased with the presentation. So, I was happy too. I didn’t know! From my informal conversations with students before class began and in the Q&A period, there seems to be a wide range of English language skill. This is as we had been cautioned at Orientation. But still, I wasn’t sure how to hit the mark. Gao Bo thinks that there will be 45-50 students who complete the registration process. If I can get them talking, even among themselves in small groups, I know I will learn quite a lot. What a privilege to be here among these talented young people!
Dean Ma Xiao of the School of Public Health also extended a kind invitation to me to a welcoming dinner. As those types of events go, it was excellent. The people of Chengdu seem to be very grounded, very personable, and just plain friendly. In some ways they remind me of the people of North Carolina! Neat! Dean Ma talked a little about his visit to the rural country side last week, where he is seeking to identify a possible research site. His own professional training is in health promotion and behavioral health, and the focus of his proposed work is on HIV. It will be interesting to talk more with him in the coming weeks about his work.
Another of the dinner guests had recently returned from Rochester, where she did a year’s post graduate study in a Suicide Prevention Center there. She is interested in doing some research on mental health among the migrant population in Chengdu, using the CDS screening tool for depression as a measure of mental health status. She, also will be interesting to talk with more in the next weeks.
I am also beginning to better understand my role and the roles of my colleagues as Fulbright Scholars. Some of this is subtle, but clues here and there are giving me a better picture of expectations of our time in China, painted as they are in the understated strokes of a Chinese artist painting ranges of receding mountains shrouded in a thin cloud. One key clue I found was in the background description of the U.S. Ambassador to China, Clark T. Randt. Mr. Randt is a lawyer, fluent in Mandarin Chinese. He has lived and worked for more than 20 years in Asia; he has lived for extended periods of time in both Beijing and Hong Kong; is a member of the New York and Hong Kong Bars; and a recognized expert on Chinese law.
He has been more in legal practice than in the University, but I thought it noteworthy that he is fluent in the “local” language. His background and his position also help me to understand why about half of the 18 Fulbright Scholar Awards to China for the 2008-2009 year are lawyers or political scientists. Interesting, no? There appears to be tremendous pressure – a full court press, maybe – to move China’s law to be more systematic (rational?) and transparent. The Fulbright Scholars are assigned to posts in Beijing, Xiamen, Sichuan (where I am), Shanghai, Hangzhou, Wuhan and Tianjin. You may not know all of these cities; I don’t either. But the spread of cities helps to make the point that this is a nation-wide effort.
It is also becoming clear that as China grows as a global power, it is seeking membership in some global consortia, such as the WTO. I gather from several conversations that membership comes with certain requirements. Accountability is at the top of the list, but not because it leads the Roman alphabet!
I am glad to have started classes. I feel a little like I am playing catch up with the semester in Chapel Hill. I know that my semester will be different, challenging, wonderful, frustrating, and, above all, an adventure in global understanding. I feel humbled by the opportunity to be here.
I continue to note curious little quirks. There is one that seems to fit with this narrative. I went into a rather upscale shopping mall, just to see what it was like. First, I noticed that all of the shop clerks said, “Good morning” to me, in English … translating from the Chinese word “Ni hǎo” even though it was 7:30 in the evening! Then, I found myself chuckling aloud when I rode the down escalator and noticed a sign where one could have caught one’s head leaning to examine some pricey scarves between floors saying “Please take care of your head!”
We’ll do. I hope you are each well and enjoying your work and the cooler fall weather. With best wishes, Deborah
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Onward to Chengdu! (August 29, 2008)
This is an adventure! I arrived in Chengdu on Wednesday evening (August 27) via China East Airlines, accompanied by my “waiban” (an assistant from the University’s International
Office). A driver from the University picked us up at the airport. He was a bit grumpy at the sight of my luggage, but otherwise the arrival was smooth, if strange and a bit overwhelming.
Breakfast time on Thursday morning came before I knew it. I dressed and went downstairs to the dining room that is part of the guest house. There was a buffet spread on the center table. I had a bit of everything, though I must admit that I didn’t know what anything way. I pretended it was chopped peanuts mixed with celery strips. I don’t think it was. But, pretending gave me a sense of being on top of it all, something I definitely was not.
The parts of Chengdu that I have seen seem to live up to its lovely reputation. The campus of Sichuan University is mostly built of brick -- so it immediately reminded me a little of Carolina, right down to the red bricks used for many of the paths across campus. There are many trees and fewer cars than in Shanghai. At the north and south gate to the University, there is a policeman who makes it his business to enforce what the stop lights already say. But his presence does make it much safer for pedestrians to safely confront the sea of bikers and cars.
My apartment is small, with a living room and bed room and small balcony. The bathroom has the necessities, including a washing machine. The kitchen … well there must have been a page missing from the Orientation handbook! Not a pot; not a pan; not a dish or a knife, fork or spoon. Not even a pair of chopsticks! There is a refrigerator and a gas hot plate, but no oven. How will I bake those brownies that I brought along? All of this is fixable – stores have many of the identical pots and pans that we buy at home, at a half to a third the price. My “waiban” was surprised that I planned to do any cooking while I am here – after all, Sichuan cooking is known all over China. I guess these different assumptions were the first of many cross-cultural moments I will have.
The apartment does have quite a good internet cable; a high speed cable replaced the earlier version just a year or two ago. This will certainly come in handy.
The Orientation for the Fulbright Scholars and families in Shanghai on Monday and Tuesday was very well done. We had speakers from the Consulate and the Embassy, from the Fulbright Program and from among past Fulbright Scholars. There was a separate program for the children – about 10 in all. They went to the Aquarium and a number of other places that kids would enjoy. Both they and we became quite good friends in even this short time. We were spoiled – there is a new complex in Shanghai, where many of the Consulates are housed. Part of the complex is a hotel, the Portman Ritz Carlton. Our rooms were lovely and each had a wide screen TV for us to watch the Olympic Closing ceremonies and the Theatrical Spectacle Opening in Denver, aka the Democratic National Convention. Just outside the main door of the hotel, to the right was a Starbucks. A good relatively inexpensive start to the day.
There are lots of curious things about China – one of them is that the entire country, from east to west – is in the same time zone. As a result, in Shanghai, in the east, the sun comes up at about 5 or 5:25. Here in the west, or southwest, the sun doesn’t rise until closer to 7:00 am. Yes, in fact, the hours of the work day has been adjusted in parts of the country to adjust for this particular curiosity.
There will be more to tell, I am sure. I am grateful that the Internet enables us to keep in touch, even across 12 or so time zones. I hope you are all well. My best wishes to each of you.
Office). A driver from the University picked us up at the airport. He was a bit grumpy at the sight of my luggage, but otherwise the arrival was smooth, if strange and a bit overwhelming.
Breakfast time on Thursday morning came before I knew it. I dressed and went downstairs to the dining room that is part of the guest house. There was a buffet spread on the center table. I had a bit of everything, though I must admit that I didn’t know what anything way. I pretended it was chopped peanuts mixed with celery strips. I don’t think it was. But, pretending gave me a sense of being on top of it all, something I definitely was not.
The parts of Chengdu that I have seen seem to live up to its lovely reputation. The campus of Sichuan University is mostly built of brick -- so it immediately reminded me a little of Carolina, right down to the red bricks used for many of the paths across campus. There are many trees and fewer cars than in Shanghai. At the north and south gate to the University, there is a policeman who makes it his business to enforce what the stop lights already say. But his presence does make it much safer for pedestrians to safely confront the sea of bikers and cars.
My apartment is small, with a living room and bed room and small balcony. The bathroom has the necessities, including a washing machine. The kitchen … well there must have been a page missing from the Orientation handbook! Not a pot; not a pan; not a dish or a knife, fork or spoon. Not even a pair of chopsticks! There is a refrigerator and a gas hot plate, but no oven. How will I bake those brownies that I brought along? All of this is fixable – stores have many of the identical pots and pans that we buy at home, at a half to a third the price. My “waiban” was surprised that I planned to do any cooking while I am here – after all, Sichuan cooking is known all over China. I guess these different assumptions were the first of many cross-cultural moments I will have.
The apartment does have quite a good internet cable; a high speed cable replaced the earlier version just a year or two ago. This will certainly come in handy.
The Orientation for the Fulbright Scholars and families in Shanghai on Monday and Tuesday was very well done. We had speakers from the Consulate and the Embassy, from the Fulbright Program and from among past Fulbright Scholars. There was a separate program for the children – about 10 in all. They went to the Aquarium and a number of other places that kids would enjoy. Both they and we became quite good friends in even this short time. We were spoiled – there is a new complex in Shanghai, where many of the Consulates are housed. Part of the complex is a hotel, the Portman Ritz Carlton. Our rooms were lovely and each had a wide screen TV for us to watch the Olympic Closing ceremonies and the Theatrical Spectacle Opening in Denver, aka the Democratic National Convention. Just outside the main door of the hotel, to the right was a Starbucks. A good relatively inexpensive start to the day.
There are lots of curious things about China – one of them is that the entire country, from east to west – is in the same time zone. As a result, in Shanghai, in the east, the sun comes up at about 5 or 5:25. Here in the west, or southwest, the sun doesn’t rise until closer to 7:00 am. Yes, in fact, the hours of the work day has been adjusted in parts of the country to adjust for this particular curiosity.
There will be more to tell, I am sure. I am grateful that the Internet enables us to keep in touch, even across 12 or so time zones. I hope you are all well. My best wishes to each of you.
Friday, July 25, 2008
The People I've Met
The people I’ve met along the way have given this adventure its unique character. This includes both the Chinese people and the other American English teachers. The Chinese people in the street still like Americans—not a universal sentiment these days. And, the other English teachers are an interesting, talented and varied bunch.
The day I arrived in Hangzhou, an hour and a half on the bullet train from Shanghai, I was picked up at the train station and dropped off at a rather nice dormitory at Xiashiang University—where the Babel Language Camp was located. (Yes, I do frequently wonder how these anonymous pick-ups will work out. But, if I happen to look in the mirror when I wash my face or hands, the answer is obvious—I look so different than all of the people around me! It is easy to pick me or any of the 20 some American English teachers out in a crowd of any size!
Jet lag caught up with me then, and I dozed off for a rather longish nap. When I awoke, I met my roommate for the day. She was an African American student, from South Carolina, who had majored in English at USC at Columbia. In order to add something unique to her resume, she had chosen to teach English in a neighboring rather poor province of Anhui for a full year. She had come to Hangzhou to teach English in the summer camp hoping to see a bit more of China.
Later in the evening, other Americans aka English teachers came by to say hello. Some had just arrived; some had already been in Hangzhou for several days. A Mom and daughter, Mary and Molly had decided to make the trip together – a bonding experience for the girls. Andrea had come with her sister-in-law, Vivian, and a 7 year old grand-daughter. Andrea is Dr. Andrea (I never did get her last name – a professor in early childhood education. Andrea and Vivian and I were similar in age – though we didn’t do the numbers. The others were mostly recent college graduates worrying about getting old. Nick stole the show; he was a tall, gentle, African American guy who had graduated from Penn – everyone in China wanted his email address! He handled it well—he really was cool. One of the most talented in my impression was Mario. Mario was studious and quiet; he had just graduated from Haverford College in Pennsylvania, and had had 4 years of Chinese in high school and 4 more in college. (Mario he was placed with me and 4 others; we lucked out. Mario could lead the way). Also in my group is Katie who also graduated from the University of South Carolina, and plans to be a family counselor, and Jenn, a graduate from Purdue University with a major in elementary education and Nate who went to the University of Texas at Austin with a double major in economics and philosophy. Then there was me, determined not to isolated from the fun by dragging around the title “Dr. Bender” but at the same time recognizing that there are limits to faking it. And, China still shows a great respect for their elders. Caught! I needed a way out of the corner. We settled on “Teacher Bender” for the classroom and my name for other settings. The compromise seemed to satisfy concerns in both cultures.
The students I’ve taught have opened a door for me to an understanding of China past and present. The respect that these young people have for teachers and, typically, for one another, is remarkable. I understand that this is one of China’s Confucian principles. Seeing how they work is yet another insight into the remarkable history of China and its rapid march into the twenty-first century. I’ve come to compare this Summer Camp Experience to something like the TIP (Talent Identification Program) that Duke holds each summer, where teens enroll in an intensive writing or a computer course for 1-2 weeks in the summer. So I think there is an analogy. But still these teens are in class from 8 to 5, each day … that means from Monday through Sunday! I have two English Language periods with them; the morning class focuses on the spoken language and some pronunciation and grammar points. The afternoon class focuses on sharpening their listening skills through listening to short passages read at normal (aka fast) English fluency speed and again word by word or phrase by phrase. (They also have classes in Maths (sic), Geography and History during the day).
One day (in fact on a Sunday, when my “poorly trained body” simply rebelled at the thought of a lesson plan) I helped them choose and English name. The all really wanted one. I posted several hundred names on a couple of power point slides and we read them aloud to hear the sounds. They of course knew other names from movies and such. Great fun! Now, I can call on them by name, without provoking a round of laughter.
They’ve told me about their families; about half are only children; the others have one sibling. A few still have grandparents living in the same household with themselves and their parents. Parents are workers (in factories—lots of them here in Cixi), police men or women, teachers, or businessmen or women. They’ve told me too about the environmental problems China faces. One girl’s grandmother lost her garden (house and yard) to a factory; now the air is not so good there, the girl added.
On the ground there seems to be quite a bit of openness to knowledge, facts, information and opinions. As teachers, we have not been asked to censor our presentations in any way. I can’t imagine that it will not influence the way these young people think. China is changing! It is definitely looking outward – towards the US, towards Australia and Great Britain (the major English speaking countries). About a third of the students want to travel to live for a time in another country. There are definitely some who are attentive enough to their English language skill that I fully expect to see them in North Carolina.
The kids have also been kind to me; helping me with my Chinese pronunciation – tones are hard! bringing me herbal medicines when my voice starts to fail. They have been good friends during these two weeks.
The end is of the adventure is nigh. I fly from Shanghai to RDU on July 28, and arrive late on the 29th.I will miss both them – the echo of Teacher Bender, Teacher Bender will stay with me for a while. I’ll miss my co-teachers, too. We’ve become a team, building on one another’s strengths and energies! It’s been a learning experience – incredible.
The day I arrived in Hangzhou, an hour and a half on the bullet train from Shanghai, I was picked up at the train station and dropped off at a rather nice dormitory at Xiashiang University—where the Babel Language Camp was located. (Yes, I do frequently wonder how these anonymous pick-ups will work out. But, if I happen to look in the mirror when I wash my face or hands, the answer is obvious—I look so different than all of the people around me! It is easy to pick me or any of the 20 some American English teachers out in a crowd of any size!
Jet lag caught up with me then, and I dozed off for a rather longish nap. When I awoke, I met my roommate for the day. She was an African American student, from South Carolina, who had majored in English at USC at Columbia. In order to add something unique to her resume, she had chosen to teach English in a neighboring rather poor province of Anhui for a full year. She had come to Hangzhou to teach English in the summer camp hoping to see a bit more of China.
Later in the evening, other Americans aka English teachers came by to say hello. Some had just arrived; some had already been in Hangzhou for several days. A Mom and daughter, Mary and Molly had decided to make the trip together – a bonding experience for the girls. Andrea had come with her sister-in-law, Vivian, and a 7 year old grand-daughter. Andrea is Dr. Andrea (I never did get her last name – a professor in early childhood education. Andrea and Vivian and I were similar in age – though we didn’t do the numbers. The others were mostly recent college graduates worrying about getting old. Nick stole the show; he was a tall, gentle, African American guy who had graduated from Penn – everyone in China wanted his email address! He handled it well—he really was cool. One of the most talented in my impression was Mario. Mario was studious and quiet; he had just graduated from Haverford College in Pennsylvania, and had had 4 years of Chinese in high school and 4 more in college. (Mario he was placed with me and 4 others; we lucked out. Mario could lead the way). Also in my group is Katie who also graduated from the University of South Carolina, and plans to be a family counselor, and Jenn, a graduate from Purdue University with a major in elementary education and Nate who went to the University of Texas at Austin with a double major in economics and philosophy. Then there was me, determined not to isolated from the fun by dragging around the title “Dr. Bender” but at the same time recognizing that there are limits to faking it. And, China still shows a great respect for their elders. Caught! I needed a way out of the corner. We settled on “Teacher Bender” for the classroom and my name for other settings. The compromise seemed to satisfy concerns in both cultures.
The students I’ve taught have opened a door for me to an understanding of China past and present. The respect that these young people have for teachers and, typically, for one another, is remarkable. I understand that this is one of China’s Confucian principles. Seeing how they work is yet another insight into the remarkable history of China and its rapid march into the twenty-first century. I’ve come to compare this Summer Camp Experience to something like the TIP (Talent Identification Program) that Duke holds each summer, where teens enroll in an intensive writing or a computer course for 1-2 weeks in the summer. So I think there is an analogy. But still these teens are in class from 8 to 5, each day … that means from Monday through Sunday! I have two English Language periods with them; the morning class focuses on the spoken language and some pronunciation and grammar points. The afternoon class focuses on sharpening their listening skills through listening to short passages read at normal (aka fast) English fluency speed and again word by word or phrase by phrase. (They also have classes in Maths (sic), Geography and History during the day).
One day (in fact on a Sunday, when my “poorly trained body” simply rebelled at the thought of a lesson plan) I helped them choose and English name. The all really wanted one. I posted several hundred names on a couple of power point slides and we read them aloud to hear the sounds. They of course knew other names from movies and such. Great fun! Now, I can call on them by name, without provoking a round of laughter.
They’ve told me about their families; about half are only children; the others have one sibling. A few still have grandparents living in the same household with themselves and their parents. Parents are workers (in factories—lots of them here in Cixi), police men or women, teachers, or businessmen or women. They’ve told me too about the environmental problems China faces. One girl’s grandmother lost her garden (house and yard) to a factory; now the air is not so good there, the girl added.
On the ground there seems to be quite a bit of openness to knowledge, facts, information and opinions. As teachers, we have not been asked to censor our presentations in any way. I can’t imagine that it will not influence the way these young people think. China is changing! It is definitely looking outward – towards the US, towards Australia and Great Britain (the major English speaking countries). About a third of the students want to travel to live for a time in another country. There are definitely some who are attentive enough to their English language skill that I fully expect to see them in North Carolina.
The kids have also been kind to me; helping me with my Chinese pronunciation – tones are hard! bringing me herbal medicines when my voice starts to fail. They have been good friends during these two weeks.
The end is of the adventure is nigh. I fly from Shanghai to RDU on July 28, and arrive late on the 29th.I will miss both them – the echo of Teacher Bender, Teacher Bender will stay with me for a while. I’ll miss my co-teachers, too. We’ve become a team, building on one another’s strengths and energies! It’s been a learning experience – incredible.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
CHINA IS CHANGING -dateline: July 19, 2008
China is changing. You hear it everywhere. American colleagues told me that I would be surprised at how modern China is. Chinese friends told me how things have changed since the last time they visited China, one, two or five years ago. Modernization is abuzz. But, tradition is still quite alive, if hidden on side streets just behind the glass facades of the Nike and Beyond (Bed Bath and Beyond) storefronts.
Nowhere is the co-existence of modern and traditional more evident than in the classroom. Yesterday in class, we were doing a lesson on gender and preference for partners in America. The results were from a survey … the standard stuff … women want a man who is intelligent, with good job skills, one who will earn a good salary and have a sense of humor; men want a woman who is beautiful, a good home maker and sensitive. The discussion questions asked the students to rate the most important characteristics and to talk about how people meet partners in their country. These 18-20 year olds are still so shy, that they would not say a word about how “they” might meet a partner. But they were more willing to tell me how their parents met. One girl stood and said that her parents’ marriage had been arranged by grandparents on both sides of the family! Another student stood and said that there was a person who came to her house and said to her mother’s mother that she knew a young man who was a good fit for her daughter. The intermediary, then, arranged the marriage. I know from having read several classic Chinese novels that this is a quite common traditional pattern. A third student rose and said that his parents had met in the factory where they were working. And, a fourth told the class that her parents had met at University where they were students and had fallen in love (we had to work a bit on the formation of the past and past perfect tenses, but that is a side bar to the main story!). I was amazed … one, two, three, four … four different patterns and probably several different socio-economic classes reflected in their brief but telling responses. This is China – changing everywhere, in fits and starts.
The students I am teaching at Cixi High School also appear to be from a wide range of ethnic minorities. Their faces are just more varied in shape and skin color than the students we taught earlier at Xian Shan High School. No, all Chinese do not look alike! Cixi is an industrial city, with lots of factories…and, I’m told, lots of new wealth. Lee, a young Chinese guy and our liaison, added that there are 2.1 million people in Cixi, and more than 1 million of them have migrated to the city in the past generation or two. By comparison the seaside fishing town of Xian Shan has only about 750,000 residents and probably more out migration than in migration.
At Cixi High School, each of us teaches 6 English classes a day. We see each group in the morning and again in the afternoon. The morning class is focused on developing speaking skills, including pronunciation and rhythm, typical of a native English Speaker. The afternoon class focuses on listening comprehension, probably the most challenging (and frustrating) skill for them. It’s a lot; my feet hurt at the end of a day. But, for the most part my students are great. Today, I read a selection on the Giant and Elusive Panda from my Lonely Planet CHINA Guidebook. We practiced some of the difficult words before I read the passage (two paragraphs). Then I read it at a standard Fluent English speaker’s speed. Finally, I read each sentence slowly, word by word, so as to increase their comprehension. Then, in turn, up and down the rows, they go to the board to create a word web, each adding a word that they heard the native English speaker say. When we finished to day the board was covered in words that they had recognized! They were proud of themselves – and could clearly recognize their own progress in sharpened listening comprehension. It was worth a pair of hurting feet! We understand that youth in towns and small cities across the country are learning English just like the students we are teaching. China is Changing!
China is changing. You hear it everywhere. American colleagues told me that I would be surprised at how modern China is. Chinese friends told me how things have changed since the last time they visited China, one, two or five years ago. Modernization is abuzz. But, tradition is still quite alive, if hidden on side streets just behind the glass facades of the Nike and Beyond (Bed Bath and Beyond) storefronts.
Nowhere is the co-existence of modern and traditional more evident than in the classroom. Yesterday in class, we were doing a lesson on gender and preference for partners in America. The results were from a survey … the standard stuff … women want a man who is intelligent, with good job skills, one who will earn a good salary and have a sense of humor; men want a woman who is beautiful, a good home maker and sensitive. The discussion questions asked the students to rate the most important characteristics and to talk about how people meet partners in their country. These 18-20 year olds are still so shy, that they would not say a word about how “they” might meet a partner. But they were more willing to tell me how their parents met. One girl stood and said that her parents’ marriage had been arranged by grandparents on both sides of the family! Another student stood and said that there was a person who came to her house and said to her mother’s mother that she knew a young man who was a good fit for her daughter. The intermediary, then, arranged the marriage. I know from having read several classic Chinese novels that this is a quite common traditional pattern. A third student rose and said that his parents had met in the factory where they were working. And, a fourth told the class that her parents had met at University where they were students and had fallen in love (we had to work a bit on the formation of the past and past perfect tenses, but that is a side bar to the main story!). I was amazed … one, two, three, four … four different patterns and probably several different socio-economic classes reflected in their brief but telling responses. This is China – changing everywhere, in fits and starts.
The students I am teaching at Cixi High School also appear to be from a wide range of ethnic minorities. Their faces are just more varied in shape and skin color than the students we taught earlier at Xian Shan High School. No, all Chinese do not look alike! Cixi is an industrial city, with lots of factories…and, I’m told, lots of new wealth. Lee, a young Chinese guy and our liaison, added that there are 2.1 million people in Cixi, and more than 1 million of them have migrated to the city in the past generation or two. By comparison the seaside fishing town of Xian Shan has only about 750,000 residents and probably more out migration than in migration.
At Cixi High School, each of us teaches 6 English classes a day. We see each group in the morning and again in the afternoon. The morning class is focused on developing speaking skills, including pronunciation and rhythm, typical of a native English Speaker. The afternoon class focuses on listening comprehension, probably the most challenging (and frustrating) skill for them. It’s a lot; my feet hurt at the end of a day. But, for the most part my students are great. Today, I read a selection on the Giant and Elusive Panda from my Lonely Planet CHINA Guidebook. We practiced some of the difficult words before I read the passage (two paragraphs). Then I read it at a standard Fluent English speaker’s speed. Finally, I read each sentence slowly, word by word, so as to increase their comprehension. Then, in turn, up and down the rows, they go to the board to create a word web, each adding a word that they heard the native English speaker say. When we finished to day the board was covered in words that they had recognized! They were proud of themselves – and could clearly recognize their own progress in sharpened listening comprehension. It was worth a pair of hurting feet! We understand that youth in towns and small cities across the country are learning English just like the students we are teaching. China is Changing!
Monday, July 7, 2008
From Ningbo, a seaside port
The title for this blog came from a fortune cookie. It seems to fit this curious adventure. I landed in Shanghai on July 2, after an uneventful (the best kind) flight over the Pacific. Today is July 7, and I am at last in one city for long enough to unpack my suitcase. Perhaps the most curious thing about my arrival in Shanghai was how unexpectedly familiar it seemed! I felt perhaps it was New York City for the number of skyscrapers, or Chicago for the number of people out walking on the streets, or Los Angeles for the wide blvds. filled with quite contemporary cars, including Hondas, Toyotas, Chevrolets. Even in the hotel, my Chinese greeting was answered in English (what a relief--as I wasn't sure what I'd have said next otherwise).
To find the China that I have read about in books for years and years, I had to look down alleyways or small side streets. There I could still catch a glimpse of the straw bamboo hat with the pointed top and what I call the Chinese shuffle, where an elderly person seems never to completely pick up their shoe from the ground, and definitely puts toe before heel to ground.
Out on the main street the men and women both walk with a gait that is comfortable and thoroughly western. Shao Hongwei,who lives in Shanghai and is a friend of my Chinese teacher, Hong Li and her husband, was a most gracious host. He made sure that I didn't wander too far from my hotel as to reach a point of no return. He and his wife took me out to dinner in an old section of Shanghai that has been preserved with its traditional Chinese upturned rooves and small alleys. The food is to die for! I may never come home. Steamed dumplings, vegetables in rich sauces, with just a bit of meat, cucumbers in Chinese sweet wine vinegar. A bowl of rice arrived, but after the meal -- perhaps in imitation of the French custom of serving salad at the end of a meal.
The next morning, Shao's son and I spent the morning "practicing English with a native speaker." After Blake warmed to the task, he was impressive. We mostly did computer stores -- something a 17-year old knows a lot about -- but on floor after another he explained the differences in the computers, the different softwares, the new styles of i-Pods (very popular here) and MP players (MP4s are now out I've learned).
Then on to the high speed bullet train for a two hour ride to Hangzhou. We had not even enough time there to see the town and we were shuffled off to several other cities where we are now teaching (No, I didn't know we were going to other cities -- I tried to maintain my spirit of adventure through the confusion. I wouldn't give myself more than a C+, though. Maybe that is part of the Chinese way --maybe it was just a bit of poor planning.) There are five us now in the seaport city of Nimbo. The air has the definite feel of the air at Emerald Isle or Carolina Beach, a nice breeze, but a bit of sticky salt in the air
Classes began today. We are teaching at Xiang Shan High School, reputed to be the top high school in the city. During the school year, 2000 students attend classes at Xiang Shan.
Now it is "Summer Camp." One of the headmasters of the school said, "We call it summer camp, but we actually keep them in their same classes!" Each of the 5 of us have 5 classes of 40 minutes each. That's fine. However, I counted 56 students in each of my classes. So if everyone gets a chance to speak, ... a class can go pretty quickly! The students are shy, but brave -- that means they are willing to try to speak English. They are really quite good. Amazing, really. For the most part they are just as dear as they can be ... although there are a few who look like they might like a little mischief if it were allowed.
Today, they gathered in groups to decide what I should know about their city. Then, they cautiously volunteered to tell me about the city famous for its fish, for its beach, for its traditional foods, for the very special zoo and for the park on the mountain top with the pagoda (this one I can see from my pretty nice (and air conditioned) hotel room).
Tomorrow, I promised to show them some pictures of my family. They too seem curious to know more about who I am...who we are ... though they were all quite excited to know that we were from the United States. In one class they cheered. Its been a long time since I've been cheered for my citizenship!
I look forward to working with these young people. They are so enthusiastic; so engaged ... and seemingly quite talented. Today was super; it made me smile as I remembered the Chinese fortune that I found in my cookie two years ago, "Curiosity is life."
To find the China that I have read about in books for years and years, I had to look down alleyways or small side streets. There I could still catch a glimpse of the straw bamboo hat with the pointed top and what I call the Chinese shuffle, where an elderly person seems never to completely pick up their shoe from the ground, and definitely puts toe before heel to ground.
Out on the main street the men and women both walk with a gait that is comfortable and thoroughly western. Shao Hongwei,who lives in Shanghai and is a friend of my Chinese teacher, Hong Li and her husband, was a most gracious host. He made sure that I didn't wander too far from my hotel as to reach a point of no return. He and his wife took me out to dinner in an old section of Shanghai that has been preserved with its traditional Chinese upturned rooves and small alleys. The food is to die for! I may never come home. Steamed dumplings, vegetables in rich sauces, with just a bit of meat, cucumbers in Chinese sweet wine vinegar. A bowl of rice arrived, but after the meal -- perhaps in imitation of the French custom of serving salad at the end of a meal.
The next morning, Shao's son and I spent the morning "practicing English with a native speaker." After Blake warmed to the task, he was impressive. We mostly did computer stores -- something a 17-year old knows a lot about -- but on floor after another he explained the differences in the computers, the different softwares, the new styles of i-Pods (very popular here) and MP players (MP4s are now out I've learned).
Then on to the high speed bullet train for a two hour ride to Hangzhou. We had not even enough time there to see the town and we were shuffled off to several other cities where we are now teaching (No, I didn't know we were going to other cities -- I tried to maintain my spirit of adventure through the confusion. I wouldn't give myself more than a C+, though. Maybe that is part of the Chinese way --maybe it was just a bit of poor planning.) There are five us now in the seaport city of Nimbo. The air has the definite feel of the air at Emerald Isle or Carolina Beach, a nice breeze, but a bit of sticky salt in the air
Classes began today. We are teaching at Xiang Shan High School, reputed to be the top high school in the city. During the school year, 2000 students attend classes at Xiang Shan.
Now it is "Summer Camp." One of the headmasters of the school said, "We call it summer camp, but we actually keep them in their same classes!" Each of the 5 of us have 5 classes of 40 minutes each. That's fine. However, I counted 56 students in each of my classes. So if everyone gets a chance to speak, ... a class can go pretty quickly! The students are shy, but brave -- that means they are willing to try to speak English. They are really quite good. Amazing, really. For the most part they are just as dear as they can be ... although there are a few who look like they might like a little mischief if it were allowed.
Today, they gathered in groups to decide what I should know about their city. Then, they cautiously volunteered to tell me about the city famous for its fish, for its beach, for its traditional foods, for the very special zoo and for the park on the mountain top with the pagoda (this one I can see from my pretty nice (and air conditioned) hotel room).
Tomorrow, I promised to show them some pictures of my family. They too seem curious to know more about who I am...who we are ... though they were all quite excited to know that we were from the United States. In one class they cheered. Its been a long time since I've been cheered for my citizenship!
I look forward to working with these young people. They are so enthusiastic; so engaged ... and seemingly quite talented. Today was super; it made me smile as I remembered the Chinese fortune that I found in my cookie two years ago, "Curiosity is life."
Monday, June 23, 2008
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