Insanity: Kids: Living in China: Performance Based Teaching Assessment: Discipline in Chinese Education.You may find this hard to believe, but Chinese students can memorise a 20 minute monologue - perfectly. They memorise their lesson texts. They might understand nothing. They certainly cannot commence at paragraph two or three: they must start from the first word and go through to the end. However, they can memorise perfectly. So this is what these two girls did.
I've mentioned before that I sometimes get criticism for my comments about China, usually along the lines that I'm racist. I've additionally written about negative comments about me that were posted on an ESL site.
Then the other day I wrote an article entitled: French Riots and Multiculturalism, in which I expressed the idea 'that the multiculturalists do in fact, see themselves as 'very superior'. I called such people 'self righteous' and said that 'The very act of intervening, is of itself a demonstration of the 'superiority' of the activists' and that 'the self righteous must become the 'Saviour' of the 'downtrodden'.
To such people I say today, "Get Ready! Here's another opportunity for you!"
Today's article will provide good opportunity for the 'saviours' to come to the defense of the students in one of my classes, for you see, today, 15 minutes before the lesson was due to end, I packed up my gear, turned to the blackboard and wrote: 'Goodbye'.
As I headed for the door, a student pointed out that I had left my 'class file' on the desk. I went to the desk, removed the contents from the folder, and throwing them into the air, looked straight at the students and said: 'Goodbye'. I then left the classroom. I have no intention of going back.
Why? Well I could be politically correct and state that 'I don't feel that there is anything of value that I can contribute to their overall English education!'. I could say that, because that would be true. Of course, I could just speak the plain truth and say; 'They're a bunch of lazy no hopers, who should not be in university let alone be in English Classes'.
In fact, just yesterday, a teacher reminded me that these students are my only students who are not 'majoring' in English. So I should be patient with them.
"Oh, the poor darlings!" I hear you say, "what a mean and nasty foreign teacher they have!" Well, that's OK. You can call me mean and nasty. I would rather that than go insane by weekly having to endure one and a half hours of tardiness,laziness, and stupidity.
Firstly, to just put things into perspective, I am required to teach 16 x 45 minute classes per week. I in fact teach 24 x 45 minute classes. So firstly, these students are my students because of my willingness to take on the burden. (Oh what a burden!).
From the first day, I knew that these darling first year university students (who have been studying English Grammar now for at least seven years), were 'special!'. Firstly, no one had the faintest idea what I was saying. It didn't matter how slowly or clearly I spoke, they were lost. I resorted to writing on the blackboard. (ESL teachers please note: WE CONVERSATIONAL ENGLISH teachers get no 'assistant/translator'. We sink or swim on our own.)
The first thing I made these 22 students do, was write their names in PinYin. This means, to use English alphabet to spell out their names WITH the accompanying accents. Each word of Chinese written in English letters can be pronounced four ways. So without the accent on the vowel, you cannot pronounce the word correctly. (The following week they were asked to check the list. "Oh you spell my name wrong!" - I get so tired of this. I do not spell their names incorrectly. They do! They can't read and write pinyin.)
The next thing I did was to ask each student to come and read for me. My written assessment of one student was O.M.G.!! One girl read so silently, and with so little lip movement, that I could neither hear nor lip read. (Concerning which I have some reasonable ability). She also has the habit of breaking into tears when I look at her!
I spent the rest of the lesson time, making them read, while constantly correcting their pronunciation. I went home that day and thought, 'Well, at least this class will be easy! No planning, no thinking, no homework - for me!"
I decided that the best thing to do for them, was teach them 'how to hear'. With that in mind, I typed up some dialogues from the listening tapes I use (high school tapes - not university). For three weeks, we read and read and read these dialogues, and listened, listened and listened to the tapes. We practiced and practiced. Then I told them, that we will have a test, on the very same dialogues. (I had to write this on the blackboard for them to understand!)
So the day arrived, and guess what? Two students began to write as soon as I began to play the tape, and just continued to write, irrespective of the breaks I gave them to write what they heard. You see, they had memorised the dialogues. They just sat down and wrote them out.
You may find this hard to believe, but Chinese students can memorise a 20 minute monologue - perfectly. They memorise their lesson texts. They might understand nothing. They certainly cannot commence at paragraph two or three: they must start from the first word and go through to the end. However, they can memorise perfectly. So this is what these two girls did.
As for the rest? Well, they could not 'hear' what was on the tape, they could not remember what was on the tape, and they did not both to memorise the text of the dialogues. Not a problem!
This week, in lesson one, they had a written test, in which they had to answer 10 questions. They even had the answers given to them to study. They were even allowed to copy the answers from that paper. Result? They failed, and it took them a full 45 minutes to do so. Mind you, quite a number had significantly less time, because they just turn up to class when they feel like it.
Lesson two today, was Tingli, ie: listening to tapes. The same tapes, the same dialogues that they failed last week. However, after the break, one group of students involved in the school broadcasting courses, were busy at the back of the room having a discussion with their 'boss' (from some other class). I just waited patiently for 10 minutes, hoping that the discussion would end and we could continue. Did it end? No! It just continued.
A visiting student translated my comments to this group, which were, "Perhaps if you can discuss your broadcasting while I am having my class, I can go to your broadcasts and start teaching English classes". The sarcasm was lost on them. 'Oh yes! That would be wonderful!"
I just looked to the heavens from which my help comes, and started the lesson. But, my back turned to the class as it was, was like a ringing bell to Pavlov's dog. The whole class began to talk to each other. (If you are not looking at people, they do not hear what you are saying!)
I could not be bothered with it all. I just continued to play each phrase over and over and over again, whilst constantly looking at my watch.
Exactly 15 minutes before the lesson was due to end, I packed up my gear, turned to the blackboard and wrote: 'Goodbye'.
As I headed for the door, a student pointed out that I had left my 'class file' on the desk. I went to the desk, removed the contents from the folder, and throwing them into the air, looked straight at the students and said: 'Goodbye'. I then left the classroom.
I was browsing through TechCentralStation website today, and came across an article entitled: 'F No Es Fabuloso?' Beating the Scholastic Odds : By Joanne Jacobs: in which it is stated:
Twenty percent of California's 12th graders haven't passed the graduation exam yet; most have trouble with the math portion. We're talking about a multiple-choice test with four choices for each question: Blind guessing would produce a 25 percent score. It only takes a 55 percent to pass. Most questions require skills that are supposed to be learned in sixth through eighth grade.
I would heartily recommend you read 'that' article before continuing to read this one, it may give you insight into my story. As I read the article, I was reminded that I should give you an update on a previous story I wrote.
In the middle of November I wrote a story about one particular class that I teach, that ended with:
Exactly 15 minutes before the lesson was due to end, I packed up my gear, turned to the blackboard and wrote: "Goodbye." As I headed for the door, a student pointed out that I had left my "class file" on the desk. I went to the desk, removed the contents from the folder, and throwing them into the air, looked straight at the students and said: "Goodbye." I then left the classroom. I have no intention of going back.
Needless to say, I did go back - after much persuasion. You see, unfortunately, there are no other teachers available to teach them 'oral English' at the moment. English translation, "NO one will go near that class!"
One teacher told me: 'I feel so sorry that you have to teach that class. I am Chinese, so I can't use the words you use to describe them, but I can say that they are not very hard working students!'
So I went back to the classroom, 'sans' my files, photographs and notes, and with no desire to reprint the same from my computer files.
Now before I start, I was to admit to having made some 'factually erroneous' statements. For instance, I stated that I had been informed that this class of students, is not an 'English Major' class. Wrong! It has since been confirmed to me that they are indeed English Majors. Secondly, I stated that they were first year university students. Wrong! It turns out that they are second year university students.
I agreed to return to teaching this class, on the proviso, that I had a teacher in attendance, who could act as translator. Not a problem! As it turned out, I ended up with two teachers, both of whom hid outside the classroom and just 'watched'. I spent the first five minutes of class talking to the students in Chinese, demanding to know why it was, that after only four months of Chinese Studies, I could stand in front of them and ask questions, whilst they could not speak one sentence of English.
Eventually class started and we spent both lessons, listening to cassettes to practice our hearing abilities. It was slow hard torturous work, made easier by the fact that one of the teachers came into the class and asked permission to join in the work. Not that she contributed anything by way of translation. She had almost as difficult a time as did the students in understanding what was on the tape. No big deal! Class finished, and I went home.
Last week, I turned up to class armed with my Chinese textbook, and before class began, wrote on the blackboard, a few sentences in Chinese, and two small paragraphs in PINYIN (Chinese written with English letters). I figured that the translation of all this would take 10 minutes and then we could do some grammar corrections and then practice saying the correct English sentences.
Well! It took Twenty minutes before Class could actually begin, and then only because two students finally got sick of waiting for me to be 'strict' with the class. They forced the students to be quiet. I instructed the students to begin writing their translations.
The first thing that happened was that the students started asking each other how to translate the Chinese into English. It was really difficult Chinese too! Like: Hello teacher! Long time no see. How are you going? How is your heath? Hello! I'm fine thank you and you?
The next commotion broke out when I was asked what the other writing was.
"You mean these two paragraphs?" I inquired?
"Yes! We don't know what you write!"
"You mean you don't know how to read PinYin?"
"That's Pinyin? What does it say?"
"You don't know what it says?"
"No! I don't know how to read Pinyin!"
One girl began to try saying the words out aloud, and from that, they began to work out what it must be in Chinese characters.
I left! I went to the office and found my co-ordinator, and explained the situation. She grabbed the 'form' teacher, and we headed back to the classroom. The whole time she tried to tell me that the problem is that I speak too fast, they don't understand my handwriting, they don't understand my accent, and that I should be patient and teach 'simple' words.
The other teacher meanwhile quietly informed me that more than half the students were going to fail the Semester Exam. 'They have no ability to pass!' she said with a frown. As we entered the classroom, students went into a frenzied return to their desks. The teacher quickly spoke to one student and then turned to me and said, 'You are wrong! They can do it! See, this girl has done it!"
"Yes!" I said,"and if you took notice, as we entered the room she ran from 'that' boy's desk back to her own. He is the only one who is any good at English, and the only one who will work.
She grabbed for another girl's paper and said: "This one is finished too!" "Yes! She copied from this boy (her boyfriend) who borrowed the paper from this good student. And don't bother to look at 'this girl's' paper, cause she is this boy's girlfriend and she always copies from him".
I then told her to go around the classroom and check. I actually pointed out the ones who had not started, including the one with no pen, paper, dictionary or textbook. (Normal situation!)
I then showed the teacher my writing on the blackboard, and asked if she could read my writing. Yep! No problem!
She started to talk to the students and I went outside for a cigarette. The 'form' teacher came out to talk to me. She was uncharacteristically 'honest' with me. (I feel certain that the Chinese are the originators of 'politically correct' speech. They don't lie, they just don't tell the truth. They are just so polite!)
My co-ordinator eventually came out and said: 'They say that you talk too fast and that is why they don't understand you!" I turned to the 'form' teacher and said: "Last week you were in my class and we did two lessons of 'Tingli'. Did I actually 'speak' any English?" She laughed: "I don't think so!"
I turned back to the co-ordinator and said: "It doesn't matter if I speak fast or slow, loudly or quietly, because when you have MP3 earphones in your ears, you can't hear anything. When you are reading the Chinese newspaper, you don't listen to what I say. When you spend the whole lesson talking to your friend, it doesn't matter what I say!"
Finally I returned to the classroom, and spent the rest of our time, writing and speaking Chinese words from my Chinese Textbook, and they gave me the English translations.
Tomorrow morning I will be back in class, doing something. Don't know what yet. Maybe I'll just read to them in Chinese and listen while they correct my pronunciation. Well, at least one of us will be working.
So how does something like this happen in China of all places. After all, it is a very disciplined society isn't it?
Maybe! But the system in place in China (dating back to the Cultural Revolution days), is that the professionals and the bourgeois are to blame for society's ills, and they should all be reported. So in China, students blame teachers for everything. Everything is the teacher's fault! Couple that with an education system geared toward 'passing tests' rather than learning, at the end of the day, 'Nothing matters (except the Grammar multi choice exam result!).
On the matter of 'grades versus learning', may I direct you to an excellent article at Mesora. org - Vol.'V' No.187 p. 8 of 10 entitled: MOTIVATION By Doug Taylor and Rabbi Morton Moskowitz.
It was decided that unshod horses would not be allowed to be used in commercial ventures. People couldn't ride horses for a living; salesman couldn't load goods onto their horses; and horses could no longer pull carts. While it all seemed quite logical and humane, the unforeseen consequence of the law was that the supply of goods into and out of the town began to dwindle, until in the end, business after business went bankrupt. As time went by the whole city went bust until the only ones left were those who could not afford to move, and one of these was our blacksmith. One day, considering that since the council itself was now gone, the blacksmith decided to restart his business.
Any teacher who is legitimately employed, and properly registered, is able to pack up and leave if the going gets tough, but any teacher whose 'bona fides' (as a foreigner living and working in Baotou) are not legitimately established, could find themselves being deported from China. I would hope that all the problematical behavior of management at EET has long since changed, and that they are currently fulfilling their legal obligations. I would hope that anyone who goes to work there would be well treated or at least not abused, cheated or lied to. But foreigners who to write to me to ask my advice are either 'plants' working for EET or just plain foolish.
Today, I am using a recent letter from Jerry, to tell a story – a sad story. It is a story rooted in Ancient and Modern Chinese Culture. It is a story of an impossible love. It is a story I have heard so many times before, of families who refuse to allow their children to love whom they will. It is a story about how in the 21st century, Chinese children must still obey their parents and marry the one of whom the parents approve.
One would think that based on those two great truths that the Commonwealth Bank would have the organizational and managerial flexibility to deal with any situation to arise, but apparently they do not - OR - they don't wish to! But you just have to wonder if at the end of the day, the whole issue is not just about "a shortage of competent staff" and a lack of good old fashioned customer service.
American Chinese cuisine is not quite the same as regular homestyle cooking back in Mainland China. I think that it might be wise to bring a Mainland Chinese cook back with you, unless you are ready to install a MacDonald's restaurant on site. But a major problem that I think Dr. Smith is likely to encounter, is that far too many Chinese students who have passed the International Language Tests in order to study overseas, arrive on campus without any ability at all to understand what is spoken, or to be able to speak English. Such is the state of those tests.
A common thread running throughout Yang Guangyou's work life is that employers expect and demand so much of him but have consistently discriminated against him because he has no college degree. He is a diligent worker, professional in his various supervisory positions and is quite at home conversing in English. As of December 2011, he is again unemployed. (January 6, 2012 - Received word that he is working in Tianjin.) Jerry's Story: When a boy is around the age of 20, his parents will find a person to introduce a girl to him as a wife. At this time the family of the male part will give 10000 to 20000 [rmb] to the family of the female part. Generally speaking , they will not change the relationship once it is built. After that, the family of the male part will collect money for the wedding, 20000 RMB maybe. But that is not enough because the female part usually ask for a new house which can be built around 100,000 RMB in that place.
With something like a 70% Rural Population, many kids grow up in the countryside, in tiny little villages, or larger but still small towns. They run, play, fish and swim in the nearby fields and streams. Probably most don't have running water in their homes, and certainly not bathrooms. The outhouse is literally the outhouse, and the waste will run off into some fish pond or similar.
In China, the rights of society take precedence over individual human rights. This, we Westerners call totalitarianism and from an ideological perspective, desire to destroy it right? But ask yourself this: "What does MY country promote?" In China, there are many social problems that similarly exist in your country, and these are slowly being dealt with. But it seems to me that while China's totalitarian regime is focused on making China a 'harmonious society', that in the west, everything is aimed at promoting sectarian interests which divide society.
, 2006My Student friend has already 'cheated' in 4 exams this school year. Well, he doesn't actually 'cheat', he just 'pretends' to be someone else, and does their exams for them. It's a simple process really. They merely substitute photographs in their identity cards. The first thing I had to tell him was that the reason I seem so happy, is that if I allowed myself to be controlled by all the 'negatives' that surround me, I would have to quit my job and go home. 'The Secret of Being Happy', I informed him, 'is that happiness comes from within you. It is not the result of happy experiences.'
You may find this hard to believe, but Chinese students can memorise a 20 minute monologue - perfectly. They memorise their lesson texts. They might understand nothing. They certainly cannot commence at paragraph two or three: they must start from the first word and go through to the end. However, they can memorise perfectly. So this is what these two girls did.
Chinese Students: Chinese Youth: Problems of Chinese Young People. This file was intended to be added to on a regular basis. Unfortunately it wasn't. The friendship with Mingxing has however continued, and as can be seen in the photographs in the Confucious Temple article listed above.
As I turned in at the gate, I was dismayed to see people leaving. My arrival naturally evoked the expected 'LaoWei! LaoWei!' As I entered the church, the few people that were left rushed to greet me and began to explain in Chinese, whatever it was that they were explaining. My heavy sigh was sufficient to impress upon them my disappointment, and resulted in one man grabbing my overcoat and pulling me outside, whilst the rest pointed off in the distance. Ahah! I was being taken somewhere. We walked for about 15 minutes down the road. Now up to this moment I thought that Chibi consisted only of that part of it that I had already seen, but it actually continues on to a busier and more residential section, which is quite separate from that part next to the Museum/Park
Chibi is 20+ kms east of where I lived in Hong Hu, and I could ride my bicycle, take a taxi or catch a bus to the Barge Crossing. Of course one must then wait for the barge, and that can take some time. On the other side of the river it is just a case of walking a short distance to the museum and lookouts.
You will arrive at Taipa House Museum Area with so much to see. If you want to go into the Museum you must pay. But there is also much to see outside. This is a museum beside the A-Ma Temple on Macao Island. This sits on the waterfront and you can see Zhuhai in China across the harbour.
Beijing
(Note: Chiara Braccagni's articles are in both English and Italian)
A una di queste chiamate, ci fermiamo a fianco a una coppia di giovani. Non solo i due incauti avevano diversi sacchetti, ma portavano con sé anche una torta. Dopo varie discussioni con la bigliettaia perché la torta nel pulmino proprio non ci stava, provano ad aprire il finestrino e a passarla alla ragazza seduta di fronte a Justine. Visto che non riuscivano a spostare il vetro, sporgendomi, faccio alla bigliettaia: "Lo faccia passare da qui" (okkei, va bene, ho detto solo "da qui", il resto della frase era sottinteso!). Io, anima ingenua, credevo che una volta saliti i due giovani avrebbero trovato il modo di riprendersi la torta. E invece no! Mi sono fatta una decina di chilometri di strada sterrata con una torta gelato sulle ginocchia! E giusto per renderla ancora più precaria, era una torta a due piani con complesse decorazioni, tra cui un drago giallo con occhi e baffi di cioccolata. Avevo il terrore di spetasciarla. A questo punto, però, ridevamo da non riuscire più a respirare.
Mt. Tai is located in the center of Shandong Province, lying across the cities of Tai'an, Jinan and Zibo. Its main peak, Jade Emperor Summit, which is within Tai'an City, is about 1532.7 meters (5,029 feet) high. The mountain was once called Mt. Daishan, Mt. Daizong or Mt. Taiyue and was renamed Mt. Taishan in the Spring and Autumn Period (770BC-476BC). It epitomizes splendid Chinese culture and was listed in the World Natural and Cultural Heritage List of UNESCO in 1987
Many people say that my cursive Chinese writing is just terrible scribble. Now I know that they are just jealous because I have mastered a unique form of calligraphy. Du Fu Selected Poems Translated by Rewi Alley Foreign Languages Press 2001
On the Matilda Trail by Captain Sandy Stewart. Today we are going to head north to Mt Isa, but before we go we have a few things to do. First of all we have to go to the FLYING DOCTOR HQ and thank them for the tip of when the plane was coming in. On our way back to town we went past the Vortex guns built by Steiger Vortex as a rain making exercise in 1902, it failed. We are now crossing over Lagoon Creek heading for Longreach. Cruising west 80 kms to Ilfracombe we stop to have a beer at the Wellshot Hotel and guess what! THE PUB'S GOT NO BEER.
Spanish Lighthouse at Corregidor Island had a signpost letting us know how far from home we were - The Centerpiece at the War Memorial for American Soldiers in Manilla - Corregidor Island Battery looking toward Batan - Military tanks at the Philippine Military Academy
When excavating workers discovered the original Royal road and archaeological viewing platforms have been set up from both above and beside the original road. No charge! You can go down the ramp and clearly see the road and the accompanying signs/ The Chaotian Gate - During the Zhizheng Reign of Yuan Dynasty it was renamed to Gongbei Tower. It was destroyed in the 10th year (1474) of Chenghua Reign Ming Dynasty and rebuilt in the next year. The building was destroyed again in early Qing Dynasty and rebuilt in the 25th year (1686) of the Kangxi Reign Qing Dynasty. It is known as Drum Tower.
We spent quite a bit of time in Leifeng Pagoda before leaving to take a cab back to our hotel. On the way out we read all the signs about the Pagoda's history and the Story of Lady White Snake. We also stopped so that Mingxing could duck into a little temple beside the Pagoda. I took the opportunity to sit on a fence and have a cigarette. While doing so I notice 2 young couples at the entrance and one of the boys looked at me, smiled, said something to his girlfriend who then produced a camera and then made a beeline for me so he could have his photo taken with a 'real live foreigner'. We foreigners probably have our photos taken more often than movie stars.
Definition: King's Calendar Chronological Research
The Premise: Between the 5th and 3rd centuries BCE (but continuing down to at least 104 BCE), Sectarian redactors transcribed the legitimate 'solar year' chronological records of Israel and Judah, into an artificial form, with listed years as each comprised of 12 months of 4 weeks of 7 days, or 336 days per year, thus creating a 13th artificial year where 12 solar years existed.
When the Synchronous Chronological Data provided in the Books of Kings and Chronicles for the Divided Kingdom Period are measured in years of 336 days, the synchronisms actually align. [Refer to Appendix 5. to see how it synchronises the Divided Kingdom Period]
About the KingsCalendar Publisher
R.P.BenDedek is the owner and Editor of KingsCalendar.com which was originally set up to publicize his research results into the Chronology of Ancient Israel. Those results were published under the title: 'The King's Calendar: The Secret of Qumran'.
Whilst there have been many attempts to solve the chronological riddle of the Bible's synchronisms of reigns of the kings of Israel and Judah and their synchronism with other Ancient Near Eastern Nations, no other research is based on a simple mathematical formula which could, if it is incorrect, be disproved easily. To date, no one has been able to dismiss the mathematical results of this research.
Free to air Academic articles set forth Apologetics for and results of his discovery of an "artificial chronological scheme" running through the Bible, Josephus, the Damascus Documents of the Dead Sea Scrolls, and Seder Olam Rabbah.
During the current economic downturn, this book has been drastically reduced in price but will eventually rise as the economy improves.
Check the Chapter Precis Page to see details of each chapter and to gain access to the Four Free to Air Chapters
R.P. BenDedek writes social commentaries and photographic 'Stories from China' both at KingsCalendar, and as a contributing columnist at Magic City Morning Star News in Maine USA.
(He has been teaching Conversational English in China since 2003 and currently (2013) is teaching in Suzhou City Jiangsu Province.)
No matter what someone might like to assert or claim, there is absolutely no evidence currently in existence, nor likely to be forthcoming, that can demonstrate that the chronology offered by the 'King's Calendar' is impossible, untenable or contrary to the 'evidence'. It has equal merit with any currently suggested construction of Israelite History, with one excelling exception. It can demonstrate itself mathematically. There is only one possible justification for rejecting the 'King's Calendar' Chronology, and that would be to demonstrate that its computer generated mathematical foundation is erroneous in that its determination at some point of history can be proven to be incorrect
Newsletter No.5 Ancient Egypt. The Hyksos, 18th Dynasty, Rameses II By R.P. BenDedek
Few people appreciate the numerous difficulties involved in determining an 'accurate' history of Egypt, and that history is still under challenge with regard to the currently accepted placements of Egyptian Dynasties. For instance, Merenptah's 'Israel Stele', if it is to be believed, records a victory over the 'nation' of Israel, centuries before Israel was a 'nation'. Rohl and James et. al. have been working on providing a more reliable chronology, with James et.al. suggesting that Merenptah's dynasty ought to be shifted to the Eleventh century BCE
Newsletter No.4 Academic Disagreements : Opinions and Assumptions By R.P. BenDedek
The 'King's Calendar', which deals with CHRONOLOGY (not history) is the only proposition which synchronizes all the Biblical chronological references, and for this period of history, it did something which no one else has ever attempted. Instead of insisting that the chronological data was wrong, it maintained that the Name/Identification of certain Jewish kings was wrong. Of the four kings of Judah that reigned during this period, THREE were known to have reigned under names OTHER THAN their real names
