Laoshi! Laoshi!

Laoshi! Laoshi!
stephd1986 Mar 10, 2015 14:32

So having now been living and working in Wuhan for the past five months there are certain aspects to this teaching malarkey that I have now become accustomed to; when before they nearly had me running for the hills of Tibet!

 

The first aspect that has taken me some getting used to has to be the decibels that the students are able to produce on a daily basis! Having never taught before I was wary of how I was going to control a class of 25+ students, whilst providing them with appropriate information and ensuring that each student was interacting and gaining something from my lesson. My life saver in this regard has to be a class rule that I implemented on my first day…. When I raise my right hand above my head and place the index finger of my left hand over my mouth it is obvious to the students that I am asking for their attention and quiet… admittedly this occasionally takes a minute or two to produce absolute silence, but most of the students see it as a game and are happy enough to join in!

 

Being an individual with a certain level of OCD, a pet hate of mine is mess! I hadn’t imagined how messy the students could be and even now the levels still shock me! I manage to deal with the mess in two ways… the first is another class rule, again implemented on my first day, “no eating or drinking in the classroom” this substantially reduces the possibility of mess/rubbish and makes tidying much, much easier!  The second is a saying that I have gotten into the habit of repeating at the end of every lesson… “Please make sure that the desks are nice and straight, your chair is pushed under and there is no rubbish left in my classroom”….the students have now gotten so used to hearing the saying that some of them even join in! And although it doesn’t work all the time, at least it means I have a lot less to do in terms of tidying than if I said nothing at all!

 

The final aspect of teaching that I was not particularly prepared for is the barrage of questions fired at me by the students on a daily basis. I made sure that the first lesson with my students was a free-flowing question/answer session where they could ask me anything they wanted to… the questions ranged from…how old are you to why aren’t you married! I certainly find that being open and honest with the students creates a better relationship and environment, and they are more likely to appreciate what you are trying to teach them. Certainly the daily questions have declined in number but I still receive the odd question which keeps me on my toes!

 

In short the past five months have taught me a great deal about myself and my limits and I’m sure that the next four/five months will be just as challenging.

 

A good teacher can inspire and ignite the imagination.”  

 

Tags:Teaching & Learning Expat Tales

18 Comments

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damovox

I was responding to a specific post; trying to help someone out. I'd hardly call that "advertising".

Apr 14, 2015 00:06 Report Abuse

Spiderboenz

8000 in beijing is not a scam... It is pure exploitation.

Apr 03, 2015 12:13 Report Abuse

damovox

okay.. trolls be trolling... both positions have been filled, they are super happy with terms and conditions....and anyone who thinks $40 an hour with free flights and accomodation and free utilities is exploitation needs to get their heads checked..... we didn't advertise on echinacities for obvious reasons.... we got real teachers with real qualifications.... 10 more weeks of doing the job i love and then off to Philipinnes with my g/f for 6 weeks... (I still get paid for my time off) ..such exploitation!!! then back home to U.K. in early August (paid for by the school) and gonna squeeze a long weekend to Seoul in late August.....

Apr 05, 2015 03:15 Report Abuse

Spiderboenz

Yes, you advertise in the comments section of the blogs on EChinaCities.

Apr 13, 2015 22:06 Report Abuse

damovox

Guest2506504: How can that be a scam?... It's actually just 12 classes a week;that equates to 32 hours a month. Therefore, 250RMB per hour(tax free)that's about $40 p/h. Your accomodation and utilities are paid for,it's a great working environment at a top school, no office hours, a nice area of Beijing, flights paid for.Keep off the meth dude..

Mar 24, 2015 22:27 Report Abuse

Guest2696450

If you count by hour, not 40 minutes, it's only 142/hr, which is very low in Beijing. The only bonus is that housing is provided.

Mar 28, 2015 12:13 Report Abuse

damovox

huh? no it's not..... let me break it down for you. It's 8,000 RMB per month for 48 classes. The classes are 40 minutes long. That is 32 hours per month in total. 8000RMB/32HOURS = 250RMB/HOUR

Mar 28, 2015 18:38 Report Abuse

knightly

Stop your bleating abt what teachers should and should not accept. You don't even have the courage to have a real name or photo so your 'advice' is just meaningless drivel from a troll.

Apr 02, 2015 09:03 Report Abuse

damovox

Send me an email if you are interested in my message above.

Mar 24, 2015 22:28 Report Abuse

damovox

they just want native speakers. They had a French programme in the school before but that has been stopped

Mar 25, 2015 21:56 Report Abuse

damovox

I work at Beijing Foreign Languages school (it's in Xizhimen), we are looking for a native speaker starting in September.... It's about 14 x 40 minute classes a week... free accommodation and utilities, flights home and back are paid at end of the contract, pay is not great at 8,000 a month but plenty of opportunity for private classes in the area..not difficult to pull in 20,000 a month if you are willing to work 30 classes a week.... you can email damienhorgan@hotmail.com

Mar 19, 2015 00:31 Report Abuse

farhan.hummayun

I am also looking for a job..either Teaching or Non teaching..my email address is farhan_hummayun@hotmail.com let me know if there is any position...

Mar 15, 2015 19:30 Report Abuse

stephd1986

I am from England, so yes I am a native English speaker. I have a Z working visa for my time in China.

Mar 15, 2015 10:35 Report Abuse

stephd1986

Thank you for your comments :-) My email is: stephanie.dibley@hotmail.com. Please do forward information regarding potential roles to me. I look forward to discussing the roles with you. :-D

Mar 14, 2015 21:58 Report Abuse

texascowboy

I do not see your e mail....if you might be interested in staying in Wuhan, I know of a middle school who should be looking for a new teacher next year. Let me know if you are interested and I can give you my school's contact. I agree that sometimes the noise level can be deafening. I set up a rule that when I count to 3 if someone was still talking that person had to stand for part of my class. This works well.

Mar 13, 2015 07:28 Report Abuse

Robk

Sounds like you are doing well and making the best of the situation. China can severely test your patience and will especially if you had issues with messes, manners and organization. Good luck with your search for your next school!

Mar 12, 2015 19:25 Report Abuse