Blogs from Jiangsu, China, Asia - page 111

Taizhou City is hot and humid this June, with temperatures of over 36 degrees Celcius, deep and sweltering 95+ Fahrenheit. Though the topography is flat, as in Florida, the sun is rarely visible; late-afternoon as a small gold-red ball through the haze from my balcony, making me appreciate the "Miami blue and green tropics". After loosing myself for hours in the city, my A/C and apartment offered a comfortable refuge from the stifling air, and familiarizing myself in this sprawling bee-hive of a city, encouraged a well-deserved rest in the "Chilled-Crib" on campus. My new surroundings are becoming more familiar, though I am still the object of curiosity where-ever I walk. I'm definitively not sure if they are giggling at my size, or with joy of having said "hello", probably the first time to a Westener. ... read more

This week Hans and I were given the opportunity to visit local primary schools in order to observe the annual English Teaching competitions. Each year, all over China, similar competitions are held in order to give Primary School teachers a chance to showcase their skills and abilities to peers, parents and authorities. This is an opportunity to really build your status as well as that of your school and also to share pedagogically what you have learned as a teaching professional. In China, teachers who are considered the “best” are given postings at the “best” schools and are given the “best” students. Competitions like this are of some importance in determining your “ranking”, other factors being your qualifications, experience and ongoing commitment to study. Conversely, if you are considered of “lower rank” you are often sent ... read more

It is a week of teaching-competitions, and my friend Arthur has been making spectacular efforts, for us to observe the local English-teachers perform their lesson in front of an audience of parents and teachers, in front of demanding judges, in front of extremely orderly students, in a variety of schools. This is the time in Jiangsu Province, when teachers are encouraged to show their "best practices", developed in their classroom, share them pedigogically with other teachers, and have a moment to shine as professionals, ...and that for pay of about 1,000 Yuan, or about $120.00 !!!! per MONTH as a beginning teacher. Oh woe, the value of education around the world!! I have never seen a similar competition in other countries I have visited, and the courage of the individual instructors to expose themselves to an ... read more

My new colleague Hans (Schneider) has arrived a couple of months early in order to settle in before the start of the new school year in September. We hit it off immediately and have had a number of stimulating conversations about life, the universe and everything. In his first couple of weeks here he has made a big impression on the locals, especially due to his penchant for taking a myriad of photos of what many people here would probably consider mundane and of little interest. An added bonus is Hans brought his camera printer dock with him and so he is able to take photos one day, then give his subjects a copy the very next day. As you can imagine, they absolutely love this. Hans was here last summer to “scope” the place out ... read more

Pictures often say a thousand words. Let me share a few I have accumulated. Each of the some 25 photos is a glimpse of the daily smoreges-board of sights and sounds and tastes and smells, that surround the visitor in the city of Taizhou, Jiangsu, China. : ... read more