Teaching in Yongchuan

---

I have finished 1 week of the 3 week summer school course and it is going pretty good. I ended up moving into a dorm room on campus. My apartment was wonderful, if I was staying long term. It had a great kitchen and was in a great location downtown but it just wasn’t feasible for me to live there for 3 weeks. I would have had to buy all of my kitchen supplies and get transport every day to work until I figured out how to get to my school (which would have most likely taken me the whole 3 weeks!) By living on campus I have access to the cafeteria for food whenever I want. I am also a 10 second walk to my office and I have internet access (which I didn’t have in my apartment and is an integral part of my sanity!). Furthermore, all of the other teachers live on campus so I was really lonely in my apartment building. By being here I can see them at night, go out for dinner with them, etc. It really is a better set-up for the short term! I am much happier here!

The school has good facilities – kind of. There is a beautiful soccer pitch and track outside and all of the classrooms, offices, and dorms are air conditioned (I think it’s a necessity here). I like the cafeteria food but the Chinese teachers think it’s gross. Our lunches are free so I can’t complain. Dinner is 6RMB (less than a dollar) so I really can’t complain. My one complaint is that the school doesn’t have a gym or any recreational facility that I can use (I was hoping to workout indoors while I was here).

The actual teaching part is going fine.There is a wide range of English known between the students. Some are very, very good and others do not say a single word. It can make teaching very frustrating. I encourage them to ask for help but I think a lot of them are too embarrassed. I am teaching an oral communication course so I get to do whatever I think will help the kids the most. Some topics that I will/have covered include: introductions, telephone English, going through customs, booking a hotel room, going to the doctors, relationships, family, and job interviews.

Oh – as a side note – we get 2 hours and 20 minutes for a lunch break! It is insane! CQ is a very hot city in the summer. Temperatures can reach well over 40 degrees. Because of this, the school gives a 2 hour and 20 minute lunch break for everyone to have a nap! I did not type this wrong. We get 140 minutes for lunch. This is another positive of having a room on campus... I can go 'home' at lunch.However, I never nap during the middle of the day so to me, it’s a waste of time. I would rather just teach and end the day earlier. I am not the boss though.

Like I mentioned before, I am the only foreign teacher here. It makes me quite the anomaly! I am teaching with 6 other Chinese teachers and they are all very good to me! They have taken me out for dinner a few times and also to the grocery store. If it wasn't for them, I wouldn't be able to venture out of the school! Some of them LOVE practicing their English conversation with me since its hard for them to practice without a foreigner. Soon, I will get them to teach me some Mandarin.

---

Comments

[Clair]

How old are your students?