Simon's Party (Its not what you think)

My third Saturday evening class had many new faces.  It began in the small restaurant on the ground floor where I was having my dinner beside the sign (Similar to the one on the left).  The sign announces, among other things - "Pure English Language Teacher Salon".  It seems that my existence among the many inhabitants of the numerous 32 floor towers that comprise 'Eton Mansions' (Yi Dun Gong Guang) has been noticed.  We have handed out flyers, but I suspect the most potent advertising is simple word of mouth.  In any case there has been a small crowd of 15 - 20 people at each of the classes so far.  I ran into a lady on the elevator who was clearly asking me to teach her 14 year old son.  I was able to indicate there was a class this evening, but telling her the location in Mandarin was beyond my powers.  Fortunately we were able to exchange a link on WeChat so I showed the link to the leader of the school who phoned her immediately.  She showed up at the class with her son whose English turned out to be quite good.  There is always a sprinkling of parents in my classes.  Sometimes they join in, sometimes not.  It brings education back to its basics - why should parents entrust me with their children, and pay for my services, if they cannot have a good look at what I am doing?
      I have been planning the lessons quite carefully with the sure knowledge that I will have a wide variety of ages and English speaking ability.  Once they arrive things develop according to the response of the whoever shows up.  Some are very enthusiastic and want to talk in English as soon as possible.  Others are very shy and have very little English.  My job is partly to entertain them and partly to make sure they learn something new.  We do introductions and games, but they are quite content to just listen to me talk.  I make it interactive; make them stand up and walk around and speak English to each other. anything to engage them.  I have at least one very able assistant who is learning to speak English herself.  She is happy to be there because she wants to learn a more Western way of teaching.
In short, the evening was a success! Everyone departed very happy.  This means that the 'word of mouth' grapevine buzz is almost certainly favourable.  Sometimes parents push their children at me telling them to speak to me, which embarrasses some children terribly.  I find I can melt them simply by showing them a photo of Calvin.  They were surprised when I told them a little about Science education; how we encourage curiosity in Science with such questions as "What is life?"  One girl told me that in China that would never be brought up as Science, but is a question for politics.  Wonder what Karl Marx would have said.
Its both invigorating and alarming to be standing on the threshhold of a new identity.  I know very clearly where am going, but have less of an idea about what will happen and how  my work is likely to be received.  My Yi Jing reading of Hexagram #3 - Difficulty at the beginning - seems to be playing out; however, future indicators are all positive.

This got my attention

 The pace of my life has slowed.  Minutes stretch into hours and the evenings stretch into long shadows of dark leafy trees split by shafts of late sunlight.                                            There is time for contemplation.

I’m haunted an image from the museum (left).  There is evidence of Christian teaching in Xi’an during the Tang dynasty – Christianity in China in the 7^th century!  It’s a rubbing from a stone stele which was discovered nearby during the 14^th century.   The actual stone was inscribed around 781, but referred to teachings by a Nestorian monk named Bishop Alopen teaching in China from 640 AD.   I like the ghostly figure of myself taking the photo. This was the period when the West market was so active at the Eastern end of the Silk Road system.  Scrolls were also discovered in Dunhuang which outline teachings called the Jesus Sutras the oldest of which come down to us from around 638. They speak of the ‘Da Qin Luminous Philosophy’ (Da Qin is the Chinese name for ancient Rome)

There are 20 verses written to the invisible God and to the heavenly spirits that serve him, followed by a description of humanity and the distance caused by sin and the condition of mortality. The text continues to speak of the virgin birth and the death of Jesus Christ.  The Nestorians followed the 5^th century Patriarch of Constantinople, Nestorius.  His church may not have been accepted by Rome nor, ultimately, by Constantinople; however his teachings spread Christianity successfully through the Persian Empire and into China during a period of at least several centuries.

Well, why is all of this important?  I felt that a key is 

provided by looking at how the modern shopping complex is constructed right on top of the archaeological traces of the old Tang West Market.  So many themes from ancient times are recreated: the artwork, the diversity, the vigorous commercial activity, the religions and the languages.  Images from the museum show considerable interest in foreign cultures.  Even though Tang China had less actual knowledge of the outside world the diversity in the West Market was far greater than today.  Why is the modern city so interested in its archaeological treasures?  Nearby a third subway line is being excavated.  Work proceeds slowly because of official concerns about ancient treasures that are constantly being dug up out of the ground.  As a teacher of English language in Xi’an I am part of a time-honored lineage.  While the Chinese government continues to erect barriers to foreign influence they also continue to unearth their more inclusive past.  There are plenty of these strange individuals being unearthed who do not look at all Chinese.

West market - a warm afternoon in late summer

 The sign reads (Right to Left) 'Great Tang West Market'.  On either side is an image of an Apsara - a Buddhist angel in a style typical of the fusion of eastern and western images connected to the ancient silk road.  The building is actually a hotel - I had a look inside - but there definitely was a West Market on the West side of the Tang Dynasty capital, Chang'an, in the early part of the first Millennium.  It was the eastern terminus of the multiple silk roads and for centuries they traded with Samarkand, Baghdad, Constantinople, Rome, etc. Hence the image of the camel with exotic musicians aboard.  I had a coffee in Starbucks, had a wonderful chat with a teacher from Texas and then wandered around.  There is a fine museum, but it is closed on a Monday.  Most of the buildings are entirely commercial - selling expensive luxuries from all over the world.  I looked at beautiful carpets, jade carvings, silk and jewellery.   On one of the upper levels I found a small Tibetan shop.  the staff consisted of a Tibetan man with a guitar and an attractive Chinese girl wearing a baseball shirt.  We quickly established that they spoke no English.  I asked if I could look around and they invited me to have some tea.  The Tibetan wall hangings (Tankas) are very colorful and traditional; about what you would expect.  I wanted to make some kind of contact with them because I feel Tibetans in general can use all the encouragement they can get.  He seemed to like that I greeted him with 'Tashi Dele' and palms together in the traditional fashion, but communication was pretty slow after that.

 The tea was excellent and they were interested that I could put the photo on Facebook.  Feeling pleased and a little embarrassed I promised to come back.
These days I have plenty of time on my hands.  In contrast, the city of Xi'an continues to bustle by me ceaselessly.  There is a Chinese phrase for all the movement which translates as 'car (or cart) water horse dragon'.  This is used,with a lot of poetic licence, to indicate that there's a stream of busy traffic.  I, however, have time to contemplate the purpose of my existence within the multitudes.

As well as being frenetically busy, the city is not very clean; the air seems dust-laden.  Incredibly, on the bonus side of the equation, I have some wonderful Chinese friends who keep sending me messages to make sure I'm OK and to give me useful advice.  Much of the advice concerns eating.  Probably there are some unfriendly Chinese people, but I never meet them. There is no doubt that many people want me to stay in Xi'an.
Eventually, I will have my own apartment and an electric motor scooter.  At present I am making connections and creating a life for myself; much as I did in Taiwan.  In Taiwan it took 6 months; here I must be patient as I'm still only halfway through the first month.

Thought for the day: The past is like another country - the fact that we cannot go there does not imply that it does not exist.  Einstein proved that time is a dimension related to the first three.  Xi'an as a city has been taking such trouble to raise echoes of times gone by.  To me, the fact that people are just guessing about what happened here centuries ago in the Tang dynasty is irrelevant.   If the past does not exist why do I find it so fascinating?

As my grandfather might have said: "Extraordinary!"

Just when I wonder if this whole project is too challenging something amazing happens.
Today I woke up with very red, inflamed and painful eyes.  Also, today was the day to visit the University (Xi'an Normal University) with my friend/employer Catherine. So off we went in her car.
 to interview prospective teachers.  Mostly they were young people teaching English grammar giving their instructions in Chinese.

Their English is  mostly pretty good, but they have little idea of how to actually TEACH.  They deliver information in a kind of lecturing style with very little effort to engage students in the learning process.  In fact, one of them explained to me that motivation to learn is supplied by the competition to get a high mark on the test.  So the purpose of an assignment is not really to teach anything useful, it is simply get right answers and avoid mistakes.  Both teachers and students agree that the whole process is extremely boring.  They have to work incredibly hard for their results which are subsequently forgotten.  I had  observed this from my bedroom window in the way the students line up in rows everyday to perform exactly the same motions in unison.  The University is vast and impressive but, on closer look, not too well maintained.

The amazing thing was the student who came to my room tonight about 7:30 to ask if I needed anything.  My friend had brought some eye drops which the student had left on my bed.  We proceeded to communicate by means of Google Translate.  He entered Chinese by hand (with considerable rapidity) and I responded in English.  The computer translated everything.  It doesn't do well with paragraphs, but for short sentences its great!  He seemed to be genuinely concerned about me and I have been finding that the boys in the dormitory have a lot of genuine warmth towards my presence next door.  Partly this is because I never complain about anything.  They are noisy, but I have earplugs and they are teenage boys after all.  I told them that I know dormitories because I lived in a dormitory when I went to school. (50 years ago) Plus ca change plus c'est la meme chose.

ESL Plans

If you're reading this blog you might want to skip this one - its a little dry.
Teaching English to Chinese University students, in China, is certainly not a new idea.  However, it is probably more vital now than ever before.
Some background on the world balance of power is important.  When I studied international relations in the 70s the world has somewhat bi-polar. USA and USSR were locked in the cold war.  The relationship was likened to a 'zero sum game', meaning that any gain for one felt like a loss for the other.  After the collapse of the USSR in the early '90s the world seemed bent on a uni-polar model.  The USA ruled as the centre of everything; it referred to itself as the one indispensable state.  According to this model influence would gradually spread outwards from the USA, all other states acting with reference to American (Western) standards.  China is firmly rejecting this model.  A study of the history of China in the 20th century can easily explain why it prefers to set its own standards.  Of course, this is only possible because of the enormous, and growing, economic influence of the PRC.
Mark Zuckerberg, of Facebook fame, has made a point of studying the new book from Xi Jinping which is a compilation of his latest speeches over the last couple of years.  Zuckerberg is not alone in suspecting that the book may provide a key to predicting what the PRC will do in the near future.  Like it or not, Xi Jinping is an extremely capable leader with a reputation for actually doing what he has talked about doing.  And he talks about 'one belt, one road' - the concept of a modern silk road linking the East and the West in a new era of economic co-operation and prosperity.  It is nothing like the old zero sum game.  Both the PRC and the USA are dependent on each other for continued economic growth.  Unlike the conditions in the cold war, a military confrontation between the two major powers today would be an economic disaster.  Leaders of both countries have everything to gain from Xi Jinping's idea.
The bearing this has on ESL is that China must improve her educational system in order to move further in the direction of the knowledge based economy.  Never again can she afford to close the borders to foreign influence as happened during the Qing dynasty.  This means that Chinese people need to be at least familiar with the English Language - the foremost global medium of communication.  Educating Chinese students in China, without sending them abroad, is not only cheaper, but infinitely preferable.
Add on - Have now taught one class and on private session with two students.  I find the students delightful. Its a pleasure to teach them.  Want to find ways to enrich the experience so that they absorb and retain more.  In other words ~ be memorable.

Xuan Zang is still spreading the Dharma

Busses in Xi'an are super crowded and its not always easy to be sure one is traveling in the right direction.  I walked much of the way past the Shaanxi Museum in search of Da Yan Ta - the Wild Goose Pagoda, home of the works of a Buddhist monk..
After 13 centuries the work of the Tang dynasty monk Xuanzang is still not finished.  The photo of the Wild Goose Pagoda shows a rebuilt version (14th century) of the 7th century original pagoda which was built to house the manuscripts Xuanzang brought back from India in 643 AD.
He spent 17 years on his journey which took him over the Silk Road through Samarkand and Afghanistan into India to the homeland of the Buddha.  Along the way he learned the local languages and impressed local rulers with his piety and his knowledge.  When he got back to Chang'an (modern day Xi'an) he became a royal advisor and spent an additional 12 years translating extensive Buddhist scriptures from Sanskrit into Chinese.  Although the original writings are lost having been written on leaves, the knowledge brought by Xuanzang spread throughout China, Korea and Japan and has been passed down by an unbroken lineage of monks in Xi'an to the present day.
Obviously this makes the Wild Goose Pagoda a special place for anyone interested in the history of  Buddhism.
Its quite a climb to the top of the pagoda; however the views are definitely worth the effort.  On the right is a photo of the pagoda as it appeared in 1936.  As you can see the modern city has overtaken it since that time.  An earlier photo from 1904 shows the pagoda covered with foliage so it had already been cleaned up a bit.  We don't know what the 7th century original looked like because there have been a number of renovations since that time.
Exploring the surrounding park I entered a number of temple-like buildings which contained various artistic contributions from Buddhist devotees.  Below is an enormous wood carved mural that shows stages in the life of the Buddha and the travels of Xuanzang.  The figures are so lifelike and well carved that one cannot help but feel moved by the commitment of the artist.  Apparently he worked on the murals for 5 or 6 years!
The whole complex attracts tourists like moths to the flame and I could not help wondering to what extent they are actually learning anything about the profound and life-changing philosophy that worked so hard to preserve.  Certainly Xi'an must be home to some very devoted Buddhists considering how much care has been given to it all.  So the work continues.
For myself the day was also an exercise in Buddhist compassion for the crowds as I made my way by bus and metro line to the pagoda and back - my own small echo of Xuanzang's awesome journey.

First class in Xi'an

OK. That was pretty amazing.  Just taught my first class.  I’d better tell the whole story.  They made signs saying “Simon’s English party”.  There was other stuff too, but they didn’t tell me.  I went yesterday with two of the other staff (Chinese) and waved these signs outside the local high school just as the students came out of the gate.  There was a big crowd of parents also.  Some of them spoke to the people with me.  It has to be the most primal aspect of the teaching profession – waving a sign in order to round up students and create interest in the school.

I kept wondering about my assignment – how many students?  How old? What is there level?  Took a while to realize that they don’t know until the students actually show up.  Since the high school is a top level private school and I don’t see any other Caucasian people around (let alone qualified teachers) I think our small language school is using my rather obvious physical presence to lend credibility to their school.  I feel good about it because, in addition to looking like a teacher I actually am a teacher.  Its also humbling – I need to market myself in order to have students.

An interesting aside to this might be that Western teachers sometimes suffer from a sense of entitlement.  To boil it down to basics, if the families don’t want us we are out of a job.  But Canadian public education obscures this simplicity.  Our schools are everywhere, they’ve always been there and they mostly do a good job.  In modern times schools have come under much scrutiny and I’m not sure if the teaching profession has handled it in the best way.  We are quick to defend our rights, but slow to engage in face-to-face public relations.  Another way to say this is to point out that teachers’ salaries have remained virtually stagnant for 20 years or so.  The work of a teacher was more highly valued in 1990 than it is today.  Teachers complain, but as a profession we do not market ourselves well.

So I prepared plenty of material for adaptation based on who shows up.  There was actually a man on the street holding one of the ‘Simon’s Party’ signs.  I must get a copy of the video, because I’m curious about what he was saying.

At 7:30 Simon’s party began.  There were about 10-12 students and 8-9 parents in the classroom.  I was briefly introduced in Mandarin and then off we go!  I began with a warm-up game and progressed to self-introductions.  OMG!  I selected 2 of the noisiest 12 year old boys to demonstrate an introductory conversation.  They tested me right away – went totally off topic and made everyone laugh.  It took three run throughs and much patience to get them on track.  What I liked about this was that parents watched the whole thing so they could see how I managed it.  (after all, 12 year old boys are my specialty.)  Then the class practiced in twos and it went very well.

The class was planned for 2 hours, most parents were expecting one hour and we went for 1 and a half.  I showed them pictures of Canada and family.  They were extremely attentive, but I had little success in getting them to talk about the photos.  Interestingly this worked very well with one or two students, but seemed to quieten them down in the larger group.

I walked home with one of the students who is in the dorm right next door to me.  As I talked to him I realized that my concept of relationship with students is totally unfamiliar in this population.  Their pleased about my presence, but they really don’t know quite what to make of it.  The potential in the situation is intriguing.

I remain convinced that my ideas of how to teach ESL conversation are sound.  Maybe the principle will work:  if you build a better mousetrap, the world will beat a path to your door.

Photos related to this post will have to wait.

Stele tour - some things ARE written in stone

I was a little anxious about my arrangement to meet Qiu Li at 3 pm.  First of all, she speaks no English.  Secondly I wasn’t at all sure I could get myself to wherever she wanted to meet.  This had mostly been arranged by Alice who doesn’t see language as a huge barrier.  After all, she speaks both English and Chinese quite fluently.  Turns out that the Wechat app is able to translate messages must fine.  

       Qiu Li sent a taxi which actually found me on a street corner.  The driver took me to her and accordingly she conducted me into a time a serene corner of Xi’an – a museum complex called the Beilin forest of Stele.   The one on the right, I was told, is an ancient hitching post for horses.

At first it just seemed like a regular series of temples.  A Stele is a large vertical stone slab covered in calligraphy that usually celebrates the life of an important person.  The slab is perched on the back of a large and patient stone turtle.  At Beilin the stele often date back as far as the 7^th century and the heyday of the Tang dynasty.  Much of the calligraphy is very beautiful and represents a number of different styles.  The detail and precision of the writing is extraordinary considering its all carved into solid stone.  I refused an English speaking guide having bad experiences with these so-called experts in the past, but we had great assistance from a young student whose English was up to the task.  They had plenty of fun testing me on the meanings of characters. Xi’an (or Chang An as it was called)  was the capital city of 13 of China’s dynasties and many of them are represented in these halls.  My performance was poor; however the calligraphy is of such high quality it’s a joy to examine it.  The characters on the stone below offer praises to the writer.  Some inscriptions were created by the Emperor himself at the time.  How wonderful to get this authentic glimpse into the Tang through authentic artifacts!

       We then headed for Xi’an’s famous Muslim quarter.  On the way we stopped by at Qiu Li’s fitness centre where she works out every day.  The Muslim quarter surrounds one of China’s most famous mosques.  Chinese Muslims are called the Hui.  They love to cook and produce a huge variety of delicious food.  The street was crowded with tourists and wreathed in smoke from cooking fires.  In spite of this the air seemed no worse than anywhere else in a Chinese city.  It’s a bit like an upscale nightmarket with all the vendors and the crowds.  We ate very well at a number of different locations known to Qiu Li. 

Photos of the Xi'an Muslim streets will have to wait.  My phone ran out of power.

Perhaps the best aspect to the whole evening was the opportunity for language exchange.  Communication between Qiu Li and myself gradually improved as we felt more relaxed.  The student helped us out whenever we got stuck.  For me its important to focus on content rather than language; the language stops being a barrier and becomes a tool box that I rummage around in with things in it that come to hand when they’re needed.  Sometimes I pick up the wrong implement but x make it work anyway.  Its essential to let go of the fear of making mistakes.  An additional element of fun is how random strangers seem to enjoy my efforts.  Of course they know what I’m trying to say and are usually surprised if I’m anywhere close to making sense.

       I am reminded of the principles I learned in Taiwan – stay in the present moment, expect nothing, withhold judgement and be open to what is happening.  We are all guests at a picnic.  Anything might happen at any time and I don’t want to miss anything.

Not a bridge too far

'I Robot' -  My landmark to find where I am living (12th floor in background)

It always takes a few days to find one’s feet after a long jet flight.  I was fortunate to be warmly welcomed by Alice and her family and had a couple of good nights’ sleep, so now my imperative is to become familiar with my new neighbourhood.  I’m so accustomed to travelling in China that its hard to remember that right now I’m no longer ‘travelling’ but ‘arriving.  It’s a very different feeling.

Met some Ethiopian students just now and realized that there will be new friends about whom I know nothing – just as happened in Taiwan.  Not to devalue friendships with local people, but in a place like Xian anyone you meet who is not Chinese represents a potential new friend.

Normally while traveling I carry as little as possible, but now I need to acquire some essentials.  Pillows are important for example.  I can also afford to spend a day or so simply exploring my neighbourhood.  There’s a huge university nearby and numerous possible useful locations to discover.

It’s a totally different mindset requiring openness to previously unsuspected pathways and an absence of familiar landmarks.

 Pillow acquisition proved easy, so I went for a walk.  It took me 1.5 hours to get to a familiar location.  Drank some delicious fresh fruit juice. There's an advantage to my appearance in that I easily meet people.  Its so different from Taiwan where people never approach you of their own accord. At Starbucks I met a local lady who spoke excellent English with a strong English accent.  Such a huge city and it turned out she knows my new employer! Later I found a 1 yuan note on the ground so it must be a lucky day.   Took a taxi home which , in spite of horrendous traffic, was a lot easier than walking.