Job Discussion Forums

[profile]

How tall are you ?
What is the difference between Australia and China ?
Can you tell me about education in Australia ? (Please make a SPECIFIC question)
Which countries have you travelled to ?
What do people eat in Australia ?
Where can I find you ? ( = how can I contact you ?)
How about your life in China ?
I think you have many problems in your daily life in China ? (= cue to tell hilarious tales of the blunders and misunderstandings of the foreigner - must be something many FTs do. Don't mind if it comes up in the course of a conversation but I am not programmed to reel them off on demand)
Do you miss your family ?
How do you think about the Chinese students ?


I so dislike the way English Corners seem to encourage an interrogation rather than a conversation. I think we need to tell them how we feel when this happens and persist in trying to model and develop more natural interactions.

[no_exit]

A couple of days ago I was sitting outside of a cafe in town, eating a bagel and having a conversation with a couple of friends when seven Chinese girls suddenly approached out of nowhere.

The girls were holding slips of paper and told us their FT (!) had assigned them, as homework, to have a conversation with a foreigner, and had written out a list of questions for the students to choose from.

"What is your favorite holiday and why?" asked the first girl. My friend across the table deftly fielded this one. Halloween, he said, because it is about death. I think the girls were just confused.

Then one approached me with this little gem. "What gives your life meaning?" wtf. Isn't that a little bit heavy for a stranger-stranger conversation while I'm trying to eat my breakfast? I pretended to break down in tears and told the girl her question had awoken me to the sad reality that my life has no meaning. She didn't get it though so I just changed my answer to "I don't know" (I started to say drugs and alchohol but stopped myself because my friend kicked me under the table).

I thought they would go away, but then they handed us these little sheets of paper where we could check boxes about how deep the conversation was and how it lasted, and what countries we were from and stuff. Some sick, twisted FT out there actually took the time to type up all of this stuff in order to get his students to pester foreigners for even longer than neccessary! Unbelievable!

I hate all of the questions mentioned in this thread. I also get people asking me if I am lost quite often. One time I was standing at a bus stop and a woman came up and asked "excuse me, have you lost your way?" Hello, I'm at a friggin bus stop!! Others I hate are "Can you eat spicy food?" (because in Yunnan, anyone who can't handle spice is considered a pansy) "In America you only eat McDonalds and KFC, is it true?" "When are you going home?" (and they mean the States, not my spiffy apartment down the road). Is Chinese very difficult?(fully expecting a resounding yes, they usually go into denial when I tell them that I actually find it pretty easy). There are loads of these, and the ones I hate the most are the questions which simply expect you to confirm their silly misconceptions about the West, foreigners, foreign cultures, China, etc.

[Mideatoo]

[tofuman]

"Where are you from?" Responding to this like a snarling junk yard dog was troubling my conscience. I thought about it. I want to be nice.

Solution. I answer something that sounds like "Gwdbbuppdup." When they look puzzled, I just shrug my shoulders, as if the problem is their listening skills. I've used it once so far and it was quite effective.

Another approach is to explain that in certain parts of the States, "Where are you from?" is a challenge issued to those who look like they may not belong in a particular neighborhood. I tell them that the wrong answer to that question may get a person killed, so it makes me uncomfortable, even though I know that they don't mean it that way. I've used this several times and the students usually apologize profusely.

Most of them are just trying to be friendly and are hindered by their lack of English ability. And not all of them want free English lessons.

[profile]

[Don McChesney]

Answer a question with a question, it throws them.

Interrogation questions like 'where are you from, how old are you, are you married, which University do you teach at' etc etc are easy.

Ans. "Why do you ask? Are you from the PSB? Can I see your identification please?" Works like a dream.
"Can you use chopsticks? What's your favourite food? usual trivia gets "Can you guess the answer? or What do you think?" Then you just say nothing more, shake the head or nod. Easy on the throat, makes them talk more which is good for their learning, and they look like idiots in front of their mates.

[tw]

Q: "Why do you come back to China?" (I am of Chinese heritage in case anyone isn't aware)

A: "I came TO China, I didn't come BACK. China is as much of a foreign country to me as USA is. Why? Because I want to see what China is like since my blood is Chinese, and to teach YOU English."

Q: "When and/or why did your father leave China?"

A: "Early 1940's, to flee the Japanese and to start up a business in southeast Asia" or "Why don't you ask him that question yourself?"

[frigginhippie]

[voodikon]

a suggestion for change? honestly? they should develop interests that ... might be of interest to somebody else. if all they do is sleep, eat, and shop or play computer games (the standard answers to "what do you like to do in your spare time?"), is it really so surprising they're not going to have much to talk about? would you really want to speak to a native english speaker whose sole interests were eating, sleeping, and shopping? methinks the answer is no.

actually, one of the ideas i'm attempting to implement at my school, in order to eliminate one of the weekly english corners, is for each of the four foreign teachers to choose an activity that they're interested in and create a "club" around that activity. for example, the other FTs at my school and i are thinking reading (there are some fltrp-published books that are printed in both chinese and english), listening to music, watching movies, and cooking or culture exchange. that way the students could choose something that interests them, and the FTs should be happy as they are ideally interested in the activity, and, most importantly, everybody is drawn together by some kind of interest and are using english in a real-life practical application, as a tool to communicate about this interest, rather than merely using it as an interrogation exercise.

[clyde]

Do forgive me, my little postlings but my ire hath been piqued. My first querie, why did you come to this strange and un-suave country in the first place if not to be fawned over by its youngest and brightest citizens. Might I suggest that most of you uproot immediately and move to Manhattan or Tokyo where you will all most assuredly not be pestered by curious young people, in fact your unkempt hair and expat couture will ensure that virtually noone will talk to you at all. Or perhaps we could all imagine ourselves as newly arrived Chinese to Canada. Do you like Britney Spears, gawd her HAIR, I could just die. Do you have cars in China yet? The internet too! WOW! Some of us Canucks may even be so condescendingly polite as to invite our new friends for fermented barley overconsumption and the viewing of large men bashing one another with sticks whilst careening down a shining plane of icy death. So Mr. Chen, do your athletes lose teeth when they play? The trouble is that most North Americans simply ignore Chinese when they visit, and certainly cannot be bothered to at try to glean some meaning through their challenging accents, I guess the Chinese are simply a more hospitable and interested race. Or maybe I am just bitter because I cannot master a knife and fork. May God have perspicacity on you all.

[clyde]

Upon furthur examination of this thread, my former wrath may be seen as falling to some of the undeserving, for those of you who have reverent and respectful tone and candor in your posts, disregard disregard.

[yamahuh]

I hate the ones who ask me before or after class;
"How do I improve my oral English?" to which I invariably reply
"You must practise speaking whenever you can, especially in my classes".
Then when I ask the students to raise their hands and answer questions during class they all sit their stone faced and silent...Way to take my advice to heart kids!!

Other questions - Answers I've given or would really like to say

"How do you think China?" - I don't think China, I think English

"Do you like basketball?" - No, I bloody don't

"Why are you here?" - That's a damn good question, I'm not sure myself

"What is your phone number?" - I can't remember, I never call it

"Can I be your friend?" - "Of course, just don't call me on Saturday afternoon to engage me in a painful conversation during which you spend most of the time giggling".

"What you think me?" - Me think you OK, you English bad though

"You QQ?" - "No, me Chris"

"How do you think about Taiwan?" - "Generally I don't but sometimes it just kinda happens"

"Can I ask you question?" - You just did

God, the list could go on and on and on 'ad infinitum'


As for English corners; they're usually just painful experiences where the most vocal student usually imposes him or herself on you and asks you stupid questions in shoddy English at the exclusion of all others.
I had one senior student last year who wasn't even in one of my classes but who would force his way through my juniors to ask me questions about politics, religion and pretty much any other contentious issue he could think of. As if that wasn't bad enough his English was abysmal (although he thought he was a real 'English language' hot dog) so I spent most of my time trying to decipher his questions.
After dodging his questions for about 20 minutes one night I looked him square in the eyes and told him I wasn't there to discuss the issues he wanted to discuss, I was there for MY students' benefit and he'd taken enough of my time for one night.
Then I turned my back on him and talked to my students (who I happened to really like).

And while I'm on the subject (and beginning to rant it seems) I just fail to understand how so many Chinese people can be so completely oblivious of the concept of 'the proper time and place'. I mean when I'm sitting down to dinner in a restaurant with my wife...guess what?
It's NOT a good time to come over and ask me if you can 'practise' your English with me!!

[tw]

Q: "Do you love China?"
A: "I LIKE China. I LOVE Canada."

Q: "But you are Chinese, how can you not love China?"
A: "Because China is not my home. My home is in Canada. Also, think about people born and raised in China who are of Korean heritage. Do they love Korea or China?"

[Don McChesney]

"Where are you from??" Australia.
"Do you like China??" Yes.
"Which country do you like best?" JAPAN.
Long pause. . . "Why??"
"Because it has beautiful scenery, the cities are clean and new, and the people so polite and thoughtful"
Stops an Eng Corner dead.

[KarenB]

Well, along with the usual "Can you use chopsticks?" and "Have you got used to it here" (well, I've only been here 5 years, so far), the ones I used to hate (always asked in a large group) were:
1) What do you think of Falung Gong?
2) What is the weather like in your country? (I ask them what it's like in China, and they say, well, it's a big country -- it depends where you are -- and I say, 'Bingo!')


Questions I would prefer:
1) Do you need any help buying something or going to the post office or bank or somewhere this week?
2) Did you know the school is turning the water (or electric) off tomorrow?
3) Did you hear about the latest? (whatever the most recent interesting news on campus, in town, or in the country is)
4) Do you have any questions about (Chinese culture, my school, how to do something in China, etc.) that I could answer for you?