Job Discussion Forums

[lanems]

I'm new to this message board, but this fall I am going to Hong Kong through the ELTAP (English Language Teaching Assistants Program) as a student assistant as part of my TESL education. I have never traveled to Hong Kong or China, and I don't speak any Cantonese or Mandarin. I had a few questions regarding Hong Kong:

My coordinator mentioned teaching in an EAL position (English as an Additional Language). Now, I've heard about English a a second/foreign language and English for special purposes, but I am not sure what is implied with English as an *additional* language. Is this simply just a difference in regional terminology among teachers, or does this imply some different kind of pedagogical approach to teaching?

My coordinator mentioned placing me in Sha Tin, New Territories. I read a little about this area and it sounds like a very nice place to live. The school is responsible for helping me find some housing. It seems I can get around using only English (although I am very interested in trying to learn Cantonese and I hope my background in Japanese may atleast help with reading Chinese characters...), but does anyone have any comments here?

In Hong Kong is there a strong preference over British English or American English? I am an American, but as my mother was born and raised in England I've been exposed to both dialects my entire life. I would say out of habit I still tend to switch between either or in my spellings and occasional mispronunciations (I don't know why I can't bring myself to pronounce 'garage' with an American accent). Will this be something I should worry about?

I hate the idea of going to a country unprepared and uninformed. I was earlier told I was going to teach in Shanghai so I had been doing as much reading on Shanghai's history as I could, I was wondering if anyone could recommend some good material on catching up on some basic history of Hong Kong or any other information that may be relevant to an assistant teacher living in Hong Kong for 10+ weeks.

Thanks for your help. I should browse the message boards for the information I am looking for, but if anyone has any good advice or can point me in the right direction I'd appreiciate it.

[foster]

Shatin is quite nice. I have been in Shatin for the last 3 years and quite like it.

YOu can get by easily on English, but basic Cantonese can never hurt.

My schools tend to prefer British English but I have heard of some that prefer American. Each school is different here.

Good luck with your move!