Job Discussion Forums

[leeroy]

It is wrong to stereotype and generalise about entire nationalities.

Students of the world, from the perspective of a teacher in London

Brazilian : Friendly, sex-obsessed, immature, rubbish pronunciation.
Chinese :
Colombian : Good-looking, funny, good communicators, retain target language like flour in a fishing net.
Danish : Beautiful, polite, studious, clever, perfect.
Finnish : See Swedish
French : Arrogant, superior, contemptious (sp?)
German : Polite, hard-working, funny.
Italian : Stylish, energetic, funny, but lazy when it comes to class work.
Japanese : Can be interesting, polite, usually shy in class, dull, and have inherently lamentable language learning abilities.
Korean : See Japanese without the "interesting" part.
Mexican : Lively, funny, disrespectful-in-a-friendly-way.
Polish : Rude, ugly, lazy.
Russian : Down to earth, hard-working, inquisitive, but a bit weird.
Saudi : Nice enough, views on women aside.
Spanish : Funny and talkative, rarely take an interest in language.
Swedish : See Danish
Taiwanese : Like a cross between Chinese and Korean
Thai : Sweet, well-intentioned, dull.

Any additions, corrections or feigned outrage below please

[Albulbul]

What about some stereotypes about EFL teachers by nationality, age and gender ?

[Gordon]

So I see you like the Scandinavians.

I have to disagree about the Thais. The ones I've taught have been really interesting.
I agree about the Japanese though, unfortunately.

You are referring to young int'l students are you not?

[YakTamer]

Hmmm....that sounds a bit disconcerting regarding the Poles. Polska is one of the countries I'm most interested in, and I was thinking of doing my CELTA there.

Though this thread is obviously meant to be taken tongue in cheek, anybody got a good word to say regarding the Poles?

[leeroy]

[Stephen Jones]

Wait till your Japanese students have been there two or three months. Once they lose their repression they go overboard.

[gugelhupf]

I'm pleased the OP classified German students as "funny". In my experience German kids are a happy bunch always making jokes. I haven't a clue where the usual humourless sterotype comes from. As for being hard-working - I'm not entirely convinced. The German education system usually removes any sense of urgency by age 14.

[fat_chris]

[Glenski]

Maybe I don't see this topic the same way as others, but if you don't generalize, how are you going to say anything about a group? That is how we talk about many things in life. I think the main point to remember is that in order to talk about a group, one should point out that such remarks are only generalizations.

You can later qualify such statements by stating that exceptions could include such things as students who have gone overseas, students who are elderly, students who are businessmen, etc.

Go to http://[email protected] and read some of the more inflammatory posts, especially those started by a guy named skankster. He writes things like, "Why to Japanese have bad teeth?" "Why are Japanese so bad at English?" and so on. None of his statements are identified as generalizations; he intends them to include all Japanese.

[Steiner]

[fat_chris]

[Shaman]

French (France) vs. French (Canadian)

France
- dedicated, not all rude as usually portrayed.
- HOWEVER - some are major league debaters, looking to punch holes in unnegotiable grammar theory.

Quebec
- NOT all looking to separate from the rest of Canada.
- quite pleasant and happy to share their distinct culture.

I thoroughly enjoy both groups.

Shaman

[lostinparis]

Rather than characterize the French as "superior or arrogant," I would simply say they can be somewhat proud... They really are not as arrogant as they are stereotyped to be. (I actually think that title belongs to certain citizens of my home country - the USA). I second Shaman - they definitely are debaters: wow do they like to argue points!! I would also say they're somewhat formal and take longer to open up and feel comfortable with you.

I will have to disagree about the Polish!!! Of course, all of the ones I teach are women ( i think this makes a difference), but in general the Poles I teach here in Paris are fantastic at languages, have good accents, ask interesting questions in class, and are fun to teach. They are some of my favorite students!!

Being in France, I also teach a lot of Algerians (all men). They are super respectful and polite, are very serious, and never miss a class.

[nolefan]

Heaven is where...

...the French are the cooks
...the Germans are the engineers
...the English are the police
...the Swiss are the bankers
...the Italians are the lovers

And Hell is where...

...the French are the engineers
...the Germans are the police
...the English are the cooks
...the Swiss are the lovers
...the Italians are the bankers

[Snoopy]

Gulf Arabs are ignorant, stupid and lazy.