Job Discussion Forums

[millie]

mignonettemanda wote:

[ChinaMovieMagic]

M: again, please don't take this personal...as I mentioned, we've got lots of free time as FTs, and many of us are quite curious

I'm sure you're thinking "Why don't they leave me alone? All I did was ask about teaching."

And Talkdoc is thinking "They're trying to undermine her faith."

And CMM is thinking "There's a nice&new addition to that funny Website..."

http://redwing.hutman.net/~mreed/warriorshtm/necromancer.htm

[mignonettemanda]

[ChinaMovieMagic]

[andrew_gz]

"would that make a difference if i said i'd work for unicef?"

Would that make a difference for you?

[mignonettemanda]

[andrew_gz]

OK!
So you want to come to China.
You want to volunteer.(no specific agenda, you just want to help)
Kudos.
Best of luck to you.
If I can help, please let me know.

[millie]

mignonettemanda

[mignonettemanda]

no, no, no, no and no.

world vision has yrs of experience working in china and knows jolly well the rules and regulations concerning preaching. I'm damn well sure i'd get my ass kicked out pretty quickly if i start reading the bible during those daycamps. im simply there to rise their interests of learning and going to school, THATS ALL.

so if thats not clear enough:

NO, NO, NO, NO and NOOO. and stop bugging abt religion.

[millie]

Hello mignonettemanda,

Thank you for your reply and sorry to appear to have been "bugging" you.

I am glad that I was wrong about that.

Happy travels then
M

[no_exit]

Long post coming here ...

The kid seems pretty adamant about the fact that he's not going there as a missionary. We all know that there are plenty of missionaries out there masquerading as FTs, and really, most of them are pretty up-front about their intentions if asked about it (they don't think they're doing anything wrong).

I know some people who work for World Vision in Kunming. They're not bible thumpers, and although I wouldn't say the organization is 100% secular, I'd say there's a good chance mignonettemanda is not going over there to spread the word of god.

I, for one, am also inherently suspicious of the concept of "volunteering" to teach English in China. So many of these so-called volunteer organizations are simply scams. The organization is pocketing a ton of money which would otherwise have been paid by the school to the FT. I saw one website (I wish I still had the link!) which lists possible school placements in China, and one of the schools was a private middle school. Says it all.

But then there are legit NGOs, and organizations such as World Vision, which do have stated purposes pertaining to international development. I imagine that if you decide to volunteer for such an organziation, whether that organization be well-funded or completely grass-roots, you are voicing your support of a certain cause. Whether or not we agree with that cause is beside the point. As long as mignonettemanda is not going to be doing anything illegal, his (her?) choice to support World Vision is his own. I can't imagine making an decision to volunteer for such an organization without having read up on it and being fully informed about its cause and goals. I suggest we all just lay off on mignonettemanda about World Vision and preaching. He says he's not coming here to do that, and I think we can take that statement at face value.

Anyhow, my advice is to try and make your lessons fun and relaxing. Since you are going to be teaching your colleagues, I imagine the setting is going to be informal, so there is no need to enforce strict lesson plans. You are also considerably younger than they are, and inexperienced, so most likely they are not expecting a whole lot from you. They want a chance to practice speaking, basically. They will probably come to you with questions about vocabulary and word usage. Be prepared to answer their questions using simple and concise language. Bring some English language reading material with you from the States. Entertainment magazines, although far from good literature, are good for practice because they are usually written in simple English, and Chinese students love gossipy stuff. News magazines are good too, because they introduce new and useful vocabulary, and students can see current events from a different perspective. Since you're not going there as an English teacher, that isn't really your job with WV (right?), don't stress this part of the job too much. The fact that you are young might even work to your advantage. Your colleagues might not feel as intimidated by you as they might with a more experienced teacher, and might feel more inclined to relax and open up.

Anyhow, I've said enough on this topic. Sorry for all the rambling. Good luck to you. Do you know the name of the city you will be posted. I live in Kunming and have been all over Yunnan. Maybe I can give you some tips about the place.

[ChinaMovieMagic]

Check out the Total Physical Response w/Storytelling activities/downloads at:

http://www.blaineraytprs.com/

Finally, China's law prohibits proslytizing...but not responding to questions.

The soul-savers have strategies published on the Internet, such as:
Ask the Chinese English-learner "Do you want to be happy?"

If the reply is "Yes" then they're advised to give some general (disguised) hints, and then reply: "You're welcome to come to my home to talk about this."

If the reply is "No" then they're advised to refer them to Talkdoc for free Internet-based PositiveMentalAttitude subliminal audio-downloads w/NewAge background music.

Of course it's well known that Christian countries are happier countries.
Or...are there any "Christian countries"?

And...regarding "Talk Therapy"...Woody Allen's psycho-therapeuticalized persona stated in Annie Hall: "I've been having Analysis for a dozen years...and it still hasn't helped. I'm going to try it for one more year, then I'm going to try the water-cure at Lourdes."

[Madmaxola]

Make no mistake, Manda....

the people on this website are angry old trolls- they make up about 1/2 of all the FT in China. They come here because they are cynical outcasts from the west, who wish to be in China, not to grow as people, but to cover themselves in their own garbage al� Oscar the grouch and "nest in" - forever throwing apple cores and old baby diapers at young children who cross there trashcan-homes.

[kev7161]

Speaking of magazines: Time for Kids

Ever heard of it? There's also Sports Illustrated for Kids .

My teacher friends from back home always load me up on their unused Time . . magazines and I wish I would have subscribed to the SI for Kids (but too late now).

These are simple magazines geared toward 5th and 6th graders back home but are perfect for my Senior Middle school kids. Generally we don't have time to do projects with them, but they are quite popular with my kids. I'm sure a few try and read them, but most enjoy the pictures and graphics. For summer camp scenarios, they are great "extras" to use for discussions or whatever.