Site Search:
 
Get TEFL Certified & Start Your Adventure Today!
Teach English Abroad and Get Paid to see the World!
Job Discussion Forums Forum Index Job Discussion Forums
"The Internet's Meeting Place for ESL/EFL Students and Teachers from Around the World!"
 
 FAQFAQ   SearchSearch   MemberlistMemberlist   UsergroupsUsergroups   RegisterRegister 
 ProfileProfile   Log in to check your private messagesLog in to check your private messages   Log inLog in 

How do Chinese compare to students in other countries ?
Goto page 1, 2  Next
 
Post new topic   Reply to topic    Job Discussion Forums Forum Index -> China (Job-related Posts Only)
View previous topic :: View next topic  
Author Message
donb2222



Joined: 06 Feb 2009
Posts: 134
PostPosted: Tue May 04, 2010 12:22 pm    Post subject: How do Chinese compare to students in other countries ? Reply with quote
I am interested to know how students in China can be compared to students in other countries.
The Chinese propaganda is that Chinese students are more "diligent".
What do you think ?
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
johntpartee



Joined: 02 Mar 2010
Posts: 3258
PostPosted: Tue May 04, 2010 4:24 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
Just like anywhere else. In fact, that was the biggest mistake I made when I first got here, i.e., "I'm going to see what these people are like".
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
randyj



Joined: 19 Jan 2003
Posts: 460
Location: Nanjing, Jiangsu, China
PostPosted: Tue May 04, 2010 10:23 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
In my opinion, students are pretty much the same all over the world. In general, they seek the easiest path and procrastinate as much as possible.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message AIM Address Yahoo Messenger MSN Messenger
nickpellatt



Joined: 08 Dec 2006
Posts: 1522
PostPosted: Wed May 05, 2010 5:01 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
My experience is limited by the amount of students I have had, but generally I find Chinese students work longer hours, but less effectively. I dont know if that makes them diligent or not...I kinda think not. They spend too long doing the wrong things, and very little time doing the right things IMO.

Mostly, and this is a rather sweeping generalisation, but they are more respectful of teachers and education.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail MSN Messenger
sharpe88



Joined: 21 Oct 2008
Posts: 226
PostPosted: Thu May 06, 2010 5:45 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Overall, certainly more diligent, ambitious, and respectful than in western countries. It's a generalization but a fair one
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
MisterButtkins



Joined: 03 Oct 2009
Posts: 1221
PostPosted: Thu May 06, 2010 11:24 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
sharpe88 wrote:
Overall, certainly more diligent, ambitious, and respectful than in western countries. It's a generalization but a fair one


Are you serious? What grade level do you teach?
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
The Ever-changing Cleric



Joined: 19 Feb 2009
Posts: 1523
PostPosted: Thu May 06, 2010 2:20 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
MisterButtkins wrote:
sharpe88 wrote:
Overall, certainly more diligent, ambitious, and respectful than in western countries. It's a generalization but a fair one


Are you serious? What grade level do you teach?

agreed. are you seiuous?
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
shuanglu pijiu



Joined: 04 Apr 2010
Posts: 17
PostPosted: Fri May 07, 2010 1:57 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
sharpe88 wrote:
Overall, certainly more diligent, ambitious, and respectful than in western countries. It's a generalization but a fair one


i know there's going to be plenty of "are you kidding me?" etc from this (which there already is), but i would have to say i find the same. i would, however, also agree with randyj in that they are no different from any other students in their tendency to procrastinate and do as little as possible if you let them - the key is to not let them. as i said in a previous post (my only other one, i think), in my experience you get what you give.

i have plenty of students who at first glance would have seemed lazy or uninterested, but through positive reinforcement and encouragement, they have changed from what appeared to be lazy or apathetic to ridiculously passionate, active, brilliant students who just needed someone to give them a bit of a boost and realize that their English doesn't need to be perfect every second of the day.

i'm a born pessimist, and think that basically all people suck, and pretty much everyone will get away with murder if you let them, but just as it's ridiculous to brand all Chinese students as some diligent paragons out of a propoganda movie, it's equally wrong to brand them as being generally lazy, childish, etc - and even if they are, it only takes a small amount of your time to at least see if you can help them see the light. it may not work every time, but it works some of the time, and at the end of the day, isn't that kind of the point?

i really fail to see why 99% of people on this board even teach in China, with their apparent complete disdain for Chinese students, which i myself feel lays more with them than anyone else. if you don't like it, don't do it. there are plenty of other countries to teach in.

teaching is an all guts no glory job to a largely ungrateful audience no matter where in the world you teach. blame that on humans in general, not China. there are plenty of other things to blame it for, we all know that.

p.s. i teach university students, and strictly English majors (i won't teach any other majors), so obviously the two of those combined, especially the latter, probably forms a lot of my experience throughout the years, so take all that into context.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
The Ever-changing Cleric



Joined: 19 Feb 2009
Posts: 1523
PostPosted: Fri May 07, 2010 2:08 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
shuanglu pijiu wrote:
i really fail to see why 99% of people on this board even teach in China, with their apparent complete disdain for Chinese students, which i myself feel lays more with them than anyone else. if you don't like it, don't do it. there are plenty of other countries to teach in.

teaching is an all guts no glory job to a largely ungrateful audience no matter where in the world you teach. blame that on humans in general, not China. there are plenty of other things to blame it for, we all know that.

p.s. i teach university students, and strictly English majors (i won't teach any other majors), so obviously the two of those combined, especially the latter, probably forms a lot of my experience throughout the years, so take all that into context.

i've found myself teaching english majors and students from other majors as well. i found both very good students and very bad students wherever i went. at my current job, where i've been for five years now, the students are among the best i've seen, best in that they respect the teachers more than what i saw before, best in attendance (attendance in my classes is about 98%), and best in that there are a number of decent english speakers in every class.

however just as you wonder why people who have great disdain for chinese students continue to work here, some of us may wonder why the poorly motivated students are studying english in the first place. there are always students sleeping in class, playing with their mobiles, reading comics, or simply staring into space for 90 minutes. I've canvassed a number of students on this topic (lack of motivation) and the most common answers are:

1. i don't like english and/or I'm not interested in foreign cultures.
2. studying english wasn't my choice, my parents wanted me to do it.
Back to top