Teacher Discussion Forums

I've been 'volunteered' (welcome to China!) to run a weekly lunchtime English corner, something I've never seen or done before, and am not sure about the best way to do this.

I'm in a largish high tech company and the language levels here vary from Chi-Eng translators down to nearly zero oral English skills.

I guess that I could have a few conversation starters - can be tough in a work envron, and even more so in face-conscious China. Alternatively, I could leave it more open-ended. Perhaps a mixture of both.

Any suggestions, thoughts or advice will be very happily received!

Cheers
David

I suppose, David, that the best answer will depend largely on your particular personality, and the actual abilities of whoever shows up to your 'English Corner'.

I'd prefer, if I were in your shoes, (and by the way, although I never taught on the mainland, I did teach on Taiwan for four years, working with students who probably were somewhat similar to yours) to be open-ended. Starting with canned topics is OK, I guess, if you can't think of anything else to get started (so having a couple of those in your hip pocket is a good idea) but if you can have a real conversation with some of the students who are capable of it, it'll most likely come out better, as you probably already know. Students who may attend but whose English skills are not quite up to it will not likely participate in any case, but they can benefit from listening to the genuine exchange of a few people who are capable in the language.

Lay back and enjoy it, I'd suggest. It can be a good opportunity to get to know some of your students in ways that can't really be achieved in formal classes.

Larry Latham