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Q: How do Chinese students communicate with English teachers in class ?
3 years 41 weeks ago in Teaching & Learning - China
they speak English - it is why they are there.
icnif77:
I heard that some 30-years ago ... from the pusher of Esperanto course. I had quick look into it and ... it's a mixture of several languages ... Italian, Latin, some krout and more.
You can't beat English as an international language even if the Chinese population double tomorrow ...
When I was kid, my gran was constantly repeating: "Do I speak Chinese ...?" 
'cause we kids wouldn't follow her commands ... She really wanted to say: "You didn't understand me, ... did you?"
Sandnose:
Yeah I wonder what ever gapped to Esperanto? As you say the inventers were probably the only people pushing it. Klingon is probably more widely spoken.
Science, commerce, diplomacy and profanity are universally done in English, right or wrong.
It is a bit fun to learn and speak other languages but it is really just for fun and hanging on to cultural traditions. English is the universal language.
icnif77:
It was fun 
when my Chinese vocabulary was 'im-bi', 'neu-bi' and 'sha-bi' ... and holding 10 Rmb note pointig at the president's pic, trying to get coins for the bus from bank teller.
I heard 'meiyou' twice ... and at my third try, she handed me coins with smirk on her face. 
I really wasn't sure, which of the three was the right word.
For younger learners, there is often a Chinese assistant called a teaching assistant. For intermediate learners, their English is often goo enough to get through a course. Most Chinese in schools designed to get them overseas, their English is good enough. Not to mention, most Chinese have a basic understanding of English through their education. Most Chinese have been studying English since grade 1 or grade 3.
In the workplace I teach at, most of the students are very shy to speak with teachers in class. The best thing to do is maybe after class, ask them if they need assistance with something if they do not understand.
sorrel:
the best thing you can do for your students is let them know if they need any assistance, they should ask you after class for help.
put the onus on them to do the work (asking), not holding their hand all the time.
they have to learn to be self-motivated - you are not their parent.
JohnsonZHANG6868:
@sorrel
they are university students. some of them do ask the teachers after class for help but not much because of their heavy schedule...
sorrel:
@ Johnson,
the key thing to remember is that it is not your job to run after the students asking them if they need your help.
certainly when I was a student in univeristy, the onus was on me to learn to manage my time and my studies, and ask any question that I needed the answer to, or if I required any assistance.
one thing i did when i was advise students that i would have extra oral practice sessions (during my free time), that they were free to attend (or not), my only requirement was that they actively participate and contribute.
those students who asked me questions became more confident and fluent.
I could not be chasing after each and every one of them to work on their english, but i was always willing to give extra help those who came to me.
You are not their parent, and they have to learn to be responsible adults, responsible for their own lives.
when learning a language, you have to put in the effort and practice, like learning a musical instrument.
I was always clear about my expectations from the students and i treated them like adults who were responsible for their own progress.
JohnsonZHANG6868:
@sorrel
That's actually a good plan. I will do that in "Week 1" lesson for each level I teach. Brilliant!
sorrel:
treat the students like adults and let them know that you expect them to behave like adults.
they will make mistakes (who doesn't?) but they have to take responsibilty for their learning - mistakes and all.
Through telepathy or osmosis. Could even be by diffusion or absorption.
Certainly not by cogent intellectual exchanges between master and students.
