February 24, 2009

It's been a while since I have written. Since I have blogged I have managed to get two boxes of Chinese cultural items shipping off to the states -- I hope they make it back. The last time I mailed boxes from Nanning, in Southern China, to Nanjing, a beautiful shawl was missing from one of the packages. It is a frustrating thought that I may not have everything stateside that I sent.

Yesterday I began teaching again. Two of the three classes were those of students I have taught before -- and I was quite happy to see them again. The third class are sophomores who I have not taught over the last three quarters, it is a bit strange to be starting with a new group of students now that I am near the end of my time here.

The classrooms are of course not heated and are so spartan as not to even have a hook for the teacher's coat. I have to lay it on the desks in the front row of the class.

I went in to the lessons for the first day back to classes (8:00 a.m. class -- the very first one after winter break!) with only a loose idea of what we would accomplish. I knew that my students would not have spoken English during the break and would need time to connect brain and tongue again and being to form a foreign language in words and sentences. They all did admirably well in their endeavors....I am concerned about what will happen over the summer because during their junior and senior years they do not have Oral English. I have suggested that they tutor their families and friends in English to keep their skills fresh. This was not met with much enthusiasm.

Our discussions ranged from questions about how long it took to get home and how they got home -- most went by train, a few by bus and at least one by plane; to who was the first person they saw when they got to the train or bus station or to their home. We also discussed if they were warm at home. One student asked for clarification about did this mean was it warm outside at home or were they warm in their houses/apartments. This led further to the realization that if a climate is fairly warm during the winter and t-shirts can be worn outside there is unlikely to be any kind of heating inside and a person can end up needing to wear a coat in the home. On the other hand, if the climate is fiercely chilling then the homes are likely to have good central heating and while wearing coats outside, one can wear a t-shirt inside.

In one of the classes I was asked during the first hour so many questions about my trip to the Philippines and Japan that the second hour I canned the plan to have the students write and share how they celebrated Spring Festival (Chinese Lunar New Year) and instead I sat down with them and we had a question and answer period. I had been having the students write their experiences with SF because I've decided that instead of buying books about Chinese poetry and stories, I will collect those things from my students. They tell the stories in particular beautifully.

There were many good and persceptive questions asked. The one in particular that I am going to present here as a topic of: on the one hand (otoh) -- on the other hand (otoh)....is this: Is a lack of courtesy in a culture due to a lack of religions values or due to a lack of development, i.e. if a country is a third world developing country are the people less likely to be courteous and respectful to one another and foreigners.

Japan is a developed first world country and my experience there was that people were very respectful and polite. But Japan is not only developed it also has a religous heritage of Buddhism and to a degree of Christianity AND the code of ethics that is inherent in the Confucian tradition.

The Philippines is a third world developing country and I found people there to be polite as well, for the most part. The Philippines has a very large majority of Roman Catholics, a smaller minority of Christians, and relatively few people who do not observe a religion.

China is a third world (?) developing country and in my observation has a gaping hole when it comes to spiritual values which include those of respect and humility. I will continue myself to contemplate these observations and as I continue to visit/live in other parts of the world I will have a growing base of knowledge in evaluating this. Is it development or is it religion? Is it have increased contact with other cultures (development) and industrialization or is it having a belief that something outside of oneself has value and deserves courtesy and care?

I hope that for those who may read this blog that these questions will be useful in your own formulations of what is what and who is who.