"Look at all those wines inthis store!" I exclaimed tomy friend Georgie Wang." Indeed, " he replied ,"traditional Chinese alcohol has two categories: yellow and white. Yellow liquor, or huangj..."Look at all those wines inthis store!" I exclaimed tomy friend Georgie Wang." Indeed, " he replied ,"traditional Chinese alcohol has two categories: yellow and white. Yellow liquor, or huangjiu, is brewed from rice, wheat or millet.展开更多
My danwei,offered me not only a teaching job,but also a free bicycle,a free apartment,free medical insurance and free entertainment.我的单位不仅给我提供一份教书的工作,还免费给我提供自行车、住房、医保和娱乐活动。
When visiting Chinese cities,I am always amazed by the 21st century architecture and the combination of traditional Chinese aesthetics with avant-garde design.Chinese cities are amazing spaces to behold,always evoking...When visiting Chinese cities,I am always amazed by the 21st century architecture and the combination of traditional Chinese aesthetics with avant-garde design.Chinese cities are amazing spaces to behold,always evoking ideas of fluidity and diversity.展开更多
Confucius said, ＂By nature we converge; by custom, we diverge.＂ Simply put people from all cultures are endowed with thesame hardware; it＇s our cultural programming that makes us different. Language use cap- tures ...Confucius said, ＂By nature we converge; by custom, we diverge.＂ Simply put people from all cultures are endowed with thesame hardware; it＇s our cultural programming that makes us different. Language use cap- tures and shows differences in how we express ourselves via our specific cultural norms. As humans, we all can agree that we share similar needs and desires. Differences arise in the ways we express those elemental wants and needs. Specifically, how people make choices regard- ing politeness does not always easily translate across cultures.展开更多
The Chinese understand food. We all need to eat; people share food to become intimate with others, and food represents comfort and nourishes our bodies. Westerners sometimes forget the medicinal value of food but Chin...The Chinese understand food. We all need to eat; people share food to become intimate with others, and food represents comfort and nourishes our bodies. Westerners sometimes forget the medicinal value of food but Chinese people understand this well. They gratify themselves by eating but many of my Chinese friends also choose medicinal meals, either through traditional doctors, or via recipes, to focus on maintaining a balanced body.展开更多
The stories we tell about ourselves and others reflect the paradig- matic narratives we inhabit in oureveryday lives. In contrast to the Chinese, most Western people, either consciously or unconsciously, think about t...The stories we tell about ourselves and others reflect the paradig- matic narratives we inhabit in oureveryday lives. In contrast to the Chinese, most Western people, either consciously or unconsciously, think about their lives in terms of biblical narratives. Western children also learn and create ideas about reality from narratives in the form of fairy tales and fables.展开更多
Tbelieve Chinese teachers here have the best intentions in the world, Schools must measure and assess how students learn, yet evalualJng language learning is a particularlyslippery slope. It is difficult to assess at ...Tbelieve Chinese teachers here have the best intentions in the world, Schools must measure and assess how students learn, yet evalualJng language learning is a particularlyslippery slope. It is difficult to assess at any level.展开更多
After some years of living in China, I can safely say that words used by native Chinese speakers in the Chinese language do not have the same significance when heard by bilingual foreigners, or translated into foreign...After some years of living in China, I can safely say that words used by native Chinese speakers in the Chinese language do not have the same significance when heard by bilingual foreigners, or translated into foreign languages, such as English, for monolingual foreigners. A key difference seems to be that Chinese speakers do not take meanings as literally as Western speakers do. This disconnect goes beyond the cultural difference of Westerners being direct speakers and Chinese being in- direct speakers. Rather, it lies in the fact that for most Chinese I have met,展开更多
In China, English language teaching effectiveness appears as a complex thing to assess, prinlarily because variousvariables exist in evaluating a teacher, foreign or otherwise. One obvious consideration is the fact th...In China, English language teaching effectiveness appears as a complex thing to assess, prinlarily because variousvariables exist in evaluating a teacher, foreign or otherwise. One obvious consideration is the fact that classrooms are large, with 50-60 students attending a lecture. Class size must be considered in any evaluation regarding methodology, especially methodologies that advocate for communicative language learning strategies. Nevertheless. many people have asked me to comment on what makes an effective English teacher in China.展开更多
People in every culture tend to regard the way they do things as ＂normal.＂ This includes the communicative practices and norms that people learn from interacting inside their culture. But in regard to ways of speaking.
China has become an economic super- power, but that success is not contingent on Chinese businessmen, governmentofficials, and other elites on having assimilated into a Western style of communication. There are still ...China has become an economic super- power, but that success is not contingent on Chinese businessmen, governmentofficials, and other elites on having assimilated into a Western style of communication. There are still vast differences in the ways in which Chinese interact with Western people, and with the world at large. Significantly,展开更多
My expat friends are always telling me modem Chinese society is undergoing rapid and perhaps destructive change.My response is to tell ~em that the Chinese halve historically been open in acquiring and incorporat- ing...My expat friends are always telling me modem Chinese society is undergoing rapid and perhaps destructive change.My response is to tell ~em that the Chinese halve historically been open in acquiring and incorporat- ing foreign objects and technologies, and that this process has made China a great nation. It is a myth to think that Chinese people have only recently-- since the opening-up policy starting in the late 1970s--become interested in Western ideas and things. For example, many common items evenj Chinese knows and uses today were imported from outside：展开更多
A Imost every day I am asked by someone in China to teach English. Professors ask me to come to their classes; friends ask me to tutor their children; deans ask me to join their foreign language departments. This cons...A Imost every day I am asked by someone in China to teach English. Professors ask me to come to their classes; friends ask me to tutor their children; deans ask me to join their foreign language departments. This constant bah＇age of requests for English teaching services, however, has led me to think about the Chinese obsession with English,展开更多
Foreigners living in China agree that Chinese students of all ages are filial： very respectful to their family and elders. My friend Linda Liu explained to me that filial pie~ remains alive in modem China. This behav...Foreigners living in China agree that Chinese students of all ages are filial： very respectful to their family and elders. My friend Linda Liu explained to me that filial pie~ remains alive in modem China. This behavior is learned at a very early age, as children learn to read.展开更多
Today’s modern world has increased the speed in the way we as individuals and as cultural groups,think,feel,and respond to our world and the people in it with us.This is because of enormous changes in media and migra...Today’s modern world has increased the speed in the way we as individuals and as cultural groups,think,feel,and respond to our world and the people in it with us.This is because of enormous changes in media and migration.Digital media（Internet,cell phones）and migratory freedoms offer savvy youth in particular more access to all kinds of resources,both tangible and intangible.展开更多
I like to ride a bicycle in Beijing. But in the last 10 years automobile traffic has increased noticeably. When I go to Hohhot to stay with friends, I’ve noticed more cars on the streets. Bicycles are no longer the p...I like to ride a bicycle in Beijing. But in the last 10 years automobile traffic has increased noticeably. When I go to Hohhot to stay with friends, I’ve noticed more cars on the streets. Bicycles are no longer the prima-展开更多
"Did you know that my hometown, Shanghai, is famous for peaches," Tingting asked. "Peaches?" I replied. "I thought Shanghai was a legendary seaport," I said.
文摘"Look at all those wines inthis store!" I exclaimed tomy friend Georgie Wang." Indeed, " he replied ,"traditional Chinese alcohol has two categories: yellow and white. Yellow liquor, or huangjiu, is brewed from rice, wheat or millet.
文摘My danwei,offered me not only a teaching job,but also a free bicycle,a free apartment,free medical insurance and free entertainment.我的单位不仅给我提供一份教书的工作,还免费给我提供自行车、住房、医保和娱乐活动。
文摘When visiting Chinese cities,I am always amazed by the 21st century architecture and the combination of traditional Chinese aesthetics with avant-garde design.Chinese cities are amazing spaces to behold,always evoking ideas of fluidity and diversity.
文摘Confucius said, ＂By nature we converge; by custom, we diverge.＂ Simply put people from all cultures are endowed with thesame hardware; it＇s our cultural programming that makes us different. Language use cap- tures and shows differences in how we express ourselves via our specific cultural norms. As humans, we all can agree that we share similar needs and desires. Differences arise in the ways we express those elemental wants and needs. Specifically, how people make choices regard- ing politeness does not always easily translate across cultures.
文摘The Chinese understand food. We all need to eat; people share food to become intimate with others, and food represents comfort and nourishes our bodies. Westerners sometimes forget the medicinal value of food but Chinese people understand this well. They gratify themselves by eating but many of my Chinese friends also choose medicinal meals, either through traditional doctors, or via recipes, to focus on maintaining a balanced body.
文摘The stories we tell about ourselves and others reflect the paradig- matic narratives we inhabit in oureveryday lives. In contrast to the Chinese, most Western people, either consciously or unconsciously, think about their lives in terms of biblical narratives. Western children also learn and create ideas about reality from narratives in the form of fairy tales and fables.
文摘Tbelieve Chinese teachers here have the best intentions in the world, Schools must measure and assess how students learn, yet evalualJng language learning is a particularlyslippery slope. It is difficult to assess at any level.
文摘After some years of living in China, I can safely say that words used by native Chinese speakers in the Chinese language do not have the same significance when heard by bilingual foreigners, or translated into foreign languages, such as English, for monolingual foreigners. A key difference seems to be that Chinese speakers do not take meanings as literally as Western speakers do. This disconnect goes beyond the cultural difference of Westerners being direct speakers and Chinese being in- direct speakers. Rather, it lies in the fact that for most Chinese I have met,
文摘In China, English language teaching effectiveness appears as a complex thing to assess, prinlarily because variousvariables exist in evaluating a teacher, foreign or otherwise. One obvious consideration is the fact that classrooms are large, with 50-60 students attending a lecture. Class size must be considered in any evaluation regarding methodology, especially methodologies that advocate for communicative language learning strategies. Nevertheless. many people have asked me to comment on what makes an effective English teacher in China.
文摘People in every culture tend to regard the way they do things as ＂normal.＂ This includes the communicative practices and norms that people learn from interacting inside their culture. But in regard to ways of speaking.
文摘China has become an economic super- power, but that success is not contingent on Chinese businessmen, governmentofficials, and other elites on having assimilated into a Western style of communication. There are still vast differences in the ways in which Chinese interact with Western people, and with the world at large. Significantly,
文摘My expat friends are always telling me modem Chinese society is undergoing rapid and perhaps destructive change.My response is to tell ~em that the Chinese halve historically been open in acquiring and incorporat- ing foreign objects and technologies, and that this process has made China a great nation. It is a myth to think that Chinese people have only recently-- since the opening-up policy starting in the late 1970s--become interested in Western ideas and things. For example, many common items evenj Chinese knows and uses today were imported from outside：
文摘A Imost every day I am asked by someone in China to teach English. Professors ask me to come to their classes; friends ask me to tutor their children; deans ask me to join their foreign language departments. This constant bah＇age of requests for English teaching services, however, has led me to think about the Chinese obsession with English,
文摘Foreigners living in China agree that Chinese students of all ages are filial： very respectful to their family and elders. My friend Linda Liu explained to me that filial pie~ remains alive in modem China. This behavior is learned at a very early age, as children learn to read.
文摘Today’s modern world has increased the speed in the way we as individuals and as cultural groups,think,feel,and respond to our world and the people in it with us.This is because of enormous changes in media and migration.Digital media（Internet,cell phones）and migratory freedoms offer savvy youth in particular more access to all kinds of resources,both tangible and intangible.
文摘I like to ride a bicycle in Beijing. But in the last 10 years automobile traffic has increased noticeably. When I go to Hohhot to stay with friends, I’ve noticed more cars on the streets. Bicycles are no longer the prima-
文摘"Did you know that my hometown, Shanghai, is famous for peaches," Tingting asked. "Peaches?" I replied. "I thought Shanghai was a legendary seaport," I said.
