A Teachers Handbook

I REALISE THIS IS VERY LONG but coupled with LONELY PLANET'S Guide to China, it has a lot of essential info so please grab a coffee and sit back and read ... (as of 2002)

The People's Republic of China

Area : 9,571,300 sq km ( 3,695,500 sq miles) : 33% mountainous, 26% plateaux

Popn : 1,295. 33 million, according to the communique on major figures of the 2000 population census. 22% of the world's popn.

Capital : Beijing (Peking)

Geography

China is bound to the North by the USSR and Mongolia, to the east by Korea, the Yellow Sea and the East China Sea (with Hong Kong and Macau as enclaves on the southeast coast), to the South by Vietnam, Laos, Burma, India, Bhutan and Nepal, and to the West by India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and the USSR.

Religion

3 principal religions are Buddhism, Daoism and the philosophic rules of Confucianism.

Vaccinations

Normally Typhoid Fever, Hep A, (Hep B advised), Polio, Tetanus but please check with your current GP. For Emergency numbers please contact your Embassy.

Currency :

1 Yuan Ren Min Bi (colloq. "quai" = 10 jiao (colloq. "mao") = 100 fen

Notes in denomination of 100, 50, 10, 5, 2, 1 and 5, 2, 1 jiao

Coins in denom of 5, 2, 1 fen

Banking

Hours 09:00-17:00 Mon-Fri, 09:00-17:00 Saturday & Sunday

Major banks allow foreigners to open accounts with only a passport. You are asked to fill one simple form and enter a 6 digit pin number of your choice .. you need this number for any transaction thereafter. ATM's are available in most large department stores but again this varies as to the development of the area.

Telephones

IP and IC phones can be seen on every street corner and cards are available normally for less than their value of either 50 or 100Yuan. IC cards are for China only, IP are satellite phone cards and can be used for any international call. Mobile phones are extremely cheap though tariffs can be quite confusing. It may be worthwhile investing in a local/ national mobile phone for around 400Yuan (phone & SIM card).

Social Conventions

Chinese do not usually volunteer information and you are advised to ask questions. Criticisms are seriously considered and asked for by hotels, dining cars, restaurants. Chinese are generally reserved in manner, extremely courteous but preferring this to familiarity. Criticism of Chinese leadership should be avoided !

Hand shaking may be sufficient but do not be surprised at a round of applause as a greeting, to which you may return the compliment.

The family (sur-) name is always mentioned first.

It is customary to arrive a little early if invited out socially, also taking a treat such as fruit, confectionery or a souvenir from home. Toasting is very common at a meal. Please remember that GAMBAI means "drink it all .. bottoms up" and you have to !! If you don't wish to participate in beer or massively high-proof rice wine then make this clear at the outset of your hosts banquet so as not to offend !!

Conservative informal wear is generally acceptable but revealing clothing may cause offence.

Tipping is officially not allowed and often considered an insult ! (Except to cabbies !!)

Transport

Taxis are extremely cheap starting at only 3/5Yuan for the first 3km, 7-10Yuan in the large cities, then probably around 1.5 for every km after. Try to learn about the local buses which are excellent (if not crammed and old). These can take you 50 miles for around 10Yuan. Local buses are only 1Yuan, again differing in every area but a very cheap form of transport.

WHAT TO EXPECT

Teaching English in China can become one of three things: a wonderful way to spend time in a foreign country; an experience that can lead to a career; or an experience that doesn't live up to it's expectations. Fresh westerners tend to get whacked by the culture shock and veer towards the latter in their first few weeks be wary of this fact and realise its NOT JUST YOU !!

What kind of experience a foreign teacher gets depends mostly on the teacher. Foreign teachers are guests welcomed by people who know as little about the teacher as the teacher does of them. The best way to ensure a successful term of teaching is through research, sincerity, tolerance, tolerance and tolerance. China is also relatively new to the whole idea of TEFL/ ESL .. Schools have little or no idea about the teaching methods used, have had no experience of using all the resources available today and have few materials to help us along the way e.g. photocopying facilities for 5000 students. Teaching methods in China are quite different from Western methods, as is the teacher student relationship. Days are long and study regimes are fairly severe to what we are accustomed to. The rote method of teaching is practiced most often and students seldom ask questions of their teachers. Keeping lessons simple and to the point helps to ensure understanding by the student. Also good teachers will want to know their students; their ability, their age, and their interests, so that lessons can be better made to fit the students. Many of the foreign English teachers in China had never taught prior to coming to China, but because they cared, were successful teachers. You may be teaching a group of 12 or struggling with a group of 80+ !

When one talks of cultures in the world, sometimes they are divided into two main categories, Western and Eastern. Many Westerners have been exposed to very little of the East, and therefore find it an intriguing and mysterious world. But travelling to these countries as a tourist may only provide a small glimpse into the everyday life of the people there. Foreign English teachers in China have a chance to not only learn the language and customs of their host country, but many have also been accepted into their community. As a teacher it is possible that you will be invited into people's homes, to special events, to weddings and to special destinations in that country by your new native friends. After some time teachers have an understanding of daily life in their community, revelling often in its simplicity. Simple, often very basic, and difficult due to the language barrier .. do not underestimate the power of culture shock and try to ready yourself for the rollercoaster. Alternatively, sit back and enjoy the ride.

There is NO concept of privacy as the Chinese share their country with ¼ of the worlds population ! The country is, however, developing fast though you need, again, tolerance, to realise that although there is now ADSL internet in most areas, it takes a lot longer to rebuild the infrastructure. A lot of China prior to the 2008 Beijing/ Qingdao Olympics is now under construction and that includes the plumbing systems ! Be ready to squat over a hole in the floor, though western toilets can be found more and more often (including in standard teacher accommodations which are normally brand new. Please be aware here that anything more than just a couple of sheets of toilet paper can block the system !!!) Water is supplied in bottles or more modern hot & cold office-style dispensers and cannot be drunk from the tap. Of course every country in Asia has been greatly influenced by Western culture, and the foreign teacher is never too far away from some western pleasures. Coca-Cola and Colgate toothpaste, Herbal Remedies Shampoo, Danone Yoghurts and Mars Bars can be found in the growing shopping malls and food halls. Along with the Western cultural aspects in these countries there are of course many expatriates who reside there. Along with gaining new foreign friends many Westerners who are teachers build great relationships with other foreign teachers. These new friends can be great sources of information about teaching and living in a foreign country.

It is a teachers responsibility to find out as much as they can before they arrive in Asia. Not only should a teacher study a bit about the country where they will be working, but also as much about the school as they can. There have been numerous books and web pages written which pertain specifically to ESL teaching. Some of the web pages have bulletin boards where contacts can be made with other foreign teachers who are living overseas. Ask to talk to previous or present teachers at the school. As with all research, the more resources you use, the better understanding you will have. Dave Sperlings www.eslcafe.com is an excellent choice though tends to be an outlet for many of the non-too-tolerant to vent their frustrations. Go look and see the truths about your chosen workplace, some good, some bad.

China has incredible extremes; beauty and ugliness, wealth and poverty, corruption and kindness, intrigue and boredom. The Chinese are accustomed to relentless days, (how we can often see their lifestyles) but there is an amazing lesson and experience to be taken from it. You need only read a little of their history to understand their passive nature. The little shopkeeper who sets up her shop every morning at 6am, in the freezing winter, outside her block of flats on her little street, for example. All day she'll sit there and sell bags of UHT milk (there is no fresh milk in China except perhaps in Beijing) and sweets and instant noodles (masses of these !!). She'll wrap up very warmly but sit there all day, eat her lunch there, fall asleep around 1pm while her neighbouring shopkeeper watches over things. She'll wake up and remain as she was, restart some knitting and watch her neighbours and world go by, talking, chatting, occasionally getting up and doing some jumping and stretching to keep warm. She'll do this 365 days a year. Most Chinese cannot afford heating in winter and simply wrap up and go to sleep early at night. Around 9pm / 10pm the little shopkeeper will pack all the things away in the makeshift shed attached to the side of her block of flats and go home to rest for the night. Her husband helps her to run the shop when she needs to go buy vegetables for dinner (they were both laid off from a nearby factory at only 50 yrs old). Their meals will have a small amount of meat, but mainly vegetables and of course always rice. The shopkeeper is lucky to make 50RMB a day in profit but it buys her daughter new clothes and school books. BUT .. this shopkeeper still bought me headache pills and stomach pills and made my children and I a huge meal with fish and meat, one day when I was sick. She lives in my street, her name is Gao Ling. This is a country that can teach you about true friendship and tolerance. STICK WITH IT until you find your shopkeeper (Ali Lowndes 1 Dec 2002)

HISTORY

China can claim to have the worlds oldest continuous civilisation. The country itself consisted of a number of states vying for supremacy over each other until 221BC when the state of Qin (Ch'in) had become powerful enough to unify China as a single empire for the first time. The terracotta army at Xi'an, which guards his tomb, still bears witness to the achievement of the first emporer, Qin Shihuang. Although the Qin Dynasty was short-lived, the succeeding Han Dynasty endured for over 400 years. During much of Chinas history the collapse of a dynasty or the accession of a weak ruler would often result in the countrys fragmentation into smaller kingdoms until re-united once again under a new powerful dynasty. In the period of disunion following the Han dynasty, Buddhism reached China along the silk route from Central Asia. The Tang Dynasty (AD618-907) was a period of outstanding cultural achievement during which time the Chinese civilisation spread to Korea, Japan and South East Asia. In the 13th Century, the Mongols under Jenghis Khan overran Asia and in 1271 Jenghiss grandson Kublai Khan founded the Yuan Dynasty. It was during this period that Marco Polo visited China. In 1368 Chinese rule was re-established by the Ming Dynasty, which built the Great Wall to prevent further incursions from the north. Despite this the Manchus invaded China and founded their own Qing (Ch'ing) Dynasty in 1644.

Modern Chinese history begins in 1840 with the Opium wars when Britain and other European powers imposed their will upon the ailing Qing Dynasty, forcing the Chinese to recognise the superior military technology of the barbarian West. Following the fall of the Qing Dynasty in 1911, Sun Yat-sen founded the Republic of China, but the country was plagued by civil war and warlordism, and in 1937 the Japanese took advantage by invading. Following the defeat of the Japanese in 1945, civil war ensued between the Nationalists under Chiang Kai-shek and the communists under Mao Zedong. In 1949, the defeated Nationalists fled to Taiwan and established their own government, allowing Mao to found the Peoples Republic of China on the mainland and thus re-uniting the country again. Mao ruled until his death in 1976. His rule and legacy have had the most profound effect on the nation.

In the early days of the Peoples Republic, China forged a close alliance with the Soviet Union, receiving considerable economical and technical assistance and adopting many Soviet methods of development. Policy disagreements and personal antipathy between Chinese and Soviet leaders, however, caused increasing strains between the 2 countries, who all but broke off relations in 1960. In the following decade there were a number of border clashes and the Sino-Soviet frontier region remains one of the extensively militarised anywhere in the world.

Internally, the 1960s were dominated by the Cultural Revolution, a comprehensive attempt by Mao to introduce a highly fundamentalist brand of socialism to China. During the late 1960s and early 1970s, in contrast to its public image of isolation and self-development, China opened up clandestine contacts with the West, principally the United States, paving the way for President Richard Nixons historic visit to China in 1972. Since then, the Peoples Republic of China has forged closer ties with the West, particularly in the economic field, where the country is seeking Western capital and technology to build up its Special Economic Zones, such as Shenzen and Guangzhou in the southeast which are released from the constraints of a command economy. Since Maos death, the dominant political figure in China has been Deng Xiaoping. Denounced and disgraced during the Cultural Revolution, but since rehabilitated, Deng Xiaoping has orchestrated the political and economic liberalisation at the heart of Chinese domestic and foreign policies since the mid 1970s. Recent friction within the top party leadership has often stemmed from the pace and scope of the reforms, which have produced some unwelcome capitalistic by-products in the form of inflation, unemployment, as well as vocal popular criticism. This subsequently led to the major crackdown in the summer of 1989. Another of the regimes difficulties concerns the cultural, religious, ethnic and political problems in Tibet, annexed by the Chinese in 1950 and now run as an autonomous region. The Province, whose indigenous inhabitants draw inspiration from their exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama (Nobel Peace Prize winner, 1989) have experienced a large influx of Han Chinese and repression of cultural and religious traditions. Buddhist monks have been at the heart of the protests, with many arrested. In 1988, elections for the 5-member Standing Committee produced a balance of reformers and conservatives. However, major tensions were building up beneath the surface, breaking out in the form of mass demonstrations at the end of May 1989. The campaign was led by students from the major urban universities, articulating demands from a wide cross-section of society for the introduction of democratic reforms, principally freedom of speech and an end to censorship, and the elimination of the corruption within the Communist Party which had flourished since the economic reforms were first introduced. Demonstrations and sit-ins occurred throughout the country, with the largest, involving hundreds of thousands of people (workers, party cadres as well as students) taking place in the heart of Peking in Tian-an-Men Square. These began shortly before the arrival of Mikhail Gorbachev for the first meeting between Chinese and Soviet leaders since the acrimonious Sino-Soviet split in 1961. Later on, the Soviet government was notably muted in its reaction to the crushing of the demonstrations, in which an unknown number of people were killed. After Tian-an-Men Square was cleared, the Chinese government embarked on a fierce campaign against the counter-revolutionaries as Deng Xiaoping reasserted control, assisted by Premier Li Peng and internal security chief Qiao Shi. Having saved the nation from chaos, Deng Xiaoping resigned in November 1989, his successor was Jiang Zemin, although Jiangs current hold on the reins of power is widely felt to be conditional on Dengs continued survival. Relations with its southern neighbour, Vietnam, showed a marked improvement during 1990 as the move towards a settlement of the civil war in Cambodia fostered closer links between Vietnam and China. The government, The National Peoples Congress (NPC) is the most powerful organ, and elects the Standing Committee which holds executive power and comprises the Premier and leading ministers. The Communist Party controls everything.

Climate

Chinas enormous size means it has a great diversity of climates. The northeast experiences hot and dry summers and bitterly cold winters. The north and central region has almost continual rainfall, hot summers and cold winters. The southeast region has substantial rainfall, with semi-tropical summers and cool winters.

British Embassy

11 Guang Hua Lu

Jian Guo Men Wai

Beijing

PRChina Tel 010 6532 1961/ 3 or for the Consulate Contact Ruby Li on 8529 6600 ext 3363 (she's lovely)

Clothes

Probably most of your clothes were made in China and generally clothes in China are very cheap. However, many of the clothes styles and sizing, that you are used to are only manufactured for export and so you may have

trouble finding them in China. Unless you are petite you will probably have problems getting shoes or clothes to fit. You should bring your favorite and most practical clothes for each season, and top up here if necessary.

You should bring:

Good walking shoes, Summer sandals and Winter boots (preferably water/snow-proof)

Good socks for summer and winter (thin cotton/thick warm woollen ones)

Cool summer clothes and warm winter clothes, including sweaters, long underwear, and thermals

A good quality warm jacket, a warm woollen hat and gloves for winter

A swim suit, a sun hat & sunglasses.

Food

What foods can't you do without? Actually, most foods are available somewhere in China, it is just a matter of finding them. Or adapting. So just bring along the items that mean the most to you like flavoured tea etc. Butter is rare to find since the population use vegetable, peanut or sunflower oil to cook everything. Olive oil is available in the major cities but for an extortionate rate. You need to carry around tissues if you need to use public toilets, even in restaurants. Deoderant is rare to find here too, apparently the chinese just don't need it !!

Books and Teaching Resources

Obtain a good Mandarin Chinese phrasebook. The Lonely Planet Mandarin Phrasebook is recommended. A copy of the Rough Guide or The Lonely Planet Guide to China is also useful.

Buy a good teach-yourself Chinese (Mandarin) book (and tapes if you like to study alone). Chinese study books can be difficult to find once in China. The language is reliant on the 4 main tones and therefore can only be grasped fully when listened to.

Bring one or two good teaching books for reference. We can make some suggestions if you like.

Bring some interesting things to show and share. E.g. Souvenirs and maps of your hometown and country, photos, a cricket ball, a boomerang, post cards, calendars.

Props for teaching.

Perhaps: Musical instruments, hand puppets, song tapes.

A large supply of little things to reward good work, e.g. A bag of coins, used telephone cards, NZ/Australian/British/U.S./ Canadian or other international stamps, shells from the beach, etc.

Class sets of 30 props. E.g. Supermarket pamphlets, pamphlets, brochures, recipe cards.

Things to decorate your classroom like large posters (Health, Education and

Conservation posters), maps and pictures.

A metal tie/jacket pin with your national symbol/flag, indigenous items/crafts/artwork or toy national

animals (for children) are very popular.

Money

Unless you are a heavy spender, your wage will be adequate for you to live and travel in China. However, it will probably be one or two weeks before you get you first pay, so it is a good idea to bring about US$250 with you

to cover your first living expenses. Bring extra if you want to travel extensively in comfort.

Cash is always best as there will be no problems changing to local currency, whereas credit cards and travellers cheques can only be used in certain cities.

Computers and Electric Things

The power supply in China is 220 volts 50hz which is compatible with most countries except the US.

99.9% of all computers in China are IBM based, and software is not easily available for other machines.

Internet cafes are very common and cheap at 2 RMB per hour.

Electronic goods produced in China may be cheaper than are available at home. But not much, and the quality of those cheaper products is generally lower. Non-Chinese brands are likely to be more expensive than at home. So

for things like laptops and digital cameras - bring them with you.

Cosmetics and Pharmaceuticals

As well as a standard first aid kit (including steri-strips, sterile wound dressing, tape, antiseptic etc.), it's a good idea to bring a few other medical supplies. Cough mixture, throat lozenges, painkillers, anti-diarrhoea medication, and rehydration mix are the ones you are most likely to use. However, if you require prescription medications, try to bring enough for the length of your stay in China, and bring the original prescription, or a signed and stamped note from your Doctor explaining the medicine. Same with homeopathic or herbal remedies. Multi-vitamins, calcium or multi-mineral formulation, vitamin C and iodized salt (salt in China is not iodized) etc are also good ideas.

All schools provide limited medical insurance for their teachers which covers most doctors' visits, medicines and a percentage of hospital costs.

However, if you want a more comprehensive insurance, it pays to purchase Travel/Medical insurance before you leave home.

What not to bring

There are few restrictions about what you can bring into China, the main ones being:

Drugs

Excessive religious materials (single copies for personal use are ok)

Pornographic materials

Materials that are anti-China, or considered detrimental to China. Nothing pro-Taiwan or Tibetan independence should be brought into China.

General

Teaching English in China provides a wonderful opportunity to not only experience living in a different culture, but to visit what was previously very distant lands. Foreign teachers sometimes get disgruntled when their priorities are more aligned with those of a tourist. Most schools in China understand that foreign teachers would enjoy a vacation period to explore their host country further. However many Chinese very seldom take vacations, and if they are, they are usually for only one week. If a teacher's vacation time coincides with a national holiday, it makes travelling very difficult. Researching vacation and free time prior to signing a contract is better than complaining later and sounding insincere.

Teaching in China, like anywhere, has its ups and downs. There are days when the sun shines, you have water to bathe, no one looks at you funny on the bus, your boss greets you with a smile and hands you your salary on time, all of your students remain on task and there was nothing funny in the soup you ate at dinner. This is opposed to a day when is everything is completely the opposite. On those days it is best to be tolerant and be aware that you are living in a foreign country.

People who are native to a foreign country often have very different ideas and ways of doing things. These ideas and ways are part of their culture, cultures that in China have been around for much longer than a number of Western countries. The foreign English teacher should remember to tolerate those ideas, even if they are not their own. Sharing different views is part of the experience of living in China, not condemning the differences.

(Wow .. you read to the end .. Happy Teaching !!) Ali x

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