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Wide Range of English
Teaching Resources
Modern classrooms
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Teach English in China
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No day is ever quite the same for a teacher in Beijing. Below are some of our current teacher's views on the amazing and rewarding experiences they have had over the course of their time here:
Michael Wills
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Michael Wills |
How can one effectively pick up a new life, leaving behind just about everything, to escape the monotony of living at home? How can one immerse oneself within an occupation, culture, lifestyle that is so different from the "norm". It occurred to me, "How about teaching English in China"?
I can safely say that I needed to try something new, different and challenging. I needed to experience a life outside of the UK for longer than just the length of an average holiday. I wanted to learn about Chinese culture and Chinese food. I wanted everything I'd never had before and in coming to China, I've got a lot more than I ever expected.
You can travel in a country and enjoy everything that passes you by but you've rarely ever embraced and accepted by the indigenous people there. By working in China you can build a great rapport with so many Chinese students (and other foreigners to) giving you a true insight into what Chinese people think about their own country and the direction it's headed.
Among all of the students I've taught, there has been some that have stuck out as people I'll never forget.
One of my VIPs, a 12-year-old boy called Michael, who came to me and could barely understand any question I uttered. 6 months on, playing games, watching films, talking about cartoons and ambitions, I find myself excited by up coming lessons and Michael is now able to engage in conversation and express himself accurately. This entire program has been composed of 1-on-1 classes twice a week, in which we've established a very positive rapport that I find is essential in getting through to children so that they really want to learn how to express themselves. I am very proud of his progress and have learnt that his English tests scores at school have soared up to 98% and as a result he is top of the class.
My most memorable teaching moments; are normally memorable because of something that's gone wrong, or that I've found very funny due to a misuse of words.
For example, during the winter, I had a set of students studying at Real Life English on an intensive program. When we first met, we all introduced ourselves, where we're from, what we want to be etc…
Anyway, one, female student, talking about her dream job, said:
Her: I want to be an airhostess.
Me: Why is that?
Her: Well, I like to travel, and I like to service people.
Me: You mean you'd like to serve people. Yes?
Her: Ummmm….yeah!
Perceived innuendo: something that always comes up. Always a private laugh…..but always correct it! As a teacher, it is your obligation to correct such errors to prevent the student from future peril. No matter how awkward (or prurient) their expressions come across, it must be explained why they can't say such things. In my case, I was lucky I was with such an open and fun group of students.
Merritt Wilson:
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Merritt Wilson |
"I wanted to teach in China because I saw that china is becoming a competitive world player and I wanted to be a part of that. Additionally I majored in Chinese at university and following studying as a student at WLE I wanted to return to the country I'd fallen in love with. I love a challenge, and teaching English provides just that.
I've had some fascinating students and made a lot of friends amongst them, through one I've learned all about the fashion industry here, through another, about the Chinese legal system! Every experience is memorable and students can and often do pose unexpected or surprising questions that can completely change the dynamics of a class. I've enjoyed a lot of things about teaching in China, my own Chinese classes, the fabulous apartments, our teacher outings to different restaurants and places around Beijing as well as the ready made support network that exists among the teachers already working here."
Agatha So:
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Agatha So |
"I understood that English teachers were in high demand, especially with the upcoming Olympic Games and continual growth of international business in the country. So I decided to give it a shot, and applied for a position in Beijing. I had studied here in 2004, and knew that I needed a reason to return as soon as I could. Teaching gave me that opportunity, and according to previous testaments from abroad, English teachers were in fairly high demand in China.
I truly enjoy both the company and intelligence of the students. They are driven, dedicated, and motivated to learn English. They learn in order to improve employment opportunities, to improve their positions within a company, just to fulfill an interest to learn a foreign language, and to meet foreigners. At first, I thought that the students were all quite the same- working for the same goals, for the same reasons- sharing some unnaturally high drive to succeed in this very competitive atmosphere. After 6 months, it has become evident that all the students had very different hopes and dreams for themselves and future generations. Their drive not only exists in improving their English to improve their current situations, but they were also passionate about environmental protection, international relations, foreign culture, fashion and acting locally to improve the lives of those less fortunate in Beijing and in China. I enjoyed getting to know my students and their motivations.
I am currently teaching a 12-year-old girl in Wangfujing. She has been to several cities in the United States and plans to return this summer. She signed up with Real Life English to improve her spoken English and learn more about American culture. It has been a pleasure teaching her, as she is young, spirited, energetic, motivated, extremely busy, and understands that she has the intelligence to go very far in life.
It's hard to describe one memorable moment at RLE. There are several, but they are more related to outside the classroom discussion. I enjoy listening to our students and their concerns, always giving them encouragement.
Andrea Neihaus:
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Andrea Neihaus |
During my senior year of college, I began toying with the idea of traveling to China. I'd spent years of my studies focusing on the area and the desire to actually see all the places I'd read about in history books was becoming irrepressible. I knew that a few weeks wouldn't be long enough to explore China as in depth as I'd like. I also knew that after four years of studying, I didn't want to enroll in any study abroad programs. I realized that I was looking for an opportunity that would allow me to live and work in China in a position where I'd be able to get to know local Chinese people and customs. The more research I did online, the more I realized that teaching English in China was the opportunity that I was looking for. I thought it would allow me to communicate with people up close and to learn from them and at the same time I would be able to help them learn about subjects that they were interested in.
I am now nine months into a one year contract at Real Life English and in hindsight, I couldn't have made a better choice. In fact, I am struggling with the idea of going home and I am considering signing onto an extended contract. Teaching has been so interesting and rewarding that what at first was in a way a means to an end, has now become a career option.
My students definitely make it all worth it. It is so gratifying to watch their progress. One particular student stands out in that regard. His first day at the center, I sat down to chat with him in our Help Desk area. He had been placed in the Beginner level and was really struggling and frustrated just trying to have a basic conversation with me. After a lot of gesturing and drawing pictures, I learned his name, career and reasons for studying English. He told me he didn't have an English name and that he wanted me to give him one. As I was thinking it over, I noticed he was wearing a T-shirt from my college's rival football team. Another teacher at Real Life English is from my home state and attended my college's rival school. Knowing that she would inevitably see his shirt later that day, I named him after my college team's quarterback. So, Tate got a name. I explained why I chose to name him Tate and since then, it has been an inside joke between us. All jokes aside, Tate has been the model student. He has worked extremely hard and in just a few months, he has flown through three levels and is about to graduate to the Elementary B level.
I have also gained teaching experience at the corporate level. Their English classes are often at the end of their work day. The students are so dedicated, instead of just rushing home, many stay and take the class despite being tired or having had a long day. My most memorable corporate class had about twelve students. They were all looking exceptionally tired one day so I split them into groups and we preformed a small skit. Six students read different character parts and six others preformed the parts. The initial run, with no rehearsal, was hilarious for both the actors and the narrators. The play was "Jack and the Beanstalk." and ironically, the tallest man in the class chose to be Jack and the shortest opted for the giant. The part of the play where the giant tries to chase Jack down the beanstalk had everyone in stitches!
These are just two examples of the fun and the enjoyment that I've experienced while teaching. I look back on these past nine months and I know that I've had experiences I couldn't have received anywhere else or in any other profession. The best part has been seeing the wondrous improvement in my students' speaking abilities. They've learned so much, but they've also taught me more than I ever knew a person could learn in a classroom setting. I never would have pictured myself as a full time teacher and now I can't imagine doing anything else.
Matt Baker:
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Matt Baker |
I came to RLE to increase my teaching experience and expertise and to do so at the same time as experiencing another culture, I've really enjoyed the ability to interact with many different people from so many different cultures.
I taught at Google's Beijing headquarters for a semester which was a very interesting and new experience for me. Also, through teaching VIP students not only am I their teacher but through them I've learned a lot about Chinese culture, in fact, without that one on one contact I wouldn't have learned much of what I have.
One of the most memorable teaching experiences I had here was teaching the children at the Swedish school of Beijing, I got to learn about yet another culture whilst there, it was also a great change of pace from teaching adults.
World Link Education links the world in education, bridging language and cultural barriers to meet the changing needs of a global and diverse world.
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