Mental Breakdown

So, I've had some classes now. Got a few under my belt. I have no idea what I'm doing. Five of my seven classes are Tourism English. What is Tourism English you ask? You've got about as much idea as I have. There's no textbook so I'm kinda making it up as I go. Or right now I am anyway, hopefully I'll get to the point where I have a few weeks planned in advance. Right now it's all about survival. If I can just get through this first week...

While I was doing my student teaching I feel I was at my best when the students were with me; questioning me, arguing with me, interacting with me. This does not happen in China. I was warned about this, but that doesn't lessen the awkwardness. Were the weather in Wuhan conducive to crickets I would undoubtedly be able to hear a chorus of them during class. And despite my begging, pleading for questions, comments, feedback, anything! I am met with polite stares and complete silence. A problem I had during my student teaching was assuming too much. Like, I assumed they knew what I was talking about when, alot of the time, they had no idea. That is definitely going to be a problem here. In America the kids rarely hesitated to speak up and say "Hey, Mr. Jerkface, what are you talking about?" (I'm kidding, nameless-Dallas-suburb Junior High School students are very well behaved in my experience.) Chinese students will not stop me and ask questions. Supposedly it has something to do with the group-centered mindset prevalent in China as opposed to the individualism to which we Americans are raised. I have a couple of literature classes in which I'll rely more on lecture than activities. Anyway, I'm afraid I assumed way too much in those classes. It's hard to understand where these kids are at academically. On the one hand they are university students so you would think they would be pretty advanced right? But on the other hand English is their second langauge. At least second, sometimes third or even fourth. Having attempted to teach myself Mandarin with cd's and Greek out of a textbook I can say with some authority that learning a new langauge is freakin' hard.

History of British & American Fiction

A couple of things about the trip over. We left Los Angeles several hours after dark. I was on a window and could see, as we left, a sea of lights abruptly giving way to black sea with white crests crashing onto the shore. Awesome. One of the coolest things I've seen from an airplane. Then, a little over an hour from Hong Kong we flew over some huge city, I haven't a clue which, but it was also lights everywhere, except of course, where you could make out the river and tributaries and canals and lakes by the absence of light. Again, beautiful.

Oh yeah, one more thing. I'm doing great. No mental breakdown. I noticed the song in the library of my musical playlist apparatus and it occured to me that titling my post as such may, just may, cause a moment of panic among some of my readers. That, to me, is hilarious. If I may quote the inimitable Bugs Bunny, "aren't I a stinker?"