Xuezhi Hou - What brings me to teaching
It was my 1st grade of primary school when my parents helped to build my confidence of learning English.My father is an English teacher in China and he often teach me read English and asks me listen to English TV shows even though I can not understand. Only adapt to the tone that how native speakers speak. So, I could speak English when I was a small girl and my pronunciation may sounds better than other classmates but my grade is really poor, and I can speak what it was but I can not write very well. Besides, when I was a primary school student, I did not study very well, so I do not have confidence in learning Chinese ,math or even English. However, It was my 1st grade of primary school, there was an English speech competition among every town and I was chosen to be the competitor on behalf of my school because of my English spoken. At first I was really nervous because of my poor grade in Chinese and Math, I am not sure whether I can make good results. Finally, I got a second prize among my city. And my mother traveled with me to the Palace Museum ,and bought me small red wallet as a gift when I won the prize. After that I had the confidence in learning English and I became interested in English.
It was 2014 I began to learn what is teaching and how to teach. Before graduation I took a part time job at a physical primary school to taught 6th grade students to learn English. These students were all wanted to be an athletic when they graduated from school and they often full of energy, so when I first came to this school many teachers told me the students were very naughty and I must be strict to the students so that they could listen to me. However, I do not know how to have a cold face and asked to my father, then my father told me when teaching you should not always be a teacher but a friend to students is also very important. So, I keep my warm heart to these students and after that class a student told me,”This is the first English class that I have ever listen to and this is the first class I study English”. I was really moved by his words. I understand that if you respect students they would respect you too, if you make them as friends they will be friends with you too.
It was the year before last I decided to be an English teacher in the future. There are 56 nations in China, most of the Chinese are the Han nationality and I am Manchu, a member of minorities. When I was fresh graduate, my teacher asked to have English class for the students who come from minority areas. These students only speak their own nationality words before they enter high school, so they can just speak a little Chinese mandarin and they can not speak English at all. They study English when they enter university. They just like write papers. They learn what I told them and this made me feel a sense of achievement. Then I decided to be an English teacher in the future to teach students learning English in minority areas and to help them learn native English.
Thank you for sharing. The beauty of teaching is that it unites all teachers in the world together, regardless where we are from, even somewhere as far away as China. But what you said about being a not only a teacher, but a friend to your students is amazing. Sadly, many teachers only believe in being strict, even though sometimes understanding what a student is going through and trying to help them is a lot better solution than punishing them.
ReplyDeleteI think it is a great thing to overcome your fears and pursue something, even if you are not great it at from the beginning. Though it is fantastic that you won a competition on speaking English at such a young age. I agree that being a friend to your students can help some of them to succeed when they otherwise would not. You will make a great English teacher.
ReplyDeleteXiaoyan,
ReplyDeleteI liked what your father said, "Teaching you should not always be a teacher but a friend to students". It is true. I think that to be able to help students become successful one must create a good relationship with tridents. This is not to say that we are going to be irresponsible friends, but friends who care about them, understand where they come from, and that we can guide in the correct path.
Sorry Xuezh, I made mistake on your name.
DeleteThank you for sharing, as a child I also struggled with my confidence, because I too struggled in school, especially math! Yet, I feel like this helps us become better teachers because understanding how our students may struggle will help us empathize with them.
ReplyDeleteYour story is very powerful and a reminder of how important it is to value the human aspects of teaching. We are building relationships with students that are based in trust and a mutual commitment to see our students achieve their goals. I love the story that you share about receiving second place in the English speech competition despite feeling insecure in reference to your scores in Chinese and Math. This is an important reminder that our specific content area can make a powerful difference in the lives of our students. I love the pictures you share as well.
ReplyDelete