Teacher from China shares her culture with students
Her story is fascinating. I listened intently for over two hours as she told me about her life.
Hongyan Sheng is a teacher from China who is in Batavia for a teacher exchange program through the AFS Visiting Teacher Program. She is currently working at Hoover-Wood Elementary School but will be moving to the Rotolo Middle School next semester.
She is an English teacher from the Shanxi Shelley Developing School, a private boarding school in the province of Shanxi. She is married and will spend a year away from her husband and other family and friends.
Sheng is living with Naomi Krodel an ELL teacher at Hoover-Wood and J.B. Nelson. Krodel has traveled extensively and appreciates what her new house guest can bring to the community.
"To be able to share her culture with our students is invaluable," Krodel said. "It's a way for the students to learn what life is like in China."
A typical day for a Chinese student who attends Sheng's school is quite different from a day at a school in Batavia. With more than 1,000 students in the elementary/middle school, it has a detailed schedule that starts at 6:30 a.m. and ends at 10 p.m. As a teacher, Sheng is with her students for the entire day.
The core courses of math, reading in English and Chinese, and writing are in the morning. In the afternoon, students have their special classes which include computers, social studies art, music and physical education.
Exercise is built into different periods of the day along with eye exercises to relax the eyes and stimulate the brain.
"Many people in China wear glasses," Sheng said. "So it is important to relax the eyes during the day."
For five minutes in the morning and afternoon the students go through a series of facial exercises to relax the areas around the eyes. It is a regular part of their day along with outdoor exercises and running and dancing. The physical activity takes place many times throughout the day for short stints, sometimes lasting 15 minutes or less.
During lunch the students must speak quietly and set about the task of finishing their meal. After lunch there is some social time outside but most use the time to play. Then there is free reading where students can either read on their own or rest. Often the teachers use the time for class preparation.
The teachers are with the students during lunch and the teachers for the younger grades serve the food for their classes. In the evening, some teachers might get an occasional night off but others must be available to help with homework.
After dinner the students work on homework and a teacher is always available to offer help and answer questions.
Students are never reprimanded or punished in front of other students. If a student needs to be disciplined the child is taken to their teacher and he or she handles the problem privately.
"In our school, because it is a boarding school, the teacher often takes on the role of the parent," added Sheng.
All of the students in the school start each day reciting the goals of the school, which are similar to our character counts program. They also are reminded to work hard to learn.
In spite of the hard work and long hours, Sheng loves being a teacher, her school and her students. She is thrilled to be here in the Untied States and to be able to take her experiences back to China.
So what has she found unusual about our culture?
"The dogs," she responded. "In China, dogs are often kept outside, not in the house. Here they are part of the family."
Sheng hopes to be able to teach some park district classes about the Chinese culture while she is here. It would be well worth your time to sign up for her class. When we can appreciate our differences, we can find it easier understand one another.