Week Sixteen - Professional

I have come to realise over the last couple of weeks just how different the teaching styles are between Northern Ireland and Hong Kong. While I have thoroughly enjoyed my time teaching here, I cannot deny that it has been challenging teaching English as a second language to the children here and it has shown me how difficult it can be for teachers back home who are faced with teaching children with ESL who speak very little English. One of the hardest aspects has been trying to motivate and encourage children who have very little English vocabulary, as many of the children who originally come from Mainland China are not very open to learning English and I get the sense that some wonder how important it is to learn English. It is obviously difficult for them to progress and develop their language skills as the few English lessons they have during the week must be the only times they hear the language being spoken, due to the fact most of their parents do not understand any English. 

The girls giving me a tour of the Old Railway Station

The sights and smells of Tai Po Market

The school has been looking to use the 5 English speaking students as much as possible to develop the children’s English as they see us being at the school as a great opportunity. They do not have student teachers very often and so to have English speaking students is seen as a great resource which the school can use. We have been playing games with the children during recess and looking for any opportunities to talk to the children in a more informal setting. The school also organised a ‘tour of Tai Po’ which involved groups of around 6 or 7 children taking each of the student teachers around the sights of Tai Po. While I thought that I had seen all there was to see in Tai Po as I have been living here for the past 4 months, I was pleasantly surprised to visit areas which the locals were able to give me a better insight to. We visited the Old Railway Museum, the famous temple in Tai Po and the Tai Po Market, which is a surreal place. Seeing chickens, fish and many other things being killed in front of your eyes is not my idea of a Saturday morning well spent....especially when you’re not feeling the best!! The sights and smells of the Tai Po Market certainly made for a very interesting trip. The day was obviously enjoyable for me, getting to know the children better outside of school and meeting some of their parents was a great experience. However I was happy to see how important the day was for the children who took me on the tour. Their confidence grew as the day progressed and they had the opportunity to practice their English skills in a comfortable environment outside the school setting.

Mark and Ronnie

Robbie, Edgar and Jordan

I was also given the opportunity this week to visit some of the children’s homes, experiencing what life is like for them in the home setting and seeing how they are encouraged by their parents to learn the English language. I was able to play games with the children, talk with their parents and enjoy a meal with the family. The families showed great generosity inviting me into their homes and I was extremely grateful for this great opportunity provided by the school. The parents seemed to enjoy the experience of being able to find out more about Northern Ireland and hearing the comparisons between the schooling system in Hong Kong and Britain. The home visits and other arranged activities may have been organised for the benefit of the children, allowing them to practice and develop their language skills, however I am extremely grateful to the school for giving me the opportunity to meet new people and for giving me an insight into how important Hong Kong people view learning the English language. 

Jordan showing his skills on the piano

Since it is our last few weeks in Hong Kong and some of the international students are beginning to leave for home or on their travels, the international office organised a leaving party last Friday. We talked to students who will be coming on exchange programs all over the world next year, looked at pictures from the semester and of course enjoyed some pizza and other party snacks! It was a fitting way to end and to say goodbye to many of my friends and I hope that in the future I will meet some of them again, either through my travels or possibly through my profession. 

HKIEd International Students 2011