Ouch! How then do you recommend we improve the quality of English language teaching in HK? Foreigners tend to keep both their English-language pedagogy and culture under wraps in their international and ESF systems; so by and large local people are kept in their ghetto education system where bad English is cycled through generations of locals. Only the super band one schools get "good" English. What do you think?
Teaching basic English grammar to students is not hard to do. But teaching everyday common use of English is another matter. Very often I find HK students speak English funny, & I'm NOT talking about the accents. They use the wrong words & expressions. And these they can ONLY learn from reading newspapers & books, watching TV or listening to radio shows or practicing with a native English speaker. I guess the HK teachers should do the same thing.
I agree, Chi, with the use of authentic materials in learning. However, I need to point out that there are significant pedagogical and cultural obstructions that prevent the typical HK student from properly accessing and utilizing those learning artifacts - I'll elaborate in my message to you!
under wraps!!! Jesus Christ, NET teachers have been screaming it in the ears of anyone who will listen, but it's the old Hong Klong spilit that prevents HK teachers from listening.
Spoken like a person who is used to mindless rote learning. By the way, congratulations to Hong Kong on their first (half) Nobel prize. With all the good teaching and curriculum in Hong Kong, you would expect at least one full prize. It must be that goo oll Hong Klong spirit..spirit..spilit!
Specifically, from what source did you encounter the majority of job-stress while teaching in Hong Kong?
I was a little shocked by the suicide stat that was quoted but I really have no idea what type of similar metric exists for teachers in other parts of the world.
I'll stop commenting now; I don't want to be too much of a burden. Your channel is likely the most interesting one I have encountered while navigating around Youtube. Keep up the great work.
To answer your question, I had a lot of administrative work, on top of my normal teaching load; that's why, I conjecture, teaching quality is far from being adequate in Hong Kong, because teachers don't have enough time to prepare to teach well. Furthermore, working with obstinate colleagues - I was one myself - doesn't help the situation, especially if you are working for organizational change.
Wow, I feel bad for the teachers in HK. My impression is that Hong Kong work places are always understaffed and tight on budget. If they could reduce the size of the classes, hire more teachers and even let qualified students to do the redundant homework gradings, then it'll allow teachers to have more free time to focus on preparing a better curriculum for the students.
I agree with your liberal viewpoint; Western nations have embraced this vision, at least in the research; but do you think this is what Beijing really wants for Hong Kong? Is Beijing slow to catchup or methodically unmoving?
Even before Hong Kong was administered by the British, its educational system was more or less the same as now. I think way too much time is focused on homeworks and memorizing for exams instead of understanding the core material (like that guy who had to take some assessment exams in the video). The system in HK is just too strict and it probably won't change any time soon. I guess this is one of the major differences between the East and the West :)
Well, I'll throw one more idea at you: do you think Britain really wanted to liberate Hong Kong Chinese people's education? The British, you know, established ESF schools to separate their kids, and their pedagogy, from Hong Kong people's. I agree that nothing has changed, in Hong Kong's education, and in its fate as a colony, first to the British and now to Beijing.
yes in hong kong ther are dumb and lazy teachers too...but thas not rely my pt...my pt is that they must do more work compared to lazy and dumb teachers in america who is always complaining..but dun get my wrong i love my math teacher, shes rely cool and passionate.
If I had a choice between doing a ridiculous amount of work and complaining, or doing less work and complaining, I would choose to do less work and not complain, well, too much. It's tough being a teacher anywhere - especially, in my case, when many of my kids don't know how to learn - so I think teachers should be given slack to complain, though not necessarily all the time because then they're just poor sports. We all need relief sometimes.
wow hk teachers got it bad....and here i got dumb and lazy teachers in amreica complaining.. some of my teachers are good but some of them are so lazy and they dun even know shit
Hey, we have tons of teachers in Hong Kong who don't know anything too - doing a ridiculous amount of work neither translates into quality work nor does it imply that a teacher is hard-working! We have as many dumb and lazy teachers as we have good teachers, I think, so I guess it's important to focus on the good ones and ignore the rest of the lot.
If we continue to have people like Amanda Tann teaching bad English to HK students, their English is not going to improve anytime soon!!
chikeung22000 2 years ago
Ouch! How then do you recommend we improve the quality of English language teaching in HK? Foreigners tend to keep both their English-language pedagogy and culture under wraps in their international and ESF systems; so by and large local people are kept in their ghetto education system where bad English is cycled through generations of locals. Only the super band one schools get "good" English. What do you think?
mckln 2 years ago
Teaching basic English grammar to students is not hard to do. But teaching everyday common use of English is another matter. Very often I find HK students speak English funny, & I'm NOT talking about the accents. They use the wrong words & expressions. And these they can ONLY learn from reading newspapers & books, watching TV or listening to radio shows or practicing with a native English speaker. I guess the HK teachers should do the same thing.
chikeung22000 2 years ago
I agree, Chi, with the use of authentic materials in learning. However, I need to point out that there are significant pedagogical and cultural obstructions that prevent the typical HK student from properly accessing and utilizing those learning artifacts - I'll elaborate in my message to you!
mckln 2 years ago
under wraps!!! Jesus Christ, NET teachers have been screaming it in the ears of anyone who will listen, but it's the old Hong Klong spilit that prevents HK teachers from listening.
Bucktoother 2 years ago
Spoken like a person who is used to mindless rote learning. By the way, congratulations to Hong Kong on their first (half) Nobel prize. With all the good teaching and curriculum in Hong Kong, you would expect at least one full prize. It must be that goo oll Hong Klong spirit..spirit..spilit!
Bucktoother 2 years ago
Yes, I think I met your mother selling fishball..fishball..ha...fishball in MongKok. Hong Kong contexts..now Beijing balls in the mouth hey?
Bucktoother 2 years ago
Specifically, from what source did you encounter the majority of job-stress while teaching in Hong Kong?
I was a little shocked by the suicide stat that was quoted but I really have no idea what type of similar metric exists for teachers in other parts of the world.
I'll stop commenting now; I don't want to be too much of a burden. Your channel is likely the most interesting one I have encountered while navigating around Youtube. Keep up the great work.
TheHolloway1983 2 years ago
No worries; in fact, thank you for commenting!
To answer your question, I had a lot of administrative work, on top of my normal teaching load; that's why, I conjecture, teaching quality is far from being adequate in Hong Kong, because teachers don't have enough time to prepare to teach well. Furthermore, working with obstinate colleagues - I was one myself - doesn't help the situation, especially if you are working for organizational change.
mckln 2 years ago
are u from Australia?
you got the Australia accent!
maybe I'm wrong
stephy19 2 years ago
Nope, I'm an American!
mckln 2 years ago
Aren't most Chinese from Canada?
Bucktoother 2 years ago
Hong Kong Teachers is more agressive to students than Australia in adverage, I studied in both places
FeelFree3 4 years ago
What do you mean by aggressive - physically, verbally, academically or spiritually?
mckln 4 years ago
verbally, they blame students for minor things. I don't mean all of them...
FeelFree3 4 years ago
Wow, I feel bad for the teachers in HK. My impression is that Hong Kong work places are always understaffed and tight on budget. If they could reduce the size of the classes, hire more teachers and even let qualified students to do the redundant homework gradings, then it'll allow teachers to have more free time to focus on preparing a better curriculum for the students.
superyan99 4 years ago
I agree with your liberal viewpoint; Western nations have embraced this vision, at least in the research; but do you think this is what Beijing really wants for Hong Kong? Is Beijing slow to catchup or methodically unmoving?
mckln 4 years ago
Even before Hong Kong was administered by the British, its educational system was more or less the same as now. I think way too much time is focused on homeworks and memorizing for exams instead of understanding the core material (like that guy who had to take some assessment exams in the video). The system in HK is just too strict and it probably won't change any time soon. I guess this is one of the major differences between the East and the West :)
superyan99 4 years ago
Well, I'll throw one more idea at you: do you think Britain really wanted to liberate Hong Kong Chinese people's education? The British, you know, established ESF schools to separate their kids, and their pedagogy, from Hong Kong people's. I agree that nothing has changed, in Hong Kong's education, and in its fate as a colony, first to the British and now to Beijing.
mckln 4 years ago
yes in hong kong ther are dumb and lazy teachers too...but thas not rely my pt...my pt is that they must do more work compared to lazy and dumb teachers in america who is always complaining..but dun get my wrong i love my math teacher, shes rely cool and passionate.
lucirz 5 years ago
If I had a choice between doing a ridiculous amount of work and complaining, or doing less work and complaining, I would choose to do less work and not complain, well, too much. It's tough being a teacher anywhere - especially, in my case, when many of my kids don't know how to learn - so I think teachers should be given slack to complain, though not necessarily all the time because then they're just poor sports. We all need relief sometimes.
mckln 5 years ago
wow hk teachers got it bad....and here i got dumb and lazy teachers in amreica complaining.. some of my teachers are good but some of them are so lazy and they dun even know shit
lucirz 5 years ago
Hey, we have tons of teachers in Hong Kong who don't know anything too - doing a ridiculous amount of work neither translates into quality work nor does it imply that a teacher is hard-working! We have as many dumb and lazy teachers as we have good teachers, I think, so I guess it's important to focus on the good ones and ignore the rest of the lot.
mckln 5 years ago
Teacher Pleasure?? XD
aiko27 5 years ago
pressure or pleasure? haha
adika1 5 years ago